Ford created a new mind-reading helmet that could help drivers by improving their focus and researchers hope that it would possibly keep the drivers safe on road.
The helmet measures the user's brainwaves to monitor mental energy and focuses at different points on the road, Daily Mail reported.
It is also helping reveal the secrets of how professional drivers stay 'in the zone' while driving at fast speeds and over long distances.
Previous researchers showed that the techniques used by pro-drivers include methods such as breathing meditation and visualisation for better focus. Researchers believe that similar techniques could help the ordinary drivers to improve their focus as well.
The unique helmet was made by Ford Performance - the motor sport branch of the car company, that worked alongside researchers from Kings College London and tech company UNIT9 to create the device.
They together modified the helmet that contains an EEG (electroencephalography) – a device that reads the brain's electrical activity.
"Using EEG, we could make a mental map of the track, and measure the mental energy that the driver is dedicating to the task," Yates Buckley, technical director at UNIT9 told Engadget.
The researchers first monitored racing drivers including World Touring Car winner Andy Priaulx and World Rally Champion Sébastien Ogier and found that both use mental training techniques to improve their race times.
The study also found that the race car drivers are up to 40 percent better than the average person when it comes to ignoring distractions.
So, when the researchers used specially designed visualisation and mental training techniques on ordinary drivers, they found that it improved their focus levels by nearly 50 percent.
Therefore, they believe that this helmet could be used by ordinary drivers to improve their driving skills which will monitor their breathing and meditation techniques and improve their performance.
"We are living in a complex society where we cannot easily just take a break, so a mental training technique can open up a way for us to keep healthy in an efficient way," says Mr Buckley.
