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ABSTRACT: In 2006, there were approximately 23,500 rear-end crashes involving heavy trucks (i.e., gross vehicle weight greater than 4,536 kg). The Enhanced Rear Signaling (ERS) for Heavy Trucks project was developed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to investigate methods to reduce or mitigate those crashes where a heavy truck has been struck from behind by another vehicle. Visual warnings have been shown to be effective, assuming the following driver is looking directly at the warning display or has his/her eyes drawn to it. A visual warning can be placed where it is needed and it can be designed so that its meaning is nearly unambiguous. FMCSA contracted with the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) to investigate potential benefit of additional rear warning-light configurations as rear-end crash countermeasures for heavy trucks. This paper will describe the dynamic closed-track testing performed and overall countermeasure performance of two rear warning-light configurations as compared to the baseline brake lights. The key metric of effective performance was the rear warning-light configurations’ ability to draw the following-vehicle driver’s eye forward during an in-vehicle distraction task. Thirty participants were coached to maintain a following distance of approximately 120 ft (36.58 m) during multiple closed-track loops. Results indicated a strong trend for improved eye-drawing performance of both rear warning-light configurations over that of normal brake lights. The rear warning-light configurations had significantly better attention-getting ratings, as compared to baseline brake lights, while the participants were fixating either directly ahead or 30 deg off-axis. Participants gave discomfort glare ratings while (1) positioned directly behind the test trailer and fixating on the vehicles rear-lighting (i.e., acting as a following vehicle) and (2) positioned in the adjacent lane and looking past the rear-lighting (i.e., acting as a passing vehicle). The results indicated that there were no significant differences in discomfort glare ratings for the two rear warning-light configurations and brake lights. The helpfulness and usefulness ratings showed that overall participants perceived both rear warning-light configurations positively. In conclusion, both rear warning-light configurations appear to be good candidates to move forward to the follow-on real-world data collection effort.
SAE International Journal of Commercial Vehicles 12/2010; 3(1):273-283.
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ABSTRACT: In 2006, there were approximately 23,500 rear-end crashes involving heavy trucks on our roadways. Of these crashes, 135 resulted in fatalities and 1,603 resulted in incapacitating injuries. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) contracted with the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) to investigate methods to reduce or mitigate those crashes where a heavy truck has been struck from behind by another vehicle. This particular collision type results in higher-than-usual rates of fatalities and injuries compared to types of rear-end crashes in which the lead vehicle is a light vehicle. The most prevalent contributing factor is that of the following-vehicle driver looking away, either into the vehicle interior or to the outside (but not the forward view). Most previous work on prevention of rear-end crashes has been directed toward attention-getting and eye-drawing; that is, trying to get the following-vehicle driver to look forward instead of continuing to look away. The Enhanced Rear Signaling (ERS) for Heavy Trucks project investigated many categories of rear-end crash countermeasures which included both visual and auditory warning signals. The purpose of introducing a visual warning signal, the focus of this paper, was to redirect the driver’s attention and visual glance to the forward view. Visual warnings have been shown to be effective, assuming the following driver is looking directly at the warning display or has his/her eyes drawn to it. This paper will provide an overview of testing performed with visual warning signals positioned on the rear of a heavy truck trailer. These visual warning signals were tested using a static method (parked vehicles with individuals not driving) to determine how well various configurations of visual warning signals would provide improved eye-drawing capabilities. Two static experiments were performed to down-select several visual warning signal configurations prior to dynamic testing on the Virginia Smart Road. Each experiment and the results obtained will be discussed.
Journal. Washington Academy of Sciences, Washington, D. C 01/2010; 96(3):15-34.
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ABSTRACT: Lane change and merge maneuvers represent approximately 20% of heavy truck crashes, resulting in loss of life and property damage. Tests were performed to determine the feasibility of developing an Enhanced Camera/Video Imaging System (E-C/VIS) to provide heavy-vehicle drivers with better awareness of their vehicle’s position in relation to other vehicles on the roadway (situation awareness). It is well known that large blind spots currently exist in these areas. A previous phase of this program measured the field of view requirements for heavy trucks, resulting in an improved understanding of mirror performance and recommendations for the design of a camera based indirect viewing system. With indirect viewing requirements understood, the goal of the present research was to extend the operating envelope of a conventional video implementation of the requirements to nighttime and inclement weather conditions. A three-channel system was envisioned in which there would be a camera at each front fender of the tractor looking backward along the sides of the heavy vehicle. The third channel would be aimed rearward from the back of the trailer. Once developed, the three-channel system was tested in static and dynamic driving environments and it was found to work well in the nighttime and inclement weather environments, including various street lighting conditions.
International Technical Conference on the Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV), Stuttgart, Germany; 06/2009
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ABSTRACT: On January 4th, 2004, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration implemented a revised set of regulations concerning the hours-of-service (HOS) of commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers. One central component of the revised HOS regulations was a one-hour increase in allowable driving time, from 10 to 11h. The current study evaluated the impact of the additional driving-hour on critical incident risk. Data from a naturalistic truck driving study, which resulted in over 2 million driving miles of continuously collected data, were analyzed. Driving hour bins (hours 1 through 11) were created and the frequency of critical incidents for each hour, and trips (opportunities) per each hour, were identified. A relative frequency was then calculated (critical incidents divided by opportunities) for each hour and odds ratios were determined. Analyses found an elevated risk in the 1st driving-hour, but no consistent significant difference between hours 2 through 11. Analyses on time-of-day, where incident rates were calculated for each of the 24h in the day, were also conducted. The results found a strong positive correlation to national traffic density data. As an impact on U.S. national transportation policy, the results of this study do not support the hypothesis that there is an increased risk resulting from CMV drivers driving in the 11th driving-hour as compared to the 10th driving-hour, or any hour.
Accident; analysis and prevention 04/2009; 41(2):268-75. · 1.65 Impact Factor
