Exploring the Correlation between Physiological States and Driving Behavior on Highways with Integrated ECG Measurements

2025-01-0292

07/02/2025

Features
Event
2025 Stuttgart International Symposium
Authors Abstract
Content
Human driver errors, such as distracted driving, inattention, and aggressive driving, are the leading causes of road accidents. Understanding the underlying factors that contribute to these behaviors is critical for improving road safety. Previous studies have shown that physiological states, like raised heart rates due to stress and anxiety, can influence driving behavior, leading to erratic driving and an increased risk of accidents. In this study, we conducted on-road tests using a measurement system based on the Driver-Driven vehicle-Driving environment (3D) method. We collected physiological signals, specially electrocardiography (ECG) data, from human drivers to examine the relationship between physiological states and driving behaviors. The aim was to determine whether ECG can serve as an indicator of potential risky driving behaviors, such as sudden acceleration and frequent steering adjustments. This information enables automated driving (AD) systems to intervene in dangerous situations. We collected measurements from 22 participants, each tested for 15 minutes on the highway, resulting in a dataset of 330 minutes of physiological data and over 500 km of driving data. The data was segmented into 15-second intervals for detailed analysis. Each segment was labeled twice: physiological states classified as ’stress’ or ’relaxation’ based on heart rate derived from ECG, and driving styles categorized as ’defensive’, ’average’, or ’sporty’ based on CAN-Bus data. Preliminary findings revealed a significant correlation between overall driving behavior on the highway and physiological states. We selected key driving parameters, including velocity, acceleration, lateral acceleration, and yaw rate. We found that acceleration in longitudinal and lateral direction can best indicate driver control and intention, and they vary significantly under two physiological states. This study focuses on how physiological signals change during aggressive driving and aims to establish these signals as indicators for alerting drivers, ultimately reducing the risks of accident associated with aggressive driving behaviors.
Meta TagsDetails
DOI
https://doi.org/10.4271/2025-01-0292
Pages
7
Citation
Ji, D., Flormann, M., Bollmann, J., Henze, R. et al., "Exploring the Correlation between Physiological States and Driving Behavior on Highways with Integrated ECG Measurements," SAE Technical Paper 2025-01-0292, 2025, https://doi.org/10.4271/2025-01-0292.
Additional Details
Publisher
Published
Jul 02
Product Code
2025-01-0292
Content Type
Technical Paper
Language
English