It is always recommended for one to get an adequate amount of rest before embarking on a long road trip the next day, as a few seconds of micro-sleep could spell a looming disaster. After all, a few seconds of falling asleep at the wheel is all it takes for one to get involved in an accident, where there might be serious injury or even death under the more extreme circumstances. Having said that, many a tool has been employed in the past to make sure that drowsy drivers are adequately alerted so that they will pull over at the next rest stop and take a break, or have other passengers in the car take over the wheel.
Mercedes-Benz has already come up with a system that warns drowsy drivers some years back, while Ford’s Lane Keeping System also does the same should you veer off course in your drowsiness. The Eyetracker system is another possible solution, while Denso also has a couple of answers up their sleeves. The Cafe Amazon Drive Awake app is another such possible solution, where this app is able to tell whether the driver is drowsy behind the wheel or not, alerting you via an audio cue. The app will direct you to the nearest cafe for a caffeine pick-me-up should it find that you are not fit to be behind the wheel at the moment. Make sure your compatible device running the app is mounted onto your windshield without your face being obstructed, and it will then monitor your head and eye motions for signs of drowsiness constantly. I do wonder what kind of battery life will this app consume if the camera on your device needs to be turned on throughout the journey. [Cafe Amazon]