Differences between racing and non-racing drivers: A simulator study using eye-tracking - Fig 5

<p>Top: absolute steering wheel velocity as a function of traveled distance of the fastest lap of each session (<i>N</i> = 28 for the racing drivers, <i>N</i> = 40 for the non-racing drivers). Individual lines are shown as well as the group means with a thick line type. Grey shaded areas indicate the four corners. Lower left: Probability density of the throttle position averaged across the fastest laps of each session, for the racing drivers and non-racing drivers. Significant differences (<i>p</i> < 0.01) are indicated by the black horizontal line at the bottom of the figure. Lower right: Brake position traces for the fastest lap of each session, for the racing drivers and non-racing drivers. A temporal shift was applied to the onset of braking (defined as brake position > 10). Individual participants’ brake positions are shown, as well as the group means indicated by the thicker line. The vertical dashed line indicates the brake onset time, at t = 0 s.</p

Session means (standard deviations in parentheses) of the dependent measures for the four sessions.

<p><i>p</i> values are indicated for comparisons between the both groups of drivers. Pearson correlation coefficients are shown between the first and fourth session and the third and fourth session.</p

Overview of the circuit layout and centerline corner radius in meters.

<p>The start/finish line and driving direction are indicated by the black line and arrow, respectively. Grey shaded areas indicate the corner segments.</p

From top to bottom, overview of vehicle speed, steering angle, brake position, and throttle position as a function of traveled distance for the racing drivers and non-racing drivers averaged across both groups for the fastest laps of each of the four sessions.

<p>Grey shaded areas indicate the four corners.</p

Individual paths of the vehicle center of the racing drivers (N = 28) and non-racing drivers (N = 40) for the fastest laps of each session for the second (left) and third (right) corner, the driving direction is indicated by the black arrow.

<p>The three panels indicate the start (1), middle (2), and the end of the corner (3) and corresponds to an area of 40 by 40 m.</p

Difference between the horizontal gaze angle and the tangent point angle as a function of track position for the racing drivers (top left) and non-racing drivers (top right) averaged across all sessions and fastest laps.

<p>The black arrow indicates the driving direction. The lower left panel shows the horizontal gaze angle with respect to the tangent point, averaged across all sessions and fastest laps for both the racing drivers and the non-racing drivers. The lower right panel shows a definition of the horizontal gaze angle, the tangent point, and the color scaling.</p

Overview of the racing simulator and eye tracker.

<p>Overview of the racing simulator and eye tracker.</p

Effects of visual fidelity on curve negotiation, gaze behaviour and simulator discomfort

<div><p>Technological developments have led to increased visual fidelity of driving simulators. However, simplified visuals have potential advantages, such as improved experimental control, reduced simulator discomfort and increased generalisability of results. In this driving simulator study, we evaluated the effects of visual fidelity on driving performance, gaze behaviour and subjective discomfort ratings. Twenty-four participants drove a track with 90° corners in (1) a high fidelity, textured environment, (2) a medium fidelity, non-textured environment without scenery objects and (3) a low-fidelity monochrome environment that only showed lane markers. The high fidelity level resulted in higher steering activity on straight road segments, higher driving speeds and higher gaze variance than the lower fidelity levels. No differences were found between the two lower fidelity levels. In conclusion, textures and objects were found to affect steering activity and driving performance; however, gaze behaviour during curve negotiation and self-reported simulator discomfort were unaffected.</p><p><b>Practitioner Summary</b>: In a driving simulator study, three levels of visual fidelity were evaluated. The results indicate that the highest fidelity level, characterised by a textured environment, resulted in higher steering activity, higher driving speeds and higher variance of horizontal gaze than the two lower fidelity levels without textures.</p></div

Median of percentage of time that gaze was directed at the top and bottom regions of the screen, per session (L = letter task, O = obstacle avoidance task).

<p>Median of percentage of time that gaze was directed at the top and bottom regions of the screen, per session (L = letter task, O = obstacle avoidance task).</p

Mean self-reported workload per session (L = letter task, O = obstacle avoidance task).

<p>Mean self-reported workload per session (L = letter task, O = obstacle avoidance task).</p