Various studies have linked the effects of time-of-day on fatigue, as indicated by performance decrement and increased risks of error. Such is the phenomena in the transportation industry, in which higher accident rates occur at certain times of day. This study examined driver’s fatigue following morning (E1) and afternoon (E2) driving tasks performed using a driving simulator. Nine male university students (aged 20-22 years old) participated in this study, and were asked to drive for 60 minutes (in random fashion) between 9-11 am and 3-5 pm in a very dense traffic conditions. Fatigue was assessed by measuring changes in blood pressure, heart rate, salivary amylase, and ratings of sleepiness and fatigue. Findings from this study generally indicated that driving for 60 minutes was sufficient in inducing fatigue phenomenon. Furthermore, driving in late afternoon could result in greater increase in fatigue when compared with the same tasks performed during morning hours. This study suggests taking times of day into consideration when managing and scheduling driving jobs.
kVarious studies have linked the effects of time-of-day on fatigue, as indicated by performance decrement and increased risks of error. Such is the phenomena in the transportation industry, in which higher accident rates occur at certain times of day. This study examined driver’s fatigue following morning (E1) and afternoon (E2) driving tasks performed using a driving simulator. Nine male university students (aged 20-22 years old) participated in this study, and were asked to drive for 60 minutes (in random fashion) between 9-11 am and 3-5 pm in a very dense traffic conditions. Fatigue was assessed by measuring changes in blood pressure, heart rate, salivary amylase, and ratings of sleepiness and fatigue. Findings from this study generally indicated that driving for 60 minutes was sufficient in inducing fatigue phenomenon. It also confirm the relationship of sleepiness with fatigue driving, and other physiological changes during experiment. Furthermore, driving in late afternoon could result in greater increase in fatigue when compared with the same tasks performed during morning hours. This study suggests taking times of day into consideration when managing and scheduling driving jobs.
keywords : Driver fatigue, time-of-day, sleepiness, KSS