Driver condition estimating device, driver condition estimating method and computer program therefor

A driver condition estimating method for estimating condition of a driver who is driving a vehicle, the driver condition estimating method comprising:

• on condition that lateral acceleration acting on a head of the driver exceeds a predetermined value,
• performing no detection of a sign of abnormality;
• and
• on condition that lateral acceleration acting on the head of the driver is the predetermined value or less,
• calculating a periodic feature amount from time series data showing movement of the head of the driver;
• calculating a time series variation pattern from the calculated periodic feature amount;
• and
• comparing the calculated time series variation pattern with a predetermined threshold to determine existence of the sign of abnormality of the driver.

A non-transitory computer readable storage including computer readable instructions that when executed by a controller cause the controller to execute a driver state determination method for a driver in a vehicle, the method comprising:

• on condition that lateral acceleration acting on a head of the driver exceeds a predetermined value,
• performing no detection of a sign of abnormality;
• and
• on condition that lateral acceleration acting on the head of the driver is the predetermined value or less,
• calculating a periodic feature amount from time series data showing movement of the head of the driver;
• calculating a time series variation pattern from the calculated periodic feature amount;
• and
• comparing the calculated time series variation pattern with a predetermined threshold to determine existence of the sign of abnormality of the driver.