Utah Researcher Believes RFID Is the Key to Safe Driving

According to Zhou, the solution has been tested using 13.56 MHz RFID tags that comply with the ISO 14443 standard, in conjunction with a Nokia 5140 cell phone that has a built-in RFID module with read-only capability. The first iteration of the solution will likely use Bluetooth, he says—largely because most cell phones already support that technology, whereas few support radio frequency identification. But Zhou believes RFID will ultimately be the preferred technology for the Key2SafeDriving system. "You don't need any additional battery or power management," he states, "and it is the least expensive technology."

Ronn Hartman, a managing partner with Accendo, says Key2SafeDriving is currently in the prototype stage. Several companies that manage fleets of vehicles have signed up to test the solution, possibly within 30 days. The prototype utilized in these upcoming tests will not use a key equipped with either Bluetooth or RFID; instead, drivers will manually push a button that will switch the phones to driving mode so they can't be used. "We just want to start collecting data, and tracking on that," Hartman explains.

Xuesong Zhou

The original intention was to market the solution to cell phone service providers, which would include the solution in their service plans. "But now," Hartman says, "based on the overwhelming response we've gotten, we've decided to take it directly to market, to fleet companies, consumers and others." He says he has also spoken with insurance companies regarding the possibility of leveraging Key2SafeDriving data, which documents how often a cell phone was set in driving mode, versus override mode.

By capturing the number of times the phone was in driving mode, insurers would have proof that drivers were correctly using the Key2SafeDriving solution. That data could be compiled into a "safety score" and sent monthly to insurance companies, which could then provide discounts to motorists who had good scores (that is, scores that show the drivers often had their phones operating in driving mode).

The plan, Zhou says, is to have a commercial solution ready in approximately six months. "The first product will probably be Bluetooth," he notes, "with RFID following soon after. RFID is really the way to go."