Presentation of Position and Relative Speed of Surrounding Vehicles by Tactile Stimuli to Upper Limb

The visual load on drivers has recently increased owing to an increase in the amount of information provided by more sophisticated functions and larger displays. Presenting non-visual information could help reduce the load on the drivers. This study focuses on the presentation of spatial information by tactile stimuli to the upper limb, proposing that the position of surrounding vehicles is shown as an extension of the direction of the vibration position from the eye point to the upper limb. The relative speed of the passing vehicles is then perceived by the difference in travel time between the sites of stimulation to the upper limb. The relationship between the physical and perceived angle of vibration position from the eye point to the upper limb was first investigated. The difference in travel time between the sites of stimulation to the upper limb was then tested to verify whether relative speed could be perceived, and the feasibility of the tactile presentation system was confirmed. The results revealed a strong correlation between the physical and perceived angles. The difference in speed could be recognized with high probability. The acceptability of this system was evaluated, resulting in a score of 2.44 on a 5-point scale from 0 to 4, indicating a relatively positive response.