Driver fatigue resulting from extended driving workload is an important factor in the accidents on the road. The purposes of this study were to develop a system to detect fatigue symptoms in the driving conditions and to investigate the effect of negative ions on relieve driver fatigue. The driving investigations are carried out on the test track in 24- hour driving task condition by four 20s male volunteers as the drivers and the observers. The results of questionnaires showed the fatigue level increase after 12- hour driving. The results indicate that each group (driver and observer) show different pattern due to workload. The results of critical flicker fusion do not show a significant difference. The pulse heart rate has a high correlation with the sleepiness. The cortisol levels of driver show still high at afternoon and nighttime. It means that driving workload affect driver mental condition and it cause mental fatigue. The driver's voice data have been analyzed and compute Lyapunov Exponents and estimate the fatigue levels of driver. From the comparison between fatigue results and estimated fatigue levels, which analyzed voice data, have some possibility of detecting the driver fatigue levels on road condition.
Samenvatting