Analysis of perception of vertical signaling of highways by drivers in a simulated driving environment

Road accidents are a major societal issue for every country. The purpose of this paper is to assess and to analyze how drivers perceive traffic signals within a simulated environment direction, supported the use of an eye tracking system. Driving simulators are search tools which allow the study of driver behavior in various driving scenarios, quickly, safely and economically. This manuscript comprised the experiment in the driver simulator to measure the perception of signaling within the virtual environment in Brazil. In the experiment, 21 drivers went on a stretch of 10 km of a federal highway with 31 traffic signals, to measure the distance perception, number of fixations and the observation time signaling, as well as the variation in velocity after perception. The perception signaling within the virtual environment was similar to that reported in the literature for roads studies: on average the drivers perceived three signals, the observation time was 360 ms, the distance perception was 100 m and only the perception of velocity limits was relevant in driver behavior.