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Feasibility study on driver's stress detection from differential skin temperature measurement
T Yamakoshi1, K Yamakoshi, S Tanaka
1Graduate School of Natural Sci. & Tech., Kanazawa Univ., Kanazawa, Japan. takehiro@kenroku.kanazawa-u.ac.jp
Monitoring driver stress is crucial for road safety. This study suggests differential skin temperature, specifically truncal versus peripheral, can indicate driver stress during monotonous driving.
Area of Science:
- Physiological monitoring
- Human factors in transportation
Background:
- Prolonged monotonous driving can decrease driver awareness and increase stress, elevating accident risk.
- In-car monitoring of driver physiological status offers potential to mitigate dangerous driving situations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate differential skin temperature measurement as a potential marker for driver stress levels.
- To explore the relationship between skin temperature variations and cardiovascular hemodynamics during simulated monotonous driving.
Main Methods:
- Acquisition of physiological variables including facial skin temperature (truncal and peripheral), blood pressure, cardiac output, total peripheral resistance, and normalized pulse volume.
- Subjects underwent simulated monotonous driving under controlled environmental conditions.
- Analysis of skin temperature reactivity in conjunction with cardiovascular measurements.
Main Results:
- Simulated monotonous driving led to a decrease in peripheral skin temperature (Ts) post-stress.
- This peripheral temperature drop is attributed to peripheral sympathetic activation, supported by total peripheral resistance and normalized pulse volume data.
- Truncal skin temperature remained unaffected by the driving stress.
Conclusions:
- Differential truncal-peripheral skin temperature shows promise as an index for assessing driver stress.
- This finding supports the development of in-car systems for monitoring driver physiological status to enhance road safety.
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