Rides : Mercedes Creates the Car That Makes You Sleep

Mercedes-Benz works on the issue of driver fatigue in its “Active Comfort” project.

Taking its inspiration from the findings of the TopFitTtruck study, Mercedes developed the “Active Comfort” project for, as the name suggests, the comfort of the driver. Now the company searches ways to make the car induce sleep when the driver wants to take a quick power nap (up to 20 minutes of deep sleep). The concept will make car users drive more carefully and therefore use less fuel. A recent study shows that fatigued drivers use more fuel by driving more erratically.
The Active Comfort concept revolves around the 5 senses: visual effects, acoustic, smells, haptics and thermo-reception. Lighting and music will be used to create a relaxing and stimulating environment. Among these different smells will be used, such as menthol which increases alertness on longer trips, an ionizer keeps the air fresh and a relaxing orange fragrance will help the driver sleep.

‘The possibility of making effective use of ‘power napping’ for recuperation purposes will play a key role in the Active Comfort concept from Mercedes-Benz,” said the company. ‘Some of the ideas explored in this vehicle [TopFitTruck] will soon feature on board series-production vehicles from Mercedes-Benz’.