A team at Clemson University has developed a new driving simulator that is now is being used at 11 U.S. Army, Navy and Veterans Affairs facilities around the United States and Europe. However, this simulator isn’t meant for teaching platoons how to parallel park in an Iraqi desert.

Designed specifically for rehabilitative therapy, the technology allows patients to retrain their cognitive, perceptual and physical skills through safe and realistic driving exercises. As the development team included researchers from Clemson’s psychology department, the simulators were also created in mind to study factors such as the driving capabilities and limitations of the elderly. Such data could be useful in the future to develop safer and more efficient vehicles, as well as devices that would allow the physically handicapped to drive.