Automotive User Interfaces and Interactive Vehicular Applications

� To determine how the display of information including
eco-feedback can be tailored to the requirements of the
driving task, improving the user experience and
reducing environmental impact
� To develop a framework for rationalising the display of
information that allows designers to create effective
HMI solutions
� To define design rules for the communication of
information via configurable displays
In order to address these objectives it will be necessary to
consider issues relating to driver distraction, workload, brand
image and users’ emotional responses to technology.
2.2 Methodology
The objectives require that methods for the display of information
are designed and subsequently tested through a user-focused
approach. The first stage of the work will be to conduct a
comprehensive review of the literature, encompassing human
factors, UX and Human-Computer Interaction. The main outputs
from the literature review will include:
� An understanding of the key psychological factors
relating to priority of information on configurable
displays
� A usable definition of UX
� Identification of optimal methods for the measurement
of UX in relation to in-vehicle technology
The second stage of the research will be to explore the contexts in
which in-vehicle systems are used. A qualitative research
approach using market research data and/or interviews with real
customers will determine how information priority varies with
different use cases. This, along with findings from the literature,
will support the development of display concepts that are
designed with a focus on user experience.
It is proposed that evaluations of information display concepts are
conducted using a simulated driving environment, replicating the
context of the driving scenario and real-world use cases. A
medium-fidelity, fixed-based driving simulator based on Oktal
SCANeR Studio software is under development at WMG and will
be used to conduct evaluation trials. Further development of this
capability forms part of the project.
Previous work by the authors [4],[5] established a user-centred
methodology for the evaluation of in-vehicle technology which
was applied to haptic feedback touchscreens. The approach
comprised simulator-based evaluation conducted using a withinsubjects
experiment design: participants performed a series of
touchscreen tasks while driving in a simple motorway scenario.
Objective driver performance metrics including lane deviation,
headway and speed variation were recorded by the driving
simulation software; objective task performance data was also
recorded using custom-developed touchscreen evaluation
interfaces programmed in Adobe Flash. Subjective data on
hedonic rating, user confidence, task difficulty and interference
with the driving task was collected via questionnaire, using 9point
rating scales. Follow-up questions administered at the end
of the study included a most/least preferred choice and Likert
scale ratings of usability and user experience.
Results of these studies showed positive indications for the
validity of the methodology, with the successful generation of rich
information which offered insights into users’ perceptions of
technology, above and beyond instrumental measures of usability
[6]. However, it is acknowledged that the methodology does not
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provide a comprehensive picture of UX; this must therefore be
addressed through the incorporation of methods identified in the
literature review prior to application to this research problem.
In the final stage of the research, the outputs from the evaluation
studies will be used to develop the design rules and framework
described in the objectives. In considering the context of
evaluation and acquiring data on safety-relevant objective
performance metrics alongside subjective measures of user
response, the challenges to UX in automotive HMI discussed in
section 1.1 are addressed.
2.3 Challenges
As discussed above, there is ongoing debate regarding the
definition of User Experience and how to define the context of
evaluation. Given the holistic nature of the problem, a challenge
exists in ensuring that the key factors that shape UX are
considered and that the correct data gathering methods are
employed. Further work will be required to ensure that the scope
of the evaluation is developed to allow this.
The main challenge to the success of the project however is one of
validation. While simulated environments provide an enhanced
context of evaluation, it can be difficult to determine the extent to
which real-world behaviour is replicated. It will be important to
correlate simulator findings with road-based data and/or results
from an alternative simulator with established validity.
3. SUMMARY
New in-car technologies bring new sources and types of
information, the delivery of which must be carefully managed to
optimise safety and user experience. The approach described
within this paper proposes using driving simulator-based
evaluations to generate rich, context-relevant information on
users’ response to HMI concepts, with the aim of delivering a
framework for rationalising the display of information within the
vehicle. Challenges to the research include establishing the key
elements driving user experience and determining the validity of
the evaluation environment.
4. REFERENCES
[1] Bernhaupt, R. (ed.) 2010. Evaluating User Experience in
Games: Springer.
[2] Law, E., Kort, J., Roto, V., Hassenzahl, M. & Vermeeren, A.
2008. Towards a Shared Definition of User Experience. CHI
2008. Florence, Italy.
[3] Vermeeren, A., Law, E., Roto, V., Obrist, M., Hoonhout, J.
& Väänänen-Vainio-Mattila, K. 2010. User Experience
Evaluation Methods: Current State and Development Needs.
NordiCHI.
[4] Pitts, M.J., Williams, M.A., Wellings, T., Attridge, A. 2009.
Assessing subjective response to haptic feedback in
automotive touchscreens. 1st international Conference on
Automotive User interfaces and interactive Vehicular
Applications (AutomotiveUI '09) , Essen, Germany, 11 – 18
[5] Pitts, M.J., Burnett, G.E., Skrypchuk, L., Wellings, T.,
Attridge, A., Williams, M.A. 2012. Visual-Haptic Feedback
Interaction in Automotive Touchscreens. Displays 33 (1), 7 -
16
[6] Pitts, M.J., Wellings, T., Attridge, A., Williams, M.A. 2011.
User-Centred Evaluation of Automotive Human-Machine
Interface Technologies. User Experience in Cars Workshop,
Interact 2011 , Lisbon, Portugal, pp 35 – 40