Studies on evaluation of geometrical design of forest roads by driver's psychological and physiological responses: Effect of sight distances at circular curves
1997
Pan, X.D. (Kochi Univ., Nankoku (Japan). Faculty of Agriculture) | Gotou, J. | Yamamoto, M.
Up to the present, ergonomic researc-h on geometrical design of forest roads has been mainly promoted by using either a radius of curve or a driving speed as a factor. In this study, however, we evaluated the geometrical design with two factors: a time required which a car got through a sight distance of a circular curve, and a difference between sight distances by calculation for braking and observation. We obtained the following facts with a high accuracy. A reduction of the time required and the difference in sight distance cause to increase a sYStOlic blood pressure which indicates driver's psychological and physiological loads. Moreover, the systolic blood pressure presents a rapid increase in case of driving a curve of which the sight distance by observation is more than 5 m shorter thanthat by calculation for braking. According to these results, we can advise that the sight distance by calculation for braking should be more than 5 m longer than that by observation to keep driver's mental load in low. It becomes clear that the sight distance is an effective index with the radius of curve to estimate driver's psychological and physiological loads when driving at a curve. Moreover, the geometrical design of forest roads can be assessed more exactly by means of using the difference between sight distances by calculation for braking and observation
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