Today, Autoblog has a post about a patent from GM for a system that can use onboard sensors to detect how the driver is feeling — and takeover the driving if it thinks the person is unable to focus on the task.
The system creates a baseline of your driving habits and then uses that to detect stress. I don’t have the space to go into all of the details here — go read the AB piece and comeback — but if the system detects stress, it can not just takeover the wheel for you. It can suggest you call a friend, family member, or a therapist. Or it can have you do a “mental health exercise”.
Just because GM filed a patent it doesn’t mean the tech will ever make it to the market. So this is just a thought exercise right now — would you want a system like this in your car?
Part of me understands the logic here — we’ve all had a time where sometime bad or stressful in our lives has affected our focus during a commute. A bad day at work, a loss of a loved one or pet, a breakup, an argument with friends — lots of stuff can weigh so heavily on our minds that we’re not focused on the task at hand.
On the other side of the coin, we’ve covered so many ways that your car can invade your privacy and while I am no Luddite some of the stuff creeps me out.
What about you, dear reader?
Sound off below.
[Image: GM]
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