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• Enhanced Night Visibility, Volume II: Overview of Phase I and Development of Phase II

Enhanced Night Visibility, Volume II: Overview of Phase I and Development of Phase II

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CHAPTER 8—CONCLUSIONS

On its inception, the ENV project was envisioned as a study with a wide scope that included research on various headlamp technologies, pavement markings, roadway infrastructures, roadway objects, and roadway conditions as well as a cost-benefit analysis. This volume describes an enormous amount of planned literature review, experimentation, and industry outreach. The plan would have required the collaboration of four organizations: the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, the Virginia Transportation Research Council, the Virginia Department of Transportation, and the University of Iowa.

As is often the case in large projects, some of the planned work changed or was replaced to address more pressing issues. The Phase II effort addressed here led to a series of pavement marking, object, and pedestrian detection studies using not only the UV–A technology that was the initial focus of the project but also other new technologies such as the passive infrared detection systems discussed in the literature review. As in the original plan, the object and pedestrian testing was performed in clear, rain, fog, and snow conditions. Discomfort glare from the VESs was also tested with adults as described in this report, but no children participated. Pavement markings were tested not only with UV–A but also with other vision enhancement systems. The plan of the experiment and results of the Phase II testing are summarized in ENV Volume XII, Overview of Phase II and Development of Phase III Experimental Plan.