Drunk driving causes most road accidents, this Hyd-based startup may have a solution

During the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 with 239 people on board that disappeared in 2014, search parties looked relentlessly for the ‘black box’, which would give them vital information on what could have caused the crash or disappearance. 

Not just MH370, a black box is considered invaluable during any plane crash to piece together events leading up to the crash. What if something similar could be done for road vehicles as well? In fact, road accidents are one of the major causes of deaths worldwide.

According to a global World Health Organisation (WHO) report, 1.25 million people die each year due to road accidents and the age group of 15-29 constitutes over one-fourth of total number of persons killed in fatal road accidents across the world.

On Indian roads, there is roughly one accident per minute with rash driving and drunk driving being major causes. These grave statistics made Gaurav Kumar look for ways to prevent drunk driving.

He, along with his co-founders Aswini Nunna and Swadhin Sonowal, founded Cyrrup in 2016 and developed a drunk driving system, which evolved into ‘Vehicle BlackBox’, a safety, security and surveillance solution for vehicles.

“The solution helps in remote-control monitoring of vehicles and drivers. When you know someone or something is monitoring you, there are less chances for you to make a mistake. We use that psychology for Vehicle BlackBox,” Aswini says.

While a plane’s black box has two major components – flight data and cockpit voice recorder, the Vehicle BlackBox developed by Cyrrup hosts several features. It has audio/video live streaming, fuel status, speed limits, front collision detection system, panic buttons among others. 

The black box has two cameras, one that helps you record the video footage of the road/ path on which in the vehicle is traveling. The footage helps in insurance claims, false accusations or illegal claims. The other camera records the interior of the vehicle. This helps monitor the driver’s behaviour as well that of the passengers, which helps detect and monitor his alertness.

“This detection is done real-time and rings an alarm, which brings the driver to full alert. This will go a long way in preventing accidents,” Aswini says.

It also has features such as Live Speed Tracking, GPS Tracking and Panic Button. One of the most important features of the BlackBox is the Breath Analyser to prevent drunk driving. The driver has to pass the alcohol sensor test in order to drive the vehicle and if the driver is drunk beyond permissible levels, then the alcohol sensor disconnects the ignition thereby not allowing the driver to drive.

This data is analysed and given to fleet owners. “With our data analytics reports, one can draw conclusions on the driving skills using driver score. This score helps to identify good drivers, bad drivers and helps in allocating incentives, training, etc. It also gives instant notification if the driver is taking sharp turns,” Aswini adds.

Cyrrup’s focus is currently on the B2B segment where it works with fleet owners, ports, cab servicing companies, trucks, lorries, cargo, delivery management and transportation management companies to help them manage and monitor their vehicles.

Cyrrup works on a subscription model. A customer can buy the device at a one-time cost and pay annual or monthly subscriptions to get all analytical reports and actionable business insights. 

The bootstrapped startup is currently doing paid pilots and demos with about 10 companies. Aswini says that it has received huge pre-orders already and will start shipping the devices in August.

While the current focus is on getting Vehicle BlackBox manufactured and shipped across India, in the near future, it will be building solutions for end-to-end integration of fleet management solutions. It is working with premium R&D institutes in India to bring more robust technology in this space. 

“We are also getting good enquiries from African and Middle East countries. Soon, we will be expanding our sales across the globe,” Awsini adds.

Aswini and her team want to build Cyrrup as a brand for safety and security. Their ultimate goal is to contribute towards road safety and bring down road accidents through real-time monitoring.