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The Effect of Fluorescent Yellow-Green Background for Vehicle-Mounted Work Zone Signs on Attention and Eye-Movements

Project Details
STATUS

Completed

START DATE

08/08/06

END DATE

08/08/06

RESEARCH CENTERS InTrans, SWZDI
SPONSORS

Kansas

Researchers
Principal Investigator
Paul Atchley

About the research

The current report details efforts to determine if observers attend more closely to moving work zone signs if those signs are surrounded by a fluorescent yellow green border. The logic of this signage change is that there is insufficient color contrast between the warning signs and the vehicles on which they are mounted. Two laboratory studies were conducted using very sensitive and robust techniques to measure attention to signs with and without the FYG border. In each study, a different method for assessing attention was used. In the first study, a perceptual change detection method was used in which observers were required to detect a change to an object in a traffic scene. Changes to more frequently attended objects are noticed more rapidly. A comparison of change detection times for signs with and without the FYG border revealed no difference in the amount of attention allocated to the sign when the FYG border was added. In the second study, eye-tracking data was collected for a set of observers. An increase in fixation time on an object indicates more attention is being paid to that object. In this study, there was again no difference between the two sign types. We conclude there is no evidence that the addition of a FYG border increases driver attention to vehicle mounted warning signs.

Vendor: Iowa DOT

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