Skip to main content

eBrake to stop distracted driving

Canadian company eBrake Technologies says its smartphone app is unlike any other as it automatically locks the device on which it is installed every time it detects vehicle-related motion. The company has just launched a pilot program with Canadian mobile network provider Telus. Once installed on either an Android and iOS smartphone, the eBrake app automatically blocks incoming notifications whenever motion is detected (by all modes from bicycle to airplane) without the need for in-vehicle hardware.
September 7, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Canadian company eBrake Technologies says its smartphone app is unlike any other as it automatically locks the device on which it is installed every time it detects vehicle-related motion. The company has just launched a pilot program with Canadian mobile network provider Telus.

Once installed on either an 1812 Android and iOS smartphone, the eBrake app automatically blocks incoming notifications whenever motion is detected (by all modes from bicycle to airplane) without the need for in-vehicle hardware. The App cannot be deactivated but passengers can unlock their device by completing the Passenger Unlock Test which, the company says, takes less than 10 seconds but cannot be completed by a driver while driving.

Approved in-vehicle communications and entertainment systems are unaffected so a driver can safely and legally use functions such as maps, music and other features using voice activated programs like 1691 Google Assistant and Siri, or by entering a destination or selecting a playlist prior to setting off in the vehicle.

One-touch, automatic emergency calling to 911 remains available to drivers at all times.

Related Content

  • November 12, 2015
    Preventing connected vehicles creating disconnected drivers
    Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) are evolving at a rapid pace – but drivers’ ability to cope with them is not and at some point the mismatch must be addressed. Probably the biggest challenge the transportation industry has ever faced.” That is how Dr Bryan Reimer of Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab describes the challenges posed by semi-autonomous vehicles.
  • July 23, 2019
    The rise and rise of robo-car
    When it comes to driverless cars, there are many variables – but one thing is for certain: autonomous driving will have a significant impact on vehicle design, says Andreas Herrmann The transition to autonomous vehicles (AVs) means that many of the factors which have shaped automotive design for the past 130 years no longer apply. At present, the design of a car is largely determined by the anticipated direction of travel: the car’s silhouette immediately shows where the front and back are. Driverless ve
  • October 28, 2016
    New solutions for catching texting drivers
    Many countries have laws prohibiting texting while driving but enforcement is proving difficult – David Crawford looks at some new approaches being tried by authorities. Finding definitive solutions – technological, regulatory and educational - to the potentially lethal practice of people driving while using mobile phones is proving elusive, while the stakes grow higher.
  • June 4, 2015
    Greenowl brings bespoke traveller information one step closer
    Greenowl’s voice-only congestion warning smartphone app alerts drivers to problems ahead and could be the way ahead for traffic information. If there is one point Matt Man, CEO of Canadian company Greenowl, wants to make clear from the start, it is that his company’s app is not a navigation system. He says: “Our system does not direct drivers to their destination because we mainly focus on commuters who know how to get to where they are going and only need information about any delays and incidents ahead of