Exploring novel auditory displays for supporting accelerated skills acquisition and enhanced performance in motorsport

This paper explores the design, development and evaluation of a novel real-time auditory display system for accelerated racing driver skills acquisition. The auditory feedback provides concurrent sensory augmentation and performance feedback using a novel target matching design. Real-time, dynamic, tonal audio feedback representing lateral G-force (a proxy for tire slip) is delivered to one ear whilst a target lateral G-force value representing the ‘limit’ of the car, to which the driver aims to drive, is panned to the driver’s other ear; tonal match across both ears signifies that the ‘limit’ has been reached. An evaluation approach was established to measure the efficacy of the audio feedback in terms of performance, workload and drivers’ assessment of self-efficacy. A preliminary human subject study was conducted in a driving simulator environment. Initial results are encouraging, indicating that there is potential for performance gain and driver confidence enhancement based on the audio feedback

User-centred car design and the role of feedback in driving

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.A survey of car manufacturers reveals an impressive list of upcoming technologies, the combined effect of which is likely to have a profound impact upon feedback to the driver. Feedback is information that the situation provides back to the driver and is specified with reference to content, source, and timing. Feedback quality is achieved when the information requirements of the task, derived from a new task analysis of driving, are matched to the sources, content, and timing of feedback provided by the environment and the vehicle. An exploratory on-road study begins by observing that better quality feedback is implicated in increasing driver's situational awareness (even though drivers have little self awareness of this fact), and optimising mental workload. The exploratory level of analysis builds into the experimental, whereby a highly controlled simulator study replicates and builds upon these findings. Feedback is again seen to positively influence situational awareness, where changes in driver's confidence ratings as to the presence or absence of feedback information in the simulation were observed, according to the modality of feedback presented. This was achieved with a probe recall paradigm, and using psychophysical techniques as a useful extension to the Situational awareness Global Assessment Technique (SAGAI). Similarly, an analysis of mental workload via the NASA TLX self report questionnaire demonstrates that a combination of visual, steering force feedback and auditory feedback gives rise to lower mental workload, lower driver frustration, and lower, though possibly more realistic self ratings of performance. This knowledge can be discussed with reference to a feedback framework of driving that provides the theoretical backdrop to the key psychological variables implicated in driving task performance. Overall, the findings contribute to knowledge in terms of new and imaginative ways of designing future vehicle technologies in order to maximise safety, efficiency, and enjoyment.This research is funded by the Hamilton Research Studentship

HOW DO ANGRY DRIVERS RESPOND TO EMOTIONAL MUSIC? A COMPREHENSIVE PERSPECTIVE ON ASSESSING EMOTION

Driving is a complicated task that requires the coordination of visual and sensory-motor skills. Unsafe driving behavior and accidents can happen regardless of the level of drivers’ experience. The main cause of the most of these accidents is human error. Emotions influence the way drivers process and react to internal or environmental factors. Specifically, anger elicited either from traffic or personal issues, is a serious threat on the road. Therefore, having an affective intelligent system in the car that can estimate drivers’ anger and respond to it appropriately can help drivers adapt to moment to-moment changes in driving situations. To this end, the present dissertation uses an integrated approach to monitoring drivers’ affective states in various driving contexts to address the question: “What types of music can mitigate the effects of anger on driving performance?” Three sources of information (behavioral, physiological, and subjective data) were considered in two experiments. In Experiment 1, three groups of participants were compared based on their emotional reactions and driving behaviors. Results showed that angry drivers who did not listen to music had riskier driving behavior than emotion neutral drivers. Results from heart rate, oxygenation level in prefrontal cortex, and self report questionnaires showed that music could help angry drivers react at the similar level to emotion-neutral drivers both internally and behaviorally. In Experiment 2, types of music emotion and familiarity of music were addressed to identify what kind of music an in-vehicle auditory system should play when it recognizes drivers’ anger. Results showed that different kinds of music did not effect driving performance. However, drivers experienced less frustration and effort when listening to music in general and less viii frustration when listening to self-selected music specifically. Regarding personality characteristics, drivers who had anger-expression out style had riskier driving behavior just as in Experiment 1. In conclusion, this research showed the benefits of music as a possible strategy to help angry drivers. In addition, important patterns were uncovered relating to assessing driver anger for possible affective intelligent systems in cars

Big Data Analytics for vehicle multisensory anomalies detection

Autonomous driving is assisted by different sensors, each providing information about certain parameters. What we are looking for is an integrated perspective of all these parameters to drive us into better decisions. To achieve this goal, a system that can handle these Big Data issues regarding volume, velocity and variety is needed. This paper aims to design and develop a real-time Big Data Warehouse repository, integrating the data generated by the multiple sensors developed in the context of IVS (In-Vehicle Sensing) systems; the data to be stored in this repository should be merged, which will imply its processing, consolidation and preparation for the analytical mechanisms that will be required. This multisensory fusion is important because it allows the integration of different perspectives in terms of sensor data, since they complement each other. Therefore, it can enrich the entire analysis process at the decision-making level, for instance, understanding what is going on inside the cockpit.This work has been supported by FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia within the R&D Units Project Scope: UIDB/00319/2020 and by the European Structural and Investment Funds in the FEDER component, through the Operational Competitiveness and Internationalization Programme (COMPETE 2020) [Project nº 039334; Funding Reference: POCI-01-0247-FEDER-039334]

Opportunities for olfactory interaction in an automotive context

Driving is a highly visual task. Nevertheless, it is a process that involves other senses as well. When we drive, we touch the steering wheel; we listen to what is happening around us, and, even if we are not paying attention to that, we smell what is happening with the car or around it. A scent of gasoline, the burning rubber, the plastic heated up by the sunlight - these are just a few examples. Smell is a very important sense for driving, though it has not been studied much in this context [85], despite being able to provide a much more vivid experience than any other human sense [80]. This thesis aims to fill this gap by investigating opportunities for olfactory interaction in an automotive context. The thesis is mainly focused on designing a scent-delivery device suitable for in-car interaction, on the topic of delivering driving-relevant notifications using scents, and on studying the effects scents have on the driving performance and behaviour, as well as the driver’s mood and well-being. This paper-style PhD thesis consists of two parts. Part II is a collection of seven published papers written in the scope of this thesis, and Part I describes how these papers build a coherent story. Part I starts with an introduction (see Chapter 1) that covers the research questions and contributions of the thesis. It continues with a summary of the background research (see Chapter 2). This overview part then moves on to the description of the approach (see Chapter 3) that covers the process of designing the scent delivery device, the olfactory interaction space, and the studies conducted throughout this PhD. Chapter 4 then summarises the core findings of each study, which are finally discussed in Chapter 5. Part I finishes with a conclusion (see Chapter 6)

The association of personality dimensions, perceived stress and emotion regulation to driving anger among taxi drivers in Iran

The purpose of the present study was to determine the associations of personality dimensions, perceived stress and emotion regulation to driving anger among taxi drivers in Iran. Using a convenience sampling procedure, a number of 120 taxi drivers were recruited for the study. Data were collected using a sociodemographic data sheet, the HEXACO personality inventory, the perceived stress scale, the cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire and the driving anger scale. The data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation coefficients and multiple regression analysis. Findings revealed that 5% to 20% of taxi drivers experience high levels of anger while driving. Most taxi drivers agree that slow driving and traffic obstructions as frustrating and anger-provoking. The drivers reported experiencing stress frequently. The personality dimensions of extroversion, agreeableness and honesty/humility were found to be associated with anger specifically related to the presence of police. Among the cognitive emotion regulation strategies, only catastrophizing and positive refocusing were found to be associated with driving anger from the involvement of police. Perception of stress, extroversion and conscientiousness and positive refocusing together explained 19.1% of the variance associated with anger elicited by driving situations, with the personality traits making the largest contribution