Owens Community College will host a free Virtual Reality DUI/DWI Auto Simulator Awareness Program Jan. 27 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Student Health and Activities Center.

The program is being presented by the P.E.E.R.S. (Professionals Encouraging Educational Reform Statewide) organization and the college’s Office of Student Activities.  The system is a portable automobile road simulator that emulates real road driving conditions.  It facilitates training and assessment of drivers in an actual vehicle and realistically highlights the dangers of drinking and driving.

Participants are seated within an automobile and wear virtual reality goggles to fully immerse themselves in the simulation program. The scenery is computer-generated by virtual reality software, which receives data from the wheels and pedals of the vehicle to provide an interactive experience recreating a variety of driving conditions.

Individuals initially drive the automobile simulator sober through various scenarios chosen at random by the program, such as driving in the rain and on crowded highways and exits.

At the conclusion of the first simulation, the program advances to an alcohol driving stage in which the participant’s body type, gender and drinks per hour are taken into account. Individuals then drive the automobile simulator from an intoxicated perspective. During the second simulation, infractions caused as a result of the participant’s reckless driving are recorded. At the program’s conclusion, the simulation displays the person’s blood alcohol level and every infraction caused as a result of drinking and driving. Additionally, individuals have the opportunity to watch the simulation from a passenger’s point-of-view on monitors around the simulator.    

The P.E.E.R.S. organization also provides literature on drunk driving and presents an impact video highlighting accidents caused by alcohol and the after effects on victims and their families. 

For more information, call 1-800-GO-OWENS, ext. 7583.

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