Waymo's Fatigue Risk Management Framework: Prevention, Monitoring, and Mitigation of Fatigue-Induced Risks while Testing Automated Driving Systems

TL;DR

Waymo developed a comprehensive fatigue risk management framework for testing automated driving systems, focusing on prevention, monitoring, and mitigation to enhance safety during on-road testing of SAE Level 4 autonomous vehicles.

Contribution

The paper introduces a systematic, adaptable fatigue risk management framework specifically designed for on-road testing of SAE Level 4 autonomous driving technology, integrating best practices and research insights.

Findings

Framework addresses fatigue prevention, monitoring, and mitigation.

Applicable to SAE Level 4 and lower automation levels.

Designed for continuous improvement and safety enhancement.

Abstract

This report presents Waymo's proposal for a systematic fatigue risk management framework that addresses prevention, monitoring, and mitigation of fatigue-induced risks during on-road testing of ADS technology. The proposed framework remains flexible to incorporate continuous improvements, and was informed by state of the art practices, research, learnings, and experience (both internal and external to Waymo). Fatigue is a recognized contributory factor in a substantial fraction of on-road crashes involving human drivers, and mitigation of fatigue-induced risks is still an open concern researched world-wide. While the proposed framework was specifically designed in relation to on-road testing of SAE Level 4 ADS technology, it has implications and applicability to lower levels of automation as well.