How Smartphones Can Improve Distracted Driving
January 19, 2012 | Author Don Jacobs, Trial Attorney
Once you stop scratching your head over the headline, read on for a perplexing proposal from Picitup, creators of the smartphone app iOnRoad.
Picitup CEO Alon Atsmon readily admits that not only are 20 percent of traffic crashes caused by distracted driving, but it’s one of the few accident causes on the rise. The main reason for this is the use of smartphones while driving.
So what does Atsmon propose? Use your smartphone, logically.
“We offer a smarter way to solve the problem – not by recommendations and bans but through the smartphone,” says Atsmon.
The iOnRoad app offers collision warnings, and an alert if you drift out of your lane. There’s also an option to have your phone read text messages aloud and automatically start the speakerphone feature when you get a call.
In order to have the app work, you mount your phone on your dash or windshield like a GPS so it can use the phone’s camera to monitor your lanes and distance from other vehicles.
“Let’s take this number one problem and turn it into the number one solution,” says Atsmon. “Our approach is to turn the smartphone into a collision warning system.”
Since you don’t have to look at your phone to get the warnings, this aspect of the app seems like it can be useful, though it also seems like if you understand traffic safety and aren’t falling asleep at the wheel you shouldn’t need a warning that you are drifting out of your lane or are too close to another vehicle.
The help with texting and an automated speaker phone is not as safe, since research shows that even hands-free phone use is a serious distraction risk.
Posted in Dristracted Driving
