The Effects of Age and Atis Use on Driving Performance: A Simulator Study

Author(s):  
Jean E. Fox

Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) are in-vehicle computer systems that provide travel-related information (e.g., navigation assistance) to automobile drivers. ATIS has great potential to help drivers save time and money by leading them to their destination efficiently. However, there are great concerns that ATIS may interfere with driving performance. This study looked at the effects of ATIS use and the driver's age on driving performance in a high-fidelity driving simulator. The results indicate that ATIS use led to degraded driving performance in several measures. However, in some cases, the effects depended on age. Older drivers tended to be more cautious, while younger drivers tended to be more careless. These results suggest that ATIS systems and training materials may need to address the age-related differences in ATIS use and driving performance.

Author(s):  
Sonia Ortiz-Peregrina ◽  
Carolina Ortiz ◽  
Miriam Casares-López ◽  
José J. Castro-Torres ◽  
Luis Jiménez del Barco ◽  
...  

Aging leads to impaired visual function, which can affect driving—a very visually demanding task—and has a direct impact on an individual’s quality of life if their license is withdrawn. This study examined the associations between age-related vision changes and simulated driving performance. To this end, we attempted to determine the most significant visual parameters in terms of evaluating elderly drivers’ eyesight. Twenty-one younger drivers (aged 25–40) were compared to 21 older drivers (aged 56–71). Study participants were assessed for visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, halos, and intraocular straylight, which causes veiling luminance on the retina and degrades vision. Driving performance was evaluated using a driving simulator. The relationships between simulated driving performance and the visual parameters tested were examined with correlation analyses and linear regression models. Older drivers presented impairment in most visual parameters (p < 0.05), with straylight being the most significantly affected (we also measured the associated effect size). Older drivers performed significantly worse (p < 0.05) in the simulator test, with a markedly lower performance in lane stability. The results of the multiple linear regression model evidenced that intraocular straylight is the best visual parameter for predicting simulated driving performance (R2 = 0.513). Older drivers have shown significantly poorer results in several aspects of visual function, as well as difficulties in driving simulator performance. Our results suggest that the non-standardized straylight evaluation could be significant in driver assessments, especially at the onset of age-related vision changes.


Author(s):  
Jean E. Fox ◽  
Deborah A. Boehm-Davis

Advanced traveler information systems (ATIS) are computer-based in-vehicle systems that provide travel-related information to automobile drivers. It is important for user acceptance to occur quickly because ATIS performance is optimized when many automobiles are equipped with the systems. One important factor in user acceptance is how much users trust the technology. Previous studies on this topic revealed that inaccurate congestion information reduced the users’ trust in ATIS and limited compliance with ATIS advice. The previous research is extended by the evaluation of both trust in ATIS and compliance with ATIS advice in a high-fidelity driving simulator. Participants drove through a simulation with the goal of avoiding congestion. A simulated ATIS recommended which way to go to avoid congestion. Participants drove through four trials of ten intersections each. In one trial, ATIS provided accurate information at 100 percent of the intersections. In the other three, the information was 80, 60, or 40 percent accurate. The four trials were presented to the participants in one of three orders. Dependent measures included ( a) how much participants trusted ATIS advice, ( b) how many times they complied with ATIS, and ( c) how accurate they thought the system was. The results show that 40 percent accuracy would not support user trust and compliance, but that 60 percent accuracy probably would. Also, the order in which participants experienced the trials significantly affected both trust and compliance; the effects of accuracy order were similar for both trust and compliance.


Author(s):  
C. Y. David Yang ◽  
Jon D. Fricker ◽  
Thomas Kuczek

The focus is on the design of advanced traveler information systems (ATIS) from the user’s perspective. Based on the experimental results of this research, types of ATIS information that meet drivers’ needs and capabilities and offer effective method(s) of conveying the information are identified. A driving simulator was developed to assist the investigation. The research results indicate that a driver’s familiarity with a given traffic network significantly affects his or her perception of the ideal type of ATIS information and the most effective information conveyance method. When traveling in a familiar network and encountering congestion and delay caused by an unexpected traffic incident, drivers need only short and simple information, such as the location of the incident and expected delay time, to assist them in making route diversion decisions. It was found that drivers prefer to receive an auditory ATIS message when traveling in a familiar traffic network. For navigation assistance in an unfamiliar environment, travelers strongly indicated the need for information such as alternative route recommendations and directions to alternative routes. The combined format of auditory message and visual display was perceived as the best way to transmit information in a network with which a driver is unfamiliar. Analysis of driving simulator results also confirmed that a visual display causes greater distraction from driving than an auditory message.


1999 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 553-573 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherry E. Mead ◽  
Peter Batsakes ◽  
Arthur D. Fisk ◽  
Amy Mykityshyn

As the prevalence of computer-based technologies increases throughout society, so does the likelihood that older adults will be required to interact with them. Unfortunately, such systems often appear to older adults to be too hard to use and too hard to learn. We provide examples highlighting the opportunities available to behavioural science to affect training and system design through practically relevant research. We focus on our research on ageing, computer use, and training to support our assertion that applied research aimed at designing training materials and system interfaces to enhance the performance of older adults can and should be driven by psychological theory. The data presented and studies reviewed here clearly demonstrate that theory is critical for predicting age differences in computer use, for guiding the development of both training and design interventions for older computer users, and for reconciling conflicting findings in the design-evaluation literature.


Author(s):  
Alejandro A. Arca ◽  
Kaitlin M. Stanford ◽  
Mustapha Mouloua

The current study was designed to empirically examine the effects of individual differences in attention and memory deficits on driver distraction. Forty-eight participants consisting of 37 non-ADHD and 11 ADHD drivers were tested in a medium fidelity GE-ISIM driving simulator. All participants took part in a series of simulated driving scenarios involving both high and low traffic conditions in conjunction with completing a 20-Questions task either by text- message or phone-call. Measures of UFOV, simulated driving, heart rate variability, and subjective (NASA TLX) workload performance were recorded for each of the experimental tasks. It was hypothesized that ADHD diagnosis, type of cellular distraction, and traffic density would affect driving performance as measured by driving performance, workload assessment, and physiological measures. Preliminary results indicated that ADHD diagnosis, type of cellular distraction, and traffic density affected the performance of the secondary task. These results provide further evidence for the deleterious effects of cellphone use on driver distraction, especially for drivers who are diagnosed with attention-deficit and memory capacity deficits. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed, and directions for future research are also presented.


BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. e047118
Author(s):  
Joanne Welsh ◽  
Mechthild M Gross ◽  
Claudia Hanson ◽  
Hashim Hounkpatin ◽  
Ann-Beth Moller

IntroductionMaternal and neonatal mortality are disproportionally high in low-and middle-income countries. In 2017 the global maternal mortality ratio was estimated to be 211 per 100 000 live births. An estimated 66% of these deaths occurred in sub-Saharan Africa. Training programmes that aim to prepare providers of midwifery care vary considerably across sub-Saharan Africa in terms of length, content and quality. To overcome the shortfalls of pre-service training and support the provision of quality care, in-service training packages for providers of midwifery care have been developed and implemented in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. We aim to identify what in-service education and training materials have been used for providers of midwifery care between 2000 and 2020 and map their content to the International Confederation of Midwives’ Essential Competencies for Midwifery Practice (ICM Competencies), and the Lancet Midwifery Series Quality Maternal and Newborn Care (QMNC) framework.Methods and analysisA search will be conducted for the years 2000–2020 in Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PubMed/MEDLINE, Social Sciences Citation Index, African Index Medicus and Google Scholar. A manual search of reference lists from identified studies and a hand search of literature from international partner organisations will be performed. Information retrieved will include study context, providers trained, focus of training and design of training. Original content of identified education and training materials will be obtained and mapped to the ICM Competencies and the Lancet Series QMNC.Ethics and disseminationA scoping review is a secondary analysis of published literature and does not require ethical approval. This scoping review will give an overview of the education and training materials used for in-service training for providers of midwifery care in sub-Saharan Africa. Mapping the content of these education and training materials to the ICM Competencies and The Lancet Series QMNC will allow us to assess their appropriateness. Findings from the review will be reflected to stakeholders involved in the design and implementation of such materials. Additionally, findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal, and used to inform the design and content of an in-service training package for providers of midwifery care as part of the Action Leveraging Evidence to Reduce perinatal morTality and morbidity (ALERT) study, (https://alert.ki.se/) a multi-country study in Benin, Malawi, Tanzania and Uganda.Trial registration numberPACTR202006793783148; Post-results.


Author(s):  
Zhuofan Liu ◽  
Wei Yuan ◽  
Yong Ma

The distribution of drivers’ visual attention prior to diverting focus from the driving task is critical for safety. The object of this study is to investigate drivers’ attention strategy before they occlude their vision for different durations under different driving scenarios. A total of 3 (scenarios) × 3 (durations) within-subjects design was applied. Twenty-three participants completed three durations of occlusion (0, 1, and 2 s) test drive in a motion-based driving simulator under three scenarios (urban, rural, motorway). Drivers’ occlusion behaviour, driving behaviour, and visual behaviour in 6 s before occlusion was analyzed and compared. The results showed that drivers tended to slow down and increased their attention on driving task to keep safety in occlusion 2 s condition. The distribution of attention differed among different driving scenarios and occlusion durations. More attention was directed to Forward position and Speedometer in occlusion conditions, and a strong shift in attention from Forward position to Road users and Speedometer was found in occlusion 2 s condition. Road users was glanced more frequently in urban road with a higher percentage of attention transitions from Forward position to Road users. While gaze switching to Speedometer with a higher intensity was found on motorway. It suggests that drivers could adapt their visual attention to driving demand and anticipate the development of upcoming situations by sampling enough driving-related information before eyes-off-road. Moreover, the adaptation and anticipation are in accordance with driving situation and expected eyes-off-road duration. Better knowledge about attentional strategies before attention away from road contributes to more efficient and safe interaction with additional tasks.


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