While driving simulators are a commonly used tool for a wide range of safety-relevant research topics in the passenger car sector, motorcycle riding simulators are currently less prevalent. In order to get an overview of possible applications of motorcycle simulators, a validation methodology for driving simulators was developed within the scope of the research project "Possible applications of motorcycle simulators" (BASt FE 82.0700/2018) in cooperation with FZD of the TU Darmstadt, which was tested on the static motorcycle simulator of the WIVW and the dynamic DESMORI motorcycle simulator of the WIVW.

The methodology makes the assumption that use-case-specific driving tasks of simulators can be broken down into smaller components, so-called minimum scenarios, and conversely, complex driving tasks can be reconstructed from minimum scenarios. Therefore, the two simulators were compared to two test motorcycles within two studies. In a first step, the minimum scenarios were investigated regarding parameters of riding dynamics, rider behavior, and rider workload. The second study investigated more complex, use-case-specific riding tasks under examination of the aforementioned parameters. The studies showed comparable simulator characteristics between the investigation of the minimum scenarios and the complex use-case-scenarios. Thus, the applicability of the developed method can be assumed, whereby the potential applications for a wide range of research questions can be assessed for the respective simulator.

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