Canberra, 30 July 2024: Seeing Machines Limited (AIM: SEE), the advanced computer vision technology company that designs AI-powered operator monitoring systems to improve transport safety, announces that its recently launched Guardian Generation 3 AI-powered driver monitoring solution has passed ‘homologation’ (i.e been approved and certified) for its inaugural commercial vehicle customer, Northern Ireland based Wrightbus, the UK’s largest electric bus manufacturer.
Highlights:
- Successful homologation for Guardian Generation 3 paves the way for adoption by more commercial vehicle manufacturers in Europe, with rising demand being driven by Europe’s new General Safety Regulation (GSR) that came into effect this month and mandates driver monitoring systems for signs of drowsiness
- Wrightbus becomes Seeing Machines’ first customer to achieve homologation, setting a new safety standard in the public transportation industry
- An additional three commercial vehicle OEM customers are in the process of homologation with Guardian Generation 3
Homologation involves testing, certification and documentation to verify that a Driver Monitoring System (DMS) is compliant with specific regulatory standards in a region or country. This process is rigorous but, crucially, confirms that Guardian Generation 3 has now been approved by the relevant authorities in Europe as compliant for use in reducing the risks associated with drowsy and subsequently distracted driving.
Ballmena based Wrightbus, which produces class leading electric and hydrogen powered buses and is known for its cutting-edge and environmentally friendly bus designs, has specifically chosen Seeing Machines’ Guardian Generation 3 to ensure compliance with the EU GSR and further enhance the safety features of its fleet, ensuring its drivers remain safe on the roads across Europe and the UK, now and into the future.
With Europe’s GSR targeting all new vehicles having now come into effect, successful homologation ensures Wrightbus’ compliance with a stringent standard known as a Driver Drowsiness and Attention Warning (DDAW), using factory-fitted Guardian Generation 3.
The process for manufacturers of commercial vehicles to install technology, known as a factory fit, requires significant planning to ensure alignment with the wide range of other technology installed inside the vehicle during the manufacturing process. Wrightbus’ homologation is therefore an important milestone for the public transportation sector and logistics industry more widely, and Seeing Machines is confident that this process will continue to be streamlined and made more efficient for subsequent customers.
Furthermore, Guardian Generation 3 is also well equipped to meet new European GSR which from 2026 will require all vehicles to be installed with direct (or camera-based) DMS technology to detect distraction. This makes Guardian a market-leading, future-proof solution that will enable customers installing today to meet regulations set in the future, a key factor in an industry where the average life of a vehicle can exceed 14 years.
Wrightbus CEO, Jean-Marc Gales, said: “Vehicle safety is always at the fore of everything we do and we’re constantly looking at ways to enhance our excellent safety record. Having the Guardian Generation 3 technology operational in Wrightbus vehicles is helping us set a new standard for safety in the public transportation industry.”
Paul McGlone, CEO of Seeing Machines, added: “Achieving homologation or technical approval with Wrightbus for Guardian Generation 3 marks a significant milestone in the deployment of advanced driver monitoring systems within the public transportation sector. Integrating our cutting edge, AI powered camera technology into Wrightbus vehicles is an important step forward in reducing the risks and accidents associated with driver fatigue, which will soon encompass distraction as regulations comes into effect, fundamental to our mission of saving lives.”
Guardian Generation 3 leverages Seeing Machines’ automotive-grade technology with early and continuous drowsiness detection to protect drivers.
