Gentex can detect your baby breathing now

It took an acquisition to give auto mirror supplier Gentex Corp. an enhanced view of driver and passenger behavior with machine vision, depth perception and micro-vibration detection.

Gentex's sensor configuration allows the system to monitor the driver and the vehicle cabin, assessing occupants' behavior, gestures and activities to ensure safety and comfort, Gentex said.

Gentex is known for supplying most major automakers with connected-car technologies and advanced electronic features for driver vision and safety, such as full-display camera rearview mirrors.

"Monitoring the driver and vehicle occupants becomes increasingly important as we move through the levels of driving automation," Neil Boehm, Gentex vice president of engineering and chief technology officer, said in a statement. "We're engineering a comprehensive and scalable platform based on robust sensor fusion techniques that will allow us to provide features for today's vehicles as well as transitionary and completely autonomous vehicles."

In September, Gentex announced the acquisition of Guardian Optical Technologies of Tel Aviv, which developed an infrared-sensitive, high-resolution camera with machine vision, depth perception and micro-vibration detection. The acquisition was key to putting together the full driver and in-cabin monitoring system, Boehm said.

Through a camera behind the rearview mirror, the system tracks the driver's head pose, eye gaze and other features to assess distraction and drowsiness, along with readiness to assume control for semi-autonomous vehicles, Gentex said.

Functionally, it is similar to General Motors' Super Cruise driver-assist technology. But GM monitors the driver from the steering wheel, while Gentex's system tracks movement from a camera behind the mirror.

"We've seen a lot of interest in moving it from the instrument cluster ... due to the cost of doing that across all the platforms. And we've had a lot of interest in moving it to the mirror itself because it's an easier implementation," Boehm told Automotive News. "That's been a really interesting change just in the last six to 12 months."

Gentex's system also tracks passengers, assessing whether an airbag would reach a passenger whose seat is reclined, for example, or taking note of a baby in the back seat by monitoring its breathing pattern.

Machine vision "can allow us to not just get depth, but it's also got a really unique characteristic that allows us to see very small vibrations," Boehm said. "If you forget your baby, it's able to pick up the micro vibrations of the baby breathing. We can actually see the breathing occurring through these vibrations, and you can set off an alert that the baby is still in the vehicle."

Gentex ranks No. 86 on the Automotive News list of the top 100 global suppliers, with worldwide parts sales to automakers of $1.65 billion in its 2020 fiscal year.