[Highway Driving Simulator]  [Field Research Vehicles] 
[Sign Design and Research Facility]  [miniSim^TM Driving Simulator] 
[Virtual Reality (VR) Lab]

The Human Factors Team uses a collection of established tools and cutting-edge technology to conduct safety and operation research within the Human Factors Laboratory. The Highway Sign Design and Research Facility allows researchers to assess comprehension and legibility of novel and existing signs, evaluate potential infrastructure, and examine trust and understanding of vehicle technology. Virtual and simulated environments, such as those created in the Virtual Reality Laboratory, the Highway Driving Simulator, and the miniSim^TM Driving Simulator, offer safe and controllable venues for conducting transportation research.

Simulations remove the risks associated with actual roadways and allow for experimental control of roadway and traffic characteristics that would be difficult to manipulate in the real world. Because researchers can control and manipulate the environment, the effects of variations in infrastructure design and vehicle technology can be tested relatively quickly and efficiently. Field Research Vehicles are used to take human factors research onto actual roadways. Researchers use vehicle and eye tracking data to assess drivers’ behavior in the real world.

Virtual Reality (VR) Laboratory

The Virtual Reality (VR) Laboratory allows the Human Factors Team to study pedestrians’ and cyclists’ behavior. VR headsets place participants in immersive, computer-generated, 3D environments with which they can interact. The laboratory’s headsets have high resolution organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays and provide a 110-degree field of view. Two sensors mounted on opposite corners of the ceiling create a 4-by-4-meter area that participants can walk around in and they can use wireless controllers to interact with objects in VR. The headset is also equipped with a sensor that detects and renders a representation of a participant's hands that can be displayed in virtual reality to increase immersion. Researchers use a 3D engine, development software, and two high end workstations to support the development and rendering of virtual environments.

The VR Laboratory houses a bicycle simulator. The Human Factors Team uses the simulator to test bicyclists’ reactions to new technology, signing, and lane markings before they are implemented in the field. It also provides a safe way of exposing participants to hazards and traffic while biking. The bicycle simulator consists of a stationary bicycle that is paired with a VR headset. The bicycle wirelessly transmits participant data and is used in conjunction with the VR headset to assess cyclists’ reactions to simulated environments. Vibrating cuffs that can be attached to the handlebars of the bicycle allow researchers to deliver haptic alerts to participants.  The bicycle simulator provides a safe, easy-to-manipulate environment for studying bicyclers’ behavior.

Highway Driving Simulator (HDS)

miniSim™ Driving Simulator

The Human Factors Team uses the miniSim Driving Simulator to conduct research on simulated roadways for studies that do not require the full emersion of the HDS. The miniSim Driving Simulator is a fixed-base, quarter-cab driving simulator. It includes gas and brake pedals, an instrument cluster for displaying speed and other information, and a touchscreen in-vehicle display. The adjustable driver's seat is equipped with an array of vibrating mechanisms in the seat pan that can be used to provide lateralized haptic alerts. The steering wheel includes a steering wheel loader and torque transducer that can be programmed to provide feedback. Simulated roadways are displayed on three 48” high-definition screens, and a subwoofer in the base of the simulator provides road feel.

The Highway Sign Design and Research Facility

Researchers use the Sign Design and Research Facility to test drivers’ comprehension of signs and intersections, assess sign legibility and conspicuity, and conduct stated preference and reaction time studies. The Human Factors Team uses experimental, infrastructure design, and legibility software to assess participants’ attitudes and behaviors in a controlled environment. Signs are developed for research using the same software applications used by State Departments of Transportation, thus ensuring that signs presented in the laboratory accurately mimic signs as they would appear in the field. An infrastructure design software suite enables the rapid development of interactive static or dynamic roadway simulation environments and realistic roadways (including using existing geographic information system (GIS) data).

Field Research Vehicles (FRV)

The Human Factors Team uses field research vehicles (FRVs) to conduct research on real roadways. The FRVs include an instrumented Sport Utility Vehicle and a sedan. Both are outfitted with a data logger with controller area network (CAN bus) interface and are equipped to track GPS position and record vehicle following distance. Researchers are able to record and analyze multiple vehicle measurements, such as steering wheel angle, vehicle speed, accelerator position, brake usage, distance traveled, use of turn signals, use of steering wheel buttons, and other variables. Collecting these measurements from roadway experiments allows researchers to study and better understand driver behavior and performance.

Each FRV is also equipped with an eye-tracking system that consists of two infrared (IR) light sources and three face cameras mounted on the dashboard of the vehicle. The cameras can track the head position and gaze of the driver without interfering with normal driver behavior. Three additional cameras mounted on the exterior of the vehicles’ roofs, directly above the driver’s position, capture a panoramic, forward view of the driving scene that is 80 degrees wide and 40 degrees high, reaching from the left side of the windshield to a portion of the right side. Participants’ eye gaze information is synchronized with this panoramic view to determine where the driver is looking throughout the drive. Eye tracking in the FRVs helps researchers study drivers’ perception and attention when traveling on actual roadways.