Member Info for TheLongestShot

Premium European car manufacturer (with 3 spokes) but blink and you miss it)

Talk of optical path, stereo cameras, the accuracy of head position to within 5mm for 3d effect display.

Proprietary LG algorithm, but acknowledged Tier 2 algorithm too.

Now working on DMS and OMS from single camera for cheaper cost.

Note stereo camera for S-Class was to support 3d display that is not available lower in the range.

Abnormal head posture
Hand position classification
Held object classification
Speaking
Laughing
Coughing
Sneezing
Yawning
Smoking

Phone Handling - video conferencing (makes facetime sound so formal!)

Classifications:
Child seat
SEat belt status
Occupant size
Occupant age
GEnder
Presence detection
Recognition - Convenience
Recognition - Security!
Occupant change
Spoofing
Facial expression

Body Pose tracking:
Eye tracking
head tracking
eyelid dynamics
Brightness control
Face searching
Mouth shape

Camera pose estimation
Frozen image detection
Face occlusion
Lens blockage
Low quality image
IR light blockage

No wonder Paul was proud of the features that he was working on and how much more efficient his team is at developing them. Wonder what else is in the pipeline?

Wow, that is a great patent. The moat is now approaching Atlantic proportions. There is no room for reasonable competition in the DMS mirror space!

The detail in the optics and thought that goes into Failure Mode Effect Analysis to derive a better solution to practical problems before they reach the market is fantastic.

The page order in the PDF has gone a little astray, but don't let that stop you from skimming.

Here is a detail of the high level signals provided by Seeing Machines DMS (lets face it, they won't put someone else's code in here)

Emotional State, Cognitive distraction
Disengagement
Visual distraction
Level of Drowsiness
Microsleeping
Sleeping
Visual State
Gesture
head nodding/shaking
Activity

This one was hard to understand.
METHOD FOR VEHICLE EYE TRACKING SYSTEM
Actually it seems to be more about using a Head Up Display to use eye tracking to select a feature with your eyes and confirming with a button, but just as you are selecting with your eyes, a cyclist appears and distracts you.
But the interface knows you were distracted, so doesn't change the feature based on your eye movement. I presume it also filters out the jolt as the cyclist is bdump, bdump run over by the front and rear wheels.

Sometimes, mechanical switches are a better idea!

If anyone else can work out what this was supposed to say I would be great to hear your interpretation

Ok, I have mixed feelings about this. It is almost the gamification of bad driving. Perfect for use with Tesla's "fool's elf driving"

So while the driver is distracted the car keeps score of the seconds, distance driven and hazards missed by the driver. From Fig 4:
"Distraction status:
5.3 s
106 m
15 Vehicles
1 Traffic Signal
3 Traffic Signs
1 Emergency Vehicle
1 School Zone
1 Crosswalk"

At this point any self respecting vehicle should incur very expensive electrical and mechanical failures to prevent future driving:

"Fault detected - Battery overheat, Wiring loom failure, Rear Left Brake seized, coolant lost"

What Esco said.
+1

My backlog is growing too!

SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DETECTION OF MOBILE DEVICE USE BY A VEHICLE DRIVER
This was posted on the 12th by the ever vigilant JC.

Tim Edwards, knocks another one out of the park. Many patents are dreamed up in the bath or the shower, some through brainstorming, others have come from blood, sweat and tears of practical experience. This shows evidence of the latter class.

How to detect a phone in a car is one problem, checking that it is in use by the driver is the key part if you want a positive experience. This patent stands on the shoulders of the bath thinkers and brainstormers by using that vast store of real data and human factors expertise. It goes through the various ways of detecting the phone, then to check that it is the driver that is using it. Once of the key approaches, as you would expect is to track patterns of eye gaze, to determine the relative usage patterns of various Regions Of Interest. It is always advisable to be looking at the road ahead, the instruments and the mirrors, with occasional glances at the passengers, Infotainment controls etc. But regularly glancing at a small area on your your knee, lap, the pocket next to the gear stick or the air vent is a sign that the mobile is in use.

Worth a read while we wait for a proper RNS

Just in case anyone wasn't aware. Seeing Machines are listed in London, but Australian take-over laws apply. So any holder with 10% can block a sale.

Note Magna may not exceed 9.9% ownership with the current deal (wonder why) or rather they can, but it would be expensive as they would need to pay again for their recent tranche option but at market value.

https://seeingmachines.com/investors/aim-investor-information/

So Lombard Odier can block the sale. Until recently VSI or Federated could also block, nothing precludes them topping up to hold 10%. Although macro issues may have forced FH the other way.

Chequebook,
I have studied Seeing Machines, I know Seeing Machines. Seeing Machines is a friend of mine. Checkered Flag, you're no Warren Buffet either.

Invo Tech don't sound like a company that we would be partnering with. separate cameras for DMS, OMS in the front row and another OMS behind, sounds like a 3 systems running separately each not doing a great job

I have discussed the various issues with ToF cameras in the past, but here is a simple one from the EE Times article:
"it features a high system resolution of 640 × 480 pixels (VGA)."

I rest my case your Honour.

Seize, that is just the coffee cup based on steering behaviour. Too early for us anyway.

How does the system work?
It monitors driver behaviour closely – noting any erratic steering wheel movements and lane deviations, for example - so it can judge the moment that you are starting to feel sleepy and need to stop. It also continually evaluates traffic signals on the road when you are driving at speeds of more than 40mph. and works out when it's time to take a break.

How does it warn the driver?
If the system detects that you're starting to lose concentration it will alert you with a visual display on the dashboard and a warning sound. If you haven't taken a break within 15 minutes, the system will repeat the warning.

https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/news/2022/11/01/doug-field-to-discuss-fords-focus-on-software-defined-vehicles-a.html

DOUG FIELD TO DISCUSS FORD’S FOCUS ON SOFTWARE-DEFINED VEHICLES AND SERVICES AT BERNSTEIN CONFERENCE ON NOV. 7
Nov 1, 2022 | Dearborn
 
?
DEARBORN, Mich., Nov. 1, 2022 – Ford Model e Chief Advanced Product Development and Technology Officer Doug Field will participate in a virtual fireside chat with technology analyst Toni Sacconaghi at Bernstein’s 6th Electric Revolution Conference in London on Monday, November 7, 2022, at 10:30 a.m. ET (3:30 p.m. GMT).
Field will discuss how -- under the Ford+ plan for transformation -- technology innovation and software are helping Ford develop breakthrough electric vehicles at scale and strengthen its internal combustion product line up.
He will describe the current customer enthusiasm for Ford’s first EV products and BlueCruise L2 hands-free system, and how the company’s vision for its next generation EVs and L2+/L3 systems is taking shape.
Ford’s talented team of new and existing experts are developing software and digital systems that Ford believes will truly differentiate the brand through incredible customer experiences –and unlock new growth and highly accretive recurring revenue opportunities for the company.
Beyond EVs and BlueCruise, the Model e team is developing an array of software for all parts of the Ford enterprise, including services for Ford Blue’s popular gas-powered vehicles and hybrids, and productivity tools for Ford Pro’s commercial products.
A webcast of the conversation can be viewed online. Additional information is available at shareholder.ford.com.
###

As well as the 3 separate videos, there is also a longer version
https://youtu.be/KiQO3lzcTrI

You can see the camera and LEDs just by Patrick's shoulder, on the cowling around the instruments. You can just see the nearest LED flashing. There is a separate set on the other side. So now we know where to look in other ****pit shots

I just can't think why the VP of Global Program delivery could possibly need another Project Manager. What is she doing with them all?

As for the comment from the VP of Global Quality, has "Smashing it in the world of Driver Monitoring." Is that good or bad, and if it is good? Did the Nomad approve the statement?

Asking for a pescatarian friend who lives under a bridge.
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dhayalan-asoka-mieaust-215b691_project-manager-aftermarket-job-in-fyshwick-activity-6992602889416294400-4jTt

It is a patent for a particular method of processing, it doesn't need to describe effectiveness. Although the more of the face that is obscured, the harder it would be to match a pose to the library. But the details and parameters aren't shared here.

One final point on the Kalman filter for Eye gaze, it will always smooth the eye movement and reduce the perceived angularity of the eye movements. Eyes rarely stay still (you would literally go blind to what you are lookimg at as the chemicals get used up)

So if you try to determine higher order functions based on patterns of eye glissades, you are working with a far lower level of detail, like signing your name while wearing boxing gloves you won't get the level of detail and confidence that a company like BMW would demand

Well we don't get many Smart Eye patents, so let's see what we have. As Esco points out, it does seem strange to mention UV light but that was only an example and not listed in the claim.

So it doesn't mention AI or machine learning, but a library of faces and the direction of gaze for each face, it can even use the face it sees if it is in the library of "lookups" (puntastic) . That is the first order guess for gaze. The second comes from a library of eye features with glints which give a better estimate of gaze, until the eye is looking too far off the camera axis, then it favours the face estimate.

The next part is key, the claims always use a Kalman filter to correct the estimate based on previous estimate and new data. This is like using a hozepipe to spray water at a target. You guess where to point and pull the trigger, then adjust to move the water towards the target. It is always lagging, but as you get closer you make smaller adjustments.

Did you spot the problem, an accurate fix takes multiple frames to become accurate, but the eye has moved on.

Another issue is the library, it is specific to the geometry of the vehicle and the position of the lights and camera relative to the person, so needs retuning for each vehicle. That means they need virtual faces rather than real faces to do the training.

Another issue was that they could use the real driver's gaze characteristics in the library - where would that be stored, the patent said "on-line" good luck with getting that biometric data stored off the vehicle.

Thanks as always to JC for trawling through to find the patents.

Mobileye was everywhere once. A black box with a chip from Intel. But it didn't do DMS and it gave little for OEMs or Tier1s to customise.

That left an opening for Nvidia, Qualcomm, Veoneer, etc to get into and now that market is fragmented.

Seeing Machines *did learn* from those mistakes, multiple possible platforms, scope for customisation and different features for different Tier1s and OEMs as long as they pay for it. We work with many and there are so many routes to install us, we compete at many levels, so there is always a Seeing Machines solution to fit. And we do still have some competition, just enough to keep everyone happy!

Mobileye was everywhere once. A black box with a chip from Intel. But it didn't do DMS and it gave little for OEMs or Tier1s to customise.

That left an opening for Nvidia, Qualcomm, Veoneer, etc to get into and now that market is fragmented.

Seeing Machines didn't learned from those mistakes, multiple possible platforms, scope for customisation and different features for different Tier1s and OEMs as long as they pay for it. We work with many and there are so many routes to install us, we compete at many levels, so there is always a Seeing Machines solution to fit. And we do still have some competition, just enough to keep everyone happy!