Increasingly, contemporary driving simulators are becoming an important tool in driver training. Specific skills can be trained and critical learning situations can be presented repeatedly to the students. A good simulator offers opportunities for more efficient and faster learning of driver skills. Training is faster because the student is learning the driving tasks in a stressfree environment. Most simulators focus mainly on the basic skills and their usability is limited to the first part of driver training programs. Simworx simulators, on the other hand, practice traffic participation and training of traffic insight. Most of the lessons occur in high traffic density in built up areas, on motorways and highways.                                                                                       

The Simworx Driver Training Simulator utilizing state of the art formatted software, is ideal for teaching young drivers to drive. Driver training is faster and cheaper in our simulators compared to the traditional methods. For that purpose we offer complete driving simulator systems. We have two styles of cockpit simulators. A portable system and the SX06 complete studio unit, with three 42” Plasma display panels. The fixed position studio simulator features a real world steering wheel with H pattern gear shift, clutch  and brake pedals, handbrake, indicator stalk, light switch and seat belt. Automatic cars are also catered for. The student is seated in a real adjustable car seat and is surrounded with a 5.1 Dolby sound system. Three 46” high resolution display panels gives the student a 180-210 degree horizontal field of view. The images are presented at a very high frame rate in HD. The operator also has an LCD panel whereby they can control assignments and assess student’s progress. 

The SXDTS portable unit, comes in 2 dedicated road cases, and is especially suitable for driver training and traffic education in the classroom. It also comprises triple screen technology, and has all of the features of the larger unit in a more compact format.

A total of 25 lessons are included in both simulators. 3D Dolby sound as standard, results in a more realistic traffic experience. Record & replay allows you to record (a part of) a lesson and replay it from different viewpoints. The operator has full control of lesson format from his own console and can introduce rain, fog etc. to test the trainee in inclement conditions that they would come across in the real world. The traffic system is very advanced, and results in highly realistic traffic scenarios. Challenges such as Freeway on and off ramps, freeway on ramp merging and lane changing in high density traffic, which includes trucks, is covered extensively. Overtaking scenarios on normal roads is another area covered within the lessons format.

SXDTS Driver Training Simulators

It is an established fact that driving simulators, during novice driver training, may greatly enhance safe driving: a large scale study, performed in the US, see this link(R. Wade Allen, George D. Park, Marcia L. Cook, Dary Fiorentino, 2007), has shown that:

• When a good simulator is used, accident rate during the two year period after getting the licence, is reduced to 34% of the national average accident rate of novice drivers: simulators can definitely improve driver training and result in safer drivers. Since teen accident rates are about 5 times higher than mature drivers, the application of simulators in driver training should be seriously considered.
• The effects are largest when a wide field-of-view simulator is used with real-word image sizing, as in our SXDTS Studio Simulators

The curriculum in our simulators is even richer in content compared to the simulators used in that study, so the benefits may be even larger. The added value of a simulator depends on both:

• the level of driver training in the respective country: the simulator is a convenient instruction tool for improving the level of training when the training infrastructure in a specific country is less developed.
• the quality of the simulator and the curriculum. The better the simulator and especially the curriculum, the larger the benefits.

What are the advantages of a simulator compared to a real car in driver training ?

• A guaranteed level of quality for all students resulting in safer driving behaviour
• Training in a safe environment without stress which enhances learning
• a guaranteed supply of meaningfull learning/traffic situations: this increases the effectiveness of training substantially
• The driving environment is fully controlled which facilitates the trainer to concentrate on one teaching objective at one time.
• It makes it possible to promote the curriculum in advance and to evaluate progress in a methodical way
• It makes it possible to teach the student to cope with dangerous situations that do not occur frequently on the road.
• Fewer hours on the road: reduces fuel consumption which is good for the environment: one hour in the simulator gives a CO2 emission which is 13x less than one hour in a car
• High quality of training in less time and at lower cost
• Students get their driving licence faster
• Driver training can be offered for a lower price which gives a competitive advantage
• The driving simulator is very suitable for trainees with fear of driving

Quality Driving simulators are exquisitely suited for teaching young drivers to drive: Driver training is faster and cheaper in our simulators, compared to traditional driver training. For that purpose we offer complete driving simulator systems.

Benefits

Most simulators can only be used during the first lessons of driver training when basic procedural skills are taught, like learning to change gear, starting the engine, etc. But in our simulators the focus is on traffic participation, traffic rules, learning to recognise and handle traffic signs in realistic high-density traffic situations. And these are precisely the skills that require most time to learn during practice lessons on the road. Training in our simulators is then much more effective compared to traditional in-car training. There are a number of reasons for that:

 The lessons have been developed in a way that effectively teach the required behaviour. During the lessons, the simple traffic situations are treated first, but as the lessons progress traffic situations become more complex. This results in faster recognition of situations and hazards and in a faster response to these.

On the roads, typically a multitude of different things require attention resulting in attentional overload for beginner students. They have to attend to, and do, a number of things simultaneously which they may not have the skills for yet. Because of that, traditional training on the road is not as effective compared to training in a simulator. In the simulator skills are trained in a way that avoids overloading the student.

 During a typical traditional on-road lesson, learning moments occur more or less randomly. The presentation of learning situations depends on coincidental occurrences of traffic and the route. In the simulator lessons however, a lot of situations with high learning value are encountered in a guaranteed way. Because of this, a simulator lesson has a guaranteed effectiveness for each student.

 The simulator applies an advanced 'virtual instructor' and student assessment system. The virtual instructor evaluates the behaviour of the student continuously. It immediately gives feedback when the student commits an error. This fast and systematic feedback increases the speed at which the student learns to drive properly. After each lesson the student assessment system generates a detailed report about the strong and weak points.

 In a simulator the student trains in a safe environment with no stress. The consequences of committing an error in a simulator are much less serious than in a real car. This results in more relaxed learning: people learn better when they are more relaxed and feel safe.

 Students like driving in our simulators. They are “Hi Tech” and this is motivating and enhances learning to drive.

 Driver training simulator with operator's console

Useful practical link, check it out:  www.driving-school.com.au