FAU professor aims to prevent drivers’ texting

Florida’s ban on texting while driving may be a fairly new concept for most drivers, but it’s far from foreign for a Florida Atlantic University professor who has spent years developing software to prevent it.

Dr. Daniel Raviv, an engineering and computer science professor and researcher at FAU, has created software that disables a cellphone from sending and receiving text messages when it’s in a vehicle moving at a preset speed, 10 miles per hour, for instance. What makestheinventionunique, hesays, is thatthe function is only disabled whenthe phone is in the driver’s seat, not if a passenger has it.

“The purpose is to not allow the driver to text,” Raviv said. “That’s the key issue of this invention. It blocks the driver and allows passengers to text. We can identify the driver.”

Camille Coley, assistant vice president for research at FAU, said the institution is looking for businesses, such as phone carriers, which may be interested in licensing Raviv’s invention. The university filed a patent application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 2010. It expects to get a response from the office within a few months.

Although a patent “does not equal marketability,” it does help move a licensing process faster, Coley said.

Companies such as AT&T and Sprint have cellphone applications for users to download to self-control their texting while driving. Bothsaid they’ve hosted events for developers to find tech solutions to curb drivers’ texting.

Raviv said his invention may be more attractive to users if phone carriers or insurance companies offered discounts or other perks for taking the precaution.