I remember my cousin had an accident where he fell asleep behind the wheel and wrecked his car. I also remember him having a device called the “sleeper beeper” after the incident. As I recall (and this was a long time ago so bear with me), the device went on the drivers ear and would beep like an alarm clock when the drivers head began to dip downwards. Good idea right? Well Fujitsu Labs is releasing an updated version to help keep us all safe from sleepy drivers.

The system will work something like a treadmill. If that doesn’t make much sense, think about when you check your heart rate to see if you are in the proper fat burning/cardio zone. Well the Fujitsu system has similar sensors in the steering wheel that detect when the drivers heart rate begins to regulate, a sign that they are getting ready to doze off. News.cnet.com says that at this point several things could happen:

The windows could automatically roll down, the car’s radio could be turned up, or there could be sensory feedback from the steering wheel to jolt someone awake.

The system isn’t a finished product. Right now, it’s still in the research and development phase, but the company hopes to have production models for consumer vehicles as well as commercial trucks ready by 2010.

Decades after the “sleeper beeper” and it is still a good idea!

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