Driver monitoring systems that detect whether the driver is distracted or asleep at the wheel have become an almost mandatory part of modern cars. But drivers in China say these systems have a hard time reading their faces.
Previous driver condition monitoring systems worked through sensors on the steering wheel and detected inappropriate movements. New versions of the system use data from cameras aimed at the driver. But at the same time, they do not distinguish whether the driver’s eyes are open or closed.
According to Carnewschina, Weibo blogger @DerekTLM complained that he had been deducted from driving points several times because the monitoring system in his XPeng thought he was being distracted from driving.
To be clear, Navigation Guided Pilot XPeng gives car owners 100 points when they sign up for an account, then deducts points for misconduct. It is impossible to sleep at the wheel with the autopilot on (it is necessary to follow the road), and if the driver’s eyes are closed, the system deducts points.
“I repeat, I have small eyes, I do not fall asleep while driving,” Weibo wrote @DerekTLM on the social network. “Don’t we people with small eyes deserve the right to use a navigation pilot (NGP)?”
Chang Yan, another Chinese auto blogger with 1.2 million followers, said he had the same problem with NGP. Incidentally, in 2018 he tested the autonomous driving GM Super Cruise system in the US and found that the system could barely read his face.