Date of Award

Fall 2012

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Department

Computing and Software

Supervisor

Martin v. Mohrenschildt

Co-Supervisor

Emil Sekerinski

Language

English

Committee Member

Ned Nedialkov

Abstract

Driving simulators have existed since the beginning of the $20th century. From its roots, it has been a technology used primarily to train drivers, test and prototype new technology, and improve the safety of automobile users. As technology has progressed, so has the quality of the driving simulation, and along side it, the complexity of experiments performed. The McMaster motion simulation system combines the latest software with state of the art psychology techniques, to analyze the driving experience in new and unique ways. To accommodate the wide range of plausible experiments, a robust software system was developed that allows for custom driving scenarios. The software system is comprised of several sub-components including content generation, scenario management, visualization and artificial intelligence. This thesis details the development of a traffic light system and its incorporation into the existing simulation system. A variety of challenges were encountered including real-time constraints, adapting flight software to driving simulation, inter-system communication, and interoperability of multiple APIs. A secondary objective was to document, this thesis records the methodology used to overcome these challenges in an attempt to facilitate future work in this field.

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