Design of Control Transfer Rituals for Automated Vehicles

Design of Control Transfer Rituals for Automated Vehicles

Mallon, Thomas (TU Delft Industrial Design Engineering)

van Grondelle, E.D. (mentor)
Kets, W.F. (mentor)

Delft University of Technology

Integrated Product Design

2020-12-18

In 1886, humanity started a great effort to move away from horseback and build a carriage over which they have full control. A century-and-a-half later, we have succeeded to the degree that we are looking for a way to relax in our automobiles. The MEDIATOR project tackles the transitional period between conventional automobiles and fully autonomous vehicles. The challenge that arose with this transition is that the vehicle has to be designed for both driving and not driving. This graduation project tackles the very bit that most people will get to know: how to interact with the machine to divide the power of control? And how do we keep re-establishing that balance? The act of changing control between the human driver and the automation as a driver is to perform a Control Transfer Ritual. With little collected information, this project started with an intensive 45 days of gathering information about interaction between man and machine. The knowledge in fields of feedback, automation levels, input possibilities, legislation, and acceptance by all parties involved combined formed the basis upon which the Control Transfer Rituals were designed. The Control Transfer Rituals differ based on urgency of the situation, the target and original level of automation , and, in case of MEDIATOR, who instigated the transfer. This led to the development of a total of eleven distinctly different Control Transfer Rituals, and the exploration of Minimal Risk Manoeuvres. To validate the effectiveness and usability of these designed rituals, a simulator was developed. This simulator uses the C,MM,N prototype vehicle as a base and consists of a dashboard, with integrated controls, a virtual environment built in Unity, and a dummy Decision Logic, the computing unit of the MEDIATOR project. The prototype allows people to experience how travel will be in the not so distant future. Furthermore, the MEDIATOR project will be able to use it as a base for oncoming development, to ensure that your future travels will be ever more comfortable and safe.

Automated Vehicles
Control Transfer
CTR
Control Transfer Rituals
Rituals
Automotive
Automated
Vehicles
take-over request
Master thesis

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:5ed60809-bc56-4816-bcd6-884b5cc91570

Student theses

master thesis

© 2020 Thomas Mallon