An Evaluation of the Safety,Utility,and Reliability of Three-Dimensional Alarm Systems for Automotive Use

Abstract

As roadways become more congested, automobile manufacturers are designing collision avoidance warning systems to increase safety; yet, there has been little investigation of alarm reliability and spatial signal location. This study focused on measuring driving and alarm reaction performances to spatial and console emitted alarms of various reliability levels. Seventy participants operated a driving simulator while being presented with alarms. From previous research (Breznitz 1983; Bliss 1993), it was expected that drivers would perform better following reliable alarms than unreliable alarms. It was also expected that drivers would perform better following spatial alarms than central alarms. Results indicated that drivers avoided collisions better following spatial alarms, but made more appropriate driving reactions following console-generated alarms. Alarm response frequency and driving reaction appropriateness was higher for reliable alarms. These results suggest that alarm designers should strive to maximize alarm reliability, and that spatial alarms may potentially reduce collision rates.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Bliss

J. P.

Gilson

R. D.

(1998). Emergency signal failure: Implications and recommendations. Ergonomics, 41(1), 57–72.

Bronkhorst

A. W.

Veltman

J. A.

van Breda

(1996). Application of a three-dimensional auditory display in a flight task. Human Factors, 38(1), 23–33.

Chen

Quinn

R. D.

Ritzmann

R. E.

(1997). A crash avoidance system based on the cockroach escape response circuit. Proceedings on the 1997 IEEE International conference on Robotics and Automation, 2007–2012.

Kennedy

R.S.

Lane

N.E.

Berbaum

K.S.

Lillienthal

M.G.

(1993). A simulator sickness questionnaire (SSQ): A new method for quantifying simulator sickness. International Journal of Aviation Psychology, 3(3), 203–220.

Lee

M. D.

Patterson

R. W.

(1993). The application of three-dimensional auditory displays to aircraft cockpits: user requirements, technology assessments, and operational recommendations. Lockheed Corporation.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (1997). Report to congress on the national highway traffic safety administration ITS program. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Transportation.

Proctor

R. W.

Van Zandt

(Eds). (1994). Human factors in simple and complex systems. Needham heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

Rudmann

D.S.

Strybel

T.Z.

(1999). Auditory spatial facilitation of visual search performance: Effects of cue precesion and distractor density. Human Factors, 41(1), 146–160.

Tijernia

Hetrick

(1997). Analytical evaluation of warning onset rules for lane change crash avoidance systems. Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 40th Annual Meeting, 949–953.