Automated Head Pose Estimation of Vehicle Operators

In this paper we propose a method for evaluating the dynamic blind spot of an operator of a construction vehicle by integrating static blind spot map of a construction vehicle with the head orientation of the operator. By computing the position and orientation of the equipment operator’s head, the field-of-view (FOV) of the operator is known which is projected on the blind spot map of the vehicle. This helps in determining the regions around the vehicle that are in the visible to the operator. In case a worker is present in the non-FOV region of the operator, the operator can be alerted and thus establish a proactive warning system to reduce the injuries/fatalities accounted by struck-by incidents.