chapter seven vision and perception this chapter is designed to repress drivers too develop effective vision and perception habits to help manage driving risk search the total traffic scene using your visual lead and visual control Zone to identify and monitor a clear path of travel effectively search to the sides and rear of your vehicle search selectively by directing your search and classifying information reduce Risk by using information about traffic controls roadway features and the actions of other Road users pre-chapter quiz if you employ good visual search while driving you will a check your rearview mirror every 5 Seconds B know the year of the vehicle behind you C be searching 20 to 30 seconds ahead of your vehicle D all the above are correct make sure you place your responses in the chat box correct answer C be searching 20 to 30 seconds ahead of your vehicle two when using ground viewing you are not looking for a Shadows B the color of a vehicle to your side pavement markings or road conditions correct answer B three to check your mirror blind areas you should a turn your head and check over your shoulder in the direction of the blind area B adjust all of your mirrors temporarily C use your vehicles's blind spot monitoring system or D try to see the reflection off of the vehicle traveling in your blind spot correct answer a turn your head and check over your shoulder in the direction of the blind area the most common form of color blindness is the inability to distinguish between a red and yellow B green and yellow C red and green D green and blue correct answer C red and green five blank is the imaginary line extending from your eye to a point of focus a central vision b line of sight C field of view D central vision correct answer b line of sight information to be covered in this chapter vision and perception are critical to driving safely there are three types of vision you'll need to use when driving there are five effective visual habits that reduce risk search the total traffic scene and see to the size and The Bu vehicle behind you avoid pitfalls that increase your risk while driving and remember what does the E stand for and read the road has a brain on what three things must drivers manage to reduce risk visibility time and space this chapter is [Music] p d that's the bottom line of the chart for this test Please count the number of black dots you see this uh illusion grid is an obstacle illusion when you look directly at one one intersection the black dot disappears but when you move your eyes around a bit the dots seem to move around this is a drawing of a snow leopard can you see it it's on the left no I'm just kidding this is also an optional illusion that appears as if it's rotating to the left counterclockwise but it's not moving it's your eyes that are making it seem like it's moving so maybe I've vision is a bit less reliable than we thought or at least our eyes can be tricked on occasion our vision is not perfect this is why it's so important to actively search the traffic scene we cannot sit back passively and just hope to see everything we would need to see types of vision there are three types of vision Central Fringe and peripheral all right so what type of information does our central vision provide us with the greatest amount of detail of objects and conditions primary visual function used in targeting or looking specifically at one object or one area peripheral vision peripheral vision is also called side Vision e compasses Central and Fringe Vision as the broadest type of vision detects presence color and motion also provides drivers with information about moving and stationary objects that could pose a threat gives a sense of speed provides drivers with a wide f field of view field of view field of view is the entire area of the road and surrounding surroundings that is visible to you in any given moment it is peripheral vision that allows us to have a wide field of view for most drivers peripheral vision provides between 175 and 185 degrees of useful information peripheral vision is very important with our central vision being about 3% of our visual field we have to rely on our periperal vision to monitor the vast majority of any traffic seen how does alcohol drugs fatigue and speed of travel affect peripheral vision peripheral vision is greatly affected by these factors in fact our peripheral vision becomes narrower when any single angle of one of these factors is in play and if the driver is affected by more than one of these our vision Narrows even more sober driver versus the impaired driver color blindness question is it true or false put your answers in the chat box a person must able to see all colors in order to get a driver's license true or false the answer is false we just learned that our peripheral vision can detect color when we are moving being able to detect color can be very useful on the road also we learned about all the colors used in the highway transportation system but not everyone can see colors equally well some people people are color blind while this is not a formal test for color blindness this exercise is a bit challenging for many drivers now every driver can see every one of these numbers the contrast and colors make it hard or impossible for some drivers to accurately read the number in addition to the possibility of color blindness a driver could have some sort of eye problem or disease as well if you were teaching a new driver to drive for the first time what would you tell them to do with their eyes you can place your responses in the chat box all right how would you describe the difference between looking and seeing looking directing your eyes in a particular direction seeing fully process is what the eye sees to form a meaningful message to the BL brain what does what is the PDA approach to organizing your driving brain it's a system that helps drivers gather filter and act on driving information PDA stands for proceive decide Act proceive decide act there are three other common systems similar to the PDA approach it's ipde which is identify protect I mean I'm sorry identify predict decide execute sipde search identify predict decide execute C search evaluate execute all these system systems including PDA address basically the same issues the drivers the system drivers use to acquire process and access information drivers use these systems nonstop there is never a point when the driver would not be using such a system let's learn about let's learn more about looking versus scene how far drivers need to be looking ahead they say that in baseball you can't hit what you can't see but that sure isn't true in driving in fact the number one car cause of crashes is drivers running into things they don't see like a car coming from the side a pedestrian stepping into the street or a driver changing lanes the reason they don't see is that they just aren't looking in the right place at the right time experienced drivers learn the trouble spots by getting into them and mostly getting out of them but the best way to handle trouble spots is to avoid them in the first place this segment addresses the topic of where to look and when trouble can come from ahead especially at intersections trouble can also come from the side other vehicles may be right next to you but their drivers don't even know you're there trouble can come from behind too after a collision it's common to hear the driver who was at fault claim I was looking but I didn't see him coming to examine the difference between looking and seeing let's take a quick test take a moment to count the number of FS that appear in the following sentence on the screen so how many did you count there are actually six Fs in the sentence sometimes our eyes and brains automatically skip past important details if we're not careful when you look at something you're just aiming your eyes in a certain direction but seeing involves fully processing what your eyes see in order to send a meaningful message to your brain when it comes to driving the eyes have it but they've got to be pointed in the right direction that's what the next segments are all about okay let's take a drive and try out your active searching techniques in each scene there will be something up ahead that you'll need to react to the picture will stop at that point and you'll be asked what you saw what did you see since there may be workers and unusual vehicles in construction zones you should slow down and use additional caution what did you see the flashers told you that the car was stopped or driving slowly and you'd need to change lanes so let's keep going what did you see this time large trucks cannot accelerate as quickly as passenger vehicles you can expect to either change lanes or slow down to avoid running into it how about that one oh that one's easy when a school bus stops you stop although some drivers may go on by don't risk it where there are school buses there are children where do you need to be searching when you're driving everywhere to the front to the sides and also to the rear how should you move your eyes while searching in a constant patter pattern from near to far from side to side your intended path is your main area Focus ass searching the total traffic scene gives you additional important Clues you need to be searching the entire traffic scene the goal is to have 100% situational awareness what types of things should you what types of things should you search for each time you drive people Vehicles animals and other objects that may be in the road by the time you reach them warning signs of potential hazards and conditions ahead traffic signs and signals that require you to act what is visually is the distance the driver looks ahead searching well ahead along your intended path of travel gives you more time to evaluate space needs position your vehicle and establish better control what is the challenge for maintaining an adequate visual lead your line of sight can significantly vary as you drive due to heels curves and other Vision obstructions as you drive search your head as far as you are able to see what is the 12 to 15 second visual control Zone that is the space that you will drive through in the next 12 to 15 seconds it represents the best area in which to adjust your speed and your direction before it becomes too late this lead generally allows enough room to smoothly accelerate slow down turn the steering wheel to move out of your lane to prevent conflicts with other Road users and avoid an unsafe situation smoothly respond to anything in your attended path instead of reacting when you see reacting when you are closer to it example you see a box fall off a truck directly aheading your lane the 12 to 15 second visual leave controls on allows time to safely and smoothly move out of your lane or slow down to avoid hitting the Box what is the 4 to six second final response Zone it represents your final opportunity to avoid a collision is also your last chance to steer away in your intended path of travel and reduce your speed quickly if your line of sight becomes blocked if you don't see something important until you're in the final Zone you will have time to react quickly what's the difference what is the difference between responding and reacting in driving responding implies you to have more time to smoothly change your speed and your direction as needed reacting implies that you have to take action very quickly example which would you rather hear when visiting a doctor after having taken a prescription medication your body is responding to the medication or your body is reacting through the medication on the road it is far better to respond have to react drivers must search both sides for potential conflicts and Hazards such as other Road users can be made more difficult by objects along the road examples would be bushes signs and buildings which we blocking which will block your view of other approaching vehicles what type of vision allows you to see hazards approaching from the sides that would be our peripheral vision you need to know what's going on on on your sides at all times it is no surprise that there's a lot going on to the sides and their intersections that's one reason why more crashes happen in intersections other um than than in any other place let's watch this video to learn more about why it's important to effectively see what's going on to the size of your vehicle and how peripheral vision can help do that much of the action around your vehicle happens in front which is why it's so critical to look far enough ahead and keep your eyes moving but you also need to know what's going on to your sides at all times it's no surprise that there's a lot going on to the sides at intersections that's one reason why more crashes happen in intersections than in any other place after you come to a stop here you check to the left all clear here you check to the right and you see that you need to wait just a second okay it's safe to go whoa let's see that again you look left and no one was coming then you check to the right uh but while you were waiting for that car this driver pulled onto the road and headed your way failing to see cars at intersections is one of the two major causes of car crashes along with not seeing what's happening ahead you started out correctly by first checking to your left that's the first path of traffic you would have to cross and then you check to the right for the next PATH you would at her but you should never make that never ever start to cross a path of traffic without checking for traffic again just before you do it right turns are a bit easier than Crossing an intersection you only have to worry about cars from One Direction now it's clear to go or is it remember traffic includes pedestrian as well as Vehicles this time you need to wait for that car to continue before you can turn left while you wait be sure to keep your wheels pointed straight ahead instead of turned this will help prevent you from being pushed into the other vehicle's path just in case you're hit from behind okay now can you go he has a green light too always make your last check a check of the travel path that you'll cross first that way you can detect any other nearby roadway users as well and when you're the first car in line waiting at a red light you should just assume that another car will run its red light once yours turns green to avoid these types of collisions don't race into an intersection the instant the light changes check the flow of traffic to the left and right of your vehicle any place with a lot of pedestrian traffic Bears watching extra carefully the same is true where there are children playing sometimes even adult pedestrians enter the roadway unexpectedly in areas where this is more likely such as parking lots you can use a technique called Ground viewing ground viewing means just what it sounds like scanning the ground to spot potential trouble although you may not see a pedestrian's body until it's too late you might be able to detect that pedestrian's shadow or the movement of their feet which still gives you enough time to respond only use ground viewing when driving slowly and for very brief periods of time you don't want to miss something directly ahead of you which skills should you develop that will reduce your risk of crashes particularly when conditions change suddenly there are many potential answers including checking traffic behind you quickly searching your review and side mirrors for for anyone following too closely coming up fast behind you or preparing to pass you glance over your shoulder left or right to check mirror blind spots and the zones around your vehicle that you cannot see from the driver's position or mirrors knowing what is behind you is critical to safe driving so many crashes occur when one driver crash crashes into another or the driver backs into something let's learn a little bit more about how to improve your skills and monitor what is behind you and reducing your risk risk of rear end or backend collisions looking effectively ahead and to the sides is important for safe driving but there's one other area where you need to look on a regular basis and that's to the rear using your mirrors to successfully change lanes and merge is described later in the course this segment focuses on checking traffic behind when you're slowing down and backing up when you're slowing down of course you're concerned about what's up ahead but you also need to be aware of what's behind you a driver directly behind you may be slow to realize that you're slowing down especially if you have to break quickly it's especially important to check behind if you plan to slow down or stop at a place where other drivers wouldn't expect it and it can't hurt to tap the brake pedal a couple of times before you actually apply the brakes to slow down this will help notify the driver behind that something is about to happen let's shift gears a little into reverse to be exact backing up is not easy and it's harder to see where you're going than when you're driving forward fortunately you have side and rear view mirrors but using just the mirrors while backing won't let you see everything you need to see that's why you need to look over your right shoulder and out the back window this move helps you see even more of what's going on back there a lot of backing up these days happens in parking lots particularly in shopping centers where there's lots of pedestrian traffic sometimes it's not possible to pull through one spot in order to park in the next one that means you you'll have to back out of the spot what makes it tricky is that your view of the travel Lanes may be blocked by other cars in this case treat it like any other blind intersection and ease out slowly that way if another car is driving by you won't be fully in its way what's the best move here if you were looking behind you'd have seen not only the vehicle directly behind you but the vehicle just off your left rear corner as well that vehicle is too close for you to change lanes to the left so your only option is to slow down here you're ready to leave your parking spot what are your next moves after shifting into reverse look over your right shoulder your view is partially blocked so it's hard to see into the lane you're backing into you'll have to slowly ease out continuing to look for any nearby Vehicles most of the time Drive conditions are clear and dry and don't prevent you from seeing what you should be seeing on the road but even when it's bright outside the sun may not always help you out glare caused by the sun just after sunrise and just before Sunset can make it much harder to see ahead sunglasses can help if they're polarized to reduce glare also your sun visor can help to block out the sun when the sun is in your eyes it can be hard to see what the car ahead is doing this is one more time when it it pays to leave a little more following distance rarely will visibility be absolutely perfect where you're driving if you know this and make the proper adjustments you can minimize any additional risk that comes with less than optimal visual conditions being a good driver means being good with your eyes you can't avoid what you fail to see but if you're not actively searching for potential risky situations even 2020 Vision won't help you so constantly scan your path ahead continually searching for space to move into if you need to identify anything that obstructs your vision and most of all keep your eyes moving how can you detect Vehicles you cannot see in your mirrors develop a habit of turning your head slightly in the direction that you plan to move many collisions and near crashes occur when the drivers fail to do what determine whether the space they plan to move into its open uh before you change direction determine if there is already a role user in the space you want to move into or if the road user is in the process of moving into that space what is selective searching searching for the right information at the right time sometimes there is simply too much information on the roadway which can result in distraction and confusion how do you know what is important to search for and what is unimportant sometimes sometimes it can be hard to tell what's important and what's not but other times it's not difficult how about the scene what is important and what is not the wind turbine the wind turbines directly ahead is certainly interesting but it's not important at all to your driving in this scene how about this scene what is important and what is not the Red Viper is a nice looking car but it but is it important in this situation it's not in fact you shouldn't even be looking directly at it you should be you should be instead looking ahead in your path using your peripheral vision to monitor the vi any other Ro user to the side what factors could affect your path of travel Vehicles pedestrians animals and other objects that can move into your path changes in the road ahead width of the road heels curves intersections and interchanges potential for possible conflict increase conditions that can influence traction areas from which hazards could suddenly appear behavior of other Road users if follow too closely cut in and out of traffic or or travel on road shoulders or in the mirror blind areas of your vehicles direct your attention away from objects and conditions that do not affect your path of travel although your main visual lead areas up to 20 to 30 seconds down your path of travel where else should you be looking the ground directly ahead into the size is called Ground viewing it this can provide important information to support safe driving what can cause glare on sunny days snowing sand a dirty windshield driving toward the sun can be a particular problem because your eyes adopt slowly to changes in light intensity so what features of sun glasses would be desirable for driving Clean and Free of scratches and polarized to help reduce glare how does night driving affect Vis visibility it reduces detail and the Darkness conceals many objects that can be easily seen in daylight search for slow moving and un unlighted Vehicles curves pedestrians and changes in the road headlights from an on coming car can cause glare on the windshield what should you do if the weather makes it too difficult for you to drive safely pull out the road to a rest area or parking lot and wait for conditions to improve if pulling off the road to a rest area a parking lot is not an option pull through the shoulder as far away from traffic as possible when possible make sure there there is a barrier between your vehicle and other traffic such as a guard rail driving with your low beam headlights on during daylight hours is beneficial because it makes your vehicle more visible to other Road users a vehicle without headlights can be seen on a straight level of Road without about one half a mile away whereas the same area with headlights only can be seen one mile away many modern day vehicles are equipped with daytime running lights also referred to as automatic lights be familiar with the type of headlight system you have be 100% sure your lights are on what are four classifications of traffic elements you should search for signs signals Road markings Road features and characteristics motorized vehicles and nonmotorized Road users what are signs signals and Road markings used for they're used to provide information about the road environment such as warning of curds Hills and other roadway changes also to advise drivers of laws that must be obeyed it is important to stay alert for traffic controls that other drivers may not identify in times such as traffic signal about to change and partially hidden signs what road features and characteristics will influence the driver's decisions limited visibility areas Road width Road surface available traction shoulder slope Crown intersection interchanges General State of repair what are some examples of motorized vehicles that have different capabilities sizes and limitations passenger sedans sports utility vehicles SUVs Vans pickup trucks motorcycles mopeds recreational vehicles large trucks buses farm equipment and snowmobiles what are some examples of nonmotorized Road users pedestrians bicyclist animals they are the least protected and the least predictable roadway users why is it important to recognize dangerous driving situations in advance so you'll have time to plan and execute Maneuvers when necessary all right guys there's the end of chapter S e e e