The Research Center seeks ways to enhance the safety of heavy truck operations by studying driver behavior. The Truck Simulator Laboratory is designed to simulate long-haul trucking operations. Drivers sit in a realistic cab mockup and manipulate a steering wheel, throttle, and brake pedals while viewing a computer-generated roadway scene projected onto a large screen. During experiments, we record the vehicles speed and position within the lane, the drivers response time to specified targets, and the number of collisions and speeding incidents. Outdoors, the instrumented driving range allows researchers to evaluate a subjects actual driving performance in his or her own vehicle.
Experimenters measure decision speed and accuracy and brake reaction time.
During the past year, we continued our investigation of the effects of glare on nighttime driving performance. This research seeks to determine whether prolonged exposure to reflected glare in the sideview mirrors contributes to fatigue among truck drivers, and if so, whether glare-reducing mirrors can help eliminate the impairment. We have completed two experiments and are planning a third. In our first experiment, we found that intermittent glare impairs a drivers speed in detecting specified targets, and we observed evidence of recovery following glare. However, we found no cumulative or progressive impairment over the four-hour driving sessions, which might have suggested increasing fatigue.