Should an external human-machine interface flash or just show text?: A study with a gaze-contingent setup

Automated vehicles need to prioritize pedestrian safety. One way to achieve this is through external human–machine interfaces (eHMIs) that send visual signals to pedestrians. eHMIs can be either text-based or light-based. However, there has been limited research on the effects of these types of eHMI on human information processing and...

The use of monitoring and feedback devices in driving: An assessment of acceptability and its key determinants

Recent technological advancements allow monitoring of drivers’ behaviour and offer the opportunity for providing feedback. While this approach has been shown to have a positive effect on driver behaviour, whether it is accepted by drivers has not yet been extensively investigated. This questionnaire study examined the opinions of a sample of...

Acceptance of conditionally automated cars: Just one factor?

Recent research suggests the existence of a general acceptance factor (GAF), similar to the “big one” in personality research or the general intelligence factor (g). The current study, written in the form of a short commentary, sought empirical support for the GAF by using data from a large multinational questionnaire of the L3Pilot project on...

Haptic lane-keeping assistance for truck driving: A test track study

Objective: This study aims to compare the effectiveness and subjective acceptance of three designs for haptic lane-keeping assistance in truck driving. Background: Haptic lane-keeping assistance provides steering torques toward a reference trajectory, either continuously or only when exceeding a bandwidth. These approaches have been...

What impressions do users have after a ride in an automated shuttle? An interview study

In the future, automated shuttles may provide on-demand transport and serve as feeders to public transport systems. However, automated shuttles will only become widely used if they are accepted by the public. This paper presents results of an interview study with 30 users of an automated shuttle on the EUREF (Europäisches Energieforum) campus in...

Continuous auditory feedback on the status of adaptive cruise control, lane deviation, and time headway: An acceptable support for truck drivers?

The number of trucks that are equipped with driver assistance systems is increasing. These driver assistance systems typically offer binary auditory warnings or notifications upon lane departure, close headway, or automation (de)activation. Such binary sounds may annoy the driver if presented frequently. Truck drivers are well accustomed to the...

User acceptance of automated shuttles in Berlin-Schöneberg: A questionnaire study

Automated shuttles are now in a prototyping phase in several research projects. However, there is still a paucity of knowledge on the acceptance of these shuttles. This paper presents the results of a questionnaire study among individuals (n = 384) who physically experienced an automated shuttle on an office campus in Berlin-Schöneberg. The...

Interaction between pedestrians and automated vehicles: A Wizard of Oz experiment

Automated vehicles (AVs) will be introduced on public roads in the future, meaning that traditional vehicles and AVs will be sharing the urban space. There is currently little knowledge about the interaction between pedestrians and AVs from the point of view of the pedestrian in a real-life environment. Pedestrians may not know with which...