Development of a VR-Based Transportation Simulator

Project Description

As cities strive to promote sustainable and active transportation, bicycles are becoming an increasingly popular mode of travel. However, cyclists remain among the most vulnerable road users due to unsafe road conditions. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA, 2023), bicyclist fatalities in the U.S. have been increasing, with 1,105 reported in 2022, the highest annual total since 1975. These alarming statistics emphasize the urgency of improving cycling safety through informed policy decisions.

The development of VR-based bicycle simulators has gained traction in recent years, with various research institutions integrating immersive environments, physiological monitoring, and behavioral tracking into their systems. Studies such as the ORCLSim project at the University of Virginia (Guo et al., 2022) and research by Nazemi et al. (2021) have demonstrated the potential of VR-based platforms in assessing cycling safety. Additionally, Friel et al. (2023) explored how cyclists perceive safety at intersections and roundabouts using a bicycle simulator, highlighting the effectiveness of immersive simulations in transportation research. However, many existing bicycle simulators vary in hardware configurations, software frameworks, and data integration capabilities, making it difficult to establish a standardized platform for transportation research. Moreover, while several studies have used VR bicycle simulators for analyzing cyclist behavior, the process of building a fully functional, data-driven simulator remains an open challenge.

This project focuses on the development of a VR-based bicycle simulator that integrates real-time performance and physiological data collection. The primary goal is to design, build, and calibrate a simulator that can be used for future transportation safety research. This includes selecting the appropriate hardware and software components, ensuring compatibility between different system elements, and validating data acquisition methods. A critical aspect of this study is identifying what types of data can be collected and how they can be effectively integrated into the simulator’s framework. By addressing these technical and methodological challenges, this project aims to establish a foundation for future research using VR-based bicycle simulators.