The National Advanced Driving Simulator (NADS) is at the center of our automated driving technology. The self-sustained transportation safety research center in the University of Iowa’s College of Engineering is funded by government and industry. NADS utilizes its suite of world-class driving simulators and instrumented on-road vehicles to conduct research studies for the private and public sectors. NADS is staffed by more than 40 faculty, staff, and students who specialize in studying the connection between drivers and vehicles.
NADS expertise lies in the following areas:
Human factors
Vehicle safety systems
Driver impairment
Driver distraction
Connected vehicle technologies
Automated vehicles
Simulation and on-road data collection technologies
Technology
NADS -1
The NADS simulation center is best known for its high-fidelity ground vehicle driving simulator, NADS-1. The NADS-1 utilizes an actual vehicle cab and projects scenery 360 degrees around the driver on the interior walls of the dome that houses the cab. The vehicle cab is mounted on four independent actuators that provide vibration associated with driving on varying road surfaces. The entire dome is mounted on a motion base that can independently provide yaw, roll, pitch, turning, lateral, and longitudinal cues to the driver. All in all, the NADS-1 has a 13-degree-of-freedom motion base resulting in the largest motion envelope of any driving simulator in the United States and the second largest in the world.
More importantly, the combined motion, graphics, audio, control feel, and software systems on the NADS-1 reproduce the closest experience to driving an actual vehicle. The motion system’s unique capabilities set it apart from other simulators, thus enabling NADS-1 to accurately reproduce motion cues for sustained acceleration and braking maneuvers, movement across multiple lanes of traffic, and interaction with varying road surfaces. Realistic reproduction of these combined maneuvers is not possible in fixed-base or limited lateral movement simulators. Motion cues for NADS-1 are correlated with other sensory stimuli, providing the highest fidelity real-time driving experience in a simulated environment.
The NADS-2 is a fixed-base version of the NADS-1 with a limited forward field of view. This simulator features high-resolution projectors with a physical glare source for simulating the glare from headlights of oncoming vehicles. It uses the same interchangeable cabs as the NADS-1.
This is an ideal complement to the NADS-1 for simulation needs that don't require motion or wrap-around visuals.
Together with our industry partners, our automated vehicles division is being built with a broad range of capabilities. These vehicles will be used to collect data for research programs funded through industry and government contracts. Usage fees are charged to funding agencies to utilize and support these vehicles. The NADS fleet includes a Lincoln MKZ, Tesla Model S75D, Volvo XC90, and Toyota Camry XLE.
