EFFECTS OF AUTOMOBILE STEERING CHARACTERISTICS ON DRIVER VEHICLE SYSTEM DYNAMICS IN REGULATION TASKS

A regulation task which subjected the automobile to a random gust disturbance which is countered by driver control action is used to study the effects of various automobile steering characteristics on the driver/vehicle system. The experiments used a variable stability automobile specially configured to permit insertion of the simulated gust disturbance and the measurement of the driver/vehicle system characteristics. The tests were conducted in two phases: a broad coverage of vehicle dynamics in which over 40 configurations of vehicle steering dynamics and steering gains were tested with an expert test driver; and a validation phase which covered 6 sets of vehicle dynamics with 16 subjects. In both phases driver/vehicle system dynamics were measured and interpreted as an effective open-loop system describing function. Objectives measures of system bandwidth, stability, and time delays were deduced and compared. These objective measures were supplemented by driver ratings. A tentative optimum range of vehicle dynamics for the directional regulation task was established.

• Supplemental Notes:
  • 11th Annual Conference Manual Control, Moffett Field, California, May 21-23, 1975.
• Corporate Authors:

  Systems Technology, Incorporated

  13766 South Hawthorne Boulevard
  Hawthorne, CA  United States  90250
• Authors:
  • Mcruer, D
  • KLEIN, R
• Publication Date: 1975-5

Media Info

• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 32 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automated vehicle control; Crosswinds; Driver performance; Drivers; Driving simulators; Personnel performance; Steering; Vehicle dynamics
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00132130
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Highway Safety Research Institute
• Report/Paper Numbers: Report No. 174
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Nov 9 1977 12:00AM