TRAINER project focuses on methodologies and tools to assess and improve driver training, while emphasising the needs of novice drivers. The TRAINER Project has thus implications on quality of life, health and safety, skills quality and training, environment and resources, and will contribute to technological progress, with the development of interactive multimedia s/w tools and simulators that will enhance the risk awareness of novice drivers. The present Deliverable, D4.1, is split into ten parts. After a brief introduction of the background of the TRAINER Project, it is explained the driver training needs and major gaps in the training procedures (Chapter 3). This chapter is based on the information that has been gathered in earlier parts of the project, such as literature reviews and workshop results. Further information is thus available in TRAINER deliverables D2.1 and D6.1. Chapter 4 describes the main objectives of Deliverable D4.1, as an introduction to a short description of the training tools developed in the Project that follows in the Chapter 5. The TRAINER low-cost simulator is shortly described in Chapter 5. It is based on a driving stand, the driving computer with integrated image generator, and a separate monitor, which is put on top of the driving stand in front of the steering wheel. The horizontal view angle is 40 degrees. The driving computer and image generator is accommodated inside the cabin. The driving stand comprises the cabin, a driver seat, a dashboard with instruments and operational elements as accelerator, brake and clutch pedals, handbrake and gearbox levers, indicator lever, headlight switch, windshield wiper lever, ignition key, horn button and steering wheel. The mean-cost simulator differs from the low-cost simulator by the use of three monitors, a vibration system and a simple motion system. Each one of the two peripheral monitors has his own PC image generator. Chapter 6 describes the TRAINER simulators main technical requirements. It starts with a brief introduction of the more relevant characteristics related with training based simulation and a study of the state of the art in actual training simulators around the world. In this chapter, is also included the description of the TRAINER Partners research simulators, mainly VTI, UPV and RUG, briefly discussing their technical characteristics, driver testing categories and their adaptation for drivers with special needs, for reference purposes. The main part of this chapter is concerned with in the description of the s/w and h/w technical characteristics of the different low-cost and mean-cost TRAINER simulator modules. It fully describes the features of the body/structure of the simulator, pedal devices, driving seat, gearbox and handbrake lever and audio systems requirements for the low-cost design, that totally applies to the mean cost simulators. For the mean-cost simulator this description is upgraded with the motion system, visual system, computer requirements and data acquisition systems. For developing the simulation s/w, a development strategy is selected, allowing for easy future modifications and improvements. The interface software features include the description of the scenarios development, the type of data registered, input and output signals, visualization, database and objects and vehicle dynamic model. Finally, the characteristics of the output training module are given. To sum up, the end of the chapter resumes a design summary table, in which all technical requirements for both, low-cost and mean-cost project simulators are included. In Section 7, 96 scenarios that were developed for TRAINER simulators and multimedia training tools are shortly presented (see also TRAINER D6.1), and a relevant hierarchical analysis and prioritisation for their application in the project simulators is being performed. Finally, in Section 8, a number of TRAINER scenarios that are also suitable for application by the VIRTUAL project (another EU project, aiming to evaluate driver training the help of Virtual Reality tools) are proposed. The most relevant are: TRAINER scenarios 6 (satart and gear shift), 24 (gap acceptance), 71 and 10 (reaction time and stopping distance). (Author/publisher)
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