Driver Acceptance of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems and Semi-Autonomous Driving Systems

Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and semi-autonomous driving systems are intended to enhance driver performance and improve transportation safety. The potential benefits of these technologies, such as reduction in number of crashes, enhancing driver comfort or convenience, decreasing environmental impact, etc., are well accepted and endorsed by transportation safety researchers and federal transportation agencies. Even though these systems afford safety advantages, they challenge the traditional role of drivers in operating vehicles. Driver acceptance, therefore, is essential for the implementation of ADAS and semi-autonomous driving systems into the transportation system. These technologies will not achieve their potential if drivers do not accept them and use them in a sustainable and appropriate manner. The potential benefits of these in-vehicle assistive systems presents a strong need for research. A comprehensive review of current literature on the definitions of acceptance, acceptance modelling approaches, and assessment techniques was carried out to explore and summarize the different approaches adopted by previous researchers. The review identified three major research needs: a comprehensive evaluation of general technology acceptance models in the context of ADAS, development of an acceptance model specifically for ADAS and similar technologies, and development of an acceptance assessment questionnaire. Two studies were conducted to address these needs. In the first study, data collection was done using two approaches: a driving simulator approach and an online survey approach. In both approaches, participants were exposed to an ADAS and, based on their experience, responded to several survey questions to indicate their attitude toward using the ADAS and their perception of its usefulness, usability, reliability, etc. The results of the first study showed the utility of the general technology acceptance theories to model driver acceptance. A Unified Model of Driver Acceptance (UMDA) and two versions (a long version with 21 items and a short version with 13 items) of an acceptance assessment questionnaire were also developed, based on the results of the first study. The second was conducted to validate the findings of first study. The results of the second study found statistical evidence validating UMDA and the two versions of the acceptance assessment questionnaire

Intelligent transportation system with diverse semi-autonomous vehicles

It is becoming increasingly likely that in the future most vehicles will be semi-autonomous with communication capabilities and will possess diverse speed capabilities. The aim of this paper is to describe the creation of an integrated traffic simulation system for such settings. While behaviours such as crossing, overtaking, etc. are trivially exhibited, the implemented system includes an intelligent traffic lights operating system, dynamic speed limits for speed lanes, lane reservation, road reservation, density regularization or traffic jam avoidance, replanning for blockages and re-routing under slow traffic conditions

Virtual Driver - Sistema de Reconhecimento de Sinalização Vertical de Trânsito

No quotidiano das sociedades atuais, a sinistralidade automóvel permanece como uma das principais causas de morte a nível mundial, vitimando todos os anos milhões de pessoas e provocando danos físicos irreversíveis, que resultam em incapacidades totais ou parciais. Com o crescimento sustentado das tecnologias inteligentes de transporte, denominadas “ITSIntelligent Transportation Systems”, verifica-se que as mesmas são um excelente meio de atuaçãona prevenção de acidentes rodoviários, particularmente aquelas que auxiliam directamente o condutor dentro do veículo “ADAS – Advanced Driver Assistance System”. A introdução dos sistemas ADAS no mercado tarda em proliferar, devido a restrições como o custo e disponibilidade, já que normalmente a sua disponibilização é influenciada pelo foco comercial dos fabricantes de automóveis e está inerente à utilização de carros de gama alta ou à aquisição de extras dispendiosos. Considera-se também, que os requisitos tecnológicos associados a estas soluções são um entrave à sua implementação, uma vez que a idade média dos automóveis é elevada. O défice de alcance deste tipo de soluções pela população surge como motivação desta dissertação, para o desenvolvimento de um sistema capaz de ser acessível por todos. Esta dissertação tem como objetivo principal a demonstração de uma investigação na área dos sistemas inteligentes de transporte, sendo base para o desenvolvimento de um protótipo de um sistema evolutivo de assistência ao condutor, denominado Virtual Driver. A sinalização de trânsito é o principal meio de comunicação entre o condutor e estrada, definindo quais são as regras e perigos inerentes na sua utilização. No entanto, a sua não visualização por fatores como distração, falta de foco na condução ou falta de visibilidade, podem comprometer a segurança do próprio condutor e de outros presentes na via, resultando em acidentes rodoviários. Virtual Driver é uma solução de baixo custo que é executável através de dispositivos presentes no quotidiano, como o smartphone ou outros micro-computadores. Desta forma, permite, numa primeira fase, auxiliar o condutor através do reconhecimento de sinalização vertical de trânsito em tempo real, alertando-o através de informações áudio-visuais. O protótipo desenvolvido atua com base na sinalização vertical de trânsito Portuguesa, pretendendo-se, mais tarde, abranger outras realidades. Numa fase final, será apresentada a avaliação do desempenho da solução, relativamente aos processos de deteção e reconhecimento de sinalização, evidenciando a utilização da metodologia escolhida.In today's society, road accidents remain one of the leading causes of death worldwide, killing millions of people each year and causing irreversible physical damage, resulting in total or partial disability. With the sustained growth of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS-Intelligent Transportation Systems), it’s now known that they are an excellent mean for preventing road accidents, particularly those that directly assist the driver in the vehicle "ADAS - Advanced Driver Assistance System”. The introduction of ADAS systems on the market is slow to take, due to constraints such as cost and availability, as their availability is usually influenced by the commercial focus of car manufacturers, and is inherent in the use of high-end cars, or the purchase of costly extras. It is also considered that the technological requirements associated with these solutions are an obstacle to their implementation, since the average age of cars is high. The lack of reach of this type of solutions by the population, appears as motivation of this dissertation, for the development of a system capable of being accessible by all. This dissertation has, as main objective, the demonstration of an investigation in the area of the intelligent transport systems, being the base for the development of a prototype of an evolutive system of assistance to the driver, denominated Virtual Driver. Traffic signaling is the main mean of communication between the driver and the road, defining the rules and dangers inherent in their use. However, their non-visualization, by factors such as distraction, lack of focus on driving or lack of visibility, can compromise the safety of the driver himself and others present on the road, resulting in road accidents. Virtual Driver is a low cost solution that is executable through everyday devices such as smartphones or other micro-computers. In this way, it allows, in a first stage, to assist the driver through the recognition of vertical traffic signaling in real time, alerting him through audiovisual information. The developed prototype acts based on the Portuguese vertical traffic signalization, aiming later to cover other realities. In a final phase of this dissertation will be presented the evaluation of the performance of the solution, regarding the processes of detection and recognition of signaling, highlighting the use of the chosen methodology

Understanding customers’ attitude and intention to use driverless cars

The use of driverless cars is a future trend in road transportation and set to improve quality of life. Although marketing studies on technology acceptance are abundant and cross a variety of contexts, few studies investigate thoroughly the key factors influencing customers’ intention to use, and explicitly demonstrate the mechanisms in which each factor affect the acceptance of driverless cars. This research adds new knowledge to the body of marketing literature and studies in technology acceptance towards driverless cars. Specifically, this study extends cognition-oriented theories by integrating factors such as perceived enjoyment and perceived societal benefits into the new model to explain how individual perceptions impact user attitude and intention to use driverless cars. The research further uses the habit literature and integrates the status quo bias perspective to hypothesise that in addition to cognitive factors, incumbent system habit as a subconscious source of inertia that contribute to the resistance of adopting driverless cars lies in the use of a traditional automobile vehicle. Drawing on qualitative evidence from 13 interviewees, the key themes that influence customers’ perceptions towards driverless cars are disclosed, including perceived travel efficiency, enjoyment, helpfulness, and societal benefits. On the other side, technological issues, hacking and privacy issues, laggard regulations and policies, and concerns about the deterioration in driving skills are barriers to customers’ intention to use. The proposed conceptual model is empirically assessed using data collected from 493 potential customers through an online survey. The results illustrate the significant influences, in descending order, of attitude, perceived enjoyment, concerns, perceived travel efficiency and gender on customers’ intention to use, and also confirm perceived enjoyment, perceived societal benefits and age as strong factors in consumers’ attitude toward driverless cars. Incumbent system habit influences two paths among variables: 1) dampens the positive relationship between attitude and intention to use, and 2) strengthens the negative relationship between concerns and intention to use. Attitude is verified as a mediator between the perceived enjoyment and intention to use. Age differences are also revealed. There are practical implications too for research and development managers in the manufacturing process, and for marketing managers in the retail market