Abstract
This paper reports on an investigation of how manipulation of optical looming cues can influence braking behaviour, for automobile driving in a low-fidelity simulator. Twenty participants were instructed to follow a leading vehicle (LV) and appropriately respond to braking events of the LV, which occurred randomly and at different deceleration rates. During some braking events, the size of the LV was manipulated in different ways, without subjects being aware, in a manner concordant with the optical expansion that would have been observed during braking if the LV had been displaced to be closer or further away. Results showed that subjects braked sooner when confronting an expanding LV and later for a contracting LV, relative to a constant-size LV, to an extent corresponding to the magnitude of the manipulation. The experiment supports the theory that drivers use TTC information derived from optic looming to control braking.
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