The Effects of Using In-Vehicle Computer on Driver Eye Movements and Driving Performance

Abstract

This paper examined the effects of performing an e-mail receiving and sending task using in-vehicle computer (iPad4) on driving performance and driver eye movements to determine if performance decrements decreased with practice. Eighteen younger drivers completed the driving on driving simulator while interacting with or without an e-mail task. Measures of fixations, saccades, vehicle control, and completion time of the secondary task were analyzed. Results revealed that using in-vehicle computer featured "large touch-screen" to receive and send e-mail greatly weakened driver's distraction and decreased their ability to control the vehicle. There was also evidence that, however, drivers attempted to regulate their behavior when distracted by decreasing their driving speed and taking a large number of short fixations and a quick saccades towards the computer. The results suggest that performing e-mail receiving and sending tasks while driving is problematic and steps to prohibit this activity should be taken.

How eye movement and driving performance vary before, during, and after entering a long expressway tunnel: considering the differences of novice and experienced drivers under daytime and nighttime conditions

“…The proportion of time spent with eyes off the road (%) indicates whether and how a driver’s current focus of visual attention is aroused (Xian and Jin 2015 ).…”

Effect of Distracting Factors on Driving Performance: A Review

“…This finding was substantiated to some extent to the results of [125], who found that distractions were frequently linked to poor driving performance as evaluated by eyes directed inside rather than outside the car. Similarly, Xian & Jin (2015) [113] found that receiving and sending an e-mail on iPad4 while driving caused drivers to glance away from the road for longer periods and reduced the ability of the drivers to keep a steady lane position. Recently, Li et al (2019) [103] used Eco-Safe Human-Machine-Interface in a simulation study to explore drivers' gaze behaviors as measures of the distraction of drivers.…”

“…Many in-car technologies, such as vehicle navigation systems, wireless Internet capability, wireless messaging, and audio systems, have been implemented by vehicle manufacturers. Although the expansion of new in-vehicle technologies is undoubtedly concerning, several studies have shown that these facilities simultaneously distract drivers and degrade driving performance [e.g., [111][112][113]. Drivers get distracted while driving and are involved simultaneously in the operation of in-vehicle devices such as radio/audio systems [114][115][116], video/navigation systems [115], and wireless internet systems [113].…”

Drivers’ Visual Attention Characteristics under Different Cognitive Workloads: An On-Road Driving Behavior Study

“…When sending and receiving emails on a pad in the vehicle, sending emails greatly weakened drivers’ attention and reduced their ability to control the vehicle. Meanwhile, the time spent looking at the display screen greatly increased [ 26 ]. The changes of drivers’ gaze are observed by adjusting the radio in the car in different ways on the highway and classifying different drivers through the hidden Markov model.…”