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In-Car Navigation Systems Too Distracting?
Lam1969 writes "A survey released by an insurance company shows that drivers with in-car navigation systems are more likely to lose concentration than drivers who unfold a map while driving. From the article: 'One in 10 motorists with navigation systems set off on their journeys without bothering to program their route, and more than half admitted that they then had to take their eyes off the road to input the details while driving. Nearly one in eight did not even bother to check out a route they were unfamiliar with and simply relied on the technology to get them to their destination.'"
OK, completely different technology. Similar premise. On vacation with my parents last December... My dad has a new Prius hybrid. He was so worried about that magic display in the center of the dash that showed his real time gas milegae that he was a damn hazard on the road. I very smoothly asked if I could drive the mighty hybrid for a while, much to his chagrin I drove us home most of the way from the airport and completely blew off the gas mileage statistics.
Nearly one in eight did not even bother to check out a route they were unfamiliar with and simply relied on the technology to get them to their destination.
This is different how? Compared to people just using Mapquest to get where they need to be.
In fact, I'm responding to this post on my in car computeY$#YKGRdsfgsm;sd;mgf.
...every single item mentioned in the article that applied to GPS Navigation systems could be applied to conventional maps, at least with a GPS Navigation system it could talk to you without you having to look at it (Tom Tom http://www.tomtom.com/ for instance). Then it would take your eyes away from it and on the road where it belongs.
However you do navigate, you must plan ahead.
-My $.02
This is true for any device used in the car such as phones, swapping CDs, adjusting seats, playing with mirrors, etc.
Many car manufacturers are moving towards what BMW has done for the last few model years with in-dash navigation systems: restricting input to when the car is in park. This makes inputing an address to be very troublesome especially when a passenger can do it but it prevents situations like these.
I bike to work. Once I rolled up behind a Lexus that had one of those things. It was lit up like the sun. It practically hurt my eyes from 10 feet. I don't see how anyone could drive with that thing there.
Unfolding a map while driving cannot be compared to typing in directions into the GPS system while you are driving because one is the standard usage (map) whereas the other is idotic (typing in an address WHILE you are driving).
The difference is once you type in an address you don't need to touch the GPS, whereas you often need to keep looking at a map while you drive.
We need a more active accident avoidance system and other systems to reduce the need for driver intervention. If the driver wants to be less involved in the act of driving, the vehicle will naturally need to take up the slack.
This kind of problem could actually be a good thing. It could usher in the era of on-windshield semi-transparent projected displays that allow you to keep your eyes closer to the road.
That, and you could mod it to display a perfect set of breasts that bounced very lifelike whenever the vehicle went over a bump. Now there's something I would buy. Ok so that's just a pipe dream... well whatever, I still want the projected display on the windshield damn you!
I do not respond to cowards. Especially anonymous ones.
"Study Finds Stupid People More Likely to Kill Others When Driving"
And this gem:
Heavens! Relying on Technology! Burn them at the stake!
Ye, Gods.
Refolding it is the tricky part
...that screen with all the squiggly lines next to the DVD player, below the cell phone holster, across from the graphic equalizer? I covet the deep frier Homer Simpson had in his from seat. Lard Plugs, Ummmm
Faith: n. -- That human impulse that drives them to steal appliances when the power goes out
BMW M5 and the new Mercedes S-Class already have this.
I have a navigation system in my vehicle and always enter the destination prior to starting my journey. But then again, I don't talk on my cell or sip my latte when driving either (I removed my cupholders to be sure of that!). Distractions cause accidents, and if you plan enough ahead you can avoid most of them. So yes, it can be a distraction, but if you care about your safety and the safety of others you can make a conscious choice that you aren't going to let it distract you.
As for checking the route ahead of time, most of the time I'm 'out in the field' and unable to check - which is why I ordered the car with Nav in the first place.
--SONET
Require the car to be in park in order to operate the GPS. This way, you can't program a new route while driving.
i'd argue that cell phones are worse. In the past year I've had some close calls with other cars on many occasions. When I glance at the driver 9 out of 10 of them were people yapping away on their cell phones, usually forgetting to turn their heads left, right, and/or behind them. I find myself cursing at these people helplessly from inside my car. nevertheless, anything on the dash can be distracting, ESPECIALLY a brightlit 7 inch screen with moving things on it. I took a roadtrip with a buddy using my laptop for GPS (i was the trip's navigator). I told my friend(the driver) to keep his eyes on the road while I told him where to turn based on the GPS nav(in addition to the computer voice in case he missed it.) Yet, Every few minutes or so I'd catch him glancing down at the laptop screen on my lap instead of paying attention to the 18 wheeler in front of us. Luckily I caught him most of the time and nothing happened but it's reallly easy to see just how dangerous distractions can be on the road.
9 of 10 drivers had to put down their cell phones in order to program the GPS
6 of 10 used the GPS mount as a convenient place to hang their makeup mirrors
3 of 10 had to stop smoking long enough to wipe the nicotine stains off of the nav controls
1 in 10 actually believed anything the insurance companies tell them
10 out of 10 actually got where they were going without making wrong turns, wasting fuel, driving stupid slow in traffic, or having to listen to "are you sure you know where you are going" from the passenger seat.
The nav systems in both of my parents' cars only allow you to set a destination while the car is in park. I'm not sure if this is particularly common, or if it's a safety feature that's been added recently (both cars are newish--one 2005, one 2006). It seems to make a fair bit of sense to me.
This guy's the limit!
is the NAV system more distracting than messing with Yahoo Maps on your laptop while driving?
If you post it, they will read.
The problem today isn't all the gadgets we have to help us get where we're going, it is the fact that we simply don't have time to do a good job of going anywhere, any time, with any help (or none).
We're being inundated with ways of multi-tasking before we have established the abilities to off-load the major task - that of keeping ourselves and the rest of those around us alive to actually get where we're wanting/needing to be.
We should leave all these distractions (people in the next seat, cell-phones, books on tape, talk-radio, TV, fancy guidance systems, etc.) out of the vehicle until such time as the vehicle can do the driving while we do the rest.
Been there, done that, paid for the T-shirt
and didn't get it
How many were men? Just beccause we dont ask for directions, does NOT meant were bad drivers.....
Purple, because ice cream has no bones.
My in-laws have a Chevrolet Trailblazer with the nav system. You cannot access any of the menus or buttons while the car is moving. Even the passenger cannot override the system. Since auto manufacturers typically reuse systems like this through out all their cars, presumably all Chevyrolet models are in the same...er...boat.
people are lazy and stupid.
Film at 11
Seriously, this is a non story. In car nav systems are no more dangerous (probably less dangerous) than a fold up map or 8.5"x11" printouts from Google Maps or Mapquest. All are distractions.
I'm using the honda nav system (on a civic 2006). Love it, don't want to leave home without it. I do mess with it on occasion while driving, but if its in a traffic situation I'll use the voice commands. I consider it a huge plus.
Every second it gets me to my destination sooner lessens my likelihoood of being in an accident anyway.
"Waste not one watt!" - CZ
Is it really so surprising that navigation systems (and cell phones, and anything else that is not driving) serves to distract the driver from the important task of keeping their eyes on the road, and their concentration on keeping their car from impacting some other object?
If they didn't want to introduce that hazard, they should have designed the system to blank the screen unless the car is in "park". Lost? Pull over and consult the map.
I notice it much more, of course, with cell phones, since you can tell someone is using one. Almost invariably, when I see someone drifting across lanes, or stopping short because they were about to run into another car or a pedestrian, these days, they are chatting on a phone.
Trust not a man who's rich in flax / His morals may be sadly lax
Actually, the one that really gets my goat is TVs built right into the dashboard. With all the fuss people raised about cell-phones being distracting, I have no idea how auto manufacturers managed to slip this one under the radar. (In theory the TV is supposed to be off unless the vehicle is in park, but the safety switch is easy to disable and many ethically challenged auto shops will do it for you.) How any sane government could have let this pass regulations just blows my mind.
OTOH, maybe they did it on purpose. GM: Better Drivers through Darwinian Selection.
Procrastination Man strikes again!
After a couple months using Tom Tom Bluetooth Navigator for Palm (Christmas present) mostly for fun at first, but last weekend on an out-of-town trip, I have to say that while you MIGHT be distracted looking at it (I certainly was at first), you aren't likely to be once you get used to it.
Here are a few random thoughts on this type of navigation:
1. End-to-end nav. Tell Tom Tom where you wanna go and don't look at it again. It warns you when turns are coming up (in a crisp Australian accent if you're using my settings (voice sounded clearer than the US English voices on my T3 speakser - still want John Cleese for it, though...)), and you can configure how early you want the turn warning.
2. Tom Tom for Palm is designed so you can navigate the GUI with a fingertip - no stylus needed. This keeps the fumble-factor way down.
3. Battery life is a killer - bluetooth GPS, speech, bright screen for daylight driving and a constantly-running app quickly deplete my T3's battery (which is about the lowest-capacity unit Palm has ever shipped on a good day). This means you're gonna have to use a power cord, which means more fumbling and distraction than you'd like. The cord falls out of the Palm just about anyplace I put the thing in the car.
4. You can mount the thing with a windshield mount in a "heads-up" spot on the dash. You still have a concentration/depth-of-field issue when focusing on the thing vs. the road ahead, but it's not awful.
5. It's safer than making snap judgements in traffic. Nice to know where you're going ahead of time. Seldom do I make a right turn from the left lane to follow directions now...
6. Several times I've looked longingly across a dead-end barricade or cul-de-sac sidewalk at what Tom Tom thinks is my next turn; visible, but inaccessible. It's not perfect (and I've heard this is endemic to GPS nav systems).
7. The killer part of this app: The pseudo 3D view of the road ahead is MUCH more communicative than the flat map view of say Street Atlas. Both work with my Bluetooth GPS, but Tom Tom is actually usable from the driver's seat.
Love my Tom Tom, YMMV.
"I should have been bought by that other guy"
"You never listen to me"
"My mother told me not to let you buy me"
On and on and on. It's enough to make ya crazy.
No folly is more costly than the folly of intolerant idealism. - Winston Churchill
"The survey said most motorists who used either resource while driving would take their eyes off the road for 10 seconds, which at 60 miles an hour would equate to traveling twice the length of a football field."
This pretty much makes me not believe what these people have to say. I cannot believe that it is possible to repeatedly drive blind for 10 seconds at 60mph without incident.
first they should learn to use their blinker. and how to put on makeup while driving.
my bmw has an indash nav widescreen monitor. i plug it in before i start, and it reads directions to me.
I would never stop to unfold a map while driving, that's incredible. newer nav systems let you speak the address, too...
I have a navigation system. The thing is completely crippled while driving due to morons like the ones in this study. It's like, because some people are complete morons, responsible people can't use the system as intended. I don't talk on my cell phone while driving. I don't punch in a new address in my nav system while driving (my old one let you do that). However, my passenger could! Nope, not with these wonderful new lawyer-ized systems that have navigation warnings when you start the car. Every time you start the car. Not with these systems that require your parking break to be on in order to use most of the functionality.
How about a screen when you boot the device up for the first time ever:
"Please punch in your driver's license number and name, and click 'I Agree' if you agree that any accidents you may have while driving using this navigation system are your responsibility alone, and you agree not to sue us."
Ironically, the word ironically is often used incorrectly.
... how they say "Nearly 1 in eight..."? That means they're saying, "not even %12.5 of people," which is just as well. More people are distracted doing other things than looking at a map or fiddling with the GPS.
Nobody's gay for Mole-Man.
Yup - I'm one of those who don't bother to check the route before I go. I'm a road warrior, and with a GPS in the car it takes all the stress out of moving through an unknown city. This week it is Washington DC, next week a couple cities near San Jose. I may google a map and print it, but that is only a precaution that the rental shop horked up the reservation. So yah, I trust the technology... not sure why that is a problem. For the most part, it just works.
The danger is getting a feel for the navi. It is not uncommon for it to yammer on about turning in a complex intersection - usually making you swerve at the last moment, and then swerve again because you (or the navi) made the wrong turn. Never forget that you are the PIC, even if you have no clue where you are. I'll joke with my wife that the navi is just trying to kill me, not get me lost.
+++ UGUCAUCGUAUUUCU
The street pilot uses a suction cup to stick to my windshield, and has a chord that plugs into my cigarette lighter. The controls are simple, just a wheel and two buttons. It has a map that shows where I am. When it's not navigating, it shows my speed and direction. When it is navigating, it shows my estimated arrival time, and the distance to my next turn. It also speaks outloud with instructions like "Go 103 miles, then turn left." And then when you get close to the next turn it will say "Go 500 feet and then turn left." It's quick to glance up and see how far I have until I need to be concerned about getting ready to turn/exit. If I forget to tell it where I'm going before I leave, it takes me about 10 seconds to reach up and pick a location from my favorites. I can't imagine typing in an address while driving, but picking a location from a list is much less distracting than trying to read directions on paper while driving.
After getting my GPS, I decided to take an unfamiliar route back to college. I was able to keep my eyes on the road the whole time and I didn't get the least bit lost. Now I take it anytime I go someplace new, and I feel very confident that I'm a safer driver with it than without it.
Did we really need a survey to tell us that? Good thing it wasn't a full-blown study! Next time they can just ask me, I'll charge them half the cost of their pricey surveys.
Simpy
So, insurance companies seem to be finding more and more ways and reasons to increase rates. They already check your credit, and charge you more since, according to them, peopel with bad credit are more likely to get into accidents. I wonder if this will be used as a reason to charge a higher rate on vehicles that come with Nav as a factory option. Could be a good thing for aftermarket nav systems, but not such a good thing for those peopel who are smart enough to have the passenger program it, do it while stopped, or program it via voice (although, that might arguably be almost as distracting). Of course, I am sure if the insurance companies chagre more for it, they'll offer a discount if you give them access to any GPS data stored in the units....
I just bought a new Jeep two months ago with the RB-1 (made by Alpine) GPS navigation radio. My experience is that I am more attentive when driving! I no longer need to worry about navigating or reading maps because the GPS is handling the navigation, so I can focus totally on driving. There is no need to be looking at the GPS because it always gives you verbal warnings well in advance of the next turn.
how to put on makeup while driving
You misspelled "before".
They should just leave their wives at home!
My 2003 accord has a navigation system which I would like to program before I start driving, but instead it flashes a warning about 'not programming the system while driving' for about 20 seconds (not an exaggeration) so I usually drive away and program it while i'm moving. I tried to find a hack to skip the warning, but apparently it's a hardware limitation b/c they used the leftover shitty sega saturn cpu's as the processor. The voice is annoying so I keep it off, unless I'm going somewhere I've never been. The most useful use of the navigation system is to navigate around traffic jams. People living in 25 mph neighborhoods near busy roads must hate navigation systems!
that is all
COMPUTER: "This is your onboard computer speaking. We are about to crash. What do you want to do?"
DRIVER: "Uh... I can't decide."
COMPUTER: "Steering prevents accidents."
DRIVER: "Well, yeah, but..."
COMPUTER: "Do you want to crash?"
DRIVER: "Well, not really..."
COMPUTER: "Then maybe you should steer."
DRIVER: "But I'm bad at that!"
COMPUTER: "Do you want to crash?"
DRIVER: "Well, not really, it's just that..." *crashes*
Creative misinterpretation is your friend.
Here in Minnesota, it is illegal for anyone under 18 to drive and talk on their cell phone. But those are cell phones. I don't have to look down and punch in the number because almost everyone with a modern phone has voice-dial.
So if cell phones are dangerous to talk on while driving, wouldn't it be even worse to take your hands off the wheel and navigate endless menus to enter in your destination? Why the heck would you program it on-the-go instead of before you got started?
What they really need is voice programming of the GPS navigation systems. Something where you don't need to even take your hands off the wheel.
On a side note: Looking at TomTom's website, the TomTom GO 700 includes a remote control for use ANYWHERE in the car. Can you say "back-seat driver"?
So, I've got a Garmin Streetpilot 2610. Last year I drove from Mountain View (where I live) to Las Vegas, without any maps, purely by putting (I think 3) waypoints - ("yes, I do want to go through Death Valley and Yosemite" etc.), a start and an end destination.
...
I've done the trip before, but I wouldn't say I was familiar with it, and I tried to see different things this time anyway - we went somewhat out of our way to Monument Valley on the way back, 'cos that's fairly spectacular
The thing performs perfectly - I use it a lot. The confidence it brings when you know it will work out the best route and take you that way is just great. No panic if (when) you miss a junction on a freeway because you were in the wrong lane. No problem if you miss a turn in a city you don't know. I can't praise the thing enough.
My parents came over to visit - never been to the US before. Because I had to work that week, they went on a trip down the coast, with the GPS guiding them all the way. 10 minutes instruction was all it took to get them started, and they were experts after a few days, putting their own waypoints in etc. You have to understand that my parents really *are* VCR-challenged...
I'd never try and put in directions when the car was moving though - just pull over, type the details, and drive on afterwards. News-flash: driving without looking at the road (no matter what gizmo is involved) is not a good idea...
Simon
Physicists get Hadrons!
I've got a Garmin GPS III+, an older model with a 4 shade greyscale display. It's only got basic map information in it, usually only including the major streets in a town and not always including all the minor highways and county roads. It's still very handy for getting from A to B. Sometimes I go to a combination of mapqest and teraserver to locate where I'm going via satelite imagery, then get long/lat coordinates and dump them into the garmin.
More than once I've taken a trip guided almost entirely by the GPS. Once it resulted in a very long detour as I missed an exit and decided to let the GPS guide me through the middle of an unfamiliar city. Lots of turns, but it did take me straight to my destination, although through about 15 miles of 25mph streets. (probably shortest distance, but definitely not quickest route!)
They're also handy for telling you how long till you'll get to where you're headed. They're probably a driving hazard though - I know I am somewhat distracted when I am fumbling with the buttons to zoom in or out or something like that while driving. Lots of other things are much more distracting while driving, this is just one of the many ways you can increase your risks while driving. (picking up something that fell onto the passenger floorboard while driving is probably the most distracting thing you can do... my ipod likes to leap off my dashboard to the tune of potholes)
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
What road? I can't see anything past the laptop I'm typing on going 50MPH. Damn do we need Gun Control! :-/
I've got a Garmin Streetpilot as well and am a safer driver. Before, I had mapquest printouts in one hand, pinned to the steering wheel, trying to check what the next exit was. I slowed down a lot and frequently took the wrong road.
Now I just keep my eyes on the road and obey the British dominatrix in my Streetpilot as she barks 'turn rIIIGHT!'
Sat nav is ok but yes there can be a little too much information at times.
only an idiot would try to enter data while driving its too fiddly for a start.
with voice instruction once you have got used to how far she means when she says left turn 50 yards. I find it isnt distracting at all. although got to admit there are times when we don't agree.
least she doesnt sulk when I choose a better route.
to be honest sat nav isnt something you want or need everyday or for most of a journey its usually just getting to where you want to be in an unfamiliar town that it really becomes useful.
if your using a pda based satnav play some music instead.
you can do both actually.
Blarney Quality Restaurant, Plants
It's really the same thing we face in airplanes... cockpit resource management.
Even if you did have the route planned, things change. Roads are under construction, traffic on heavily travelled sections backs up making alternate routes more desirable. The next thing you know, you have your head down programming the GPS and not looking outside.
We've been fighting this in aviation for years. You've entered your route and approach information, then air traffic control hands you an ammended routing. So you end up concentrating on the GPS while your heading and altitude wander off. Even if you're using an autopilot you lose some situational awareness (not to mention that many autopilots will hold headings and track airways but not hold altitudes). It has nothing to do with intelligence or aptitude. It's a matter of workload management.
In the car it can be even harder. Just about the time you're trying to reprogram the GPS your kids will want their dvd restarted or the stereo tuned, or your cell phone will ring, etc.
This is really not a surprise. It just makes sense. Anything that takes your attention, takes it away from your driving.
Hot Damn! It's the Soggy Bottom Boys!
I kid you not.
Please establish a hypertext link to this message. Spread the word!
I moved to the DC area and was lost on my way home.. a tad inebriated as well.. and I pull out my mobile phone, go to a directions site.. entered my approximate location and got directions home, all while driving. I don't recommend this!
Anything but the instrument cluster in a car is going to be a distraction to the driver, and even that is more than some people can handle. That's the nature of having to monitor a real-time process (driving) that deals harshly with anyone paying it only half-attention.
Granted, the nature of the distraction does make a difference. Most of us can handle carrying on a conversation with a passenger without too much difficulty. However, it doesn't take much more than that to cause problems. Take that same conversation, and couple it with the act of holding an object (say, a cell phone) to one's ear while driving one-handed. Suddenly things get a bit dicey. And the cell phone doesn't even take your eyes off the road, once you've finished dialing.
So, I'm not surprised that putting a video screen with yet another complex (by automotive standards) user interface into a car is going to cause more pilot error. It's hard to enough to simply watch a movie in a car without getting into trouble, much less something with which you have to interact.
A purely audio-interactive system (without the visual display) would be much safer, but it sure has hell wouldn't look as good in the showroom.
The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
How about a game style HUD thats displayed in your vision, just small arrows that maybe blink, but are transparent enough not to block vision, i doubt they'd take much distraction off the road, you could probably also include a system with radar to have it display if a car is next to you when you turn on the blinker or soemthing to change lane, specially for the blindspot, and have a small speed reading...hell, add in an ammo and armour level too.
saves moving yourr eyes away from the road, least with it on the windscreen your eyes are gonna notice an object appear, ie car, truck, human, dog. they've already got some hud thingie for nightvision in cars, wouldnt be too hard to add to that.
If your neighbours roof is flying past your window, you know it's cyclone season.
There was a story last year about a couple who relied on the navigation system and ran into some trouble on vacation. It seems the last person to use it programmed it to avoid all urban roads, so they got sent into the wilds of NZ.
If you drive long distances often enough, you will inevitably find that sometimes you start to nod off or even fall asleep. Yes, this can result in accidents. No, I'm not condoning sleeping at the wheel or driving will tired in the first place. But the accidents are far less common than you'd think - ask any long distance driver and they'll tell you about ten times more close calls than actual crashes. Just saying. And driving with your eyes off the road isn't even as intrusive as this scenario, because you can still hold the car in a lane and hold your speed relatively steady while doing so.
I wish there was a choice that said "Factually Wrong -1" when I mod.
Like this hasn't happened before. Ever.
"It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
I love my nav system, not only does it work perfectly it keeps me from bitching at my wife for saying she knows where she is going, but really does not! We used to always fight when we went someplace new together... not since we got the new cars with nav systems.. worth every penny Also, you cannot enter a new destination in it while driving.. that feature only works when parked
Turns out that having good directions and getting there quicker *reduces* accidents...
Jim
Married father of four...
Firstly:
1. Insurance companies will find any excuse to say that someone is a hazard and increase their premiums - smokers, phone users, ppl who wear glasses, people with bad credit or no credit history - (Like if you just moved here from New Zealand and have no credit history in the USA) "people with no credit crash cars! hand over your cash!!" etc
2. The report says that "people who dont set their destination before they leave" and then try set it while they drive... Well that is like trying to read a regular map by yourself, or following mapquest instructions once you've made a wrong turn... Its called driving people!! That is what you have to do first!!! These people may as well bake a cake.
3. People who are new to the technology think they have to watch it while they drive... not true, your DRIVING HALF A TON OF STEEL AT 70MPH!!!! Keep your eyes on the road!!! The GPS is an aid just like your speedometer and your fuel gauge. DONT STARE AT IT YOU FOOL!!!! [slap slap]
4. I have a Navman iCN-510 in car GPS and I set my destination BEFORE I hit the road, then I leave it. If I need to adjust it, I pull over into a car park. Once you are acustomed to all the information on the screen, you know how to glance at the information you need without losing concentration - No different than reading the fuel guage - [oh, the GPS wants me to go straight ahead, ok]... You need to be acustomed to the information. Try being a passenger and learning how the thing displays upcoming turns, etc.
5. Pilots have a simple rule: Aviate, Navigate, Communicate! Its in that order for a reason. Concentrate on DRIVING first!!!!, then concentrate on where you are going - This exit, or the next exit?... and FRICKEN INDICATE - its not hard. If you cant make an off ramp, use the next one!!!!!
6. Did I mention that insurance companies will find any reason to up your premiums? oh, I did? well if your going to drive that car, then you have to pay more!!! muuuaaaahhhhhaaaaa
7. Get real, and take some responsibility for yourselves people!! Its not the GPSs', its the muppets that dont concentrate on driving.
GRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!
I know many of the cars with more current navigation technology have a saftey feature that dissallows a person to program in a new route while driving. The only menus you can acess while in motion are the previous destinations and address book. Both cars that I own (Nissan & Infiniti) have this feature (I am aware that they are owned by the same company).
The problem isn't the system, but the driver.
The headline suggests the system itself causes distraction, when nothing could be further from the truth.
I've used both maps and a navigation system, and the navigation system is about a zillion times better.
If the driver programs the route WHILE DRIVING, the driver is a total moron.
Place blame where it belongs, with the driver, not the technology.
For crying out loud...
-- This sig for rent.
There are conflicting reports out there, but have read research that suggests that women (I've no idea if 'most' or 'all' applies) are true multi-taskers. They can actually process multiple threads of data at once.
Men, on the other hand, are generally 'time-slicers,' meaning we swap out a current bit of information in order to process another bit, then swap the first bit back in when we're done.
If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
I have a DeLorme Earthmate GPS LT-20 with Street Atlas USA software that I run on my laptop on company trips. The best thing about the software is that it gives you directions in a (semi) human voice. This really comes in handy when you are driving in a city environment and you don't really have the ability to look at a screen for directions. It will even tell you how long you have before each turn and tell you several times. It has been a real lifesaver on several occasions.
Nam et ipsa scientia potestas est - Sir Francis Bacon
How about "Drivers who misuse GPS are road hazards".
From the summary:
'One in 10 motorists with navigation systems set off on their journeys without bothering to program their route, and more than half admitted that they then had to take their eyes off the road to input the details while driving.
It's never even occured to me to try doing this. If people insist on doing something dumb with a device in their car, it's not the device's fault, it's the [mis]user's.
Some bring out the best in others, some the worst. Some bring out far more.
A friend of mine actually fell asleep while riding his motorcycle. Luckily for him, his hand relaxed on the throttle and he simply slowed down until he stopped and tipped over. Again lucky, it was on the shoulder of the freeway.
If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
The navigation systems, in-car entertainement systems (DVD players, etc.), finite oil supplies, and reasearch in self-driving automobile technologies makes me question if we're actually leaning toward an obfuscated train made out of "smart" cars. Is the focus with these technologies to help us drive or to help us ride?
I've used both the Garmin Streetpilot 2610 and the Lowrance iWay 500c in-car GPS systems pretty extensively while driving. Primarily, I rely on them to locate customers for my on-site service business, but I also used the Lowrance for a brief stint as a courier, plus used both on a couple of longer trips out of state.
Even though I always try to enter my destination info before actually driving off - I often get in situations where I need to make some changes "on the fly". It's not always really practical to pull off to the side of the road someplace, just to tell it about a new stop you found out you need to get to along the way. As other people said, much of the problem with trying to use a GPS while driving is lack of familiarity with the interface. With mine mounted on my dash in just the right place, I can glance at it quickly or press a few buttons on it quickly without really taking my eyes off the road. But my biggest issue with both units I've used has been an imperfect touch-screen. Sometime you press something and it doesn't respond, or it selects the item above or below the one you tried to pick. Distractions like that can really cause problems.
I also wish they had a little more accurate map data in them! Even though I always bought the latest available map updates for both units I've owned, I've always had numerous problems with it not knowing the correct exit numbers for given highway exits, and cases where it indicated an on-ramp was on my left when it was really coming up on my right (or vice-versa).
They also tend to be bad with long highway exit ramps that split off into 2 different directions at the end of them. (EG. It will tell you "Exit right in 1/4th. mile onto exit 96/97A." But if you don't know for sure if the next instruction is going to be taking 97A vs. 96, it won't tell you until the last few seconds if you need to turn "right" or "left" when the exit forks off in two different directions!)
The Lowrance iWay 500c in particular has been unreliable with "points of interest". I've entered names of restaurants I was looking for, only to be led right up to the driveway of someone's house! (My guess is, they somehow mixed up the restaurant owner's home and business addresses, and took me to the owner's home.) This is especially disturbing considering they use Navteq map data, which is pretty much an "industry standard" for MANY in-car GPS systems.
You guys must have some really crappy navi systems in the US if this is a problem. I've rented plenty of cars in Tokyo, had no idea how to get where I was going, but the navi got me safe and sound, and no going the wrong way down a one-way street. Almost all new cars in Tokyo come with a navi system because it's almost impossible to find where you need to be on a map.
Here the maps are even updated in realtime to show you where construction is that day, where gas stations and eateries are. I hope when I get back something as good as what I can get in Japan is available.
Tea and kung-fu. Life is good. Rising Phoenix
i hate posting as a coward and hate starting un needed threads but oh well--i got an altima with navigation package. it wont allow me to input info for destinations if i am driving. so a passenger cant even as well. i think if there is weight on the pax side, they should be able to input, but regardless, it will only allow pre-stored stuff in address book or prior destinations while in motion. clearly you can push buttons to show stats and shit like anyone can do by mashing buttons on for the radio, but i have to say that like a pilot inputting the flight into the computer before take off, and you drivfe off ur set. it speaks to you, tells u when to turn.; there is no needed to put on the maplight and read size 12 font from a google maps printout - i think if u use navi packages properly, it will be safer. its shame most people around are compelte schmucks and deserve to crash, unfortunately they tend to crash into people who arent schmucks.
In Melbourne late one night driving home from a late night at work. A guy doing a line of coke while driving over the Westgate freeway. Head dissapears into lap, suddenly whips back, swerve across 3 lanes of traffic, before playing with his GPS. Honestly had no regard for any other traffic on the road.
Task Mangler
This is something that really irritated me. My '99 car had GPS and you could enter the coords while driving. It's a pain to do this, however, on long trips, it was awesome to have my companion enter and manage it while we drove. In 2004 I got a new car (Jeep GC). To my never-ending consternation, you MUST come to a COMPLETE STOP before you can enter new coords. I very nearly returned the car when I found out. Many people are easily distracted and many will find ways to be distracted, no matter what. From seeing people driving with a book balanced on the steering wheel, to make-up artists, kids in the back seat, talking to other people in the car or even yelling at the radio. There are lots and lots of ways to be a distracted driver. Now, when I'm in a strange city confronted by an accident and I need to find a way around it, even if I have a "co-pilot" or "navigator" to help, the new cars make this harder and harder. We're going backwards. Maybe you could make the display movable -- and have it operable only if turned away from the driver? -pfs
As I've lived in several countries, I frankly believe this is largely an American problem. No other country is so obsessed with doing things in the car, or having gadgets to distract them in it. People in the US, in their cars (These I have seen): Brush their teeth Shave Drink Coffee Apply makeup Talk on cellphones Fiddle with HUDs, etc. In other places, drinking in the car is a very rare sight; it's the reason why German cars such as the Mercedes Benz *still* sometimes lack cup holders. Much less the rest of this stuff - cars are for driving, not anything else. HUDs aren't as popular elsewhere.
I especially like the one that "floats" the map in front of the vehicle: http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/jk/021016.h tm
I wouldn't want to have to wear special goggles.
I would want to be able to announce/push a button/otherchoice to chose alternate routes if my shosen route is blocked, and I'd like a switch in the steering wheel to engage/disengage the display at will. I defineitely want a passenger to be able to choose routes if I'm driving.
This should be an opportunity for some enterprising geek.
MEB
"The mind works quicker than you think!"
My girlfriend was driving her parent's brand new toyota minivan that has a built-in navigation system while I was in the front passenger seat and the darn thing won't let you input anything unless the car is at a complete stop. Of course, I, being the idiot, must have spent 5 minutes trying to get the darn thing to work. Couldn't figure out why all the relevant buttons were greyed out. Then we came to a stop and voila, the buttons weren't greyed out anymore.
Does God treat us as servants or friends? Check my homepage.
With all the research that has gone into the advanced tactical fighter jets you would think that we as a society would have learned enough to avoid "Stupid Stuff" that mediocre engineers thrust upon us. Without realizing the many lessons learned, from billions of dollars of cognitive research, they go ahead and deploy technology that is doomed to failure without so much as an iota of brains.
All the current research of DoD has shown us that we are in an "information overload" situation when presented with displays showing far too much for the average person to consume. Yes, Its a shame that many people are incapable if navigating even a simple cellphone menu without loss of life, but its even more crazy that engineers intentionally design menus into advanced automobile navigation systems that are impossible to deal with while in motion for even the most competent drivers. With each "state of mind" there are certain instances where one needs to get back to the basics and reprogram the possible options needed, with utilizing the smallest amount of time dedicated to that change. The inventors of the automobile "on board navigation system" have a lot to learn, and they had better do it fast!
For every second taken away from the line of sight for the purpose of navigating a vehicle going 55 Mph (or likely well above) they are taking a major risk counted in the number of lives in the yearly highway statistics. Personally I am appalled at the impossibility to change even the most fundamental settings of my on board navigation system without coming to a complete stop and thus causing an accident in the process. I have been lucky so far, but even as aware of the dangers as I am I can not believe that statistically I will always prevail in the long run.
The menus need to be simplified and context sensitive, so that the options change as the needs of the driver do. The options also need to be local and modifiable with a minimum of cognitive effort in finding the options to change. Making the buttons "immutable" (grayed out, and unselectable) is not the answer! The engineers need to take a long hard look at what things should be selectable and when, and then make the hardware available via local controls or Voice command which may very well be the best option, but not the way its done now in the Prius to date. Don't even bother trying voice command if you are not in on the right screen menu. In addition, the user must be trained to understand how the options are layed out and behave during its operation.
Personally I find the menu organization of the Prius one of the most confusing pieces of software I have ever used, and I have seen many ar my age. In this instance its not an "operator" error, but a fouled integration in design of dissimilar software components and many fouled concepts on how the human brain operates. Fortunately, this is just a software redesign problem, not a fundamental redesign of the human intellect via DNA infusion of intellect, as we are still trying to learn how that particular option could be done.
It needs voice recognition and one line. "When you are ready for help again, say uncle."
Friends don't help friends install M$ junk.
If they had asked you about the realtime pictures of Uranus, you should have worried even more...
/sorry, had to be said
I have no idea what brand it was (pioneer or something), but a friend of mine has a nav system in his element. Maps are WAY more dangerous, because well, you have to look at a map. Once you've typed in the endpoint, it tells you when to turn and whatnot. No human interaction is needed after you've set the waypoints. When was the last time a paper map spoke up to let you know you missed your exit or to tell you traffic is slowing ahead?
Technology & safety devices don't really make cars safer. People drive to a certain level of risk. If you surround them with airbags they feel more safe and drive more sloppily.
Making cars more dangerous would make things safer, IMHO. Mount a 12 inch spike on the steeringwheel. That should focus the driver's attention!
Engineering is the art of compromise.
You know, I wonder if this would have anything to do with the fact that insurers could conceivably use it to slap an extra premium on cars with built in GPS's (as opposed to paper maps which for which this would obviously not be possible).
Personally I'd agree that someone who doesn't know how to use a GPS system could be a hazard on the road. However, if you do use a GPS properly I think it is vastly more safe and convenient than having to physically unfold a paper map and then mess around with it a bit to find where you are and then track a route.
While developing a speed camera detector for a magazine article last year, I was caught out by the very camera I was trying to avoid, because I was watching the display, and my speed increased by 6mph while I was distracted.
Cost me almost as much as I made for the article
lesson learnt!
Open Source Drum Kit, LPLC deve board - mjhdesigns.com
Many years ago I was hanging about waiting for my friend so we could walk to school (this was many years before in car nav systems) and I notice a woman driving along putting on her makeup using the rear view mirror paying no attention to the road, then I notice in the other direction a car coming with another woman doing exactly the same thing. I then proceeded to fall on the floor in fits of laughter as they drive head on into each other without even braking.
...the last part that is: embarking on an unknown journey using my navigation as the only tool for getting there. It didn't prove out too well for me. At the last mile, my navigation decided that I should head into a small landroad to get to my destination. It was rainy all week, and the landroad was unhardened. I was in a hurry, however, and didn't pay attention to the rainy circumstances.
Oops...
Apart from the splashing of muddy water all around me, the next thing I knew was that my diesel car was stuck in the mud. No moving, no destination. It almost started to look like a bad Stephen King movie, in the shimmer of the morning, with the navigation lady saying "Turn right" - like she knew and wanted to take full advantage of the fact that she got me into this position...
My cursing didn't help...
So when I, after 30 minutes painfully moving up and down in the mud, finally could move again I very slowly backed up out of the muddy road. It worked. Now I only needed to get to my destination.
Forcefully forgetting the horror the navcomputer put me through, I followed her instructions again. "Turn left" - so I did...
Dead end ! This was NOT what I had in mind while leaving my home an hour ago. But this time I had it with that navigation. I put my car in reverse, and with full speed I headed back out of the dead end street. Or so I thought...
Not more than 2 seconds later my car ended up in a ditch, unmoveable by any man - including myself.
And the navigation computer spurted out those same words : "Turn around, turn around, turn around".
Morale of this (sadfully) true story ?
Don't forget to drive.
We pilots have been using satnav systems much longer than car users, and we know about the tendency to have a "head-down" attitude where you are paying too much attention to what's happening inside and not enough to what you're about to collide with. For pilots the mantra is:
Aviate
Navigate
Communicate
meaning that your first priority is to maintain positive control of the aircraft and situational awareness, next to figure out where you're going, last to talk to air traffic control. For driving it's exactly the same, except it would be "driviate, navigate, communicate".
Sure people should not be programming their navigators while driving in dense, fast moving traffic, but while stuck at the traffic lights or jam caused by roadworks, why not program the navigator so as to take an alternative route?
These are the same people that put up ten traffic signs before every junction and complain people cant read them all.
Sent from my ASR33 using ASCII
My car has daytime running lights and I forgot to turn on my headlights then wondered why I couldn't see very well.
It got darker... As I was driving up a hill I realised I had no idea which way the road was going. Not to worry - I looked over to my 3D sat nav map and saw the road continued straight. Excellent!
What do I drive? You guessed it, an old boxy Volvo!
When used properly (programmed ahead of time, listen to the voice prompts when they are correct, ignore them when they tell you turn the wrong way on a one way street which is RARE) this is a very safe device to use. It's safer in fact, than getting turn-by-turn directions from a human navigator "riding shotgun" (how many times has your human copilot told you, "OH I MEANT TO SAY TURN HERE!" and almost caused an accident?)
Like a lot of other gadgets, GPS can be used for good or for evil. It's not the device, it's the person using it that is the most important factor in the equation (by a very large margin).
I know people who let themselves be distracted from the driving task by talking to folks in the back seat. Anything can be distracting if you let it.
As a german, I am not overly worried about nav aids as we are used to drive /fast/ and therefore have better training in manoevring with a fraction of information processed in comparison to other nations. [tm]
And believe me, no one here would claim an intention to "keep the eyes always on the road". In fact, nobody ever does -- we look at accidents on the other side of the Autobahn, we look at billboards (although we have resctriction on where you can set up a board, much more than the USA) and we fumble with the small buttons the radios have.
So I am glad we are spared of that discussion for another 10 years (we commonly joke that we get all things currently mainstream in "America" ten years later).
BUT: I would love it they introduced one particular feature that really made driving more relaxing and safer:
A visible "cruise control is switched on" pointing backwards: Less stupid attempts to pass by, a certain reliability that (me)|(the car in front) doesn't slow (me)|(the car in behind) down below a specific speed and therefore less traffic on the left lane. (Which is an adventurous ground -- read that carefully, you dutch people heading for ski holidays!)
All in all, I'd rather see fast CPUs in the nav systems, making the switch between map resoluions fast (as in FAST) so I got not just navigation orders, but actually a better orientation. Cause nav systems are an expression of our economy, ruled by the stock exchange: short-sighted, fashionable and education towards clueless looking-no-further-than-my-nose.
It's interesting that the article mentioned paper maps to be less distracting. This tells me that people are not comfortable with navigation UIs.
Most people can unfold a paper map while they're driving because they're used to handling them. But once it's unfolded you still have to shift your focus from the road to the map. Navigation systems should be less distracting with the proper UIs such as voice feedback with voice recognition.
"Many car manufacturers are moving towards what BMW has done for the last few model years with in-dash navigation systems: restricting input to when the car is in park"
And it's the dumbest idea ever. Half the utility is using the thing while moving.
Check out the Honda system to see how it's (mostly) done right. It has full voice input and output, and you can restrict it to how much it will talk (basically, minimum, average and a lot). You use it while you drive without taking your hands from the wheel, and it lets you do things like "find nearest Italian restaurant" and it actually shows it to you.
The GM and Ford systems on the other hand are mostly useless, primarily because they make you pull to the side of the road to use it. I think the problem is a matter of poor user interface, not that these things are inherently any more distracting than using a CD changer. If the automaker invests in a good user interface, then the other issues kind of go away.
You were mistaken. Which is odd, since memory shouldn't be a problem for you
This is true, but I would think that the drivers of the cars causing these accidents are the most likely to be killed.
Cars that are new enough to have TVs in their dash are probably also new enough to be tricked out with all the latest safety features. Go figure.
This sig has absolutely no significance and serves only to take up screen space and waste the time of the reader.
On the other hand, the GPS units tell you that you need to make a right turn in two miles, giving you a couple of minutes to make your way over to the right lane. One of the worst problems up here is people who wait until the absolute last minute to try to get over for their exit. They end up either cutting off 4 lanes of traffic, or come to a complete stop on a road where everybody else is doing 50-75 and wait for an opening (most popular option), then wondering why none is coming because the huge mass of cars that had to emergency brake behind them is now trying to jump around. 90% of the flow problems on roads comes from people who have done absolutely no pre-planning on their route.
I have one of those GPS systems and it's a godsend for traveling around areas I've never been to before. Obviously you don't want to program it while you're on the road, the thing even tells you that every time you start it up, but overall it takes much much less concentration than maps. On a map you have to find yourself and then trace where your turn is with your eyes. It takes several seconds. With the GPS your route is laid out in a nice line and you can tell where you are (and what road you need to turn on) with a glance.
I read the internet for the articles.
My comments are based on having a Honda Odyssey and a Toyota Prius, both with DVD/GPS Navigation. I also am a person who has lousy spatial sense of orientation and get lost easily. When I am traveling somewhere new / especially at night, thinking about missing a turn on my pre-printed map or memorized/written down directions is a major distraction from actually driving safely. With the navigation system, I can rely on the voice prompts to keep my eyes on the road and not worry that if I miss a turn, I'm going to end up in the middle of nowhere. Instead, I know that if I _do_ miss a turn, the nav system is just going to figure out for me where to go next based on where I am and which direction I'm driving. I'm calmer and more focused on the road with a navigation system, bottom line. That makes me a safer driver.
Let us review the /. summary:
The article says it's 19% distracted with a nav system vs. 17% using a map, supposedly. That's a comparison between the two technologies, not a simple declaration that the nav gadgets are distracting and therefore dangerous.
But I take your point. In general I think basically everything that can distract the driver is baddish news. For example, why are we not talking about radios? When they first showed up in cars, people had objections similar to those about cell phones today. Subjectively one can easily argue that people with thumpa thump bass systems whomping away at a light can't hear ambulances and are in general less aware of traffic due to the fact that their music is sterilizing city rats as they drive by...
(For me, the worst possible distraction is someone I don't know very well in the passenger's seat, conversing with me. I drive much less alertly then. Maybe someday they'll come out with Date 2.0, with the improved interface.)
"Fundamentalism" isn't about divine morality. It's about human authority.
If I recall correctly there was something that we do instinctively which is inhibited by the alcohol which causes much more danger. This is why the sober driver is less likely to survive.
Well, tensing up for one. If you're relaxed, you're less likely to be hurt from a general impact as from a fall or a car crash. Supposedly, just from the action of locking your legs to slam the brakes, you're irreversibly scarring the tendons and the like involved if there's impact, not to mentiuon microfractures in the bone. Used to be this was balanced out by drunk people getting whiplash or having their head smash into the dash or steering wheel, but nowadays people have air bags.
This sig has absolutely no significance and serves only to take up screen space and waste the time of the reader.
Well, duh. If it works, why would they check it? Seriously, if you discover after using it that the navigation system reliably gets you there, why would you check the route?
From what I've seen, the system in the Prius is a better navigator than most humans I've encountered.
--- SER
Navigation input should not be permitted unless the vehicle is in PARK.
It will also get you a free man when playing Contra. Those Toyota engineers think of everything!
----- And all that the Lorax left here in this mess was a small pile of rocks, with one word...UNLESS.
OnStar has been selling navigation services without the need to program anything in. The conceirge on the other other end of the phone line does the destination lookup and route planning. It used to be that they read you the directions.
With this new system described below, they download directions to the car, which then uses GPS and wheel motion sensors to guide you along the route. Instead of a map display, it speaks the directions with names of streets and signs that you should watch for (eyes looking outside the car!).
An article and some snippets in case it gets pulled into archive:/ 20060207/AUTO01/602070414/1148
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=
I have a Roadmate 700 in my car. I use it all the time. I glance at it to know whether my next turn will be right or left so I know in advance what lane to get into. I know in general the distance to the next turn. When the intersection is tricky, a quick glance can show an overview of the interchange or intersection and which route to take. I know the name of the road to turn onto or the number of the exit. I'm not fumbling around for written directions, etc.
It is no more distracting than looking at the speedometer or gas gauge.
Any new thing comes out and some fool decides the sky is falling.
Avoid Missing Ball for High Score
Yes, but, do they have 'drive thru' service?
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
is that people *really* suck at driving.
According to this survey, reading a printed map held up to the steering wheel was less dangerous than using the in-dash GPS unit.
That is definitely surprising, but I suppose perhaps the greater distraction of moving pictures outweighs the loss of control from keeping your hands on the map? Who knows?
I would like to see more in-depth results, particularly on US units that can't be twiddled while moving. I'm after safety first, but I had always thought using a GPS would be less dangerous than a map to help me find my way. On the plus side, maps are cheap.
I disagree with you, simply because it's a fallacy that it's always "safer" to pull off the side of the road you're driving on. If you're in an area where there's not a good shoulder on the road, or other drivers have relatively poor visability, pulling off to the side in an unexpected place can be much more dangerous than continuing to drive. It all depends on how capable you are of working your GPS device without it distracting you too much from the task of driving.
I'd also argue that people tend to become less safe drivers when they get lost. Their stress levels increase, and they start doing unsafe things, such as driving the wrong way on a poorly marked one-way street, making U-turns or driving at erratic speeds as they keep slowing down to read all the street signs, trying to find one that sounds familiar. If you weigh that vs. the confidence of having a GPS that's telling you exactly where to go - I'm not sure the momentary increased risk of having an accident while trying to press a few buttons on one is the greater threat?