After weeks of work and research, the ELI Stem team finally came up with a life-saving tool: The Anti-Drowsy App.
It sounds weird: an app that saves life. Yet it’s a reality.
The reason we don’t sleep during the day is because the Sun emits white light, which is basically a conjunction of several colors. A research by CNRS / “Université Bordeaux Segalen” shows that blue light increases alertness by stimulating specialized cells which are connected to the areas of the brain controlling alertness. Stimulating these cells with blue light stops the secretion of melatonin, the hormone that helps to regulate sleep and reduce alertness at night.
We thought that recreating the conditions for alertness would be an essential tool – we started developing an app for it. This app emits light of wavelengths ranging from 450 to 470 nm, ideal to hinder the production of melatonin.
We strive for simplicity in this product and made it as basic as possible. Don’t be fooled by its simple interface! The initial screen asks you for the time extension you need. For instance, if you need to stay awake 20 minutes, just enter 20! A countdown will start, giving you time to position your phone, and you just have to let the app do its magic. With synchronized beeps and gradual changes in light intensity, the app will never disturb you while you drive!
Current systems provide only detection methods, but we offer an actual solution. We don’t want our drivers to feel sleepy at any moment. The beauty of this is that you don’t necessarily need to be driving to use the app. If you need to stay awake for a long to carry out any task, you may use our app.
Initial tests with a taxi driver were deemed conclusive.
There’s more coming and we’ll keep updating our app as we are able to add more features. Stay up to date, we’ll be releasing it in the coming days.
By Michael Chavrimootoo
Project Leader at ELI Stem