A driving simulator study was conducted on the effectiveness of centre high mounted brake lights with 5 or 10W incandescent lamps or a 4W light emitting diode lamp. Use of red, yellow or blue lights was tested. Different light intensities for daytime and night-time driving were also investigated. The participants were male students of 21-25 years of age, who had driven for more than six months and who were not colour-blind. Reaction times were measured in response to the illumination of the brake lights on the test rig. Significant factors affecting perception time were ambient illumination, lighting colour, bulb types, and the interaction between ambient illumination and lighting colours. The same factors affected overall reaction time. Dark blue gave a quick and accurate reaction time but yellow light gave the shortest reaction time. Light intensity may be more important than lighting colour. For the covering abstract see ITRD E123380.
Samenvatting