Vehicle control panel with passenger detection for function enablement

A vehicle apparatus for providing control of functions of a vehicle in response to touch commands performed by users in a passenger seat and a driver seat in the vehicle, wherein the functions include actions which are disallowed to a driver when the vehicle is moving, the vehicle apparatus comprising:

• a display panel responsive to touching by the users to generate the touch commands, wherein the display panel is configured to instantaneously capture fingerprint data of a finger which interacts with the display panel when generating the touch commands while the vehicle is moving;
• a sensor configured to detect whether one of the users interacting with the display panel is seated in the passenger seat;
• and
• a controller configured to A) enroll passenger fingerprint data of the one of the users located in the passenger seat prior to initiation of driving of the vehicle, B) receive a touch command on the display panel while the vehicle is moving, and C) if the touch command corresponds to one of the actions which are disallowed to the driver then comparing instantaneous fingerprint data captured in response to the touch command with the enrolled fingerprint data and performing the corresponding action only if the instantaneous fingerprint data matches the enrolled passenger fingerprint data.