ABSTRACT
This chapter describes how designs were evaluated under experimental conditions using a driving simulator. Simulator studies provide an ideal platform for initial evaluation of new design concepts, as it is possible to have users experience the new system design without the financial or legal obstacles that would arise when building prototypes for field testing. The simulator was a medium-fidelity fixed-base driving simulator, which consisted of an adjustable driver's seat, automatic transmission, Logitech G27 vehicle controls and three 40-inch liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors representing a 135° field of view. Participants completed five simulated drives, with each drive featuring a different rail level crossing design but otherwise matched in terms of road environment and traffic conditions. Potentially, a higher fidelity 'mirror' could have been programmed into the simulator, using more sophisticated graphics, yet the time and cost to achieve this may have made the study unviable.
