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Effects of driving time on microsaccadic dynamics

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Abstract

Driver fatigue is a common cause of car accidents. Thus, the objective detection of driver fatigue is a first step toward the effective management of fatigue-related traffic accidents. Here, we investigated the effects of driving time, a common inducer of driver fatigue, on the dynamics of fixational eye movements. Participants drove for 2 h in a virtual driving environment while we recorded their eye movements. Microsaccade velocities decreased with driving time, suggesting a potential effect of fatigue on microsaccades during driving.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the Barrow Neurological Foundation (to S.M.-C.), the National Science Foundation (awards 0852636 and 1153786 to S.M.-C), the Empire Innovation Program (to S.M.-C.), the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Finance (Projects PSI2012-39292 to A.C. and PSI2012-39246 to J.J.C.), the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, grant VE 192/17-1 to B.M.V.) and the Russian Science Foundation (grant 14-28-00234 to B.M.V.), the MEC-Fulbright Postdoctoral Fellowship program (grant PS-2010-0667 to L.L.D.S), and the Talentia Postdoctoral Fellowship program (grant Talentia Postdoc 267226 to L.L.D.S.). We thank the Spanish Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) for supporting our research. Also, we would like to thank Jorge Otero-Millan, Stephen L. Macknik, Sven-Thomas Graupner, and Jens R. Helmert for helpful comments on earlier versions of the text. The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Barrow Neurological Institute, Phoenix, AZ, USA

    Leandro L. Di Stasi, Michael B. McCamy & Susana Martinez-Conde

  2. Cognitive Ergonomics Group; Mind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, Campus de Cartuja s/n, 18071, Granada, Spain

    Leandro L. Di Stasi & José J. Cañas

  3. Joint Center University of Granada - Spanish Army Training and Doctrine Command, Granada, Spain

    Leandro L. Di Stasi

  4. Engineering Psychology and Applied Cognitive Research, Department of Psychology, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Dresden, Germany

    Leandro L. Di Stasi, Sebastian Pannasch, Rebekka Renner & Boris M. Velichkovsky

  5. Learning, Emotion and Decision Group; Mind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, Granada, Spain

    Andrés Catena

  6. Electronic Measurement Systems, National Research Nuclear University MEPhI, Moscow, Russia

    Boris M. Velichkovsky

  7. State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA

    Susana Martinez-Conde

  8. NBIC-faculty, Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Moscow, Russia

    Boris M. Velichkovsky

  9. Neurocognitive and Social Sciences, National Research Centre “Kurchatov Institute”, Moscow, Russia

    Boris M. Velichkovsky

Authors
  1. Leandro L. Di Stasi
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  2. Michael B. McCamy
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  4. Rebekka Renner
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  5. Andrés Catena
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  6. José J. Cañas
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  7. Boris M. Velichkovsky
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  8. Susana Martinez-Conde
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Leandro L. Di Stasi.

Additional information

Leandro L. Di Stas and Michael B. McCamy have contributed equally to this work.

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Di Stasi, L.L., McCamy, M.B., Pannasch, S. et al. Effects of driving time on microsaccadic dynamics. Exp Brain Res 233, 599–605 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-014-4139-y

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