Home - Jelc-sys/AV-control-handover-in-critical-situation GitHub Wiki
This is the wiki for the experience made by group 5 for the course 0HM310 - Automotive Societal Factors 2024.
Below, you can start by reading the experience description, as well as other information about the self-driving experience.
Experience description
The experience created by group 5 revolves around a crash scene within a city, where a self-driving vehicle has to navigate around the crash. As a group we decided to preprogram the car according to a deontological approach, meaning the car adheres to traffic rules and in case of an emergency, saves the passenger of the car. Two main self-driving scenarios are considered:
- The AV fully autonomously navigates around the crash (FSD)
- The AV stops before entering the crash site and requests a handover (MSD)
By considering these two main scenarios, two main aspects of the interaction between AVs and humans can be considered:
- The effect of AV communication forms on human comfort and confidence
- The effect of AV communication forms on human reaction time
Types of communication
The communication forms that will be assessed are: visual, verbal and haptic. The visual communication is comprised of a screen located on the vehicle dashboard, where notifications are displayed. Furthermore, for the MSD experiments, ambient lighting has been implemented in the car that synchronizes with the passenger's breathing, as described by Walker et al. (2021) (https://doi.org/10.1145/3409118.3475152). Verbal communication is implemented in the form of a human-like AI voice speaking to the passenger (this is beneficial for trust in the system). The haptic feedback is implemented by use of an XBOX-controller with vibration motors.
Experiment definitions
A total of 8 experiments have been defined based on combinations of the communication forms, implemented in the two types of scenarios mentioned before. The experiment definitions are listed below:
| Scenario | Number | Communication forms |
|---|---|---|
| FSD | 1 | Visual |
| FSD | 2 | Visual, verbal, haptic |
| MSD | 1 | Visual |
| MSD | 2 | Visual, verbal |
| MSD | 3 | Visual, verbal, haptic |
| MSD | 4 | Breathing + Visual |
| MSD | 5 | Breathing + Visual, verbal |
| MSD | 6 | Breathing + Visual, verbal, haptic |
The combination of cues can be argued to be beneficial for reaction times and situational awareness, as also described by Lu et al. (2019) (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trf.2019.03.018).
Assessment
For the FSD experiences, the comfort of the passenger is assessed through a feedback form after the experience.
For the MSD experiences, the reaction time of the passenger is tracked by timing how long it takes for the participant to press an arrow key after they have been notified by the vehicle to take over. In this way, effectiveness of the communication forms is measured, where a lower takeover-time is associated with higher effectiveness.
Human-centered design
This principle is incorporated into the experience in twofold. First of all, the feedback that is collected from the passenger about the driving behavior of the AV is iterated on, to improve the driving behavior of the car. Dong, Kainth, et al., (2024) provide more rationale about why real-time feedback is beneficial in situations like ours where possible takeover is required, especially building user trust. Besides, the interior of the car has been redesigned with a screen in the middle of the dashboard. This screen serves as a medium to communicate the V2V information and visual cues, as well as the car's intentions and decisions. This screen, providing real-time feedback to the passenger, increases trust and reduces anxiety.
Trust and acceptance are further enhanced through the fact that human override is still possible (building on regulatory decisions).
HMI integration
The car communicates with other road users by driving carefully and slowly around the accident, and carefully parking on the side of the road afterwards. This is in line with the mental models people have about how such scenarios should be handled safely if it was manually handled.
Further navigation
In the pages labeled per week in the tree on the right, you can find meeting notes and progress notes written by the members of group 5.