Indicating Severity of Vehicle Accidents Using Pupil Diameter in a Driving Simulator Environment

Abstract

This study investigated the driver’s pupil diameter involved in car accidents within a driving simulation environment. The purpose of this research is to understand the relationship between the vehicle accidents and the changes in pupil diameter. We hypothesized that the patterns of pupil diameter could indicate the occurrence of a collision and the severity of car accidents. To investigate the relationship between the drivers’ pupil diameter and the levels of a car accident, multiple hazard events were tested in a driving simulation environment. The eye-tracking technology was used to analyze the changes of pupil diameter and the vehicle accident events. We compared the patterns of pupil diameter trace among various levels of car accidents. The result showed that there was a significant difference on the patterns between minor crashes and severe crashes.