The purpose of this paper is to propose a method to infer a truck driver’s intent to change lanes before initiation of its maneuver. Observation on a truck driver’s behavior in a real world and ordinary drivers’ behavior at a driving simulator indicate common features that the drivers’ glance at the side-view mirror and speed meter becomes frequently when they are going to change lanes in a near future. Based on the observation, a four-level method is developed for detecting driver’s intent to change lanes by using the information of eye-movement. The method is applied to data collected in an experiment. The result shows that driver’s intent is detected at a high level in average 80 percent lane changes when the maneuvers of changing lanes are initiated. Investigations also suggest that a risky lane change may occur if driver’s intent is not detected at the high level. These findings are important to realize an adaptive support system in lane changes. (Author/publisher)
Abstract