Munich - What was once science fiction could soon become reality - a car recognises its driver as soon as he or she enters the vehicle. Then it automatically adjusts the seat, mirrors and steering wheel to the ideal position and switches on the driver's favourite song on the car stereo. 

BMW is conducting intensive research on this video-based, biometric personal identification system that is an evolution of personal settings found in the car keys of several luxury cars currently available. 

An infrared camera scans the driver's face, comparing the data of the facial features with those stored in the database under a secret identity chosen by the driver. 

According to BMW, details of any number of drivers can be added, which is especially useful if a car is used by several people in the same company. 

In the current prototype tested by BMW, the system takes only five seconds to recognize the driver behind the wheel, comparing them with the entries in the database. 

The next stage of development would include not only details of the car's settings, but link the system to a personal telephone book and address list of the navigation system. 

The biggest challenge facing the engineers of the video-based system are changing light conditions such as dazzling sunlight from the side with shade falling onto the driver's face. 

Minimising such external factors is the biggest challenge before the system goes into production. 

But BMW is not the only company working on the system. Citroen, Mercedes, Audi and Volkswagen all have video systems available that recognize when a driver is falling asleep behind the wheel. A loud signal alerts the driver or the car seat and steering wheel start vibrating. 

Car parts supplier, Hella, has a camera-based system that also monitors the position of the head, warning the driver when they are not paying attention to the road. Hella is planning to make the system available next year. (dpa)