The document describes a proposed passenger alerting system called "First Passenger" that was designed by students at IIT Guwahati to help reduce accidents caused by distracted drivers. It works by monitoring a driver's eyes and the surroundings using a camera and infrared sensors, and alerts the driver with sounds and visuals if distractions are detected. The system would also monitor tire pressure and alert the driver of low pressure. Interviews with drivers and an affinity analysis were conducted to understand distractions and identify this as a key problem area. The goal of First Passenger is to help reduce the number of accidents and deaths on Indian roads by alerting distracted drivers.

1. First Passenger- Driver Alerting System
Abhinab Sonowal
IIT Guwahati
Dept. of Design
abhinab@iitg.ac.in
Anmol Singh
IIT Guwahati
Dept. of Design
s.anmol@iitg.ac.in
Sruzan Lolla
IIT Guwahati
Dept. of Design
lolla.sruzan@iitg.ac.in
Manteshori Devi
IIT Guwahati
Dept. of Design
yengkhom@iitg.ac.in
ABSTRACT
The authors in this paper have tried to identify the major
causes of road accident through design research methods.
They have zeroed down on one of the many causes and have
tried to provide a solution in their capacity to reduce the
rising number of deaths every year in road accidents.
Keywords
Road Accidents, Drivers, Design research, Human
Computer Interaction
ACM Classification Keywords
H.5.2- User-Centered Design, H.5.5- Modelling.
INTRODUCTION
Road safety is a multi-sectorial and multi-dimensional
subject. It relies on modern traffic management systems and
practices, improved safety standards in design,construction,
operation and maintenance of roads, and production and
maintenance of safer vehicles. Owing to unsafe conditions
on roads, the rate of accidents in India has been high.
According to WHO statistics for 2010, out of about 1.24
million road accident deaths across the world, 231,087
deaths were reported from India alone [1]. The social cost of
road accidents in India at about 3 per cent of GDP.
Considering the gravity of the situation, there is consensus
that concerted measures are necessary for reducing this high
level of accident deaths and injuries through improved safety
measures and traffic management. In India with the
expansion in road network, motorization and urbanization in
the country, the number of road accidents have surged.Road
traffic injuries (RTIs) and fatalities have emerged as a major
public health concern, with RTIs having become one of the
leading causes of deaths, disabilities and hospitalizations
which impose severe socio- economic costs across the
world.[2]
CAUSES OF ROAD ACCIDENTS
Maximum of the road accidents are caused by human error.
The project specification called for a review of the following
causes [2]
 Over Speeding
 Drunken Driving
 Distractions to Driver
Over Speeding
Most of the fatal accidents occurdue to over speeding.It is a
natural psyche of human to excel. If given a chance man is
sure to achieve infinity in speed. But when we are sharing
the road with otherusers we will always remain behind some
or other vehicle. Increase in speed multiplies the risk of
accident and severity of injury during accident.
Drunken Driving
Consumption of alcohol to celebrate any occasion it’s
common. But when mixed with driving it turns celebration
into a misfortune, Alcohol reduces concentration.
Distraction to Driver
The distraction while driving could be minor but it can cause
major accidents. Distraction could be outside or inside the
vehicle. The major distraction now a day is talking on mobile
while driving. Act of talking on phone occupies major
portion of brain and the smaller part handles the driving
skills.
Some of the distraction on road is
 Adjusting mirrors while driving
 Stereo/Radio in vehicle
 Animals roaming on the road
 Banners and billboards
SAFETY FEATURES IN VEHICLES
Over the years car manufacturing companies have
introduced various safety features to keep their customers
happy and safe. We wanted to know about the latest safety
feature existing in market, so we had to conduct stakeholder
interviews to know what was economically feasible. In a
business context, a "stakeholder" is a person or organization
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2. that has a legitimate interest in a project or entity. We
interviewed a car designerand gained insights regarding the
safety installations in a multi axle vehicle and their
installation cost to the manufacturer. Some of the high end
technologies which come factory fitted with the vehicle are
 Adaptive Cruise Control
 Forward collision avoidance system
 Autonomous braking
 Adaptive headlights
 Backup camera
 Parking assist
PERSONA HYPOTHESIS
Persona hypothesis is a first cut at defining the different
kinds of users for a product. Stakeholders’ interview gave us
an insight in identifying potential users to interview.
Personas were created to provide basis for initial interview
planning.
Figure 1. Persona of a taxi driver
CONDUCTING USER INTERVIEWS
Based on the persona hypothesis,users such as bus drivers,
cab drivers, etc. of different age groups were interviewed.
These interviews were then analyzed to gain an insight into
the general behavior of the drivers.
AFFINITY ANALYSIS
The statements made by the users were examined and
observed.The interviews were compiled and were put up in
paper to analyze the users’ statements.A problem point was
arrived upon which needed the call for action.
Figure 2.Affinity Analysis
PRODUCT OVERVIEW
After conducting the affinity analysis, we saw that the
problem was distraction which generally leads to accidents
on the road. ‘First Passenger’ is our attempt in alerting
distracted drivers of vehicles and thus preventing road
accidents.
Apart from alerting distracted drivers the product also
displays vital information like air pressure inside the tires of
the vehicles.

3. Fig: Indoor unit of First Passenger
WORKING OF ‘FIRST PASSENGER’ ALERT SYSTEM
The product comprises of pressure sensors,infrared sensors
and an indoor unit which is to be fitted right in front of the
driver on the dashboard. The indoor unit is very small
(6cm X 3cm) and comprises of low air pressure in tires
indicator, high speed indicator and a camera.
Low air pressure indication system
Four air pressure sensors are fitted on the wheels of the
vehicle, to constantly monitor the air pressure in the tires. If
there is a drop in the air pressure in any of the tires then the
sensordetects it and the low air pressure indicator in the
cabin unit changes color from grey to red.
Fig: Indoor unit displaying low air pressure in tyres
Distraction alert system
The camera in the indoorunit monitors the eyes of the driver.
If the camera detects that the eyes of the driver are on
something else other than the road, then it activates the
infrared sensor, which in turn scans the surroundings of the
car while in motion. If any obstacle of considerable size
appears within a range of 30 meters, the sensordetects it and
the indoor unit starts to beep to get backthe driver’s attention
on the road.
Fig: Scanning of the infrared sensor
CONCLUSION
First Passengerif developed can help reduce accidents to a
great extent as distraction is one of the major reasons for
the death of people on the road. We have through this paper
tried to provide a solution to this problem of distraction by
using research methods such as userinterviews, affinity
analysis, etc. and prototyping the product First Passenger.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to thank our Guide, Mr. Keyur Sorathia,
Asst.Professor,Department of Design, IIT Guwahati for
helping us by providing the necessary inputs required for
the project.
We would also like to thank the interviewees for taking out
their precious time to give us an insight into their daily
lives.
REFERENCES
1. WHO Number of road traffic deaths
http://www.who.int/gho/road_safety/mortality/traffic_d
eaths_number/en/
2. Road safety and Traffic Management-Infrastructure
http://www.infrastructure.gov.in/pdf/Road_Safety.pdf