AutoPlay – driving pleasure in a future of autonomous driving

Automated driving technologies promise a relief from stressful or frustrating driving situations. Fully-autonomous cars of the future are expected to take over the responsibilities of driving and allow the now inactive driver to perform much more engaging non-driving activities than ever before. However, the design space of the autonomous driving situation is uniquely different from traditional driving. For example, research on advanced driving automation systems have shown that the transfer of the driving task from the driver to the system can be experienced as a loss of autonomy and competency and may result in a feeling of being at the mercy of technology. Furthermore, the relationship with our cars is not only instrumental. The car is a personal artefact, an extension of the driver’s body connoted with feelings of independence and power. The car’s emancipation to an autonomous agent require a new basis of interacting with the inactive driver to facilitate a pleasurable and meaningful driving experience. On the other hand, the relief from the driving task provides a unique opportunity for new types of activities during the piloted journey, amongst them, new forms of in-situ entertainment and games that are grounded in the contextual specificity of the automotive, mobile situation. This leads to the research objectives: What type of activities can support autonomous driving as pleasurable and meaningful? How should they be implemented to compensate for the constraints and drawbacks of the autonomous driving situation, but also to take advantage of the unique affordances of this new technology? To answer those questions, I designed and developed three working prototypes with the goal to envision future autonomous driving as a pleasurable and meaningful activity. Based on a research-through-design approach, I explored the potentials of the design space of autonomous driving by systematically aligning the core-interactions of the prototypes with the contextual constraints of dense urban traffic. Furthermore, I studied the impact of the three prototypes on the driving experience in a simulator set up as well as in a series of in-car user studies. This exegesis introduces the three prototypes as design artefacts and reflects on the findings of the complementary user studies. In doing so, it articulates a novel frame for understanding autonomous driving as a future design challenge for contextual activities. This research contributes to the increasing importance of user experience and game design in the automotive domain. As such, the contribution is threefold: (1) As design artefacts, the prototypes articulate a desired future of driving experiences in autonomous cars. (2) As a contextual design practice, the research contributes intermediate knowledge in the form of novel ideation methods and implementation strategies of non-driving activities. (3) As a conceptual frame for understanding autonomous driving, I propose three motivational affordances of autonomous driving (that were tangible experiences of the prototypes) as targets for aligning non-driving activities. The three prototypes presented in this exegesis articulate a desired pleasurable vision of autonomous driving of the future. As an inspirational frame, the three prototypes are studied to gain experiential insights into the challenge of designing pleasurable and meaningful non- driving interactions in a future autonomous driving context

Are We There Yet? Combining qualitative and quantitative methods to study the introduction of CAVs in Sweden, and potential travel demand effects.

By law, Sweden must reach net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) by 2045. Domestic transportation is one sector in which GHG emissions can be reduced substantially. Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CAVs) could potentially help with this and with the transition to a more efficient transportation system, but they could also instead make meeting the target harder. The issues of how CAV technology will be introduced to the general public and what the effects will be are fraught with uncertainty. Thus far, much policy research has been informed by technical, quantitative studies, such as the one in Paper 1 of this licentiate thesis. The study analyses the impact CAVs may have on travel demand. The methodology is based on an induced travel demand model that simulates the effects on Vehicle Kilometres Travelled (VKT) related to changes in Value of Travel Time (VoTT) and the cost of CAV technology. In our most conservative scenario—with the smallest change in VoTT and highest CAV cost—we estimate an average increase in travel distance by car of 5% once CAVs are a mature technology on the market, while this increase reaches 61% in the least conservative scenario. Our results also show that income matters: Under certain conditions, those who are able to work remotely and have a relatively high income have a greater economic incentive to purchase a CAV and extend their travel distance. In Paper 2, we identify and map the broader societal drivers and pressures for the introduction of CAVs in cities. The approach taken in the paper has a theoretical basis in transition management and stakeholder theories and uses a combination of the Drivers, Pressures, State, Impact, and Response (DPSIR) framework and force field analysis to analyse interview transcripts. Survey data complement this analysis. The results provide in- depth knowledge about how actors in different parts of society perceive the introduction of CAVs and the mechanisms behind the expansion of these vehicles. It is clear from the interviews and survey that CAVs are not seen as unconditionally positive; instead, many stakeholders believe CAVs need to be connected to mobility planning and public transport strategies

Re-inventing the journey experience - A multifaceted framework to comfort in autonomous vehicles

Future vehicles provide scope to completely re-invent the journey experience. Technological advances have enabled fast progression of driving automation which has the potential to deliver efficient, accessible, sustainable and clean transport systems. Level 4 autonomous vehicles provide an exciting opportunity for drivers and passengers to engage in many activities unrelated to the driving task (e.g. reading, work communication/social networking on mobile technologies, relaxing, watching films etc.) leading to benefits in terms of comfort, pleasure and productivity. There has already been a lot of work looking at the active safety systems autonomous vehicles will need to use as well as the accompanying Human Machine Interface (HMI). For example, studies that look at the time it takes to hand over control from the vehicle to the occupant, and from the occupant to the vehicle. However, little is known regarding the nature of the secondary activities that drivers will want to undertake, and how this will impact occupant comfort, the vehicle architecture, its features and functional safety systems. To understand the ergonomic and engineering impact, first we must capture and fully understand user needs and their preferences in terms of the type of activities that could be undertaken in-vehicle. Re-inventing the journey experience is a research program addressing the lack of research around the user experience of autonomous vehicles. The main aims of the program are to: (1) understand potential for improving the travelling experience; (2) understand what the ergonomic, legislative, safety and comfort constraints are in order to identify design constraints; (3) understand how design innovations can support new occupant requirements. This paper presents a multifaceted framework which aims to guide researchers and industry professionals to more pragmatic vehicle concepts

Multitasking while driving: a time use study of commuting knowledge workers to access current and future uses

Commuting has enormous impact on individuals, families, organizations, and society. Advances in vehicle automation may help workers employ the time spent commuting in productive work-tasks or wellbeing activities. To achieve this goal, however, we need to develop a deeper understanding of which work and personal activities are of value for commuting workers. In this paper we present results from an online time-use study of 400 knowledge workers who commute-by-driving. The data allow us to study multitasking-while-driving behavior of com-muting knowledge workers, identify which non-driving tasks knowledge workers currently engage in while driving, and the non-driving tasks individuals would like to engage in when using a safe highly automated vehicle in the future. We discuss the implications of our findings for the design of technology that supports work and wellbeing activities in automated cars

The low carbon commute: Rethinking the habits that connect home and work in Auckland and London through John Dewey’s pragmatism

Neoliberalism has fundamentally altered how diverse sectors such as energy, health, and transport have come to be understood and governed. In exercising their ‘freedom of choice’ individual consumers are now held responsible for the social or environmental consequences of their decisions and actions. States have accordingly sought to intervene, influence and change the choices of citizens in a variety of spheres of everyday life. This thesis, by exploring how they understand action, demonstrates why these interventions are severely limited. It examines different approaches which have or could inform such interventions and how they theorise, research, and propose to, govern citizen’s actions. Of those considered, it argues John Dewey’s pragmatist writings, especially on habit and experience, by providing a dynamic understanding of how action continually emerges out of an individual’s interactions with their social and physical environments are particularly pertinent. The relevance of this approach for contemporary sustainability and climate change debates is demonstrated through a focus on commuting, which has become a central concern of various behaviour change agendas. The thesis draws on a range of empirical materials generated and collected through interviews, go-alongs and ethnography during fieldwork with local and migrant workers in Auckland, New Zealand and London, United Kingdom. The methodology aimed to produce a range of data on the stable and dynamic aspects of the internal and external environments, and phases, of action. These empirical materials are employed to demonstrate both the limitations of the dominant psychological and economic behavioural models and the potential of a Deweyan-inspired approach for understanding action. The thesis is structured around three associated interventions. First, the soft or libertarian paternalist concept of ‘choice architecture’ is explored. This approach it is suggested is limited in that it fails to problematize and politicise the notion of choice or account for the emergence of purposive and meaningful action. The notion of ‘habit infrastructures’ is introduced as a way of recognising how subjectivities and preferences are always conditioned but not determined by the histories and politics of physical environments and established social norms, values and ideologies, as individuals always retain the capacity to act upon the world. Second, the notion that various ‘barriers’ prevent individuals from making more sustainable choices is critiqued. The concept is too static, fixed, ahistorical and individualistic to account for the complexities of action and social change. It is demonstrated that such a framing offers little insight into why the number of year round cyclists is increasing in Auckland and London, and how regular commuter cyclists anticipate, experience, and negotiate changing weather conditions alongside a range of other everyday routines and practices. Dewey’s theory of situations is instead shown to provide a way of understanding the continuous and contingent contexts in which these experiences unfold and associated habits emerge. Third, dominant behavioural models typically conceptualise habit and thought as polar opposites. Following Dewey the thesis argues they are better understood as phases within human experience. This argument is developed by exploring how people’s commuting practices emerge out of repeated encounters with particular environments. The transition from the unfamiliar to familiar is marked by a development of new habits which alter people’s sense and experience of these environments and allow them to negotiate and adjust to changes in these contexts often with little or no thought. Dewey thus can provide a useful starting point for rethinking the relationship between habit and thought in future interventions. Given the social, economic and political uncertainties it is unlikely that existing urban infrastructures and systems will be radically reconfigured in the near future. Even if they were, history reminds us technology without accompanying social change will not be sufficient to address crises such as climate change. Behaviour change interventions, therefore, will likely remain a primary policy response to the challenges posed by increasing carbon emissions, resource consumption and demand. This thesis contends such interventions need to move beyond existing dominant behavioural models if they are to facilitate change. John Dewey, with his tenacious insistence on the situated, relational, more-than-individual and emergent character of action, provides an alternative approach which helps to reveal both the challenges and possible openings for developing a less carbon and resource intensive world

Rethinking engagement in urban design: reimagining the value of co-design and participation at every stage of planning for autonomous vehicles.

The practical demonstrations and research which led to the preparation of this paper involved a combination of stakeholder engagement, policy debate and the practical demonstration and testing of autonomous vehicles. By adhering to a design approach which in centred on participation and human-centred engagement, the advent of autonomous vehicles might avoid many of the problems encountered in relation to conventional transport. The research explored how a new and potentially disruptive technology might be incorporated in urban settings, through the lens of participation and problem-based design. The research critically reviews key strands in the literature (autonomous vehicles, social research and participatory design), with allusion to current case study experiments. Although there are numerous examples of autonomous vehicles (AV) research concentrating on technical aspects alone, this paper finds that such an approach appears to be an unusual starting point for the design of innovative technology. That is, AVs would appear to hold the potential to be genuinely disruptive in terms of innovation, yet the way that disruption takes place should surely be guided by design principles and by issues and problems encountered by potential users. Practical implications: The research carries significant implications for practice in that it advocates locating those socio-contextual issues at the heart of the problem definition and design process and ahead of technical solutions. What sets this research apart from other studies concerning AVs was that the starting point for investigation was the framing of AVs within contexts and scenarios leading to the emergence of wicked problems. This begins with a research position where the potential uses for AVs are considered in a social context, within which the problems and issues to be solved become the starting point for design at a fundamental level

Analysis of business opportunities for car-related shared mobility services

The confluence of digital technology and connectivity has led, in several sectors, to the rise of application-based shared economy activities. In particular, in the mobility sector, there has been an increase in on-demand shared transport initiatives. These new business models are transforming the urban mobility sector from a limited choice of transport services to a scenario full of new players offering different types of demand responsive mobility services. This change in urban mobility also has an impact on the automotive industry, where manufacturers such as SEAT not only see the opportunity for their cars to be used by these new services, but begin as well to see themselves as potential providers of mobility services. Even so, for the time being, the most popular and widespread shared mobility services remain unprofitable. For this reason, the thesis analyses the business models of the new shared mobility services, with the aim of proposing improvements to increase their profitability. It also identifies the different uses that can be given to them and the factors to be taken into account in the design and implementation process. The methodology used for this research is the study of cases, which have been conducted through surveys and interviews. The research begins with the study of the current and future mobility ecosystem and the behaviour of the automobile industry in this context. Next, the following five case studies are developed. The first analyses the business models of shared mobility services provided by cars –i.e. carsharing, ridesharing, and ride-hailing services– to find out synergies between them for proposing a combined business model. The second aims to study the mobility patterns of citizens and their intention to use shared mobility services. The third and fourth case studies focus on the identification of design factors and use cases of on-demand shared ride-hailing services. This part of the research looks at these services given their potential when cars are autonomous, and the opportunities that the software they use represents for public transport, with buses that could become demand responsive transport services. Finally, the fifth case study analyses the mobility ecosystem from the perspective of local governments and providers of technology and insurance, studies the feasibility of the combination of uses in shared mobility services, and detects the barriers faced by these new business models.La confluència de la tecnologia digital i la connectivitat ha motivat, en diversos sectors, l'auge de les activitats d'economia compartida basades en aplicacions. Concretament, en el sector de la mobilitat s'ha experimentat un creixement de les iniciatives de transport compartit a demanda. Aquests nous models de negoci estan transformant el sector de la mobilitat urbana, que passa de tenir una oferta limitada de serveis de transport a un escenari ple de nous actors que ofereixen diferents serveis de mobilitat a la carta. Aquest canvi en la mobilitat urbana també impacta en la indústria de l'automòbil, on fabricants com SEAT no només veuen l'oportunitat que els seus cotxes siguin utilitzats per aquests nous serveis, sinó que a més a més es comencen a veure com a possibles proveïdors de serveis de mobilitat. Tot i això, de moment, els serveis de mobilitat compartida més populars i estesos continuen sense ser rendibles. Per aquesta raó, la tesi portada a terme analitza els models de negoci dels nous serveis de mobilitat compartida, amb l’objectiu de proposar millores que permetin augmentar la seva rendibilitat. També s'identifiquen els diferents usos que se'ls hi pot donar i els factors que cal tenir en compte a l’hora de dissenyar-los i implementar-los. La metodologia utilitzada per a aquesta investigació és l'estudi de casos, els quals s'han desenvolupat a través d'enquestes i entrevistes. La recerca comença amb l'estudi de l'ecosistema de mobilitat actual i futur, i el comportament de la indústria de l'automòbil en aquest context. Tot seguit es desenvolupen cinc casos d'estudi. En el primer s'analitzen els models de negoci dels serveis de mobilitat compartida que s’ofereixen amb cotxes, es a dir, els serveis de carsharing, ridesharing i ride-hailing, amb la finalitat de trobar sinergies entre ells per a proposar un model de negoci combinat. El segon té com a objectiu estudiar els patrons de mobilitat dels ciutadans i la seva intenció en utilitzar els serveis de mobilitat compartida. El tercer i el quart cas d'estudi se centren a identificar els factors de disseny i els casos d'ús dels serveis d'on- demand shared ride-hailing. Aquesta part de la investigació es fixa en aquests serveis pel potencial que poden tenir quan els cotxes siguin autònoms, i per les oportunitats que el software que utilitzen representen per al transport públic, amb busos que podrien convertir-se en serveis de transport a demanda. Per últim, en el cinquè cas d'estudi s'analitza l’ecosistema de mobilitat des de la perspectiva dels governs locals i dels proveïdors de tecnologia i d'assegurances, s'estudia la viabilitat de la combinació d'usos en els serveis de mobilitat compartida, i es detecten quines són les barreres amb què es troben aquests nous models de negoci.La confluencia de la tecnología digital y la conectividad ha motivado, en varios sectores, el auge de las actividades de economía compartida basadas en aplicaciones. Concretamente, en el sector de la movilidad se ha experimentado un crecimiento de las iniciativas de transporte compartido a la demanda. Estos nuevos modelos de negocio están transformando el sector de la movilidad urbana, que pasa de tener una oferta limitada de servicios de transporte a un escenario lleno de nuevos actores que ofrecen diferentes servicios de movilidad a la carta. Este cambio en la movilidad urbana también impacta en la industria del automóvil, donde fabricantes como SEAT no solo ven la oportunidad que sus coches sean utilizados por estos nuevos servicios, sino que además se empiezan a ver como posibles proveedores de servicios de movilidad. Aun así, por el momento, los servicios de movilidad compartida más populares y extendidos continúan sin ser rentables. Por esta razón, la tesis llevada a cabo analiza los modelos de negocio de los nuevos servicios de movilidad compartida, con el objetivo de proponer mejoras que permitan aumentar su rentabilidad. También se identifican los diferentes usos que se les puede dar y los factores a tener en cuenta en el proceso de diseño e implementación. La metodología utilizada para esta investigación es el estudio de casos, los cuales se han desarrollado por medio de encuestas y entrevistas. La investigación empieza con el estudio del ecosistema de movilidad actual y futuro, y el comportamiento de la industria del automóvil en este contexto. Posteriormente se desarrollan cinco casos de estudio. En el primero se analizan los modelos de negocio de los servicios de movilidad compartida que se ofrecen con coches, es decir, los servicios de carsharing, ridesharing y ride-hailing, con el fin de encontrar sinergias entre ellos para proponer un modelo de negocio combinado. El segundo tiene como objetivo estudiar los patrones de movilidad de los ciudadanos y su intención al utilizar los servicios de movilidad compartida. El tercer y el cuarto caso de estudio se centran en identificar los factores de diseño y los casos de uso de los servicios de on-demand shared ride-hailing. Esta parte de la investigación se centra en estos servicios por su potencial con la llegada del coche autónomo, y por las oportunidades que el software que utilizan representan para el transporte público, con autobuses que podrían convertirse en servicios de transporte a la demanda. Por último, en el quinto caso de estudio se analiza el ecosistema de movilidad desde la perspectiva de los gobiernos locales y de los proveedores de tecnología y seguros, se estudia la viabilidad de la combinación de usos en los servicios de movilidad compartida, y se detectan cuáles son las barreras para estos nuevos modelos de negocio

Measuring, analysing and explaining the value of travel time savings for autonomous driving

Autonomes Fahren (AF) wird potenziell die Präferenzen für die im Auto verbrachte Zeit stark beeinflussen und dementsprechend den Wert der Reisezeit, der ein Schlüsselelement von Kosten-Nutzen-Analysen im Verkehr ist. Die Untersuchung dieses Aspekts des AF ist daher entscheidend für die Analyse potenzieller Auswirkungen der Technik auf die zukünftige Verkehrsnachfrage. Trotz der steigenden Anzahl an Studien zu diesem Thema, gibt es noch erhebliche Forschungslücken. Der Fokus der Dissertation ist die potenziellen Änderungen des Reisezeitwerts, die durch das AF entstehen, zu messen sowie ihre Determinanten zu analysieren. Es wurden sowohl qualitative Ansätze als auch quantitative Methoden verwendet. Dabei wurden zwei Konzepte von AF betrachtet: privates und geteiltes autnomes Fahrzeug. Die Ergebnisse der Analysen zeigen einen niedrigeren Wert der Reisezeitersparnis beim AF im Vergleich zum manuellen Fahren, allerdings nur auf Pendelwegen. Das private Fahrzeug wird als eine attraktivere Option als ein geteiltes Fahrzeug wahrgenommen, jedoch unterscheiden sich die Nutzerpräferenzen für geteilte Fahrzeug stark zwischen den durchgeführten Studien. Individuelle Charakteristiken, wie Erfahrung mit Fahrassistenzsystemen, beeinflussen stark die Wahrnehmung der Zeit im AF; andere sozio-demographischen Faktoren, wie Alter und Geschlecht haben vor allem einen indirekten Effekt auf den Reisezeitwert indem sie Einstellungen potenzieller Nutzer beeinflussen. Die Verbesserung des Fahrterlebnisses durch das AF und das Vertrauen in die Technik sind wichtige Determinanten der Reisezeitwahrnehmung. Fahrvergnügen und andere wahrgenommene Vorteile vom manuellen Fahren gleichen in einem gewissen Ausmaß den Nutzen vom AF aus. Es wurden Reisezeitwerte für unterschiedliche potenzielle Nutzersegmente berechnet. Abschließend wurden politische Implikationen, Empfehlungen für die Entwicklung von AF sowie Empfehlungen für künftige Studien und potenziellen Forschungsgebiete abgeleitet.Autonomous driving will potentially strongly affect preferences for time spent in a vehicle and, consequently, the value of travel time savings (VTTS). As VTTS is a key element of cost-benefit analysis for transport, these interrelations are crucial for analysing the potential impact of the technology on future travel demand. Despite the increasing number of studies dedicated to this topic there are still many unanswered questions. The focus of the thesis is to measure potential changes in the VTTS resulting from the introduction of autonomous driving and analyse their determinants. Qualitative approaches and quantitative methods were used. Two concepts of AVs were considered: a privately-owned AV (PAV) and a shared AV (SAV). The analysis results suggest lower VTTS for autonomous driving compared to manual driving, but only on commuting trips. A PAV is perceived as a more attractive option than an SAV, but user preferences for SAVs vary between the conducted studies. Individual characteristics, such as experience with advanced driver assistance systems, strongly affect the perception of time in an AV; other socio-demographic factors, such as age and gender, affect mode choices and the VTTS mainly indirectly by influencing the attitudes of potential users. The improvement in travel experiences due to autonomous driving and trust in the technology are important determinants of the perception of travel time. Enjoyment of driving and other perceived benefits of manual driving partially counterbalance the utility of riding autonomously. VTTS for different potential user segments were calculated. In conclusion, several policy implications, development recommendations for AVs as well as recommendations for future studies and potential research avenues are derived from the findings