The Netherlands Royal Army has an increasing need for advice concerning the utilization and effectiveness of driving simulators for the training of drivers. However, during this work always a number of questions remain open because the relevant knowledge simply is lacking. Therefore innovative and applied research is necessary, directed at answering these unanswered questions. The present report reviews the knowledge concerning visual information presentation for training simulators for normal and tracked vehicles. On this subject, image content, field of view, and image quality (basic physical characteristics) are discriminated. Based on this review the following gaps are identified: (a) With reference to image content, knowledge is lacking about the effects on task performance of detail, information distribution, positioning and texture; (b) The minimally required field of view for the training of basic elements of the driving task is unknown; (c) With regard to image quality, it seems meaningful to acquire more knowledge concerning the effects of deceiving depth information (caused by collimation), delay and resolution on task performance; and (d) The focal visual modality, together with image quality, may be of limited importance for performance on elementary parts of the driving task. This idea should be further explored. In general, the value of different visual cues for different subtasks should be known and more understanding is needed about the way in which visual information has to be presented, such that important cues clearly emerge. In order to answer these kind of questions, directions for further research are indicated. Based on the experimental results, minimum requirements for driving simulators may be formulated, which may save expenses for the purchase of redundant (and often expensive) options. (A)
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