BRIGHTNESS AND BRIGHTNESS RATIO AS FACTORS IN THE ATTENTION VALUE OF HIGHWAY SIGNS

BY MEASURING THE SUBJECTIVE REACTIONS AND EYE MOVEMENTS OF SUBJECTS LOOKING AT PAIRS OF NEUTRAL GRAY CHIPS VARYING IN EITHER BRIGHTNESS, BRIGHTNESS RATIO, OR BRIGHTNESS AND BRIGHTNESS RATIO, IT WAS POSSIBLE TO ASSESS THE ROLE OF THESE PARAMETERS IN ATTENTION VALUE. EACH VARIABLE CONTROLLED ATTENTION WHEN COMPOUNDED. WHEN THE TWO PARAMETERS VARIED SUMULTANEOUSLY, BRIGHTNESS RATIO PREDOMINATED, BUT A HIGH BRIGHTNESS ENHANCED THE ATTENTION- GETTING VALUE OF HIGH CONTRAST. THIS WAS MORE EVIDENT IN THE NEGATIVE THAN IN THE POSITIVE CONTRAST DIRECTION. IT IS SUGGESTED THAT ADDITION OF A FACTOR CONSIDERING HIGH RELATIVE BRIGHTNESS IN COMBINATION WITH HIGH RELATIVE BRIGHTNESS RATIO WOULD REFINE THE FORBES ET AL MODELS OF HIGHWAY SIGN ATTENTION VALUE. /AUTHOR/

• Record URL:
  • http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrr/1969/275/275-004.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Paper sponsored by Committee on Visibility. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Pain, R
• Publication Date: 1969

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References;
• Pagination: pp 32-40
• Monograph Title: Vehicle guidance and lightings and sign brightness
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Record
  • Issue Number: 275
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Attention value; Brightness; Mathematical models; Traffic signs
• Uncontrolled Terms: Models
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00220528
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Sep 22 2000 12:00AM