distraction

Rather than write regulations, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released finalized guidelines for automakers to build cabin electronics into vehicle that will not distract drivers. These guidelines come after a comment period on a draft release by NHTSA last year.

NHTSA included its responses to comments and the new guidelines in a 281 page PDF made available on its Web site.

In justification of the new guidelines, NHTSA revealed that a recent test of distracted driving it conducted showed that texting doubled the risk of a 'near-crash' over attentive driving. While the test found that manually operating a … Read more

When fines and warnings don't work, police may want to consider another tactic to stop distracted driving: confiscate mobile devices.

Thanks to a new law in Cape Town, South Africa, police have started confiscating mobile phones of motorists caught talking or texting while driving, reports the Cape Times. It's legal for motorists to use hands-free devices to operate mobile phones, but using handheld phones behind the wheel can result in a 500 Rand ($60) fine, or up to three years in jail, or both. However, officials say they give out 8,000 fines each month, and haven't … Read more

One of the newest Siri features isn't for the iPhone, but for vehicles that will integrate this natural language voice command service.

Apple announced today at its annual developer's conference, WWDC 2012, that several automakers have signed on to implement Siri's "Eyes Free" feature in their vehicles. BMW, General Motors, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, Honda, and Audi will enable drivers to integrate Siri with their vehicle's electronics system, and access the mobile assistant using a steering wheel button.

From the photo shown during the keynote address, it appears Siri--or Siri-like technology--could get its own button on … Read more

It's a completely new way to capture pictures that moves the process of focus, composition, and even interpretation from the photographer to the viewer. Ren Ng is the founder of startup Lytro in Silicon Valley, where they are building this new kind of camera and new kind of mindset to go with it.

The things Lytro exposes in consumer photography have always been just a little out of the grasp of the mainstream photographer. By making them simple, this company's technology could popularize some of the finer points of photography like depth of field and perspective control. Biggest challenges? Definitely the smartphone and the flight to convenience, social connectivity and low commitment that it represents. … Read more

You may want to think twice about responding to a text the next time you're behind the wheel -- a Massachusetts court set a precedent by convicting a teenager of vehicular homicide for texting while driving.

Today a jury found Haverhill, Mass. resident Aaron Deveau, 18, guilty of vehicular homicide for a distracted driving accident he caused last year that took the life of Donald Bowley, according to CBS Boston. The car driven by the New Hampshire father of three was struck head-on by Deveau's vehicle when the young driver swerved across the center line.

Deveau, who was … Read more

A New Jersey judge ruled today that a person sending a text message cannot be held liable for an ensuing car accident caused when the recipient replied to it, a CBS New York article reported.

Shannon Colonna was recently named in a lawsuit brought by two motorcyclists injured in a distracted-driving accident in 2009. David and Linda Kubert each lost part of their left legs when a truck driven by Kyle Best struck their motorcycle. Best pleaded guilty to using a handheld cell phone while driving, careless driving, and failure to maintain a lane, and was sentenced to $775 in … Read more

California is not known as a carmaking state, but every carmaker is here. And few have been in Silicon Valley longer than Volkswagen Group with its Electronics Research Lab. There they try to crack the code on loading cars up with social media, connected navigation, portable integration, and more without distracting you to death.

I spent a day with wide-ranging access to the VW lab, in conversation with its director, Peter Oel. I came away with the impression that VW, like the rest of the industry, feels the tech cat is out of the bag and we aren't going back to a day when our cars are digital ghettos. That's also because carmakers know that high-touch technology is a key way they'll clobber their competitors, but they also keep their eye on the rear view as the government makes more and more noises that sound like distraction regulation. … Read more

Two victims seriously injured in a distracted driving accident are suing not only the man looking at his mobile phone when he should have been driving, but also the person sending him text messages. A New Jersey judge will rule later this month if a text message sender can be held liable for a distracted driving accident, according to an article in the Daily Record.

In 2009, David and Linda Kubert were struck head-on by a truck as they rode their motorcycle. The driver of the truck, Kyle Best, was texting back and forth with Shannon Colonna when the vehicle … Read more

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood wants a federal law banning talking or texting on a cell phone while driving.

Yesterday at an event in San Antonio, Texas, he called for tough federal legislation that would deal with what he called a "national epidemic" of distracted driving, according to a Reuters report. LaHood told a group of doctors, government officials, and other advocates for bans on cell phone use while driving that police should have "the opportunity to write tickets when people are foolishly thinking they can drive safely or use a cell phone and text and … Read more