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Design of a Guidebook for the Acquisition and Use of Driving Simulators for Training Transit Bus Operators
Get PDFThe Transit Cooperative Research Program of the Transportation Research Board recently sponsored an 18-month research program to develop a set of Guidelines that transit agency trainers and managers could use to (1) determine if driving simulators could help meet training objectives and (2) if so, what kind of simulators to acquire. The end product of this research is a set of task-based criteria that lead to specific simulator characteristics. That is, one should purchase a training simulator based upon what tasks need to be trained. This paper reports on the limited available data on the effectiveness of driving simulators for training, the task clusters various technologies can train, and the decision aids developed for transit agencies that actually have applicability to any potential user of training simulation. The project included a literature review, visits to driving simulator users nationwide, a review of European simulator programs, and the collection of training data and accident data from both users and non-users of driving simulators. Instructors, students, course graduates, and managers were interviewed. The results of the research are presented and a simulator evaluation methodology is proposed
Effects of Traffic Control Devices and Road Scenes on a Driver's Judgment of Curve Sharpness
No full textThe effects of traffic control devices and road scene on a driver's judgment of curve sharpness were investigated by field experiments on a 12-km section of rural highway running through a hilly area in Hokkaido. The configurations of traffic control devices at 36 curves were obtained from the road maintenance database. The favorability of the road scene was determined subjectively. Each of the 6 subjects drove a vehicle installed with instruments. The subject estimated the sharpness of the target curve before that curve and assessed the accuracy of that judgment subjectively after the target curve. Cluster analysis detected groupings of the 36 curves in terms of driver assessment of sharpness. The traffic control devices were verified as important cues in driver assessment of curve sharpness. In addition, the road scene had a positive effect in daytime on judgment of the target curve. However, there were some dangerous curves where the subjects underestimated the sharpness before entering the curve. Traffic control devices to provide accurate information on curve depth should be developed
A Computational Model of Driver Decision Making at an Intersection Controlled by a Traffic Light
Get PDFAn important challenge associated with driving simulation development is the computational representation of agent behaviors. This paper describes the development of a preliminary autonomous agent behavior model (based on the Recognition-Primed Decision (RPD) model, and Hintzman’s multiple-trace memory model) mimicking human decision making in approaching an intersection controlled by a traffic light. To populate the model, an initial Cognitive Task Analysis was conducted with six drivers to learn the important cues, expectancies, goals, and courses of action associated with traffic light approach. The agent model learns to associate environmental cues (such as traffic light color) with expectancies of upcoming events (like light color change) and appropriate courses of action (such as decelerating). At present, the model is currently being evaluated for its successful representation of the RecognitionPrimed Decision Making process
An Analysis of Driving Performance Measures Used to Assess the Effects of Medications on Drowsiness, Sedation and Driving Impairment
Get PDFThe objective of this paper was to discuss driving scenarios and associated driving performance measures on their ability to demonstrate drowsiness, sedation, and driving impairment. The basis of this paper was a study that utilized a randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, four-treatment, four-period crossover trial in the Iowa Driving Simulator (IDS). Participants were 40 licensed drivers with seasonal allergic rhinitis who were 25 to 44 years of age. Treatments were Fexofenadine, diphenhydramine, alcohol, or placebo, given at weekly intervals before participants drove for 1 hour in the IDS. Measures examined included coherence, amplitude, phase angle, RMS error, following distance and behavior, lane keeping, response to unexpected vehicle intrusion and drowsiness. Study results show that sedating antihistamines impair driving performance as seriously as alcohol. Statistically significant but small correlations were found between subjective drowsiness and minimum following distance, steering instability, and left-lane excursions but no correlation was greater than 0.21. Drowsiness was a weak predictor of driving impairment. This paper discusses these and other finding with an emphasis on the adequacy of driving scenarios and the sensitivity of driving performance measures analyzed
Effects of Speed of Visual Processing Training upon Non-Visual Attention in "At-Risk" Older Drivers
Get PDFReduction in a measure known as the Useful Field of View (UFOV) is a risk factor for car crash involvement in older drivers (Owsley et al, 1991; Ball et al, 1993). This measure depends on aspects of visual attention (divided attention [DA], selective attention [SA]) and speed of processing (Owsley et al, 1991; Ball et al., 1993). UFOV scores can be improved through speed of processing training (Ball, Beard, et al., 1988a,b), and this improvement may transfer to enhanced driving performance (Roenker et al, submitted). This preliminary analysis addresses the hypothesis that training of visual speed of processing can improve performance in attentiondemanding tasks that are processed outside the visual domain
Meta-Analysis of Crash Risk Factors Among Older Drivers: Application to a Model Program of Driver Screening
Get PDFIn the absence of disease or impairment, there is no empirical evidence that subtle, agerelated changes in sensory or cognitive function affect older drivers’ abilities to safely operate a motor vehicle. However, impairments that do affect driving occur with a higher prevalence in the older population. This paper describes a meta-analysis of risk factors for automobile crash. Risks associated with compromises in visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, visual fields, useful field of view, and mental status are examined. Risks associated with medical conditions, medications, and physical limitations also are discussed. Results demonstrate that visual acuity and contrast sensitivity are only weakly associated with crash risk, while cognitive variables and mental status measures are moderately associated with crash risk. A specific measure of The Useful Field of View, UFOV, is strongly associated with crash risk. These results suggest that driver evaluations aimed at detecting unsafe drivers can be significantly improved. Specifically, evaluations can be improved by including a broader assessment of visual function, an assessment of cognitive function including the UFOV, an assessment of mental status, and an assessment of physical status. An evaluation incorporating these components might facilitate driver qualification or referral for appropriate intervention. A driver screening evaluation program incorporating these components is currently underway. With over 2,000 older adult participants, results from this model program indicate that cognitive function, rather than visual or physical function, is most strongly associated with mobility outcomes. Thus, interventions to maintain or improve cognitive function may also help to sustain mobility
The Effect of Time Constraints on Older and Younger Driver Decisions to Turn at Intersections Using a Modified Change Blindness Paradigm
Get PDFAfter age 75, the risk of intersection accident involvement for older drivers increases for most intersection maneuvers. Failure to yield right-of-way and violation of traffic controls are common citations. Previous research has argued that age-related declines in attentional breadth and switching can discriminate between those who are and are not more likely to be in an accident. The present study examined the effect of time constraints on older and younger driver intersection decisions. It was expected that less time to decide, process and act upon intersection decisions would adversely affect older drivers more so than younger drivers. The change blindness or flicker paradigm was modified to address these questions (see, e.g., Rensink, et al., 1997). Typically, an image (A) is alternated with a modified image (A’) each for a short duration (250 ms) with a blank field or mask (80 ms) between A and A’. In the present study, a focus screen (or prime) that indicated the expected direction of travel (i.e., left, right, or straight) was added prior to the alternation of images. Forty-eight images were selected from 2500 intersection approaches in Calgary, Winnipeg and Montreal that were filmed using a digital camera during the day. Photoshop was used to create the A’ images by manipulating a variety of elements including pedestrians, vehicles, signs, and signals. The goal of the participant was to decide if the indicated direction of travel in the pair of intersection images was safe (press accelerator) or not (press brake). Sixteen younger (M = 22.3) and 16 older drivers (M = 73.6) drivers were screened for visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and medication use. Length of image alternation was the primary independent variable (4 and 8 s). As expected, older drivers were more likely to miss intersection changes at shorter exposure durations than younger drivers. A number of qualitative probes were also collected that clearly illustrate the contextual demands of intersections on attention. The implications of the results for intersection design and older driver selective attention are discussed
The Relative Importance of Pictorial and Nonpictorial Distance Cues for Driver Vision
Get PDFThere is evidence that nonpictorial distance cues, including accommodation and binocular disparity, play at most a minor role in driving relative to pictorial cues, such as relative size and linear perspective. However, the possibility that nonpictorial cues play a nontrivial role in at least some driving situations is of interest because of current and proposed applications of camerabased displays in driving. Such applications include the use of video systems as replacements for rearview mirrors and to enhance forward vision at night. By their nature, camera-based displays selectively eliminate or distort nonpictorial distance cues. This paper reviews analytical and experimental approaches for determining the relative importance of pictorial and nonpictorial cues in driving, and discusses the implications for the use of camera-based displays, as well as nonplanar rearview mirrors
The Role of Simulation in a Staged Learning Model for Novice Driver Situational Awareness Training
Get PDFThis paper theorizes that an optimal strategy for training novice drivers to acquire situational awareness skills will rely on a hierarchical approach consistent with traditional models of cognitive development. The success of applying such models hinges upon information presentation techniques that can maximize depth of processing, and hence comprehension and retention, at a specific stage of learning. Our general discussion argues that the appropriate use of simulation is uniquely suited to meet this need
They Drive at Night - Can Visual Enhancement Systems Keep the Driver in Control?
Get PDFDriving requires a combination of open-loop and closed-loop control. The open-loop control is affected by the quality of visual input, and therefore constrained during driving at night. This study investigated the effects of a Visual Enhancement System during simulated night driving conditions. It was hypothesised that the VES would improve the driver’s control, hence the quality of driving. 40 Ss drove about 120 km on a simulated Swedish road with and without a VES. At the time of writing, the experiments have just finished. Data analysis will focus on derived measures that correspond to the driver’s degree of control