Ⅱ. Motivation

1. The Severity of the Problem

'4-year-old left in school bus, in critical condition… '

Every summer, heartbreaking accidents occur when young children are left behind in sweltering school buses. News headlines like “4-year-old left in school bus, in critical condition…” remind us of the real danger.

Young children, especially toddlers, cannot get off the bus by themselves and must rely on adults. If a child falls asleep, guardians may fail to notice, leaving them inside the vehicle. In hot weather, the temperature inside a bus can quickly rise above 50°C (122°F). For a 2-year-old child, body temperature can spike to 39.1°C, leading to heat stroke, severe injury, or even death.

Although various safety measures have been introduced, accidents continue to occur every year, showing that existing solutions are not enough.

2. Policy Efforts

2017.10.11 “Prison Terms and Fines for Leaving Children in Vehicles”

Representative Son Kum-ju recently introduced an amendment to the Road Traffic Act stipulating that when a driver or accompanying adult leaves a vehicle, if a preschool child is left unattended inside, the responsible adult may face up to two years of imprisonment or a fine of up to 5 million KRW. Son emphasized that “leaving a child in a vehicle during extreme heat or cold poses a life-threatening risk” and added that “our society must become more aware of the dangers of leaving children in vehicles.” He explained that the purpose of his proposed bill was to explicitly prohibit all drivers and accompanying passengers from leaving preschool children unattended in vehicles, while also adding penalty clauses to help prevent accidents.

2017.07.12 Yoo Dong-soo Proposes Bill Mandating Vehicle Alarm Systems: ‘Preventing Child Entrapment Accidents’

To prevent children from being left in vehicles during heatwaves, the installation of rear-seat alarm devices has been made mandatory. Representative Yoo Dong-soo also proposed a bill requiring that only vehicles equipped with alarm systems—designed to alert drivers if a child remains inside after the engine is turned off and the doors are closed—can be sold. The types of vehicles subject to this requirement are to be designated by the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport.

2018.07.30 Series of Amendments Proposed to Stop ‘Children Left in School Buses’ Accidents

In the National Assembly, several bills aimed at introducing “sleeping child detection devices” have been proposed in succession:

On the 23rd, Representative Kim Hyun-ah (Liberty Korea Party, proportional representative), a member of the National Assembly’s Education Committee, introduced a partial amendment to the Road Traffic Act. Her bill requires that “any operator of a children’s school bus must install a device, specified by presidential decree, that can verify whether all children or infants have disembarked.” Failure to comply would result in a fine of up to 5 million KRW. Currently, the Road Traffic Act only requires drivers to “check whether all children and infants have disembarked after the operation of the school bus,” without mandating a specific verification device.
On the 25th, Representative Lee Eun-kwon (Liberty Korea Party, Daejeon Jung-gu), a member of the Assembly’s Road Traffic Committee, introduced amendments to both the Child Welfare Act and the Road Traffic Act. His proposal mandates that directors of daycare centers, kindergartens, and schools install and operate ICT-based communication devices that provide services to confirm school attendance and departure, as well as boarding and exiting of children on school buses. His bill also stipulates that the national or local government must provide full or partial financial support for such installations.
On the 26th, Representative Kim Han-jung (Democratic Party, Namyangju-si Eul, Gyeonggi Province), a member of the National Assembly’s Public Administration and Security Committee, also proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Act. His bill requires that “operators of children’s school buses must install at least one device that verifies whether children have disembarked, and ensure that the device is always operated and maintained.” The bill further allows for national or local government subsidies to support installation costs.
On the 20th, Representative Kwon Chil-seung (Democratic Party, Hwaseong-si Byeong, Gyeonggi Province), a member of the National Assembly’s Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs, and Startups Committee, also introduced an amendment to the Road Traffic Act to mandate the introduction of “sleeping child detection devices.”

Not all proposals focus solely on prevention devices; some target punishment for responsible adults instead. On the 26th, Representative Son Kum-ju (Independent, Naju/Hwasun, Jeollanam-do), a member of the Agriculture, Forestry, Livestock, Marine and Fisheries Committee, introduced an amendment to the Child Welfare Act. The bill expands the definition of child abuse to include situations where drivers, accompanying passengers, or guardians leave children unattended in parked or stopped vehicles. Son explained in the bill’s statement: “In countries like the United States and Canada, leaving a child unattended in a vehicle is considered so serious that it can be treated as a crime equivalent to homicide depending on the circumstances.” His proposal emphasizes that Korea should similarly treat such actions as serious criminal offenses.

3. Current Challenges

Even after laws were passed in 2017 requiring alarm devices, compliance has been weak. Drivers modify or disable the systems because:

Alarm buttons are inconveniently located at the back of the bus.
Constant alarms are noisy and irritating.
Alarm devices drain the vehicle’s battery.

As a result, the very systems meant to protect children are often rendered ineffective.

4. Our Solution

Our team designed a more practical and reliable alternative.

Ultrasonic sensors detect and count children boarding and exiting the bus.
A real-time passenger counting algorithm ensures the number of children inside matches the number who have exited.
Instead of constant alarms, a mobile app notification is sent only when a child is still inside the bus.

This approach eliminates unnecessary noise, prevents battery waste, and provides targeted alerts that truly protect children’s safety.

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