Ask HN: Hacks for better driving behaviour? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Hacks for better driving behaviour?

2 pointsTzunamitom3 comments

I've been thinking recently that a lot of money is being spent on hi-tech solutions so make driving safer, but we're still quite a few years away from taking the danger out of driving. In the meanwhile, the most failure-prone component is often between the steering wheel and the driver's seat. What are some really simple technology solutions that would drastically improve driver behavior?

Here are some that I thought of:

- Brake lights that increase in intensity the harder you brake. - Smiley face on dashboard that becomes sad when fuel consumption is high (high fuel consumption generally equates to worse driving). - Boxes that monitor and log your driving pattern using accelerometers and GPS, and which can be viewed by your family online (or be shared with the insurance company voluntarily in return for a score-based premium adjustment). - Music systems that automatically reduce volume or switch to classical music when you speed. - Teaching driving efficiency as part of the driving lessons/testing process in order to ensure that drivers get into habits of economically efficient driving early on - Color-changing paint that highlights to other drivers when you have recently been driving recklessly

Proportional brake lights: Many already do this.

Fuel Consumption Monitor: Many cars offer something like this (particularly hybrids) and it's almost standard now.

Insurance GPS: Progressive offers this service, called "Snapshot", already.

Music Systems: Neat idea but will detract from sales/create a market for modded stereos that don't do this. Plus, I always crash when I hear classical music. :-)

Teaching Driving Efficiency: Will be hard to demonstrate efficacy; they teach you not to exceed the speed limit and that doesn't work so well.

Polychromatic paint to shame reckless drivers: Interesting, but expensive, and perhaps a bit too arbitrary. Don't know if I should have to drive a yellow car after swerving to avoid a squirrel. And my car's already yellow.

I'll add: A nodding sensor. As people nod off from sleep deprivation, an audible "you are nodding" sound and a speed limiter to 25mph will kick on in 1 minute, prompting an exit/pull-over and a nap.

And perhaps an eye detector, like on a Kinect. If the line of sight between your pupil and the sensor on your dashboard is interrupted for more than 5 consecutive seconds, an alarm goes off. Would make texting while driving less fun.

Fuel Consumption Monitor: Many cars offer something like this (particularly hybrids) and it's almost standard now.

A friends car does this and the sweet spot is 63-64 MPH. Typically you can drive 62 and not get pulled over, but 64 is pushing it. She's been pulled over multiple times and she drives this because she gets the positive feed back that is getting better gas milage. She had gone a long time without getting pulled over before this, because she typically doesn't speed. But now, it's like she is playing a game.

Proportional brake lights - nice, I didn't realise there was a name for them. Do you know of any cars that use them? I don't think I've ever seen them.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com