School Bus Driving Simulator Promotes Safety

We’ve looked in the past at the giant ship simulator at Texas A&M – Galveston, where boat pilots entering the Merchant Marine can train virtually on any ship and all the world’s major ports, and the giant flight simulators used by the FAA to train airline pilots and traffic controllers in Oklahoma. Now comes word of a school bus simulator designed to train new drivers in safe driving.

This is no simple video game trainer. The price tag is a reported $200,000 for schools in Prince William County, VA. Here are the key quotes from an article on a local television station’s site:

Users see a dashboard, identical to those in real school buses. The computer then creates a variety of road hazards drivers can see and feel, such as bad weather.

“It allows them – in a laboratory setting – to make mistakes that don’t cost lives, doesn’t damage property and they get an opportunity to learn from that,” said Director of Transportation Ed Bishop, Prince William County schools.

Eventually, all 725 Prince William school bus drivers will train on the simulator; some to specific needs like backing up or making turns, so they are better drivers when they are out on the road with students on board.

School bus simulations are actually old news. eSchoolNews detailed efforts [free subscription required] by North Carolina schools to adopt bus driving simulators designed by the state highway patrol way back in 2001.

References:
North Carolina district tries 3-D driving simulator to improve bus safety. (2001, January 1). eSchoolNews. [Online.] Available: http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/top-news/?i=32981

P.W. County adopts simulation training for school bus drivers. (2009, September 17). WJLA. [Online.] Retrieved October 13, 2009 from http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0909/660289.html

Sailing the Virtual Seas at TAMU-Galveston

A nice article came out this week from Rhiannon Meyers over at the Galveston County Daily News about the ship simulator at Texas A&M – Galveston. Students in the Texas Maritime Academy at TAMU-Galveston must put in 40 hours on the simulator before taking control of real ships.

The academy, opened in 1962, is the only one of its kind in Texas, and one of six in the United States. Between history, English, math and science courses, cadets take simulated cruises to international ports.

Nestled inside building 2002 on A&M’s campus, the simulator, with its 225-degree view on seven 15-foot screens, offers a peek into the bridge of a ship. There’s a wheel, radar, radio, a panoramic view into a virtual reality seascape and the sound of waves slapping the side of a craft.

The imitation of the ship’s motion is so realistic that some get seasick, said Karen Bigley, director of media relations and communications.

The simulator can be programmed to run as a 60 foot cruiser on up to a gargantuan 900 foot supertanker. Students can practice bringing in the ship to major ports around the world. When port conditions change, the software can be quickly updated to reflect the real world changes, so when students actually sail after graduating it should look pretty close to their practice runs.

Also, weather and rough sea conditions can be simulated, making the tasks much more daunting and giving valuable experience. A cadet Meyers watched practicing bumped into another boat and plowed over a man overboard. “Capt. Robert Thrailkill shrugged. Better to clip another ship and injure a drowning man in a college classroom than on the open seas, he said.”

The Full Mission Bridge simulator originally cost half a million dollars. It provides a crucial tool in training maritime personnel.

References:
Meyers, R. (2007, November 14). Students brave the simulated seas. Galveston County Daily News. [Online]. Available: http://news.galvestondailynews.com/story.lasso?
ewcd=9751907adb742ca7