NATIONAL ADVANCED DRIVING SIMULATOR (NADS) REQUIREMENT STUDY.: VOLUME II, FINAL TECHNICAL REPORT

Potential users of an envisioned National Advanced Driving Simulator (NADS) were identified and surveyed. The NADS is planned to be a high level state-of-the-art research driving simulator. Organizations surveyed included examples from the vehicle and component manufacturers, the government, and research groups. More than 30 on-site interviews were conducted during the winter and spring of 1991. Oral presentations were made using an overhead projector and a short video. The survey forms were distributed, and returned by mail for analysis. The main areas of interest for these potential users were shown to be vehicle safety, driver/vehicle interaction and human factors, and vehicle and. component design and development. The potential users surveyed indicated hourly cost ranges for simulator use, and the results suggest that the government research organizations are currently willing to accept a NADS cost range of as much as $2,000 per hour. Other potential users indicated a target cost range on the order of $1,000/hour, while some placed the value at or below $500/hour. Tentative research priorities were identified from the survey results. Illustrative research problem statements and estimated cost comparisons considering simulator and full scale research methodologies were made. The example comparisons chosen favored the use of an intermediate to high end simulator methodology. In general, the estimated research study costs and durations were about the same, or favored the simulator. The limitations favored the simulator approach, and some studies would pose an unacceptable risk with a full scale test.