Evaluating How Interfaces Influence the User Interaction with Fully Autonomous Vehicles

With increasing automation, occupants of fully autonomous vehicles are likely to be completely disengaged from the driving task. However, even with no driving involved, there are still activities that will require interfaces between the vehicle and passengers. This study evaluated different configurations of screens providing operational-related information to occupants for tracking the progress of journeys. Surveys and interviews were used to measure trust, usability, workload and experience after users were driven by an autonomous low speed pod. Results showed that participants want to monitor the state of the vehicle and see details about the ride, including a map of the route and related information. There was a preference for this information to be displayed via an onboard touchscreen device combined with an overhead letterbox display versus a smartphone-based interface. This paper provides recommendations for the design of devices with the potential to improve the user interaction with future autonomous vehicles.