The driver under the watchful eye of the camera. New systems can control and influence the behavior of truckers

Vsafe and Scania Zone cameras are ideas that have recently become loud in the transport environment. These are two systems that are to significantly improve safety and reduce the number of accidents on the roads. As? By continuously monitoring the driver's behavior and the way he or she drives.

The first solution is the Vsafe camera system from the Brazilian company Veltec. The equipment, consisting of two cameras, will continuously monitor the behavior of the driver in the cabin. The cameras track eye movements, allowing the system to instantly detect dangerous driver behavior such as distraction, fatigue or drowsiness. In addition, the system will react when it detects that the trucker is talking on the phone or holding a cigarette, instead of keeping his hands on the steering wheel.

All recorded videos are available to the fleet owner on the website with limited and protected access (after logging in). Thanks to this solution, the boss will be able to monitor the work of his driver without any problems.

Vsafe cameras can also be installed inside the trailer or outside the vehicle. This option will allow the driver to see what is happening around and inside his truck. The set also includes a display on which the trucker has a view from external cameras. As soon as the system detects abnormal behavior, an alarm sound will be heard from the device

Cameras in the cabin - less dangerous situations

Let us recall that a similar solution was tested in the Netherlands in 2016. As part of the pilot program, cameras with the eyeball tracking option were installed in over 500 trucks. In this way, the originator, the Dutch insurance company TVM, wanted to check by how many percent the number of accidents on Dutch roads will decrease. This idea turned out to be quite controversial. There were various voices, mainly dissatisfied drivers who did not want to be watched non-stop at work.

However, the statistics presented by the truckstar.nl portal speak for themselves - the observed drivers behave much safer on the road. As shown by the data collected from the tests of 50 trucks of one of the transport companies participating in the tests, the total number of accidents and dangerous situations has decreased by more than 50 percent. (from 8,000 to 3,800 a week)!

The boss will decide how fast you have to go

Another interesting solution that may affect the work of drivers is the Scania Zone system. It should be of particular interest to drivers who drive in urban areas. It is a solution that allows you to imposing a certain speed.

A new option from Scania allows you to assign a specific rule for a specific vehicle to a predefined area. Thanks to this, the system is to prove itself in places where, under normal conditions, vehicles must use e.g. to speed limits, clean transport zones or to rules in areas with low noise levels.

The Scania Zone option can be set in large geographic areas and in smaller urban zones. When the trucks reach the end of the designated zone, the vehicle will automatically return to normal operation. As the manufacturer points out, the solution is to help drivers comply with applicable regulations and increase the safety of other road users.

Scania Zone is an additional function to the Scania Fleet Management telematics system. A company owner who has access to it can easily impose the pace of driving in a given area to the driver. However, according to information provided by Scania - any driver can ignore such a restriction, driving faster than the set speed.

Photo Veltec