Recently, a private car stopped while passing a toll booth in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province. Traffic police approached and discovered the driver had fallen asleep inside. Upon questioning, they discovered the driver, fatigued, had left the vehicle's intelligent assisted driving function enabled. The police reprimanded the driver and issued him a warning.
On short video platforms, similar scenes are common: drivers, after turning on intelligent driver assistance systems at highway speeds, look down at their phones, close their eyes to rest, or even lie down to sleep. In the comment section, some lament that "technology frees hands," while others criticize this action as "playing with one's own and others' lives."
Does intelligent assisted driving mean that the steering wheel can be completely "managed"? Can current technology support drivers "lying down" to travel? To clarify the boundaries and risks of intelligent assisted driving, reporters conducted an investigation and interview.
"Please take the wheel."
Recently, a reporter from the Legal Daily conducted field tests on the intelligent assisted driving systems of three vehicle brands on a safe road. The results showed that after taking their hands off the steering wheel for more than ten seconds, the vehicle's central control screen displayed a prompt saying "Please take over the steering wheel." Furthermore, if the reporter lowered or tilted their head for several dozen seconds, the system would also issue a voice prompt saying "Please look ahead."
In interviews with reporters, several automobile brands said that in order to cope with the increasingly prominent improper use of intelligent assisted driving, automobile companies are continuously upgrading driver monitoring systems (DMS) and building a multi-level safety protection mechanism.
It is understood that most of the vehicles in my country equipped with intelligent driving functions are at the L2 level, which requires the driver to monitor the entire process and be ready to take over at any time. This is called "intelligent assisted driving."
However, the reporter's investigation found that some car owners deliberately circumvent DMS monitoring by using capacitive sensing flannel, counterweight rings, etc., looking down at their phones, closing their eyes to rest, or even lying down to sleep. Some businesses openly sell such "auxiliary tools" online, along with "crack tutorials."
Automakers strengthen their technical defenses
On the morning of September 17th, the Fifth Brigade of the Fifth Detachment of the Shanxi Highway Traffic Police received a report of a single-vehicle accident on the Cangyu Expressway heading toward Yulin. Upon arrival, officers learned that the cause of the accident was the driver falling asleep after activating the intelligent assisted driving feature. The vehicle, under system control, deviated and ultimately struck a roadside guardrail, causing property damage. Fortunately, the collision awakened the driver, who promptly took control of the vehicle, preventing any casualties. This incident serves as a further warning against the misuse of intelligent assisted driving.
Many drivers mistakenly equate "assisted driving" with "autonomous driving." However, according to reporters, the vast majority of intelligent assisted driving systems currently on the market are still at the Level 2 level, far from being fully "managed." If drivers relax their vigilance after turning on the system, or even play with their phone or sleep, they not only violate road traffic safety laws and regulations but also pose a significant threat to themselves and public safety.
To prevent the abuse of intelligent assisted driving, many car companies have launched DMS solutions with visual recognition, multimodal biometrics, and physical feedback linkage as the core, minimizing risks through precise monitoring and graded intervention.
For example, one brand uses a multimodal biometric solution that integrates infrared cameras, millimeter-wave radar, and steering wheel capacitive sensors to build a "visual + tactile" dual monitoring network. The steering wheel capacitive sensors detect hand contact in real time and trigger an immediate warning if they detect hands are away for more than three seconds.
In terms of intervention mechanism, the system implements "progressive physical feedback": the first-level alarm is through seat vibration and voice prompts; if there is no response within 10 seconds, the system enters the second-level intervention, smoothly decelerates and issues 3D surround sound prompts; if the driver still does not respond, the vehicle will automatically drive to the emergency lane to stop and unlock the door.
Another brand's DMS divides fatigue levels according to the frequency and duration of eye closing: Level 1 fatigue only provides voice reminders; Level 2 fatigue activates seat belt pre-tightening and steering wheel vibration; Level 3 fatigue automatically limits the speed to 80km/h, navigates to the nearest service area, and pops up a "forced rest" reminder.
There are many ways to avoid monitoring
Since the system has an early warning, why do many car owners still achieve “hands-off” driving?
On September 20, Mr. Li, a Beijing car owner, showed reporters the "smart driving artifact" he bought for 159 yuan - a capacitive sensing velvet cloth with the words "smart driving assistance" printed on it. "Wrap this cloth around the steering wheel and you can 'host' the steering wheel."
During a nighttime test, reporters observed Mr. Li wrapping a velvet cloth around the steering wheel, turning on the intelligent assisted driving system, taking his hands off the wheel, and looking down at his phone. For the next several dozen minutes, the vehicle issued no steering wheel departure warnings, save for a single "keep your eyes on the road" message. Mr. Li symbolically raised his head, and the single warning disappeared immediately.
"This thing is very useful on the highway. As long as the weather is not too bad, I can basically 'free my hands' to handle work." Mr. Li said that the velvet cloth deceived the steering wheel's contact sensor by simulating the human body's capacitance signal.
He told reporters that in addition to velvet, weight rings are also common, which achieve the same effect by simulating hand pressure.
Some of the car owners interviewed also said that they can circumvent DMS's visual monitoring by wearing special sunglasses (with reflective coating on the lenses), blocking the camera inside the car, sticking on false eyelashes, or even using strong light to interfere with the camera.
A "technical post" on a forum details how to adjust the angle of sunglasses to prevent the camera from capturing pupil changes. One user claimed to have personally tested closing their eyes for 10 seconds without triggering an alarm. However, this method has a low success rate, with approximately 60% of tests triggering emergency braking due to light changes.
“Artifact” is not an excuse for exemption from responsibility
Following clues provided by some car owners, the reporter searched for keywords like "intelligent driving assist device" and "intelligent driving artifact" on an e-commerce platform and found hundreds of related products, ranging in price from a few hundred to a thousand yuan. The sellers' listings cryptically labeled them as "assisting with maintaining steering wheel balance" and "reducing beeping." Some customer service representatives even sent user manuals via private messages.
A capacitive sensing flannel suitable for popular car models sells for 559 yuan, with monthly sales of nearly 100 units. Comments like "No more alarms" and "Relaxing on long drives" frequently appear in the comments section. One user posted a photo saying, "My hands were completely free, and there were no alerts at all. It still works after the system upgrade."
Many buyers admitted that, while they knew these "magic gadgets" carried certain safety and legal risks, they felt "occasional use is fine." Others believed that "assisted driving is reliable and safe." Mr. Wang, a car owner in Tianjin, said he frequently uses the flannel on the highway. "I rely on it to check work emails on every long drive. As long as I keep my eyes on the road, I shouldn't have any problems."
Experts interviewed pointed out that this mentality of taking chances among some car owners is the fundamental reason why such "gray products" are so popular.
Faced with challenges from user evasion and the shady industry chain, some automakers are strengthening their defenses through a combination of hardware encryption and algorithm recognition. For example, the new generation of steering wheel torque sensors, equipped with encryption chips, can identify the "natural torque variations of the human hand grip" and directly invalidate the "uniform torque signal" generated by fixtures like counterweight rings, triggering a system alarm. Simultaneously, the vehicle's central control system regularly scans electromagnetic signals around the steering wheel. If it detects abnormal capacitance signals from conductive devices like capacitive sensing fabric, it immediately restricts the intelligent assisted driving function.
Despite continuous technological advancements, complete reliance on these systems remains unrealistic. Experts interviewed pointed out that according to the Road Traffic Safety Law, the driver remains the primary operator of the vehicle when using an intelligent driver-assistance system and bears all legal responsibility. If an accident occurs, the driver will face legal prosecution, and the so-called "magic tool" cannot serve as an excuse for exemption from liability.