Driver's judgment assistance system at signalized intersection using head-up display

Abstract

This study examines a driver's judgment assistance system at a signalized intersection. The assistance system indicates the evaluation indices on a road ahead virtually using the Head-Up Display (HUD). The HUD for the driving simulator consists of a projector, a screen and a combiner. The assistance system informs a driver visually of the distance which the vehicle can advance by maintaining the present vehicle velocity until the red signal onset. The driving simulator experiments are conducted to evaluate the assistance system with the HUD. The assistance system encourages the driver to make the earlier deceleration before the amber signal onset and prevents the emergency braking behavior. In addition, the assistance system with the HUD maintains drivers' braking reaction time to the emergency deceleration of the preceding vehicle in comparison with the assistance system assuming the HUD, which is directly indicated on the road in the simulated front view. Indicating evaluation indices on the road ahead virtually through the HUD helps the driver to decelerate earlier and avoid the emergency braking maneuver. These effects make it possible to suppress the collision risk to the preceding vehicle and contribute to the safety driving.