The driver of a vehicular crew has been identified as the one with the most instances of operator overload. A key component of a driver’s task is navigation. Navigation is a process that comprises the driving tasks of manipulation, awareness, and visualization. These tasks are primarily visually and cognitively orientated. One way of minimizing operator overload is to provide redundant cues or information via another sensory modality. Previous research has shown that tactile cues were able to aid in the tasks of land navigation. An experiment was hence designed and carried out to determine the benefits of tactile alerts, as navigation cues. Objective and subjective data was collected. From the experiments, tactile cues were found to be useful in aiding the driver in his role of navigation. In addition, participants were even able to do the navigation task as efficiently without the aid of a map display.

Keywords: Multi-modal, Tactile displays, Tactile cues, Navigation.