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. 2015 Apr 15;10(4):e0123835.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0123835. eCollection 2015.

The effect of low-frequency road noise on driver sleepiness and performance

Anna Anund  1 , Eva Lahti  2 , Carina Fors  3 , Anders Genell  3
Affiliations

The effect of low-frequency road noise on driver sleepiness and performance

Anna Anund et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

It is a well-known fact today that driver sleepiness is a contributory factor in crashes. Factors considered as sleepiness contributor are mostly related to time of the day, hours being awake and hours slept. Factors contributing to active and passive fatigue are mostly focusing on the level of cognitive load. Less is known what role external factors, e.g. type of road, sound/noise, vibrations etc., have on the ability to stay awake both under conditions of sleepiness and under active or passive fatigue. The aim of this moving base driving simulator study with 19 drivers participating in a random order day and night time, was to evaluate the effect of low-frequency road noise on driver sleepiness and performance, including both long-term and short-term effects. The results support to some extent the hypothesis that road-induced interior vehicle sound affects driving performance and driver sleepiness. Increased low-frequency noise helps to reduce speed during both day- and night time driving, but also contributes to increase the number of lane crossings during night time.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: Eva Lahti is employed at Volvo Car Cooperation, this does not alter the authors' adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. VTI’s simulator IV.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Infrasonic spectra of recorded vehicle sounds in 1/3 octave bands.
Fig 3
Fig 3. The “protocol” for the driver.
Fig 4
Fig 4. Sleepiness indicators related to subjective sleepiness and blink behaviour divided by Condition (day and night); Case setting (quiet and loud) and First/second part of the drive and time on task (5-10-15-20-25-30-35 minutes).
Fig 5
Fig 5. Performance indicators related to speed and lateral position divided by Condition (day and night); Case setting (quiet and loud) and first/second part of the drive and time on task (5-10-15-20-25-30-35 minutes).
Fig 6
Fig 6. Sleepiness and performance indicators for the first 35-minute drive divided by condition (Day and Night) as function of time on task (5-10-15-20-25-30-35 minutes) and type of sound (Quiet or Loud).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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