Biometrics in cars to ‘radically transform the driving experience’, report predicts

One in three new cars will feature some form of biometric feature by 2025, a report by Frost & Sullivan’s Intelligent Mobility team predicts, with partnerships between automotive OEMs and wearable providers resulting in faster penetration of biometrics into the industry.

Frost & SullivanAdvancements in biometrics are set to “radically transform the driving experience, health wellness and wellbeing, and security of vehicles”, the reports adds.

New passenger vehicles will include biometric identity features such as fingerprint, iris, voice and gesture recognition.

Meanwhile, heart beat and brain wave monitoring, stress detection, fatigue, eyelid and facial monitoring, and pulse detection will increasingly be on offer.

Growth potential

“Urbanisation will continue to fuel emphasis on biometrics-driven advanced driver assistance system features to navigate heavy traffic while ensuring, safety and comfort,” says Frost & Sullivan analyst Joe Praveen Vijayakumar.

Emerging innovators in automotive biometrics highlighted in the report include:

  • Empatica – for its watch to monitor the vital signs of drivers with a history of epilepsy and predict an attack before it happens;
  • Optalert – for eye glasses which use infrared rays to monitor the eyes of the driver to detect the onset of drowsiness;
  • Sober Steering – for sensors which can be embedded in the steering wheel to check if the driver is drunk and whether the alcohol level is within permissible limits.

In the Biometrics in the Global Automotive Industry, 2016–2025 analysis, the authors add partnerships between OEMs and wearable tech providers will allow OEMs to “save on biometrics-related research and development expenditure, while creating growth avenues for wearables companies”.

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