In January, Comfort announced that they will be fitting a ‘Third Eye’ to their cabs in the form of a security camera, to help record information for investigation in case of an accident. Now, ComfortDelGro is taking another step in improving road safety for both cab drivers and pedestrians on the road! Since 18 August Monday, the largest taxi operator have been looking into a new in-vehicle smart camera that can alert cab drivers to potential road hazards.
According to an article on Channel NewsAsia, there will be a six-month trial testing the efficacy of the 38-degree wide-angle smart camera, known as Mobileye, across 30 ComfortDelGro taxis. Situated at the front windshield of the vehicle, the smart camera will make sense of various traffic signs while the vehicle is in motion. It will act on the risks associated with the surrounding traffic environment and produces real-time audio-visual warnings via a 49mm round-shaped display unit to drivers.
For example, if the device detects that the vehicle is keeping close to another vehicle or pedestrian, cab drivers will be alerted with a beep sound, accompanied by a flashing icon of a car or pedestrian.
Thanks to Mobileye‘s proprietary technology, it keeps pedestrians safe on the roads, reduces the risks of road accidents, and saves lives by anticipating possible collisions on the road. This technology is enabled by the object detection algorithm conducted by a monocular camera configuration. Dedicating more than 15 years of research and development and data collected from millions of driving experience, Mobileye’s significant contributions in technology market has earned itself the position of a technological leader.
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Mr Yang Ban Seng, CEO of ComfortDelGro, spoke to Channel NewsAsia and comments that this device acts as “third eye” for our cabbies, who spend most of their days and nights on the road. The primary function of Mobileye is to help our cabbies stay vigilant on the road, for fear of potential road hazards.
Mr Pek Ban Choong, a ComfortDelGro vetaran cabby concurs with Mr Yang’s views. He personally believes that the device will be a useful tool to keep him out of danger on the road. While it is a good idea to rely on the “third eye” for assistance, the driver should remain alert to his surroundings – basic ethics of a good driver, right?
Have you seen these little cameras around?
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