IDENTIFICATION AND HUMAN-CENTERED EVALUATION OF ROAD SURFACE ROUGHNESS CAUSING STRESS FOCUSING ON PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES

Abstract

 In recent years, localized surface roughness on expressway road surfaces which occurs below current maintenance standards have become a factor that reduces the comfort of driving vehicles. The study focuses on the human-centered evaluation of road surfaces by conducting driving tests using a driving simulator. The driving test introduced two measures of physiological indices, the electrocardiogram (ECG) and the electrodermal activity (EDA), to comprehend unconscious mental stress of participants toword vehicle vibrations induced by the surface roughness. The results suggest that a localized decrease in flatness affects stress sensitivity. Moreover, the wavelength response of the road surface that causes stress is the cause of the discrepancy between the comfort of users and the maintenance criteria.