The University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Translational Research for Injury Prevention Laboratory, based in the Department of Psychology, is housed within the academic and medical centers of UAB. The TRIP Lab is proud to house a new, fully immersive, driving simulator sponsored by Honda Manufacturing of Alabama and theAlabama Department of Transportation.
The UAB TRIP Lab is now the home of a new Driving Simulator. This high-fidelity, fully immersive instrument is designed by Realtime Technologies, Inc
It takes the form of a 2016 Honda Pilot, and you really feel like you’re driving! The vehicle features a fully functional steering wheel, throttle, brake, gear selector, turn signals, and dashboard.
A motion base system provides a normal ride height, which gives the driver a more realistic experience getting into and out of the vehicle. This motion base system also provides pitch cues to the drivers for acceleration and braking (the driver feels the pull of slowing down and the push of speeding up).
The roadway and surrounding scenery are provided on three 80” LCD projection screens, which provide a 18o° field of view. A large screen behind the cab allows the driver to see the simulated environment behind them using the center rear mirror. The side mirrors have LCD displays that that show the driver what he/she would see from the side mirrors in an actual vehicle.
A 5.1 sound system surrounds the vehicle for realistic vehicle and pass-by sounds. There are even full Doppler sound effects. Speakers inside the vehicle provide the sound for warning systems, route guidance instructions, or interaction between the operators and subject driver.
Next to the simulator room is a control room with all the equipment necessary to run and maintain the simulator. These rooms are separated by a one-way mirror.
The faculty and staff of the Translational Research for Injury Prevention Laboratory have extensive experience in multi-disciplinary transportation-related injury prevention research. Their experience with driving simulator-related research design and implementation, as well as data collection, analysis, and presentation is unparalleled, and they are happy to share their knowledge, experience, and resources to assist you in your research needs.
The Driving Simulator’s progressive software is fully customizable for your research. The Simulator’s powerful dynamics support accurate modeling of vehicle response to the conditions you set. High quality graphics and sensitive haptic feedback allows the driver to become fully immersed in the virtual environment. The Driving Simulator is capable of measuring a wide variety of driver behaviors/outcome measures for all your research needs, including:
- Speed
- Time-to-Collision
- Headway Time/Distance
- Gap Acceptance
- Braking Reaction Time
- Brake Pressure
- Lateral Acceleration
- Lane Positioning
- Steering Variability
- Many other outcome measures are available. The TRIP Lab’s Driving Simulator runs a powerful software system that is fully customizable to meet your research needs.
Explore the capabilities of the TRIP Lab and its Driving Simulator to better understand what we can help you.
