A method for assessing the driving ability of the elderly and thoughts onits systematization.

Traffic accidents caused by elderly drivers and resulting in personal injury or death have nearly tripled over the last decade; the elderly now total more than 40% of all traffic fatalities. Serious accidents caused by drivers with senile dementia have increased and the issue of driver license renewal has become a major public concern. Although driving ability decreases with advanced age, few elderly people recognize the decline in their own visual, cognitive and decision performance; this lack of awareness is a major cause of accidents. To reduce the number of accidents involving elderly drivers, it is critical that, beginning early in middle age, drivers undergo regular assessments of driving ability (particularly visual, cognitive and decision performance), are aware of their own abilities and driving aptitude, and maintain and improve their driving ability through reeducation and training. Currently, the driving ability of elderly drivers is assessed through National Police Agency driver aptitude tests (written tests of driving behavior, decision performance and temperament, and computerized tests of factors such as reaction time, reaction consistency and steering) administered during elderly driver workshops conducted at the time of driver license renewal. Because these tests do not incorporate actual driving situations, however, they offer an incomplete assessment of visual, cognitive and decision performance while driving. For this research, video simulations of actual driving situations were created and used in developing an experimental system for comprehensively measuring functions essential for safe driving such as visual performance (in particular, the narrowing of the useful field of view caused by aging) as well as cognitive and decision performance (visuo-spatial perception at intersections and the decline in attentiveness). This paper describes the proposed system for measuring driving ability, the method of measurement, and sample results for driving ability in the elderly. (Author/publisher).