Dynamic measurements and simulation of road surface characteristics

Driving simulators often use fictitious roads for different vehicles and driver analysis. However, sometimes models of real roads are better depending on the scope of research. For that purpose, a method to transfer the geometry of real roads and their surface characteristics into the format of driving simulators was developed. In the next step, the effects of some of these road surface characteristics on drivers should be simulated with the help of models and real-time transfer functions in the simulator. For the measurement of roads and their surface characteristics, a car has been equipped with different sensors. With the help of a purpose-made software, the postprocessing of the measured data occurs offline and semi-automated. This software converts the measured data into the formats “OpenDRIVE®” and “OpenCRG®”, which are widely used in driving simulators, as well as in the driving simulator of the Research Institute of Automotive Engineering and Vehicle Engines Stuttgart (FKFS).