The safety when an electric power steering system failed was evaluated by examining the influence on a driver. Several volunteers participated in the tests using a simplified driving simulator, which provides steering torque and pseudo-lateral acceleration for drivers. The subjects experienced failure mode that correspond to the sudden shutdown of the assist-torque during steady state cornering with various curvature and velocity. The threshold value of assist-torque before the failure not to effect on the drivers' maneuver was studied by investigating the relationship between the assist-torque before fail and an amount of change in steering angle and the subjective ratings of subjects.
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