摘要: |
In a laboratory at the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center, a handful of human factors engineers/research psychologists are conducting a variety of experiments to study individual drivers and the way they react to a number of external and internal stimuli. Part of this process is the Human Factors Field Research Vehicle (HFFRV), a four-door 1995 Pontiac Bonneville packed with computers, sensors, liquid crystal display (LCD) panels, video cameras and recorders, microphones, and assorted other technologies. The HFFRV is a test vehicle that permits FHWA engineers to take laboratory experiments to the field for real-world testing. Comparisons then can be made between data collected in the simulators and actual driver responses in real-world driving conditions. Specific areas of research include determining a driver's ability to recognize and comprehend various visual and aural icons on dashboard displays, assessing the best position for in-vehicle display data, measuring a driver's acceptance and use of in-vehicle safety warning systems, determining the degree to which in-vehicle information systems result in information overload to the driver, and evaluating different instrument layouts based on driver preferences and requirements. |