A study is described that investigated the hypothesis that drivers will change their steering input in response to different headlighting conditions. The conditions studied were as follows: subject drives on high beam with no opposing glare; subject drives on low beam with no opposing glare; subject drives on low beam facing opposing cars on low beam; and subject drives on low beam facing opposing cars on high beam. Six subjects in two age groups participated in the study conducted on two sites, one of which had a slight S curve. Details are given of the equipment (three cars were needed for the experiment, two of which were equipped with 2-way radios) and the procedure employed in the study. The analysis and results of the study are discussed. The significant differences between the high and low beam glare conditions for five measures of steering input indicates that the glare level affected the drivers steering input. The need is indicated for further research with a more difficult driving task to see if steering input measures will distinguish between headlights under non glare conditions. The sensitivity of these measures for distinguishing between levels of glare in meeting conditions should be tested with other combinations of headlights.
Samenvatting