Equipment Design Features (Impacts on Safety)

Papers, polls, Q&A items, and comments on this page are oriented to topics and issues associated with the impact of equipment design features on driving safety. Feel free to post comments on issues outlined below, or in response to papers, polls, and/or questions submitted to our expert panel. The emphasis is meant to be on the design features of the technological devices themselves, but comments on system-level safety (e.g., integration of devices, use of crash warnings) are welcome. A moderator has been assigned to periodically synthesize comments, keep discussions focused and moving, emphasize key points, and offer additional insights into related issues.

DISCUSSION ISSUES/TOPICS

Effective/Ineffective Designs & Countermeasures

What technologies can be employed to develop less distracting devices (e.g., voice recognition, hands free operation)?
To what extent does voice interaction (speech recognition, artificial speech) provide benefits over visual presentation? Under what conditions is voice communication distracting?
Is there less driver distraction with the use of Head Up Displays (HUDs) than with traditional displays? Can everyone use HUDs effectively?
How should information be structured, formatted, and searched? How much information is too much for drivers to handle?
What designs and features (design soluations) have worked well in this or similar applications? What problems have been observed?
What effective countermeasures can be used to combat distraction?

Research Needs

What are the important unanswered questions regarding the design of in-vehicle technologies? Is research best directed at defining good design or developing tools to evaluate individual designs?

Content Available In Each Topic Area

  Paper
  Comment
  Ask the Expert
  Poll

Effective/Ineffective Designs & Countermeasures
	The Impact of Internal Distraction on Driver Visual Behavior 5/17/00 2:30:52 PM Divided Attention Ability of Young and Older Drivers 5/30/00 1:12:17 PM Speech-based Interaction with In-vehicle Computers: The Effect of Speech-based E-mail on Drivers’ Attention to the Roadway 5/31/00 11:52:26 AM Integration of Driver In-Vehicle ITS Information 5/31/00 11:53:14 AM E-Distraction: The Challenges for Safe and Usable Internet Services in Vehicles 5/31/00 12:04:41 PM Can Collision Warning Systems Mitigate Distraction Due to In-Vehicle Devices? 5/31/00 1:12:43 PM In-Vehicle Communication and Driving: An Attempt to Overcome their Interference 6/1/00 11:55:10 AM If purchasing an in-vehicle device, how much of an influence does the design and ease of use of devices have on your selection? Can auditory systems (devices with the capability to interpret voice commands, or communicate using speech messages) address the safety concerns associated with operating in-vehicle technologies? Do you believe hands-free technology is sufficient to address safety concerns related to cell phone use while driving? Is it possible to design electronic maps that can be safely used while driving? Is it possible to design wireless Internet devices (e.g., e-mail systems) that can be safely used while driving? Integration of Driver in vehicle ITS 7/6/00 2:13:53 PM In your opinion, what is the maximum number of recommended information displays a HUD should feature? 7/14/00 8:52:05 AM Passenger Air Bag technology saves lives, BUT... 7/14/00 6:11:10 PM Radio designs are needlessly dangerous 7/18/00 3:04:26 PM Radio designs are needlessly dangerous, II 7/18/00 6:32:12 PM Possible solution 7/18/00 6:44:54 PM disable devices while car is in motion 7/19/00 11:19:00 AM low cost "black-box" equipment for motor vehicles 7/19/00 11:50:17 AM In your opinion, what is the maximum number of recommended information displays a HUD should feature? Can you specify related references? 7/19/00 4:11:36 PM What role can automation play in reducing the driver distraction problem? What automated or assistance systems can we expect to see in the future? 7/20/00 7:47:20 AM Confusing radio controls 7/20/00 4:05:31 PM Older vs. Younger 7/24/00 9:47:24 PM E-mail in the car 7/24/00 10:09:21 PM HUD usage 7/26/00 1:46:27 PM HUD usage 7/26/00 1:47:16 PM Radio/CD player designs need standards 7/31/00 2:13:49 AM Integration and solutions causing potential new problems 8/1/00 10:09:55 AM Thomas Ranney (Moderator) Academia/ Research Firm Refering to: Possible solution I was encouraged by your examples of an in-dash phone that automatically mutes the radio and auto-answer for incoming calls. They show evidence of what is critically needed in this area - attention to how new technologies will interact with existing ones in competing for the driver's attention. I wanted also to offer a scenario of how I can imagine drivers defeating the safety interlock you suggest. Specifically, I can easily imagine drivers, who are eager to get to their email, putting their vehicles in park or neutral at every intersection and being increasingly slow in returning to driving once the light changes to green, which of course would exacerbate the existing problem of very slow start-up at some very congested intersections. There has been some discussion of bringing broadcast television into vehicles but limiting access to when the vehicle is similarly stopped. Here I can imagine gridlock at a critical moment in the Super Bowel, in which all drivers have stopped, wherever they are to see the outcome of the play. This raises a question - For those of you who are bothered by the very slow start-up at intersections when the light changes from red to green, have you noticed that these delays seem longer in recent years, which would be evidence that drivers are increasingly distracted generally, relative to similar situations, say 10 or 20 years ago? Radio content can be distracting 8/1/00 10:25:10 AM Ergonomic design and visual pollution 8/3/00 2:14:33 PM Ergonomic design and visual pollution (ergonomically improved!) 8/3/00 2:23:18 PM
Research Needs
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