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Safety and mobility of people with disabilities driving adapted cars
Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-3856-5421
Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-2301-5793
2004 (English)In: Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy, ISSN 1103-8128, E-ISSN 1651-2014, Vol. 11, no 2, p. 54-61Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

A study was carried out to increase knowledge about the safety of drivers with disabilities. A questionnaire that focused on the driver's disability, the adaptive equipment, the use of the car, safety, and accident involvement was sent to a random sample of persons with disabilities driving adapted cars. Spinal cord injuries was the most frequent diagnosis (30% of 793 answers) and lower limb disabilities was the most common functional restriction (over 75%). The drivers felt very safe and they had a high level of confidence in the adapted car. They used the car for almost the entire distance travelled (90%), which illustrates how dependent this group is on the car for their mobility. About 1 out of 10 drivers had been involved in an accident during the last 3.5 years, most of them with only material damage. The accident and injury risks of the target group did not differ significantly from the risks of drivers in general. A small number of accidents were attributed to problems with the special equipment in the car. The causes could be unfamiliarity with the controls, an adaptation that did not fully meet the needs of the individual or equipment that broke down. © 2004 Taylor & Francis.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2004. Vol. 11, no 2, p. 54-61
Keywords [en]
Car, Adaptation, Risk, Accident, Severity
National Category
Vehicle Engineering
Research subject
80 Road: Traffic safety and accidents, 81 Road: Accidents; 80 Road: Traffic safety and accidents, 811 Road: Accident statistics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:vti:diva-7833DOI: 10.1080/11038120410020511OAI: oai:DiVA.org:vti-7833DiVA, id: diva2:809438
Available from: 2015-05-04 Created: 2015-05-04 Last updated: 2017-12-04Bibliographically approved
In thesis
1. Evaluation of Adapted Passenger Cars for Drivers with Physical Disabilities
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Evaluation of Adapted Passenger Cars for Drivers with Physical Disabilities
2004 (English)Doctoral thesis, comprehensive summary (Other academic)
Abstract [en]

Driving can provide independent and efficient mobility. However, according to the driving license directive (91/439/EEC) are persons with locomotor impairments are only allowed drive if their disabilities can be compensated. Compensation can be realised by vehicle adaptations. The directive provides meagre guidance on how vehicles should be adapted or how to verify that the compensatory requirements are fulfilled. This is a gap in the current process for licensing drivers with physical disabilities. Furthermore, the Swedish process from driver assessment to driver licensing and adaptation approval is complex, fragmented, and suffer from lack of communication between involved authorities. The objective of this thesis was to contribute to the development of a method to evaluate vehicle adaptations for driver with physical disabilities. The focus was on the evaluation of adaptations for steering, accelerating and braking. Three driving simulator experiments and one manoeuvre test with adapted vehicles were conducted. A group of drivers with tetraplegia driving with hand controls were compared to able-bodied drivers in the first experiment. Even if the drivers with tetraplegia had a longer brake reaction time they performed comparable to the able-bodied drivers. However, they spent more effort and were more tired in order to perform as well as the able-bodied drivers. It was concluded that the adaptation was not sufficient. An Adaptive Cruise Controller (ACC) was tested in the second experiment in order to find out if it could alleviate the load on drivers using hand controls. It was found that the ACC decreased the workload on the drivers. However, ACC systems need to be adjustable and better integrated. The results from the first two experiments were used to provide some guidelines for ACCsystems to be used by drivers with disabilities. The third experiment was preceded by a manoeuvre test with joystick controlled cars. The test revealed some problems, which were attributed to time lags, control interference, and lack of feedback. Four joystick designs were tested with a group of drivers with tetraplegia in the third experiment. It was concluded that time lags should be made similar to what is found in standard cars. Lateral and longitudinal control should be separated. Active feedback can improve vehicle control but should be individually adjusted. The experiments revealed that drivers with the same diagnose can be functionally very diverse. Thus, an adaptation evaluation should be made individually. Furthermore, the evaluation should include a manoeuvre test. Finally, it was concluded that the evaluation approach applied in the experiments was relevant but needs to be further developed.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Linköping: Linköping University Electronic Press, 2004
Series
Linköping Studies in Science and Technology, ISSN 0345-7524 ; 864
Keywords
Disabled person, Driver, Car, Adaptation, Equipment, Vehicle handling, Simulator, Adaptive cruise control, Driving aptitude, Thesis
National Category
Vehicle Engineering
Research subject
90 Road: Vehicles and vehicle technology, 911 Road: Components of the vehicle; 80 Road: Traffic safety and accidents, 841 Road: Road user behaviour; 80 Road: Traffic safety and accidents, 84 Road: Road users
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:vti:diva-7838 (URN)91-7373-911-1 (ISBN)
Available from: 2015-05-04 Created: 2015-05-04 Last updated: 2015-05-04Bibliographically approved

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Henriksson, PerPeters, Björn

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