How Multimodal Sensing Is Transforming Occupant Monitoring
Understanding the occupant is moving beyond traditional camera-based monitoring.
Radar, physiological sensing, audio and vision can work together to build a richer picture of a person’s physical, cognitive and emotional state, opening new possibilities for safety, wellbeing and personalisation. Diego Val, Head of Research Programs – New Solutions & Technologies in the Innovation Department at and Iñigo Mateo, Corporate Innovation Directorate at Antolin, discuss how multimodal sensing and sensor fusion could enable more robust occupant monitoring, and the challenges of integrating these technologies seamlessly into the vehicle interior.
The Future of Automotive Interiors Through a Global UX Lens
Electrification, software-defined vehicles, artificial intelligence, and evolving regulations are reshaping not only how vehicles are engineered, but also how customers experience them.
At the same time, consumer expectations are becoming increasingly regional. Markets such as Europe, North America, and China are evolving at different speeds and often prioritise different aspects of the mobility experience. For designers, understanding these cultural, technological, and behavioural differences is becoming just as important as keeping pace with the latest innovations. Against this backdrop, here are my thoughts on four key topics shaping the future of automotive interiors.
Synthetic Data for In-Cabin Monitoring and Virtual Validation
As in-cabin monitoring systems become more sophisticated, validating DMS, OMS and child presence detection across real-world human behaviour, sensor conditions and edge cases is becoming increasingly difficult.
Javier Salado, Product Manager at Anyverse, explains how synthetic data and simulation can support in-cabin monitoring validation, reduce the domain gap between virtual and real sensor data, and contribute to future Euro NCAP virtual assessment ahead of InCabin Europe 2026.
Safety-Certified In-Cabin Architectures: From Concept to ISO 26262 Evidence
As in-cabin systems become more sophisticated, demonstrating functional safety is no longer just about meeting compliance requirements.
Modern software-defined vehicle architectures demand safety to be built into the platform from the very beginning, with careful attention to partitioning, isolation, verification and traceability. In this interview, Ofra Bechor, Regional Field Application Engineer at Green Hills Software, explains the architectural principles behind safety-certified in-cabin systems, the realities of ISO 26262 assessment, and how development teams can reduce certification effort while building scalable, future-ready platforms.
How Hand-Tracking Is Shaping the Future of In-Cabin Monitoring
From detecting distraction to predicting driver intent, hand-tracking is becoming an increasingly valuable part of the intelligent cockpit.
As in-cabin monitoring evolves beyond traditional gaze and facial analysis, advances in computer vision are unlocking new ways to understand driver behaviour and create safer, more intuitive human-machine interfaces. In this interview, Agnes Jernström, Senior Software Engineer at Neonode, explains how hand-tracking is helping to advance occupant monitoring and the next generation of in-cabin AI.
Beyond Cameras: The Future of Ultrasonic In-Cabin Sensing
Discover how Onsemi’s ultrasonic sensing enhances in-cabin monitoring with privacy, edge processing and advanced occupant detection.
The Shift to Centralized Radar Processing for Software-Defined Vehicles
Modern vehicles are rapidly becoming software-defined, and with that shift comes a new expectation for perception: higher fidelity sensing, lower latency decision-making, and a platform that can scale across trim levels and regulatory regions without reinventing the hardware each time. Radar sits at the center of this evolution because it delivers robust perception in conditions where other sensors can degrade- fog, rain, snow, spray, and low light- making it a foundational technology for next-generation ADAS and automated driving stacks.
Live Cutting-Edge Technology Demos at InCabin Europe 2026
State-of-the-art technologies will be showcased by top innovators this September, giving you the opportunity to witness the latest tech live onsite.
Here’s a sneak peek into the cutting-edge technology demos you will see from Anyverse, Brighter Signals, Calterah, Magna, NXP, and OpenGMSL…
Beyond Child Presence Detection: The Rise of Multistatic UWB in the Intelligent Cabin
Ultra-wideband (UWB) technology is evolving rapidly from a secure digital key solution into one of the automotive industry’s most promising sensing technologies.
By enabling accurate occupant detection, vital-sign monitoring and child presence detection without relying on cameras, multistatic UWB offers a privacy-preserving approach to in-cabin intelligence. We spoke with Yaohui Liu, EMEA FAE & Marketing Manager at Calterah, about how synchronized multistatic UWB is improving resolution and reliability, the role of the emerging IEEE 802.15.4ab standard, and the technical and regulatory challenges that still stand between today’s prototypes and large-scale automotive deployment.
Beyond Weight Sensors: How Tactile Sensing Could Transform Occupant Classification
As vehicle restraint systems become more intelligent, accurately understanding who is sitting in each seat and how they are positioned is becoming just as important as detecting that someone is there.
Existing occupancy sensing technologies, including weight sensors, cameras and radar, each have limitations when it comes to reliably classifying occupants across different body types and seating scenarios. We spoke with Christine Fraser, Co-Founder & COO of Brighter Signals, about how tactile sensing could provide a new layer of occupant intelligence, improve classification accuracy for vulnerable passengers, and help enable safer, more personalised restraint systems.