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Usually people start drifting in the lane before they start drifting out of the lane. If you keep drifting from side to side within your lane it will notice you're doing so by looking at the cars position relative to reflective paint bot Bot's dots. The modern systems are now lane keep assist and will actually push the car back into its lane if you're gradually drifting out of it.
It's a bit more complex than that. While the cameras are one part of it, it also tracks your steering inputs, how long you've been driving, whether you've pressed any buttons inside the car for awhile, etc.
It's pretty cool, I've tried to trick it before with no success, but did have it activate on me while driving home from the airport around 2am once and I was tired after a long day.
Worked night shift 12 mid to 12 noon for a few years. My commute route was specifically planned because of all the shopping strips along the way that provided ample opportunities to pull into a parking lot. More than once, I caught myself falling asleep... sometimes by the rumble strips... and pulled into a parking lot. Usually for a 15-30minute nap to get me going again.
One time, I passed out in the parking lot and ended sleeping for 3 hours.
Once in college, I was mentally drained after finals but needed to get home for the weekend. I can't explain it but I ended up "tuning out" and almost mentally asleep on the highway following the a white van in front of me. Must have occurred for quite a few miles. The van, for some reason, started to pull over, flashers on, and begin to come to a stop... (this was before those rumble strips were common). I ended up following him onto the shoulder and snapped out of it with flashers and brake lights.... swerved back into the highway narrowly missing the van. Drove for a few minutes, pulled over, and heart pumping in a cold sweat. When I gathered myself, I realized that I had missed my exit many miles back.
I don't do well on long drives.... usually I get someone else to drive with me... My wife is far better and generally drives 75% of the time on family trips; I do most of the local driving at the destination. I can't explain why but I get drowsy very easily on even medium length drives on the highway. My long commute can be a struggle at times too (1-2hours each way). I do fine when I am out cruising around in nice weather with the convertible top down... enjoying myself... But highway travel.. ugh.
One thing is for sure... truck driver or livery is one job/career path that I'm not going to be safe at.
Just a note to sleepy drivers, chewing on a snack or something that requires swallowing will sometimes wake you up better than anything else. Apparently it's the body's natural response to swallowing to be as awake as possible to prevent choking.
Just be aware the response can be very temporary. (Source: Biological education and over 50 years of driving)
I did one time. I was a senior in high school driving 2 hours for a college visit where the activities started at 7am. I wasn't used to driving that early and didn't get enough sleep the night before. I ran off the road and woke up but could not fully regain control and I had a minor to moderate accident. Was not hurt, so pretty fortunate. Another motorist that witnessed it called 911 and stopped to check on me.
I have fallen asleep once at the end of a long, very rainy 8 hour drive back to University. I almost ended up in a ditch, but the rough edge of the road woke me up in time, I guess.
The conversation about the Assist program made me think of something they were describing on the news the other day. A system that prompted the driver to check in verbally periodically. It then judged subtle changes in speech patterns that indicated drowsiness and told the driver to pull over, etc. They said it was something to consider for long haul truckers in the future.
I have never heard of Attention Assist.
What is it that the computer picks up on to decide you are drowsier ??
Mercedes measures how you drive in the first few minutes to create a profile as to how you drive, inputs like how you are turning the wheel, how you are braking, etc., several indicators. After a while, when the computer notices a change in those benchmarks, an icon appears on the message screen indicating that you may be drowsy. It picks up on things long before I'd ever be to the point of nodding off or drifting, at the point where my eyes may be tired, etc. It's quite an interesting system, and differs from passive systems like lane departure warning systems that alert you when the car is drifting, and can be a preventive measure when used by a responsible driver who does not turn it off or who does not ignore the recommendations. It's much easier to take a 10-15 minute break, get a coffee, run around, and start the trip again than it is to fall asleep and crash.
I like it and request Mercedes rental cars when I am in a different time zone on short notice, times when I am more likely to be drowsy at a different time, and may not notice it. I am not affected too much by jet lag, but the Attention Assist has alerted me to declines in measured inputs when I was on the 405 Freeway because it was about 2AM by my East Coast set body clock, yet only 11PM there. So, I took a break, even though I only had a short distance to go, mileage-wise, but in LA one never knows. Now, I probably would not have fallen asleep, but I appreciated the early warning from the car and had a quick cup of coffee at a Winchell's as they're always open.
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All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
Only once. Worked overnight at a hospital on weekends to help put myself through college. I fell asleep driving home after working all night, hit a side walk, and thankfully promptly woke up without hurting anyone.
I have refused to take an overnight job ever since.
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