Smartphone app to reduce accidents caused by smartphones
A smartphone app that can help reduce accidents caused by people using their smartphones while driving. Sounds ridiculous right? But what if it’s not? Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC), Komeda Co., Ltd. (Komeda), and KDDI Corporation (KDDI) began an initiative on September 20 2016 utilising a smartphone application called Driving Barista.
The application is aimed at reducing the number of traffic accidents in Aichi Prefecture. For thirteen consecutive years, Aichi Prefecture has had the highest rate of traffic fatalities in Japan. In 2015 alone, there were 44,3691 traffic accidents which resulted in injuries or deaths. Furthermore, there were also 50,1011 arrests involving the use of smartphones while driving, and the increase in violations of this nature has also intensified the problem.
This is the first traffic safety initiative in Japan involving a smartphone application, which is carried out and jointly promoted by an automobile company, a communication company, and a food and beverage company.
The Driving Barista application can only be used within Aichi Prefecture. By utilising the gyro sensor to sense the tilt of the smartphone body, and the GPS to determine the distance driven, this application measures the distance the driver has driven while leaving the smartphone facedown. When the cumulative distance reaches 100 km3, the driver can receive a coupon for a cup of blended or iced coffee at a Komeda Coffee Shop.
“South Africa has one of the world’s highest road accident rates with around 25% of these accidents caused by drivers using their cellphones while driving. South Africa is experiencing an increase in accidents caused by using your cellphone while driving resulting in a major economic impact on the country’s GDP. Apps like Driving Barista will assist in reducing road accidents caused by cellphones dramatically, which will not only make our roads safer but will reduce the impact on the economy. Driving Barista is currently in the pilot stage but we hope that similar apps will make their way to South Africa soon,” said Glenn Crompton, Vice President of Marketing at Toyota South Africa Motors.