# US 12,179,770 B2 · Attention ability test device, attention ability test method, and vehicle

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- Number: US 12,179,770 B2
- Document ID: US12179770B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/973,875
- Filed: 2022-10-26
- Published: 2023-05-04
- Granted: 2024-12-31
- Earliest claimed: 2021-10-28
- Assignees: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
- Applicants: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
- Inventors: Hiroshi Kishi; Kentaro Yokoi; Shinji Nakamura
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12179770B2

## CPC

- B60W 40/08: related to drivers or passengers
- A61B 5/162: {Testing reaction times}
- A61B 5/163: {by tracking eye movement, gaze, or pupil change}
- A61B 5/168: {Evaluating attention deficit, hyperactivity}
- A61B 5/18: for vehicle drivers {or machine operators}
- B60W 50/08: Interaction between the driver and the control system
- B60W 50/14: Means for informing the driver, warning the driver or prompting a driver intervention
- A61B 2503/22: Motor vehicles operators, e.g. drivers, pilots, captains
- B60W 2050/146: {Display means}
- B60W 2540/229: Attention level, e.g. attentive to driving, reading or sleeping
- B60W: CONJOINT CONTROL OF VEHICLE SUB-UNITS OF DIFFERENT TYPE OR DIFFERENT FUNCTION; CONTROL SYSTEMS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR HYBRID VEHICLES; ROAD VEHICLE DRIVE CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR PURPOSES NOT RELATED TO THE CONTROL OF A PARTICULAR SUB-UNIT
- A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D)

## Abstract

An attention ability test device includes a display having a display area, an input device for receiving an operation performed by an examinee, and a test controller. While displaying a central image in the central area of the display area and displaying one or more peripheral images in the peripheral area of the display area, the test controller generates at random at least one of a center task of changing the central image and a periphery task of changing the peripheral image, and measures, as a reaction time, the period of time from generation of the center task or the periphery task to execution of a predetermined operation performed by the examinee having recognized the generation, and evaluates the attention ability of the examinee, based on the reaction time.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An attention ability test device, comprising:
a display having a display area;
an input device for receiving an operation performed by an examinee; and
a test controller,
wherein
the test controller generates at random at least one of a center task and a periphery task while displaying a central image in a central area of the display area, and displaying one or more peripheral images in a peripheral area of the display area, the center task being a task of changing the central image such that a first shape moves around a first circular path at a first constant speed while expanding in size at a second constant speed, the periphery task being a task of changing the peripheral image such that a second shape moves around a second circular path at a third constant speed while expanding at a fourth constant speed, measures, as a reaction time, a period of time from generation of the center task or the periphery task to execution of a predetermined operation by the examinee having recognized the generation, and evaluates a state of an attention ability of the examinee, based on the reaction time.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The attention ability test device according to claim 1, wherein the test controller displays a plurality of the peripheral images in the peripheral area, and executes the periphery task of changing one peripheral image selected at random from among the plurality of peripheral images.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The attention ability test device according to claim 1, wherein
the test controller generates the center task and the periphery task at a plurality of times in a single flow of processing for a test to obtain a plurality of center reaction times and a plurality of periphery reaction times, the center reaction time being a reaction time relative to the center task, the periphery reaction time being a reaction time relative to the periphery task, and
the test controller calculates a center evaluation value indicating an attention ability of the examinee in a central vision, based on the plurality of center reaction times, and a periphery evaluation value indicating an attention ability of the examinee in a peripheral vision, based on the plurality of periphery reaction times.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The attention ability test device according to claim 3, wherein
the center evaluation value is a sum of a representative value of the plurality of center reaction times and an excessive sample variation of the center reaction time,
the periphery evaluation value is a sum of a representative value of the plurality of periphery reaction times and an excessive sample variation of the periphery reaction time, and
the excessive sample variation is a root mean square of a deviation between the representative value and one or more excessive samples among the plurality of reaction times, the excessive samples being reaction times larger than the representative value.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The attention ability test device according to claim 1, wherein
the test controller generates a memorizing task in the central area of the display area in parallel with the center task or the periphery task,
the memorizing task is to present a target image as a memorizing target to the examinee, and then to sequentially display a plurality of candidate images, including the target image, in a random order as memorizing task images in the central area, and
the test controller counts, as a number of correct answers, a number of times the examinee, having recognized display of the target image as the memorizing task image in the central area, executes the predetermined operation within a predetermined permissible time after the display.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The attention ability test device according to claim 5, wherein
the test controller calculates an evaluation value of the memorizing task, based on the number of correct answers, and
the test controller determines a need of a retest in a case where the evaluation value of the memorizing task is less than a predetermined memorizing threshold.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The attention ability test device according to claim 1, wherein
the display is a vehicle-mounted display that is mounted in a position where the display area is visually recognizable from a driver's seat, and
the input device includes one or more steering switches equipped on a steering wheel of a vehicle.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

A vehicle, comprising:
the attention ability test device according to claim 1, and
a vehicle controller for controlling behavior of the vehicle,
wherein
the vehicle controller changes the behavior of the vehicle, based on a result of evaluation outputted from the attention ability test device.

### Claim 9 (depends on 5)

The attention ability test device according to claim 5, wherein:
the test controller displays the memorizing task images inside the first circular path.

### Claim 10

An attention ability test method, comprising the steps of:
generating at random at least one of a center task and a periphery task while displaying a central image in a central area of a display area of a display, and displaying one or more peripheral images in a peripheral area of the display area, the center task being a task of changing the central image such that a first shape moves around a first circular path at a first constant speed while expanding in size at a second constant speed, the periphery task being a task of changing the peripheral image such that a second shape moves around a second circular path at a third constant speed while expanding at a fourth constant speed,
measuring, as a reaction time, a period of time from generation of the center task or the periphery task to execution of a predetermined operation by an examinee having recognized the generation, and
evaluating a state of an attention ability of the examinee, based on the reaction time.