DENSO and Fotonation Collaborate

BusinessWire: DENSO and Xperi-Fotonation start joint technology development of cabin sensing based on image recognition. DENSO expects to significantly improve the performance of its Driver Status Monitor, an active safety product used in tracks since 2014. Improvements of such products also will be used in next-generation passenger vehicles, including a system to help drivers return to driving mode during Level 3 of autonomous drive.

Using FotoNation’s facial image recognition and neural networks technologies, detection accuracy will be increased remarkably by detecting much more features instead of using the conventional detection method based on the relative positions of the eyes, nose, mouth, and other facial regions. Moreover, DENSO will develop new functions, such as those to detect the driver’s gaze direction and facial expressions more accurately, to understand the state of mind of the driver in order to help create more comfortable vehicles.

“Understanding the status of the driver and engaging them at the right time is an important component for enabling the future of autonomous driving,” said Yukihiro Kato, senior executive director, Information & Safety Systems Business Group of DENSO. “I believe this collaboration with Xperi will help accelerate our innovative ADAS product development by bringing together the unique expertise of both our companies.”

“We are excited to partner with DENSO to innovate in such a dynamic field,” said Jon Kirchner, CEO of Xperi Corporation. “This partnership will play a significant role in paving the way to the ultimate goal of safer roadways through use of our imaging and facial analytics technologies and DENSO’s vast experience in the space.”

Using FotoNation’s facial image recognition and neural networks technologies, detection accuracy will be increased remarkably by detecting much more features instead of using the conventional detection method based on the relative positions of the eyes, nose, mouth, and other facial regions. Moreover, DENSO will develop new functions, such as those to detect the driver’s gaze direction and facial expressions more accurately, to understand the state of mind of the driver in order to help create more comfortable vehicles.