Personalized driver stress prediction using geographical databases

A system for predicting operator stress during operation of the vehicle, comprising:

• means for sensing physical data related to at least one parameter of said operator;
• means for collecting and arranging said physical data to provide a continuous operator stress condition output signal;
• vehicle positioning means for determining the position of said vehicle;
• vehicle operation means for determining operating characteristics of said vehicle;
• means responsive to an output of said vehicle positioning means and said vehicle operation means in order to provide an environmental information signal concerning said vehicle;
• and
• a statistical learning device receiving the vehicle environment information signal as an input, wherein said statistical learning device utilizes said continuous operator stress condition output signal as a teaching signal in order to provide a stored statistical learning model relating a physical condition of said operator with the environment of said vehicle.

A method for predicting vehicle operator stress reaction to a future change in the environment in which said vehicle is being operated, said method comprising the steps of:

• sensing at least one physical parameter of said operator;
• processing sensed outputs related to said at least one physical parameter and providing a training signal;
• determining a position of said vehicle and outputting a position signal;
• determining at least one vehicle operating parameter and outputting a corresponding at least one vehicle operating parameter signal;
• determining a vehicle environment as a function of said at least one vehicle operating parameter signal and said position signal to provide a vehicle environment output signal;
• and
• deriving a statistical relationship between a physical condition of said operator and an operational environment of said vehicle as a function of said vehicle environment output signal controlled by said training signal.