Multisensory Influences on Driver Steering During Curve Navigation

Abstract

Objective: The effects of inertial (vestibular and somatosensory) information on driver steering during curve navigation were investigated, using an electric four-wheel mobility vehicle outfitted with a steering wheel and a portable virtual reality system. Background: When driving, multiple sources of perceptual information are available. Researchers have focused on visual information, which plays a critical role in steering control. However, it is not yet well established how inertial information might contribute. Methods: I biased inertial cues by varying visual/inertial gains (doubled, halved, reversed), as drivers negotiated curving paths, and measured steering accuracy and efficiency. I also assessed whether being exposed to inertial biases had an impact on postbias steering by comparing pre- and posttest session performance measures. Results: Doubling or halving inertial cues had little effect on steering performance. Inertial information only disrupted steering when it was reversed with respect to visual information. Over time, the influence of this extreme inertial bias was reduced though not eliminated. Postbias curve navigation performance was not impacted, likely because participants had learned to disregard, rather than integrate, biased inertial cues. Conclusion: Results suggest that biased inertial information has little influence on curve navigation performance when visual information is available. Application: Though inertial cues may be important for open-loop steering, when visual cues are unavailable, their role in closed-loop steering seems less influential. This has implications for driving simulation and suggests that inertial discrepancies due to limitations in motion-cuing capabilities may not be all that problematic for the simulation of closed-loop curve steering tasks.