This paper proposes a novel method of verifying comprehensive driver model used for the evaluation of driving safety systems, which is achieved by coupling the traffic simulation and the driving simulator (DS). The method consists of three-step procedure. In the first step, an actual driver operates a DS vehicle in the traffic flow controlled by the traffic simulation. Then in the next step, the actual driver is replaced by a driver model and the surrounding vehicle maneuvers are replayed using the recorded data from the first step. Then, the maneuver by the driver model is compared directly with the actual driver's maneuver along the simulation time steps. For example, while turning right (in front of the oncoming traffic), the proposed verification method was applied to our driver-agent model of traffic simulation system ASSTREET (The Advanced Safety System & Traffic REaltime Evaluation Tool) to demonstrate that the proposed method provides a straightforward way of verifying the driver-agent model capability to reproduce the driving behavior including the subtle driving behaviors, such as safety confirmation, that can have significant impact on driving safety. The scheme of interactive connection of ASSTREET and a driving simulator is also described.
