Prediction of motorcyclist stress using a heartrate strap, the vehicle telemetry and road information

The number of motorcycles on the road has increased in almost all European countries according to Eurostat. Although the total number of motorcycles is lower than the number of cars, the accident rate is much higher. A large number of these accidents are due to human errors. Stress is one of the main reasons behind human errors while driving. In this paper, we present a novel mechanism to predict upcoming values for stress levels based on current and past values for both the driving behavior and environmental factors. First, we analyze the relationship between stress levels and different variables that model the driving behavior (accelerations, decelerations, positive kinetic energy, standard deviation of speed, and road shape). Stress levels are obtained utilizing a Polar H7 heart rate strap. Vehicle telemetry is captured using a smartphone. Second, we study the accuracy of several machine learning algorithms (Support Vector Machine, Multilayer Perceptron, Naive Bayes, J48, and Deep Belief Network) when used to estimate the stress based on our input data. Finally, an experiment was conducted in a real environment. We considered three different scenarios: home-workplace route, workplace-home route, and driving under heavy traffic. The results show that the proposal can estimate the upcoming stress with high accuracy. This algorithm could be used to develop driving assistants that recommend actions to prevent the stress.The research leading to these results has received funding from the “HERMES-SMART DRIVER” project TIN2013-46801-C4-2-R funded by the Spanish MINECO, from the grant PRX15/00036 from the Ministerio de Educación Cultura y Deporte and from a sabbatical leave by the Carlos III of Madrid University

COVID-19 and its effects on the driving style of spanish drivers

Spain is one of the countries most affected by COVID-19. Until May 5, 2021 there have been 3.54 million people infected and 78,399 deaths according to the Johns Hopkins Institute. This has meant that Spain is one of the countries in the world where the most restrictive measures have been adopted and which have had a strong impact on the economic, social, and mental health of citizens. One of the consequences of this pandemic is a severe increase in the strain on the healthcare system. Many of those infected had to be admitted to hospitals and even to Intensive Care Units (ICU). In this scenario, it is essential to reduce traffic accidents in order to avoid overcrowded hospitals. However, the Spanish General Directorate of Traffic highlights in several traffic reports that despite the decrease in the volume and distance of trips, the number of traffic accidents has not altered significantly and even during some periods has been higher than before the pandemic. The aim of this work is to establish if there has been a change in the driving style of drivers during the pandemic and to identify the group of people adopting a more inefficient and unsafe driving style. To this end, a study was carried out with 30 volunteers and their current driving style was compared with their driving style before the pandemic. The results show that drivers have adopted a more aggressive driving style than before the pandemic, especially women and those who have suffered anxiety due to COVID-19.5311-8814-F0ED | Sara Maria da Cruz Maia de Oliveira PaivaN/