Toshiba has found a way to make changing the radio station in your car as easy as blinking your eye. The electronics giant is developing in-car facial recognition technology that eliminates the need to take your hands off the wheel.

While it might seem unnecessary, if not pointless, to make such menial tasks like turning off Howard Stern or cranking up the AC any easier, Toshiba spokesman Hiroko Mochida said the technology will increase safety and save lives.

“In addition to operating controls inside the car, the facial recognition system can be used to estimate driver status like drowsiness and distraction,” he told Wired.com. “By sensing which way the driver is gazing, the system has the ability to collaborate with advanced driver assistance systems and human-machine interface programs that alert the driver when something has gone wrong.”

Toshiba Brings Facial Recognition to Cars | Autopia | Wired.com