PracticAl and Effective tools to moNitor and Assess CommErciAl drivers’ fitness to drive

Research Project, 2021 – 2024

PANACEA has 17 partners from 8 countries coming from multidisciplinary fields. The project will design, develop and test a holistic driving ability assessment system for commercial drivers to be used pre-driving, during driving and at the roadside, paired with cloud-based countermeasure and coaching solutions. In order to achieve this, PANACEA will create driver-oriented, health-based, touchless, and Use Case (UC) driven health monitoring and assessment solutions capable of detecting alcohol, licit (barbituric), illicit (methadone replacement) drugs, fatigue, stress, and cognitive load. Those drivers detected as unfit by the assessment/monitoring technology will receive personalised, targeted support from the cloud-based countermeasure and coaching system. Commercial Health Toolkits (CHTs), combining assessment/monitoring techniques with countermeasure solutions, will be tailored to fit the specific needs of each UC. The CHTs aim to become an ecosystem of support and knowledge for drivers and operators alike, available before/after/during shifts as well as on site and roadside. The sensitivity, specificity, robustness, ease-of-use, satisfaction and acceptance of these CHTs will be evaluated with over 90 AV shuttle, e-truck, coach and taxi drivers and courier service riders, operators and stakeholders, across 3 UC-driven Pilots (Greece, Spain and Sweden), considering gender specificities. A 4th UC focus on the transferability of the improved knowledge and technologies to other transport modes (i.e. aviation, maritime and rail). The primary outcome of PANACEA is the creation of new assessment technologies and countermeasure strategies which come together as a new fitness to drive paradigm applicable in commercial vehicle operations with vehicles at various automation levels. Finally, with the support of the Advisory Board, policy and legislative recommendations and updates of existing standards for health provision for commercial transportations will be provided.