SAE International Offers Cutting-edge Book on Driver Distraction and Performance Metrics

WARRENDALE, PA--May 27, 2011 Performance Metrics for Assessing Driver Distraction: The Quest for Improved Road Safety is a book recently published by SAE International.  The title is an edited compilation of papers developed from presentations made at the 4th International Driver Performance Metrics Workshop in San Antonio, Texas, in 2008.  The work was edited by Dr. Gary L. Rupp, the workshop moderator and an active expert in this field for more than 30 years.

A wide-ranging examination of current driver metrics research and applications, and a valuable resource for scientists, engineers, government officials, and students it helps better understand and measure driver's distraction. This 264-page volume consists of 15 chapters concerning methods for assessing driving and secondary task performance.

"Government and the vehicle industry have made improving road safety and reducing driver distraction a top priority. The need for deeper expertise in these subjects is rapidly growing," Rupp said. "The book attempts to help fill the gap in how to measure the distraction impact on the driver of OEM or nomadic infotainment devices, including roadway infrastructure messages that are introduced into the vehicle."  

An exclusive interview with Dr. Linda Angell, currently a researcher at the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, one of the authors of the book, is available online. The interview addresses many of the foundational concepts in "Performance Metrics for Assessing Driver Distraction," and serves as an introduction for readers. The interview covers various topics, including the importance of measures used to understand driver behavior and distraction, NHTSA's renewed focus on addressing driver distraction, and new developments in video-based measures of driver distraction and peripheral and tactile detection tasks. These concepts are all vital components of emerging safety technologies. The video can be found online at http://books.sae.org/book-r-402.

To request a copy of Performance Metrics for Assessing Driver Distraction: The Quest for Improved Road Safety, e-mail pr@sae.org or call 1-724-772-8522; to order the book, visit SAE Books. This publication is now available.

SAE International is a global association of more than 128,000 engineers and related technical experts in the aerospace, automotive and commercial-vehicle industries. SAE International's core competencies are life-long learning and voluntary consensus standards development. SAE International's charitable arm is the SAE Foundation, which supports many programs, including A World In Motion® and the Collegiate Design Series.