DEVICES AND METHODS FOR ASSISTING OPERATION OF VEHICLES BASED ON SITUATIONAL ASSESSMENT FUSING EXPOENTIAL RISKS (SAFER)

An apparatus includes: a first sensor configured to provide a first input associated with an environment outside a vehicle; a second sensor configured to provide a second input associated with an operation of the vehicle; and a processing unit having a first-stage processing system and a second-stage processing system; the first-stage processing system configured to receive the first input and the second input, process the first input to obtain a first time series of information, and process the second input to obtain a second time series of information; wherein the second-stage processing system comprises a neural network model configured to receive the first time series of information and a second time series of information in parallel; and wherein the neural network is configured to process the first time series and the second time series to determine a probability of a predicted event associated with an operation of the vehicle.