Modalità di invio delle informazioni e la percezione dell’automobilista: un’analisi sperimentale sui pannelli a messaggio variabile

[automatically translated] Even in Italy, as for decades in other countries, variable message signs (VMS) are finding an increasingly wide dissemination, both in urban and suburban; they let you send, in real time, information of any kind to drivers transit along the streets where these panels are placed. The messages cover news concerning the state of the roads (congestion conditions, roadblocks to accidents, road works) and various information (tourist signs, updating news, advertisement, ect.). It is known from the principles of biodynamics of human factors such as the perception of the message is strongly influenced by the structure, composition, and mode of transmission of the same, according to the content of the text, the use of specific types of characters and colors, drawings or photos, of specific vocabulary, and more. Through the models of information theory, it is also possible to assess the most appropriate mode of sending and structuring of the message, so that the contents thereof can be perceived in a way, rapid and unambiguous and, consequently, lead to the decision pending. This is to avoid that drivers, while reading the message, distract the eye from the main field of view for too long, or may misunderstand the content of the same, or, again, take a different action from that implied by the message same. The memory shows the first results of a joint research that the University of Cagliari and Brescia are developing on the issues of road signs, analyzed through the application of the principles of the discipline of human factors. In the application presented here, it has been evaluated the quality of perception of messages, sent via PMV, by a set of surveyed drivers immediately after the transit below the panels. The data were analyzed by the support of multivariate techniques, which have allowed the identification of the main variables that influence the perception by drivers. The results have highlighted how these messages are, in general, little read by drivers, who often perceive them as soft background of the landscape around the route of the march. Such limited use of the facilities would seem to result primarily from the fact that the PMV are constantly kept active to send messages free of immediate interest (such as, for example, goodwill messages, penalties for infringements, general notices on the Highway Code), creating a sort of disinterest the reading habit from unnecessary information. In the continuing of research there is the goal of reaching the definition of the most appropriate method of management of the PMV and the indication of the most effective rules of composition of the text message and the alternative of the same transmission (through the use of characters, colors and images) to make it more effective and safe.