A University of Leicester research project is making strides in simultaneously capturing data on brain activity and eye movement associated with falling asleep. Researchers hope these advances might eventually help develop a vehicle safety system that can detect when drivers are at risk of falling asleep behind the wheel.

The U.K.-based project is in collaboration with the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina.

The research breakthrough involves bringing two recent developments together:

• High-speed eye tracking that records eye movements in unprecedented detail using infrared cameras

• High-density electroencephalograph (EEG) technology that measures electrical brain activity with millisecond precision through electrodes placed on the scalp.

Researchers have overcome previous technological challenges by developing novel signal processing techniques.

To learn more about the project, click here.