Review On Drowsy Driving: Becoming Dangerous Problem: Kusuma Kumari B. M

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International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)

ISSN (Online): 2319-7064

Review on Drowsy Driving: Becoming Dangerous


Problem
Kusuma Kumari B. M
Tumkur University, University College of Science, B.H. Road, Tumkur, Karnataka, India

Abstract: Every year, traffic accidents due to human errors cause increasing amounts of deaths and injuries globally. Driver
drowsiness is recognized as an important factor in the vehicle accidents. It was demonstrated that driving performance deteriorates with
increased drowsiness with resulting crashes constituting more than 20% of all vehicle accidents. But the life lost once cannot be re-
winded. In this paper, I discuss basic introduction about drowsy driving. It stars with definition of drowsy driving, its problems, and
effects of lack of sufficient sleep, which is at risk of drowsy driving and how to prevent drowsy driving.

Keywords: drowsy driving, characteristics, problem of drowsy driving, risk of drowsiness, prevention of drowsy driving.

1. Introduction have severe effects on performance, alertness, memory,


concentration and reaction times.
Drowsy driving is an important, but often unrecognized,
traffic safety problem. NHTSA estimates that drowsiness
contributes to more than 100,000 collisions each year,
resulting in over 1,500 deaths and 40,000 injuries.
Drowsiness increases the impairment caused by alcohol.
Teenagers, professional drivers (including truck drivers),
military personnel on leave, and shift workers are at
particular risk.

Drowsiness appears in situations of stress and fatigue in an


unexpected and inopportune way and may be produced by
sleep disorders, certain types of medications, and even,
boredom, for example, driving for long periods of time. The
sleeping sensation reduces the level of vigilante producing
danger situations and increases the probability of an accident Driving while drowsy is a problem almost all driver's have
occurring. experienced. It is a very insidious problem in that it can
affect every driver, and it sneaks up on you. You will see
It has been estimated that drowsiness causes between 10% some statistics below about how many people have been
and 20% of traffic accidents, causing both fatalities dead [2] killed or injured in collisions related to drowsy, sleepy or
and injuries [3], whereas within the trucking industry 57% of fatigued drivers. These numbers are much lower than the
fatal truck accidents are caused by this problem [4],[5]. actual amount because officials do not always know when a
Fletcher et al. in [6] have stated that 30% of all traffic driver has fallen asleep. Often the driver will not admit to
accidents have been caused by drowsiness, and Brandt et al. having fallen asleep, as that would place them at fault and
[1] have presented statistics showing that 20% of all make them liable. Also, if the driver dies before they can
accidents are caused by fatigue and lack of attention. In the give a statement, we will never know that they fell asleep
USA, drowsiness is responsible for 100000 traffic accidents before they crashed. According to a 1998 survey, 23% of
yearly producing costs of close to 12.000 million dollars [7]. adults have fallen asleep while driving [10]. According to
In Germany, one out of four traffic accidents originate from the United States Department of Transportation, male drivers
drowsiness, while in England 20% of all traffic accidents are admit to have fallen asleep while driving twice as much as
produced by drowsiness [8], and in Australia 1500 million female drivers [11].
dollars has been spent on fatalities resulting from this
problem [9]. 2.1 Drowsy Driving is characterized by the following

2. Drowsy Driving  Driving with less than 6-7 hrs of sleep.


 Driving if you have been awake for more than 12 hours.
Drowsy driving, the dangerous combination of sleepiness  Yawning frequently.
and driving or driving while fatigued, and can result from  Trouble keeping your head up.
many underlying causes, including excessive sleepiness,  Difficulty focusing, frequent blinking and heavy eyelids.
sleep deprivation, changes in circadian rhythm due to shift  Unable to remember the last few miles you've driven.
work, fatigue, medications with sedatives and consuming  Missing exits or traffic signs.
alcohol when tired. The cumulative effects of these factors  Drifting from your lane, swerving or tailgating.

Volume 3 Issue 1, January 2014


Paper ID: 02013722
www.ijsr.net 49
International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)
ISSN (Online): 2319-7064

3. Drowsy Driving Problem  Have had less than 7 to 8 hours of sleep.


 Drive after being awake for more than 12 hours.
Drowsy drivers may cause nearly a third of all deadly car  Take medication that causes drowsiness.
crashes according to federal statistics and a study at the  Drive at night or the early afternoon.
University of Pennsylvania Health System proves the  Consistently have difficulty getting to sleep or staying
danger. According to Dr. Michael Grandner “A lot of people asleep at night.
don’t realize that more serious crashes are caused by falling  Have untreated organic sleep disorders such as sleep
asleep at the wheel than alcohol”. “Though we’ve all heard apnea, narcolepsy or periodic limb movement disorder.
of drunk driving, we haven’t heard much about drowsy  Drive frequently for long periods on monotonous
driving, but it’s a major health problem and safety problem highways or rural roads.
[12].”Dr. Grandner, a member of the Center for Sleep and  Work the night shift, especially when driving home after
Circadian Neurobiology, says a survey of more than 17,000 the shift.
people showed that most people need at least seven hours of  Driving alone
sleep each night:
In addition, younger drivers age 16-24 are nearly twice as
While distracted driving has been getting a lot of attention likely to be involved in a drowsy driving crash as drivers age
lately, drowsy driving remains a major risk for motor vehicle 40-59. Men (52%) are also more likely than women (30%) to
crashes. report having ever fallen asleep while driving.
 Two out of every five drivers (41%) admit to having fallen
asleep at the wheel at some point. One in ten said they 5. Prevent Drowsy Driving
have done so in the past year according to a new AAA
Foundation for Traffic Safety Study.
Drowsiness causes: slow reaction times, impaired judgment
 One in six (16.5%) of deadly crashes, one in eight of and vision, decline in attention, decreased alertness,
crashes resulting in a hospitalization, and one in eight out increased moodiness and aggressive behaviour, problems
of fourteen crashes in which a vehicle had to be towed with processing information and short term memory.
involved a drowsy driver. According to the National Sleep Foundation, signs of
 The National Highway Safety Administration estimates drowsiness while driving may include:
that drowsy driving results in 1,550 deaths, 71,000 injuries
and more than 100,000 accidents per year.  Turning up the radio or rolling down the window
 More than half (55%) of drivers who reported falling  Impaired reaction time and judgment
asleep while driving in the past year said they had been
 Decreased performance, vigilance and motivation
driving for less than one hour before falling asleep.
 Trouble focusing, keeping your eyes open or your head up
 Many traffic researchers believe drowsy driving has been
 Daydreaming and wandering thoughts
under-reported and underestimated.
 Yawning or rubbing your eyes repeatedly
 Drifting from your lane, tailgating and missing signs or
4. Risk of Drowsy Driving exits
 Feeling restless, irritable or aggressive
There are many underlying causes of sleepiness, drowsiness,
fatigue and drowsy driving. They include sleep loss from
The best remedy for avoiding drowsy driving is getting
restriction, interruption or fragmentation; chronic sleep debt;
enough sleep, which means 7-9 hours of good quality sleep
circadian factors associated with driving patterns or work
for most adults; however, most people do not get enough
schedules; time on task; the use of sedating medications; and
sleep. According to the 2002 Sleep in America poll
the consumption of alcohol when already tired. These factors
conducted by the National Sleep Foundation, nearly 40% of
have cumulative effects and a combination of any of these
adults sleep less than 7 hours a night.
increases crash risk greatly.
The three best ways to prevent drowsy driving involve
The risk of having a crash due to drowsy driving is not
behaviour choices. First, make sure you get a good night's
uniformly distributed across the population. This is due to
sleep before driving. Sadly, most people don't think about
two factors. First, crashes tend to occur at times in keeping
the effects of failing to get enough sleep until it is too late.
with one’s circadian rhythms when sleepiness is most
Getting up extra early in the morning to start a long driving
pronounced, for example, during the night and in the mid-
trip is not a good strategy. Neither is driving overnight when
afternoon [13]. Thus individuals who drive at night are much
your body would usually be sleeping. Prevention is the best
more likely to have fall-asleep crashes. Second, people who
way to avoid drowsy driving. For that, there is no substitute
are excessively sleepy either because of lifestyle factors or
for sleep. Making it a habit to get a good night's sleep is the
because of an untreated sleep disorder are more likely to
best protection against drowsy driving.
have crashes related to excessive daytime sleepiness.
Research has identified young males, shift workers,
The second way to prevent drowsy driving is to pull off the
commercial drivers and people with untreated sleep
road and get some sleep when you are feeling tired. You
disorders or with short-term or chronic sleep deprivation as
should do this even if you think your driving ability is not
being at increased risk for having a fall-asleep crash.
being affected. Many people think they can overcome being
Individuals at an increased risk of drowsy driving include
drowsy as they are driving. They don't always realize how
those who...
much less alert they are. They can have no idea how close
Volume 3 Issue 1, January 2014
Paper ID: 02013722
www.ijsr.net 50
International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)
ISSN (Online): 2319-7064

they really are to causing a crash. Even if you are only Not only are they putting themselves in danger, but they are
starting to feel sleepy while driving, be safe and pull over. At a risk to everyone else on the road. In this paper, I discussed
the very least, take a short nap to rest your eyes. This will go drowsy driving, its problems, and effects of lack of sufficient
a long way toward keeping you safe. sleep, which is at risk of drowsy driving and how to prevent
drowsy driving.
Third, it is also wise for drivers to avoid alcohol and
medications that can make them tired. Be very careful. Never References
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parameters of the individual's driving behavior (with steering
behavior having proved a particularly telling indicator) a
warning sounds and an alert symbol appears in the Author Profile
instrument cluster so the driver knows it's time for a break.
Some assistance systems are developing to controlling Kusuma Kumari B.M received the M.C.A. degree in
Computer Science from University of Mysore,
accident due to drowsiness. Here one eye blink sensor is
Karnataka, India in 2006 and M.Phil from Vinaya
fixed in vehicle where if driver looses consciousness, then it Mission University, Salem, India in 2009. She is
alerts the driver through buzzer to prevent vehicle from currently pursuing PhD at Tumkur University. 7 Years
accident. of teaching experience and working as an Assistant Professor,
Department of Computer Science in Tumkur University, Tumkur,
7. Conclusion Karnataka, India.

All drivers should learn more about drowsy driving. In fact,


it can be just as dangerous as drunk driving. The results in
terms of damage, injury, and death can be just as permanent.
The risk is obvious when someone falls asleep at the wheel.
But the danger begins long before that. Drivers who are tired
and sleepy have delayed reactions and make bad decisions.

Volume 3 Issue 1, January 2014


Paper ID: 02013722
www.ijsr.net 51

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