Influence of dynamic stimulation, visual perception and individual susceptibility to car sickness during controlled stop-and-go driving

The enjoyment and usage of highly automated vehicles might be reduced by motion sickness. This study addresses the influencing factors of dynamic stimulation, visual perception and individual motion sickness susceptibility in a real car environment. Based on the sensory rearrangement theory the stimulation of the vestibular organs effects motion sickness. The dynamic stimulation seen as vehicle acceleration is evaluated by the Motion Sickness Dose Value (MSDV). 30 participants experienced a stop-and-go driving scenario while looking outside and on a display inside the car. Participants were preselected to represent a group susceptible to motion sickness. A driving profile with alternating low and high stimulating characteristics was used. Three symptoms of motion sickness were verbally rated on a scale from zero to ten at one minute intervals. The symptom ratings show a significant increase for the situation of video watching on the display in this purely longitudinal stimulation. Dynamic stimulation, visual perception and individual susceptibility act as equally important factors for modeling motion sickness intensity. To estimate the intensity of motion sickness the extension of the MSDV by inclusion of visual perception and individual susceptibility is strongly recommended.