Abstract

Cars, trucks and busses are more and more equipped with functions and services that drivers are supposed to operate and understand. The most important developments in this area are the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and In Vehicle Information Systems (IVIS). In order to make sure that the driver understands and appreciates (comfort) these services and traffic safety is not at risk (distraction, workload), the HMI's (Human Machine Interfaces) of all these functions should be attuned to each other, to the driver, and to the context. For attuning the functions to each other, a HMI platform is needed on which these functions are integrated. For attuning the functions to the driver it is necessary to have knowledge about the momentary state of the driver and of the intentions of the driver at a certain moment. For attuning the functions to the context, it is required to sense the relevant environmental conditions or states. This paper shows that a recent cognitive task load model from process control domain can be applied for the design of adaptive in-car user interfaces. Furthermore, current developments of such interfaces are being discussed. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007.

Abstract

In-vehicle systems that assist the driver with his driving task are developed and introduced to the market at increasing rate. Drivers may be supported during congested traffic conditions by a so-called Congestion Assistant consisting of a mix of informing, assisting and controlling functions. This paper describes the impacts of the Congestion Assistant on the driver in terms of driving behaviour and acceptance. Thirty-seven participants took part in a driving simulator study. The observed driving behaviour showed promising improvements in traffic safety when approaching the traffic jam. Moreover, positive effects of the system on traffic efficiency can be expected in the jam. The participants stated to appreciate the Congestion Assistant, although not all functions were equally rated. To increase the performance and acceptance of the total system, some refinements were suggested. Keywords: Congestion Assistant; Driving simulator; Integrated system; Driving behaviour; Acceptance