Influence of driver's reaction time and gain on driver-vehicle system performance with rear wheel steering control systems: part of a study on vehicle control suitable for the aged driver

In this paper, by means of the simulation techniques proposed the effects of several chassis controls (4WS, 2WS) on driver-vehicle closed loop system performance were simulated for young drivers and aged drivers based on a multi-loop driver model. The simulation results were analyzed based on the research results of other researchers into aged driver's driving abilities. From the viewpoint of maintaining safety, reducing the driving load and keeping the robustness of vehicle performance, it is found that a vehicle with 4WS is more adaptable for aged drivers than a vehicle with 2WS. The stability is agumented when driver's reaction time becomes longer and acceptable gain range is wider when road friction coefficient becomes small. (C) 2002 Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan, Inc. and Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.