Automobile instrument panel design: Reach capabilities of younger and older drivers

This study was conducted to gain a better understanding of automobile drivers' abilities. Its goal is to provide information that will help vehicle designers create instrument panels that reduce "look-away" time---the time when a driver's eyes are not looking directly ahead.; Frequent or extended look-away times increase risk while driving. Reduced look-away can benefit all drivers and will be especially beneficial to older drivers. Understanding reach capabilities can lead to instrument panels that are less dependent on visual attention.; A driving simulator located at the Industrial Design Department at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia was used to evaluate steering accuracy and reach capabilities. Forty-eight subjects, 24 younger drivers (20--39 years of age) and 24 older drivers (60--79 years of age), participated. Each group consisted of 12 males and 12 females. Subjects were asked to sit in the driver's seat and perform a steering task. Drivers were asked to reach for targets in the instrument panel area while steering. Twenty-three targets were presented to each driver. Speed and accuracy of reach, along with steering accuracy, was recorded.; The following results were obtained: (1) As a result of the reach being performed, steering accuracy was impaired. (2) Steering impairment was worse for older drivers than for younger drivers. (3) Targets closer to and further from the steering wheel provided stronger proprioceptive cues than positions at intermediate distances, a function of biomechanical link positions involved in the reach. (4) Locating the target by touch, then reaching again, resulted in more accurate reaches when compared with locating the target by glance while driving. (5) Older drivers exhibited less accurate movements than younger drivers. (6) The control's column and row position affects specific aspects of reach accuracy. (7) Older drivers reached faster, possibly the result of driving strategy. (8) Errors were systematic---the right hand consistently overshot movements to the right, and in most cases reaches were too low. In addition, the instrument panel area was mapped to show areas that elicited better reach accuracy.