``Life-Saving Wake-Up Call'' to Inattentive and Drowsy Drivers
DETROIT--Jan. 6, 2003--Vehicle Safety System Helps Reduce Accidents and Save Thousands of Lives By Emitting "Rumble Strip" Sound To Alert Drivers of Impending
Danger
Iteris Inc., a subsidiary of Odetics Inc. , today announced the availability of the automotive industry's first-ever, mass-produced Lane Departure Warning System to the North American and European OEM market.
Iteris believes that its Iteris(TM) Lane Departure Warning System will help reduce the more than 1.5 million automobile accidents caused by inattentive or drowsy drivers every year in the United States and address the nation's single largest cause of automotive-related highway fatalities -- unintended lane changes.
The Iteris Lane Departure Warning System is a small, integrated unit consisting of a camera, onboard computer and software that easily attaches to the windshield, dashboard or overhead -- out of the driver's sight. The system is designed to alert drivers if they are drifting out of their lane, giving them time to correct the situation in a controlled manner. The Lane Departure Warning System is programmed to recognize the difference between the road and lane markings.
The unit's camera tracks visible lane markings and continually feeds the information directly into the unit's computer, which combines this data with the vehicle's speed. Using image recognition software and Iteris proprietary algorithms, the computer can predict when a vehicle begins to drift toward an unintended lane change.
When this occurs, the unit automatically emits the commonly known rumble strip sound, alerting the driver to make a correction before danger occurs. By using the turn signal, a driver indicates to the system that a planned lane departure is intended which disables the alarm.
"Iteris' Lane Departure Warning System is a breakthrough product for the automotive industry and we believe it has the potential to be the most significant safety innovation for passenger cars since the advent of the seatbelt," said Francis Memole, vice president, business development and marketing for Iteris.
"What makes our product effective is its preventative nature. It not only notifies a driver that they have drifted from their lane, it warns them early enough to give them time to react to a situation before it's too late."
A National Tragedy
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), more than 43 percent of all fatal accidents reported in 2001 involved a lane or road departure. This statistic increases every year making it the single largest cause of automotive highway fatalities in the United States alone.
The NHTSA estimates that more than 1.5 million police-reported crashes involve some form of driver inattention -- the driver is distracted, asleep or fatigued, or otherwise "lost in thought." Driver distraction is one form of inattention and is a factor in more than half of these crashes. The presence of a triggering event distinguishes a distracted driver from one who is simply inattentive or "lost in thought."
According to the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, nearly 300,000 distracted drivers are involved in serious crashes annually -- making the phenomenon one of the most serious public health hazards of the 21st century.
The sound that Iteris' Lane Departure Warning System emits can significantly aid drivers during these potentially dangerous times. In a report to Congress on March 15, 1999, the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research validated that only one type of device can alarm or awaken drivers who are drowsy or asleep -- shoulder rumble strips placed on high-speed, controlled-access and rural roads.
Rumble strips on the outside of the road have been proven to reduce lane departure accidents by as much as 55 percent.
"With over 155,000,000 kilometers of use in over 2,000 commercial trucks in Europe, Iteris' Lane Departure Warning System is a proven product that we believe can become as much a part of overall vehicle safety as airbags and ABS brakes," said Memole. "We designed the system to offer drivers 'virtual rumble strips' on every lane of every road, and on both sides of the vehicle."
A Proven Solution to Enhancing Driver Safety
Developed in conjunction with DaimlerChrysler, Iteris' Lane Departure Warning System is the first of its kind in the United States and Europe to be designed for passenger cars. The safety system was originally developed for use on commercial trucks because truckers typically travel long distances and can become susceptible to drowsiness or fatigue, which increases the probability of an accident resulting from an unintended lane change.
Iteris' Lane Departure Warning System has been successful in the European heavy truck market since 2000 when Mercedes began installing the system in its Actros trucks. MAN Trucks, also based in Europe, offers the technology as optional equipment on its new trucks.
North America's leading heavy truck manufacturer now offers Iteris' Lane Departure Warning technology as a factory-installed option on two of its truck models.
In addition, Cargo Transporters, a trucking and logistics company that specializes in truckload dry van freight and Praxair Inc., a Fortune 500 company that supplies atmospheric, process and specialty gases, high-performance coatings, and related services and technologies, both currently specify the Lane Departure Warning technology on all their new truck purchases.
"Safety remains a top priority for automotive manufacturers and Iteris is dedicated to developing advanced features that will continue to enhance the safe operation of vehicles around the world," said Memole. "We believe that our Lane Departure Warning System can play a significant role in reducing the number of accidents due to unplanned lane changes and can potentially save thousands of lives every year."
Earlier this year, Volvo featured the Iteris Lane Departure Warning System on its Safety Concept Car (SCC) that toured around the world promoting the theme of "superior vision." The Volvo SCC demonstrated a variety of technologies that enhance personal security and improve passive and active safety systems, thus leading the way to a new dimension in the research and development of car safety. With its Safety Concept Car, Volvo Cars and Ford Motor Co. helped demonstrate the viability of the latest vision-enhancing safety technologies in cars of the future.
In developing technology that promotes safety for the automotive industry, Iteris combines its world-class technology expertise in video image processing, intelligent transportation systems and software development to introduce additional sensory features to future versions of its Lane Departure Warning System.
About Iteris Inc.
Iteris, a subsidiary of Odetics, is the technology leader in Systems and Sensors that optimize the flow of traffic and enhance driver safety. Iteris has combined outdoor image processing, traffic engineering, and information technology to offer a broad range of transportation and safety solutions. If you are interested in viewing more information on Iteris, visit the Web site at www.iteris.com.
About Odetics
Odetics products address the security and data management needs of the transportation, defense, facility security and broadcast industries. Odetics is a market leader for video-based sensors used for surface transportation, a developer of integrated systems for facility security and trace detection of dangerous chemicals and explosives, and is a provider of automation systems to the broadcast industry.
Odetics is also a leading provider of equipment built around specific government mandates for secured communications. Odetics has headquarters in Anaheim. Investors are encouraged to contact the company at 714/774-5000 or at www.odetics.com.
forth in Odetics' most recent SEC filings.
