Evaluation of the Cartographic Communication Performance of a Route Guidance and Navigation System

This study evaluates the influence of different cartographic representations of in-car navigation systems on visual demand, subjective preference, and navigational error. It takes into account the type and complexity of the representation, maneuvering complexity, road layout, and driver gender. A group of 28 drivers (14 male and 14 female) participated in this experiment which was performed in a low-cost driving simulator. The tests were performed on a limited number of instances for each type of representation, and their purpose was to carry out a preliminary assessment and provide future avenues for further studies. Data collected for the visual demand study were analyzed using non-parametric statistical analyses. Results confirmed previous research that showed that different levels of design complexity significantly influence visual demand. Non-grid-like road networks, for example, influence significantly visual demand and navigational error. An analysis of simple maneuvers on a grid-like road network showed that static and blinking arrows did not present significant differences. From the set of representations analyzed to assess visual demand, both arrows were equally efficient. From a gender perspective, women seem to took at the display more than men, but this factor was not significant. With respect to subjective preferences, drivers prefer representations with mimetic landmarks when they perform straight-ahead tasks. For maneuvering tasks, landmarks in a perspective model created higher visual demands.

Influência do gênero na demanda visual por mapas em escalas diferentes em sistema de navegação e guia de rota

This work investigates the gender effect on visual demand of drivers for dynamic maps at different cartographic scales presented In-Vehicle Route Guidance and Navigation System (RGNS). A group of 52 subjects (26 males and 26 females) took part in an experiment performed in a low-cost driving simulator. the driver's task consisted of navigating in an unknown route using a RGNS prototype which presents maps at two different cartographic scales. This paper replicates the known phenomenon of significant relationships between gender and performance at visual-spatial tasks issue. Our results show that drivers of different genders present distinct levels of visual demand both due to the cartographic scales and maneuver complexity variation. These discussed results are based upon individual differences in terms of spatial ability and spatial anxiety.