Novel Multimodal Feedback Techniques for In-Car Mid-Air Gesture Interaction

This paper presents an investigation into the effects of different feedback modalities on mid-air gesture interaction for infotainment systems in cars. Car crashes and near-crash events are most commonly caused by driver distraction. Mid-air interaction is a way of reducing driver distraction by reducing visual demand from infotainment. Despite a range of available modalities, feedback in mid-air gesture systems is generally provided through visual displays. We conducted a simulated driving study to investigate how different types of multimodal feedback can support in-air gestures. The effects of different feedback modalities on eye gaze behaviour, and the driving and gesturing tasks are considered. We found that feedback modality influenced gesturing behaviour. However, drivers corrected falsely executed gestures more often in non-visual conditions. Our findings show that non-visual feedback can reduce visual distraction significantl

Infotainment Interface Design for Automobiles

In an increasingly connected, mobile world, situations where users do not interact with their digital lives are becoming few and far between. This can be a problem in situations that demand a user\u27s attention for their safety. Driving is one such situation, and it is doubly important because a significant portion of the western population drives on a daily basis. Researchers have tested different interface designs with the goal of finding one that demands the least cognitive load while still allowing the user to perform the desired task efficiently. In this paper interfaces incorporating auditory cues, voice dictation, and air gestures are discussed

An Ontological Approach to Inform HMI Designs for Minimizing Driver Distractions with ADAS

ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) are in-vehicle systems designed to enhance driving safety and efficiency as well as comfort for drivers in the driving process. Recent studies have noticed that when Human Machine Interface (HMI) is not designed properly, an ADAS can cause distraction which would affect its usage and even lead to safety issues. Current understanding of these issues is limited to the context-dependent nature of such systems. This paper reports the development of a holistic conceptualisation of how drivers interact with ADAS and how such interaction could lead to potential distraction. This is done taking an ontological approach to contextualise the potential distraction, driving tasks and user interactions centred on the use of ADAS. Example scenarios are also given to demonstrate how the developed ontology can be used to deduce rules for identifying distraction from ADAS and informing future designs

May the Force Be with You: Ultrasound Haptic Feedback for Mid-Air Gesture Interaction in Cars

The use of ultrasound haptic feedback for mid-air gestures in cars has been proposed to provide a sense of control over the user's intended actions and to add touch to a touchless interaction. However, the impact of ultrasound feedback to the gesturing hand regarding lane deviation, eyes-off-the-road time (EORT) and perceived mental demand has not yet been measured. This paper investigates the impact of uni- and multimodal presentation of ultrasound feedback on the primary driving task and the secondary gesturing task in a simulated driving environment. The multimodal combinations of ultrasound included visual, auditory, and peripheral lights. We found that ultrasound feedback presented uni-modally and bi-modally resulted in significantly less EORT compared to visual feedback. Our results suggest that multimodal ultrasound feedback for mid-air interaction decreases EORT whilst not compromising driving performance nor mental demand and thus can increase safety while driving

A Rule Based Reasoning System for Initiating Passive ADAS Warnings Without Driving Distraction Through an Ontological Approach

ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) are in-vehicle systems designed to enhance driving safety and comfort. Unlike active ADAS which provide direct intervention to avoid accidents, passive ADAS increase driver's awareness of hazardous situations by giving warnings in advance. It has been noted that these systems can cause distraction when the relevant HMIs (Human-Machine Interfaces) are poorly designed. Current research is limited to address this problem in specific settings which may not be applicable in wider context. This papers aims to provide a universal rule-based solution to allow passive ADAS to initiate warnings without triggering driver distraction through an ontological approach

Feel the Noise: Mid-Air Ultrasound Haptics as a Novel Human-Vehicle Interaction Paradigm

Focussed ultrasound can be used to create the sensation of touch in mid-air. Combined with gestures, this can provide haptic feedback to guide users, thereby overcoming the lack of agency associated with pure gestural interfaces, and reducing the need for vision – it is therefore particularly apropos of the driving domain. In a counter-balanced 2×2 driving simulator study, a traditional in-vehicle touchscreen was compared with a virtual mid-air gestural interface, both with and without ultrasound haptics. Forty-eight experienced drivers (28 male, 20 female) undertook representative in-vehicle tasks – discrete target selections and continuous slider-bar manipulations – whilst driving. Results show that haptifying gestures with ultrasound was particularly effective in reducing visual demand (number of long glances and mean off-road glance time), and increasing performance (shortest interaction times, highest number of correct responses and least ‘overshoots’) associated with continuous tasks. In contrast, for discrete, target-selections, the touchscreen enabled the highest accuracy and quickest responses, particularly when combined with haptic feedback to guide interactions, although this also increased visual demand. Subjectively, the gesture interfaces invited higher ratings of arousal compared to the more familiar touch-surface technology, and participants indicated the lowest levels of workload (highest performance, lowest frustration) associated with the gesture-haptics interface. In addition, gestures were preferred by participants for continuous tasks. The study shows practical utility and clear potential for the use of haptified gestures in the automotive domain

Towards a Taxonomy for In-Vehicle Interactions Using Wearable Smart Textiles: Insights from a User-Elicitation Study

Textiles are a vital and indispensable part of our clothing that we use daily. They are very flexible, often lightweight, and have a variety of application uses. Today, with the rapid developments in small and flexible sensing materials, textiles can be enhanced and used as input devices for interactive systems. Clothing-based wearable interfaces are suitable for in-vehicle controls. They can combine various modalities to enable users to perform simple, natural, and efficient interactions while minimizing any negative effect on their driving. Research on clothing-based wearable in-vehicle interfaces is still underexplored. As such, there is a lack of understanding of how to use textile-based input for in-vehicle controls. As a first step towards filling this gap, we have conducted a user-elicitation study to involve users in the process of designing in-vehicle interactions via a fabric-based wearable device. We have been able to distill a taxonomy of wrist and touch gestures for in-vehicle interactions using a fabric-based wrist interface in a simulated driving setup. Our results help drive forward the investigation of the design space of clothing-based wearable interfaces for in-vehicle secondary interactions.</jats:p