Recent developments in visuo-vestibular restitution of self-motion in driving simulation

Automotive research applications, from vehicle design to human factors, are of increasing importance in the domain of driving simulation nowadays. One of the reasons is the evolution of visual and kinesthetique rendering techniques and technologies, the other one is the industrial use of driving simulation as a cost effective design tool to be used in the vehicle development process. This latter has arrived to maturation as the rendering techniques allow today to carry out representative experimentations in the studied driving conditions but also because of the extreme strengthening of competition between car makers in cost effectiveness making more realistic the use of virtual prototypes. Virtual driver station design requires the use of head mounted display equipped driving simulators, virtual driving prototypes involve the use of large amplitude high fidelity motion platforms. For both of these systems perceptual and user assessment experimentations will be necessary to be carried out.