Designing in-vehicle signs for connected vehicle features: Does appropriateness guarantee comprehension?

External Human-Machine Interfaces for Automated Vehicles in Shared Spaces: A Review of the Human-Computer Interaction Literature

Given the rise of automated vehicles from an engineering and technical perspective, there has been increased research interest concerning the Human and Computer Interactions (HCI) between vulnerable road users (VRUs, such as cyclists and pedestrians) and automated vehicles. As with all HCI challenges, clear communication and a common understanding-in this application of shared road usage-is critical in order to reduce conflicts and crashes between the VRUs and automated vehicles. In an effort to solve this communication challenge, various external human-machine interface (eHMI) solutions have been developed and tested across the world. This paper presents a timely critical review of the literature on the communication between automated vehicles and VRUs in shared spaces. Recent developments will be explored and studies analyzing their effectiveness will be presented, including the innovative use of Virtual Reality (VR) for user assessments. This paper provides insight into several gaps in the eHMI literature and directions for future research, including the need to further research eHMI effects on cyclists, investigate the negative effects of eHMIs, and address the technical challenges of eHMI implementation. Furthermore, it has been underlined that there is a lack of research into the use of eHMIs in shared spaces, where the communication and interaction needs differ from conventional roads.

Urban air mobility infrastructure design: Using virtual reality to capture user experience within the world's first urban airport

Human factors research can play an important role in the successful design of infrastructure to support future mobility. Through engaging users and stakeholders early in the design process we can gain insights before the physical environments are built. This paper presents data from a truly novel application of Virtual Reality (VR), where user experience and wayfinding were evaluated within an emerging future transport infrastructure to support urban air mobility (UAM) - the urban airport (aka vertiports). Urban airports are located in city centres where drones or 'flying cars' would land and take off from. Previous quantitative studies have investigated passenger experience in traditional airports using field observation and surveys, but this paper is the first to present qualitative research on user experience in this emerging mobility infrastructure using an immersive VR environment. Twenty participants completed a series of six scenarios aimed at understanding customer 'exciters' and 'pain points' within an urban airport. Results and recommendations from this empirical research will help inform the design of all future mobility infrastructure solutions, through improving user experience before the infrastructure is physically deployed. Finally, this paper highlights the benefits of engaging users at an early stage of the design process to ensure that future transport infrastructure will be accessible, easy to navigate and a pleasure to use.

Attention Pedestrians Ahead: Evaluating User Acceptance and Perceptions of a Cooperative Intelligent Transportation System-Warning System for Pedestrians

Warning system for pedestrians (WSP), one of cooperative intelligent transport system (C-ITS) applications, is designed to increase safety for pedestrians but also for drivers and other road users. The evaluation of end-user acceptance and perceptions of this technology is crucial before deploying it in transportation systems. Five WSP human–machine interfaces (HMIs) were designed and simulated using a driver’s first-view video footage of driving through a pedestrian crossing in Newcastle upon Tyne. The five WSP designs were evaluated with 24 younger end users (35 years old and younger). This study first evaluated the usefulness of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) in modelling end-user acceptance in terms of behavioural intentions to use WSP. The results suggest that the UTAUT can be applied to investigate the end-user acceptance of WSP, with performance expectancy and effort expectancy influencing the behavioural intentions to use WSP. Furthermore, we investigated end-user attitudes towards various WSP human–machine interface (HMI) designs. Participants showed more positive attitudes towards visual-only interfaces than towards audio-only and multi-modal (combinations of visual and audio) interfaces. Above all, the findings of this research increase our understanding of public acceptance and perceptions of this C-ITS application.

Connected Vehicles: Technology Review, State of the Art, Challenges and Opportunities

In an effort to reach accident-free milestones or drastically reduce/eliminate road fatalities rates and traffic congestion and to create disruptive, transformational mobility systems and services, different parties (e.g., automakers, universities, governments, and road traffic regulators) have collaborated to research, develop, and test connected vehicle (CV) technologies. CVs create new data-rich environments and are considered key enablers for many applications and services that will make our roads safer, less congested, and more eco-friendly. A deeper understanding of the CV technologies will pave the way to avoid setbacks and will help in developing more innovative applications and breakthroughs. In the CV paradigm, vehicles become smarter by communicating with nearby vehicles, connected infrastructure, and the surroundings. This connectivity will be substantial to support different features and systems, such as adaptive routing, real-time navigation, and slow and near real-time infrastructure. Further examples include environmental sensing, advanced driver-assistance systems, automated driving systems, mobility on demand, and mobility as a service. This article provides a comprehensive review on CV technologies including fundamental challenges, state-of-the-art enabling technologies, innovative applications, and potential opportunities that can benefit automakers, customers, and businesses. The current standardization efforts of the forefront enabling technologies, such as Wi-Fi 6 and 5G-cellular technologies are also reviewed. Different challenges in terms of cooperative computation, privacy/security, and over-the-air updates are discussed. Safety and non-safety applications are described and possible future opportunities that CV technology brings to our life are also highlighted.

The Evaluation of Preference and Perceived Quality of Health Communication Icons Associated with COVID-19 Prevention Measures

Icons have been widely utilized to describe and promote COVID-19 prevention measures. The purpose of this study was to analyze the preference and subjective design features of 133 existing icons associated with COVID-19 prevention measures published by the health and medical organizations of different countries. The 133 icons represent nineteen different function names, such as “Wash Hands” and “Wear Face Mask”. A total of 57 participants were recruited to perform two different tests: ranking test and subjective rating test. The ranking test was conducted to elicit the preference ranking of seven icon designs representing each function name. It was followed by a subjective rating test using 13 semantic scales on the two most preferred icons to analyze their perceived quality. Spearmen correlation was applied to derive the possible correlations between users’ rankings and the semantic scales, and Friedman’s test was also performed to determine the true difference between ranking in terms of each semantic scale to provide a fully meaningful interpretation of the data. Generally, findings from the current study showed that the image presented in the icon is the key point that affects the icons’ perceived quality. Interestingly, Spearman’s correlation analysis between preference ranking and semantic scales showed that vague–clear, weak–strong, incompatible–compatible, and ineffective–effective were the four strongest semantic scales that highly correlated with the preference ranking. Considering the significant relationships between the semantic distances and the functions, images depicted in an icon should be realistic and as close as possible to its respected function to cater to users’ preferences. In addition, the results of Spearman’s correlation and Friedman’s test also inferred that compatibility and clarity of icon elements are the main factors determining a particular icon’s preferability. This study is the first comprehensive study to evaluate the icons associated with the COVID-19 prevention measures. The findings of this study can be utilized as the basis for redesigning icons, particularly for icons related to COVID-19 prevention measures. Furthermore, the approach can also be applied and extended for evaluating other medical icons.

I want to brake free: The effect of connected vehicle features on driver behaviour, usability and acceptance

This study evaluated the effectiveness and acceptance of four connected vehicle features, i.e. Emergency Electronic Brake Lights (EEBL), Emergency Vehicle Warning (EVW), Roadworks warning (RWW) and Traffic Condition Warning (TCW) which were presented via a mobile phone mounted near the line of sight. A driving simulator study was conducted in which 36 drivers were exposed to different levels of urgent and critical situations. They involved the approach of an emergency vehicle, an emergency braking of a lead vehicle, a roadworks area and a congested section of a road. All these events took place in a simulated motorway scenario. In the EEBL event, the vehicle braking ahead with the brake lights on was either visible or not (between-subjects). Whereas no effect of RWW and TCW were observed on driving behaviour, results showed that drivers who were shown the EEBL warnings had shorter braking and decelerating response times, and a slower mean speed during the events, and this was independent of brake lights visibility. The EVW resulted in participants giving way to the emergency vehicle (i.e. staying on the slow lane instead of overtaking slower vehicles) more frequently than those who did not receive the warning. The mobile phone app was accepted and considered usable. Locating the mobile phone in different locations within the drivers' line of sight (i.e. dashboard, instrument cluster) did not impact significantly neither drivers' attitudes nor behaviour. Additional in-vehicle information systems could enhance safety and allow emergency vehicles to get faster to their destination.