31 July 2012

Alabama to Become 38th State to Ban Texting While Driving

William Messerschmidt
Principal Technical Analyst
MSC

Tomorrow, 01 August 2012, Alabama will become the 38th State to ban texting while driving. This new law was authored by Representative Jim McClendon of Springville. According to the Birmingham News and AL.com, Rep. McClendon (who is a doctor of optometry) worked on this bill for six years prior to seeing it passed.

The law states:
A person may not operate a motor vehicle on a public road, street, or highway in Alabama while using a wireless telecommunication device to write, send, or read a text-based communication. (Read the full text from the Legislature.)
The law offers four exceptional circumstances when it is permitted:
  • Dialing a phone number to make a voice call is still permitted. 
  • Texting, emailing, and using an Internet browser is permitted if you are parked on the shoulder of the roadway. 
  • You may use text communications to obtain emergency services, such as police, fire, paramedics, or other emergency health services.
  • You made read the screen of a GPS device while driving, but not program locations and coordinates. 
Violating the new law will be worth two points on a driver’s license, and fines will be $25, $50, and $75 dollars (for the first through third and subsequent offenses), and the law can be enforced by State Troopers, city police officers, and a county’s Sheriff’s office.

Although the author of this post is uncertain how emergency police, fire, or health services would be obtained by text messages and email, the law very likely has the ability to save lives and property. Furthermore, only five states in the US allow drivers to send text messages while driving (technically, there is no state law in Hawaii, but each county in Hawaii has an ordinance against it).

View a map created by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety of states that have banned texting and driving.

27 July 2012

Benjamin Smith to Present at North Texas IASIU

Kelly Messerschmidt
Technical Communications Manager 
MSC

Benjamin Smith of Messerschmidt Safety Consultants will present to the North Texas Chapter of the International Association of Special Investigation Units (IASIU), on 20 August 2012, in Dallas, Texas.

The main focus of Smith's presentation will be on proper lighting and flash techniques for low-light environments. The presentation will also include the general principles of forensic photography, digital camera functions, and RAW file processing. Additionally, Smith will discuss modern, high and low dynamic range techniques that can be used for evidence detail enhancement and proper image exposure.

The presentation, titled “Forensic Photography,” is part of the North Texas IASIU’s continuing education program, and Smith’s presentation materials have been submitted for certification by the State of Texas for the Texas Department of Insurance.

Learn more the forensic photography services MSC provides.

18 July 2012

In-Vehicle Technologies to Detect Drivers' BAC

Cat Messerschmidt
Summer Intern
MSC

Vehicles are built with improved safety features year to year with the goal of preventing accidents and reducing injuries. However, despite our having safer vehicles, according to the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS) website, since 1997, about a third of all drivers who are fatally injured in accidents had blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) at or in excess of the US legal limit of 0.08 g/dL.

In order to help prevent accidents, DADSS has been researching and developing non-intrusive methods for checking a driver’s BAC using in-vehicle technology. The systems they are researching and exploring to measure a driver’s BAC would utilize a touchpad in the steering wheel or gearshift that sends infrared light rays through the driver’s skin, as well as a breathing sensor that is located in the steering wheel. These technologies would prevent the car from being driven when the driver’s BAC exceeds the US legal limit.

According to DADSS, one of the program’s goals is to have a research vehicle available by 2013. However, they anticipate eight-to-ten years as being the earliest that one could expect to be able to see this technology in a consumer-grade vehicle.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)’s Vice President JT Griffin has stated MADD’s views on the subject of in-vehicle alcohol detectors as follows: “Drunken driving costs the U.S. $132 billion each year, and we think that $5 million… is a good use of transportation dollars to potentially eliminate the problem.”

Read a USA Today article (29 June 2012) on this subject.

06 July 2012

Adaptive Headlights Crash Avoidance Feature Shown to Yield Benefits


Kevin Jones
Technical Analyst
MSC


Crash avoidance technologies used by auto industry manufacturers appear to be showing some promise, according to insurance claims analyses performed by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI). Over the past few years, some select manufacturers have been placing features in cars that were designed to help drivers avoid crashes. Some of these features include lane departure warnings, blind spot detection, and adaptive headlights.

Adaptive headlights, which are offered by manufacturers that include Acura, Mazda, Mercedes, and Volvo, were shown to be one of the most promising crash avoidance features when it comes to decreasing dollars spent on auto property damage and injury claims. While regular headlights are stationary, adaptive headlights are designed to respond to driver steering, speed, and other factors, and adjust according the vehicle’s travel direction. Based on data from the study, the HLDI’s expectations for this feature were met and exceeded.

On the other hand, the HLDI analysis showed that some of the crash avoidance features that were added did not yield the results that were expected. More analysis is still necessary to determine why the frequency of collision and property damage claims did not fall with other avoidance features.

To learn more about the study please read an HLDI news release, dated 03 July 2012.