The Advanced Driving and Maneuvering Simulator (ADAMS) is a new high-end truck driving simulator. It has been designed to meet the various customers' training needs at a reasonable price in order to substitute a considerable part of conventional on-the-road training by highly efficient simulator training. Furthermore, a simulator allows training appropriate reactions in situations that are impossible to arrange identically for all trainees in reality.

The requirements for a modern driver training system are first analyzed in depth. The main demands are that training be realistic and effective, unified and efficient, safe and non-polluting, and also economical. From these requirements, the design considerations for the driving simulator are deduced.

Due to modular construction, the driver's cabin is independent of the remaining simulator system. The cabin can therefore be adapted to any truck type. It is fully equipped with working controls and instruments. The collimated visual system consists of a panoramic front view display system plus rear view mirrors. The computer-generated images (CGI) are of high resolution and include all state-of-the-art features.

The trainee is given realistic feedback on the vehicle behavior through his view of the road and of traffic, appropriate vehicle noise, and a motion system. Instantaneous feedback on the driving performance is provided through spoken messages and through signs appearing in the sight. After a lesson, a training report is displayed on the control screen. Additionally, a detailed report generated by the automated assessment system can be printed and stored in the trainee database.

The lessons are carefully designed and contain training topics which have been thoughtfully selected in order to create a well-balanced training course. Life-like traffic simulations interacting with the trainee's ride support the reality of the road scenes.

Several simulator cabins can be integrated in a training site. They are connected to the instructor station for central data storage and trainee control. However, in each simulator cabin training progresses independently.

Urban Thoeni

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ADAMS: An Advanced Driving and Maneuvering Simulator For A Variety Of Training Needs