ABSTRACT
This study compares the mental workloads and subjective feelings of drivers navigating different road patterns using different formats of electronic and paper maps. The results show drivers experience lower mental workloads when using 2D electronic maps compared to 3D electronic maps. Significant differences in galvanic skin responses were observed for navigation map formats with different road intersection patterns. The low- and high-frequency components of heart rate variability showed significant differences between map formats for regular road intersections, but no significant differences between map formats for irregular road intersections. Statistically significant effects on subjective feelings were found between different map formats and road intersection patterns. The wider implications of the study results for the design and use of navigation map interfaces are discussed.
Subject(s)
Automobile Driving/psychology , Maps as Topic , Space Perception/physiology , Spatial Behavior/physiology , User-Computer Interface , Adult , Emotions/physiology , Galvanic Skin Response/physiology , Heart Rate/physiology , Humans , Male , Workload/psychology , Young AdultABSTRACT
This study evaluated the driving performance of drivers presented with 2D and 3D electronic navigation maps and a traditional paper map with various route structures. A heads-up display was used to show the different driving conditions for each navigation map system. Results revealed that the drivers using an electronic navigation map performed better compared to the drivers using a paper map. The results also indicated that drivers who used 2D-regular pattern or 2D-irregular corner maps performed more efficiently than the drivers who used a 3D-regular pattern or 3D-irregular corner maps in reaching their destinations. In addition, drivers can save time and fuel by using 2D navigation maps in unfamiliar regions.
