Visual Fields at the Wheel

It has yet to be determined whether obstructive elements within an automobile (e.g., window posts or the interior rearview mirror) have actually been an obstacle to the driver's vision. This article describes a technique that can easily be used to determine the available visual field of drivers at the wheel and illustrates its potential in a number of applications. The technique uses a spectacle-mounted camera worn by the driver, which takes snapshots when the automobile is parked and the driver looked in different directions; video sequences were also recorded during natural driving in an urban area and on a winding mountain road. Results showed that all of the automobiles studied have obstacles to vision for any given direction of gaze, although the resulting blockages have different sizes and are placed in different regions of the visual field for each combination of car and driver. The authors conclude that this technique is useful for determining what parts of a given scene are visible to a given driver on a given automobile. This could be used not only as a tool for accident investigation and in visual ergonomics, but also as an aid for the design of automobiles and road environments.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/10405488
• Authors:
  • Vargas-Martin, Fernando
  • Garcia-Perez, Miguel A
• Publication Date: 2005-8

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References;
• Pagination: pp 675-681
• Serial:
  • Optometry and Vision Science
  • Volume: 82
  • Issue Number: 8
  • Publisher: American Academy of Optometry
  • ISSN: 1040-5488
  • EISSN: 1538-9235
  • Serial URL: http://journals.lww.com/optvissci/pages/default.aspx

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automobile drivers; Cameras; Eye location; Eye movements; Field of vision; Hazards; Peripheral vision; Risk assessment; Rural highways; Urban highways; Vehicle interiors
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor; I91: Vehicle Design and Safety;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01010611
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Nov 26 2005 7:39AM