Search of dementia switch onset conditions to prevent wrong-way driving

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 21K04286
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 22050:Civil engineering plan and transportation engineering-related
• Research Institution: Iwate Prefectural University (2022-2023); Tohoku University (2021)
• Principal Investigator: YAMABE Shigeyuki 岩手県立大学, ソフトウェア情報学部, 准教授 (90533670)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 目黒 謙一 東北大学, 未来科学技術共同研究センター, 特任教授 (90239559)
• Project Period (FY): 2021-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 逆走 / 認知症スイッチ / ドライビングシミュレータ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Wrong-way driving is caused by drivers who drive normally and do not notice anything unusual. The purpose of this study was to propose the concept of a dementia switch, in which the patient temporarily falls into symptoms of dementia from the driving load. From the driving simulator experiment, we confirmed the tendency of attentional disorder, in which drivers do not take driving actions corresponding to changes in the attentional object during driving. On the other hand, the subjects showed driving behavior that responded to normal changes that were not the object of attention, but we also observed a tendency to overreact by focusing too much on normal driving, perhaps because of the attentional disorder. We considered the possibility that the elderly, including those with pre-dementia, may be burdened by this excessive concentration.

Free Research Field

人間情報工学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

高齢社会である日本の逆走発生件数は今以上に増加が見込まれるため，新たな逆走対策は早急に取り掛かるべき課題となっている．逆走対策は，高齢者を含む健常者のデータだけでは限度があり，逆走した割合が高い認知症者のデータを用いて対策を立案するべきである．認知症の症状を潜在的に持つ認知症予備群も含めたドライバは，簡単な運転でも負荷が溜まりやすい運転シチュエーションが存在することを明らかにし，本研究で提案する認知症スイッチの発動条件に成り得る可能性があることを示唆した．今後，高齢者（認知症予備群）が運転負荷と感じやすいシチュエーションを同定することで，認知症スイッチ発動を抑止した新たな逆走対策が期待できる．