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AI-Driven Safety: What is Lane Swerving

Updated
Audience Fleet Admins, Fleet Managers
Applies To Fleet Dashboard > Safety

 

Introduction 

Lane Swerving AI Detection is an advanced computer vision feature that identifies repeated side-to-side movements (lateral swerves) while a vehicle is in motion, especially at highway speeds. These swerves often signal potential signs of fatigue, distraction, or diminished focus. Unlike driver-facing systems, this detection relies solely on video from the road-facing AI dashcam, helping fleets identify risk without compromising driver privacy.
 

How Lane Swerving AI Detection Helps You

  • Proactive Risk Detection: Surface early warning signs of fatigue or distraction through repeated swerving behavior, giving teams the opportunity to intervene before a serious incident occurs.
  • Streamlined Video Review: Instead of scanning through lengthy footage, reviewers can quickly assess a 20–30 second composite video, highlighting 3+ swerves across a short time window. Each clip captures a 7-second view of the swerving behavior. 
  • Privacy-Preserving Insight: Fleets using only road-facing dashcams can now detect key safety risks without relying on driver-facing cameras, enabling broader coverage while maintaining driver privacy.
     

What Lane Swerving AI Detects

This feature identifies multiple side-to-side swerves within a short time period. The behavior is often unintentional and can signal high-risk moments on the road.

Detection Criteria:

  • Vehicle must be traveling at 50+ mph
  • 3 swerves within a 5-minute window
  • Lane lines must be clearly visible on both sides

Common Lane Swerving Scenarios

Long-Distance, Gradual Swerve

Often caused by:

  • Fatigue
  • Prolonged inattention or zoning out

Short, Intense Swerve

Often caused by:

  • Distraction (cell phone usage, eating, inattention)
  • Jerking the wheel to avoid an object
  • Overcorrection from inattention
Note: Lane Swerving AI is designed for highway driving at speeds of 50 mph or higher.

Lane Swerve vs Drift vs Departure

To effectively assess risk and coach drivers, it's important to understand the distinctions between Lane Swerving AI and other forms of lateral movement.

Lane Swerve Erratic lateral movement, typically brief and reactive Fatigue, distraction, overcorrection
Lane Drift Gradual deviation from lane center toward lane boundaries Severe fatigue, microsleep
Lane Departure Full unintended lane exit without signaling or intention General lane change, loss of control, severe fatigue, hazard avoidance

 

How It Works: Behind the Detection

  1. Vehicle swerves 3 times while moving ≥ 50 mph
  2. Individual lane swerves are detected using a combination of computer vision and telematics data.
  3. Sub-events are grouped into a composite Lane Swerving event
  4. Events are available in the dashboard with video clips, displacement metrics, and coaching workflows.
Note: In-cab alerts are not yet available for this feature.

Device Compatibility

Lane Swerving AI Detection is supported on AIDC-53 and AIDC-54 dashcams. It is not available on Smart Dashcam devices.
 

How to Enable Lane Swerving

Lane Swerving event detection is enabled by default. To enable or adjust in-cab alerts, follow these steps:

  1. Log into the Fleet Dashboard

  1. Click Admin → Safety

  1. Scroll to Unsafe Behavior Detection: BETA and click Edit

  1. Enable or disable the Lane Swerving AI feature using the corresponding checkboxes and click Save to complete.

 

Viewing Lane Swerving Events

  1. Navigate to the Safety tab in the dashboard
  2. Select Events, and use the Behavior filter to search for Lane Swerving

  1. Click into an event to view video, metadata, and driver info

Note: Use the navigation menu above the video (on the right) to toggle through and view each individual swerve.

Set Up Real-Time Alerts

To notify managers when a Lane Swerving event occurs:

  1. Go to Alerts in the dashboard
  2. Click Create Alert

  1. Select Lane Swerving under Type


 

  1. Configure alert settings (email, SMS, etc.)
  2. Click Save

Driver Coaching Experience

  • Lane Swerving events appear in the Motive Driver App automatically if auto-coaching is enabled
  • Drivers can review the event and coaching tips to improve lane control
  • Mutli-video clip review of all lane swerves available soon after launch in upcoming mobile app release
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Why Response SOPs Matter

Lane Swerving events are early warning signs that can prevent crashes—but only if fleets take action. It may be helpful to establish internal procedures for how to review, respond to, and act on these events—particularly those that occur late at night, as they can be early indicators of fatigue or inattention.

  • Design internal Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to review, recall, and respond
  • For night-time swerves, evaluate driver fatigue and consider pulling drivers off the road
  • Real-time alerts + coaching = proactive crash prevention
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