Extending head-up displays

Drivers consume an increasing amount of information while driving. The information is accessed on the in-car displays but also on personal devices such as the smartphone. Head-up displays are designed for a safe uptake of additional visual information while driving but their benefits are limited by the small display space. This motivates academia and industry to advance the head-up to the so-called windshield display. A windshield display will provide an extended display space, which largely or entirely covers the driver’s visual field through the windshield, as well as 3D and depth perception. Technologically, they are not yet feasible, but, thanks to steady advancements they will become available in the future. Extending a small 2D to a large 3D space requires a rethinking of the entire user interface. The windshield display opens up new opportunities for the type and amount of information, as well as for the way it is presented – ranging up to full augmented reality but it also raises concerns about a distracted driver. The core question of this thesis is whether such an extension is reasonable and desirable – meaning if there are convincing arguments and use cases which justify the potential risk of distraction. This thesis presents our research about the risks and benefits of the transition from a head-up to a windshield display. Thus, we explore the potentials and examine the safety risks and benefits as well as the drivers’ satisfaction of various display aspects. We developed a design space that shows how the new size and depth possibilities create new, or interrelate with existing, design factors. New design opportunities arise and suggest a redesign of existing functionality but also the integration of new content. We researched the information content that could be displayed on a windshield display and asked drivers what content they need and personally desire. We thereby obtained an extensive list of use cases and applications. We approached the question of where such content should be displayed, given the large 3D space. To enable the design of safe interfaces, we first examined the driver’s visual perception across the windshield and identified locations that promote information recognition, particularly in the new peripheral area. Simultaneously, we examined the different ways of placing and stabilizing the content. We compared the traditional screen-fixed with world-fixed (augmented reality) and head-stabilized placement methods in terms of user satisfaction, understandability and safety. The gained knowledge about the locations that support information uptake and about the best ways of placing content was merged into a layout concept that subdivides the driver’s view into several information areas. We also incorporated the drivers’ preferences into this design process and compared their personalized layouts with our vision-based layout concept. We assessed the safety of both layout versions and present a revised concept. We close this thesis by reflecting on other trends that may interrelate with the windshield display, namely autonomous driving and augmented reality consumer devices. We look at recent advancements in realizing windshield displays and endeavor a prediction of future developments in this area

Motorcycle HUD for navigation, communication and performance monitoring

Recentemente, com os grandes avanços tecnológicos feitos regularmente na área dos meios de transporte privados, existem ainda muitas hipóteses para estudar e experiências a realizar. O objetivo é maximizar a experiência, segurança e produtividade do condutor, e ao mesmo tempo minimizar os seus riscos, bem como outros tipos de perda (consumo de combustível, tempo, ...). Estes avanços tendem a focar-se mais em carros em comparação com motociclos, em parte devido ao facto de os carros terem mais espaço e condições disponíveis para a implementação de novos tipos de interação humano-máquina.Uma solução que tem atraído cada vez mais atenção é a utilização de Head-up Display (HUD), um ecrã ou projeção que (no caso da condução) disponibiliza vários tipos de informação aos condutores sem requerer que estes desviem a sua atenção do seu ponto de foco usual, nomeadamente a estrada.Com a difusão dos smartphones, aplicações mobile e smartwear, surgem novas oportunidades para o desenvolvimento de HUDs para motociclos.Esta dissertação pretende desenvolver um HUD nesses moldes, utilizando o Android OS para um smartwear específico, nomeadamente o dispositivo de hardware "Snow2", pertencente à empresa Recon Instruments. Os seus objetivos consistem em disponibilizar ao condutor de motociclo informação referente a navegação, comunicação e monitorização de desempenho, entre outro tipo de informações potencialmente interessantes, com vista a melhorar a experiência da condução de uma forma inovadora.Recently, with the great technological advances being made on a regular basis regarding personal vehicular transportation, there are yet many hypotheses to study and experiences to conduct. The main goal consists of maximizing the driver's experience, safety and productivity while minimizing his/her risks and other types of losses (fuel consumption, time, ...). These advances tend to focus more on cars in comparison to powered two-wheelers (PTW), in part due to the fact that the former offers more space and conditions for the implementation of new types of human machine interactions (HMI).One solution that has been attracting increasing attention is the use of a Head-up Display (HUD), a screen or projection that (in the case of driving) displays various types of information relevant to drivers without requiring them to divert their attention from their usual view or focus.With the propagation of smartphones, mobile applications and mobile wear, new opportunities for the development of HUDs for PTW drivers arise.This dissertation aims to develop such a HUD using the Android OS for a specific smart wear, namely the "SNOW 2" hardware device developed by Recon Instruments. Its main goals are to provide the PTW driver with information regarding navigation, communication and performance monitoring, among other potentially interesting information, in order to enhance the driving experience in a completely new way

Integration of ROS2 with a simulation environment

Dissertação de mestrado integrado em Engenharia InformáticaCurrently, the University of Minho owns a driving simulator, from now on referred to as Driving Simulator Mockup 2-Wheeler (DSM-2W), which mimics a real driving environment for motorcycles. This simulator can reproduce diverse driving scenarios, like driving on different roads, traffic, and weather conditions, and is mostly used to test how the driver reacts to stimulus from subsystems under test in a particular scenario. The simulator has several components, namely, the Mock-up, which represents the motorcycle physically, the software responsible for the simulation environment, that is also projected on a screen, called SILAB [1] as well as several other subsystems and respective software, which all together form a complex distributed system. SILAB creates realistic graphic environments, has different models to control the behavior of other drivers and pedestrians, generates 3D sounds, and facilitates the personalization of the simulation scenario. Robot Operating System 2 (ROS2) [2] provides a set of tools and software libraries that facilitate the develop ment of robot systems and applications. With the increasing reliance on software, sensors, and actuators in the automotive domain, it makes sense to view cars [3] and motorcycles as robots. Therefore, it also makes sense to use ROS2 in the simulation domain to solve the problems at hand. This dissertation describes how ROS2, a well-known and accepted middleware for robotic applications, can also play a role in these contexts acting as a universal interface between motorcycle simulators and external subsystems and thereby significantly improving the system’s expansibility and those subsystems’ portability and reusability.A Universidade do Minho possui um simulador de motas, denominado Driving Simulator Mockup 2-Wheeler (DSM-2W), que imita um ambiente real de condução de motas. Esta ferramenta consegue reproduzir diversos cenários de condução, como conduzir em diferentes condições de estrada, tráfego, bem como em diferentes condições meteorológicas. Esta ferramenta é sobretudo usada para testar como o condutor reage a estímulos de vários sub-sistemas em teste em cenários particulares. O simulador possui diversos componentes, o Mock-up, que representa a mota fisicamente, o software responsável pela projeção do ambiente de simulação no ecrã, chamado SILAB [1], mais um conjunto de sub-sistemas e o respetivo software, que no conjunto formam um complexo sistema distribuído. O SILAB cria ambientes de simulação realistas, tem diferentes modelos para controlar o comportamento dos outros condutores e dos pedestres, gera sons 3D e facilita a personalização do cenário da simulação. O Robot Operating System 2 (ROS2) possui um conjunto de ferramentas e bibliotecas para desenvolver aplicações para robôs [2]. Com o aumento do uso de software, sensores, e atuadores no contexto automóvel, faz sentido equiparar veículos automóveis [3] e motas a robôs Portanto, também faz sentido usar o ROS2 para resolver problemas neste contexto. O objetivo desta dissertação passa por mostrar como o ROS2, um middleware bastante utilizado em aplicações para robôs, pode ter um papel importante em contextos de simulação ao atuar como uma interface universal entre sub-sistemas a testar e um simulador de motas e consequentemente melhorar a extensibilidade do simulador e a portabilidade e reusabilidade desses sub-sistemas

User experience design for electric mopeds

Electric moped sharing, a recent variation of vehicle sharing concepts, are emerging in urban areas to enable commuters short-term access to mopeds on an as-needed basis. User experience problems arise along with the generalization of this trend. A large portion of novice riders are granted access and the shared nature prevents users from taking their time to get familiar with the controls and functions of electric mopeds. The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding of user experience and leveraging design to address the problems. Unlike car and bike sharing, user experience related to electric moped are yet to be explored by literature. To fill this gap, a social media survey and 4 individual workshops were organized to clarify issues interacting with mopeds caused by inexperience and lack of time. A final prototype was designed using an incremental and exploratory approach, which is characterized by the intuitive layout of handlebar controls and smartphone integration. In evaluating the usability and user experience, 9 participants were recruited to do simulation riding using the designed prototype and a standard moped, which serves as the benchmark. The result suggested a higher usability scale for the prototype supplemented by positive comments made on the smartphone integration tactic and system learnability. Possibility of further improvement and methodology design are also discussed in this paper.M.S

Designing Tactile Interfaces for Abstract Interpersonal Communication, Pedestrian Navigation and Motorcyclists Navigation

The tactile medium of communication with users is appropriate for displaying information in situations where auditory and visual mediums are saturated. There are situations where a subject's ability to receive information through either of these channels is severely restricted by the environment they are in or through any physical impairments that the subject may have. In this project, we have focused on two groups of users who need sustained visual and auditory focus in their task: Soldiers on the battle field and motorcyclists. Soldiers on the battle field use their visual and auditory capabilities to maintain awareness of their environment to guard themselves from enemy assault. One of the major challenges to coordination in a hazardous environment is maintaining communication between team members while mitigating cognitive load. Compromise in communication between team members may result in mistakes that can adversely affect the outcome of a mission. We have built two vibrotactile displays, Tactor I and Tactor II, each with nine actuators arranged in a three-by-three matrix with differing contact areas that can represent a total of 511 shapes. We used two dimensions of tactile medium, shapes and waveforms, to represent verb phrases and evaluated ability of users to perceive verb phrases the tactile code. We evaluated the effectiveness of communicating verb phrases while the users were performing two tasks simultaneously. The results showed that performing additional visual task did not affect the accuracy or the time taken to perceive tactile codes. Another challenge in coordinating Soldiers on a battle field is navigating them to respective assembly areas. We have developed HaptiGo, a lightweight haptic vest that provides pedestrians both navigational intelligence and obstacle detection capabilities. HaptiGo consists of optimally-placed vibro-tactile sensors that utilize natural and small form factor interaction cues, thus emulating the sensation of being passively guided towards the intended direction. We evaluated HaptiGo and found that it was able to successfully navigate users with timely alerts of incoming obstacles without increasing cognitive load, thereby increasing their environmental awareness. Additionally, we show that users are able to respond to directional information without training. The needs of motorcyclists are di erent from those of Soldiers. Motorcyclists' need to maintain visual and auditory situational awareness at all times is crucial since they are highly exposed on the road. Route guidance systems, such as the Garmin, have been well tested on automobilists, but remain much less safe for use by motorcyclists. Audio/visual routing systems decrease motorcyclists' situational awareness and vehicle control, and thus increase the chances of an accident. To enable motorcyclists to take advantage of route guidance while maintaining situational awareness, we created HaptiMoto, a wearable haptic route guidance system. HaptiMoto uses tactile signals to encode the distance and direction of approaching turns, thus avoiding interference with audio/visual awareness. Evaluations show that HaptiMoto is intuitive for motorcyclists, and a safer alternative to existing solutions

A framework for evaluating in-vehicle applications regarding safety

Driver distraction is a serious and growing hazard to road safety. With the rapid introduction of the new information, communication, and entertainment technologies, this problem is becoming more threatening in the coming years. For instance, drivers who use mobile phones while driving are more likely to be involved in the car crash than those who do not. However, using technologies such as mobile phones and navigation systems in a vehicle can have different personal, social, practical, and psychological advantages which outweigh the risk. Therefore, there are number of metrics and methods for evaluating in-vehicle technologies, their services, applications, and functionalities to improve and make them safer. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate and develop a new framework which consists of a safety evaluation library and server for evaluating in-vehicle applications with safety consideration. By the use of the framework, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and third-party developers can get safety feedback from their in-vehicle applications in the real driving situation. For the safety analysis, different metrics were investigated. Due to the time restriction and based on the possible information that could be collected from an application and a vehicle, four metrics were used in the safety analysis including, total task time, number of interactions, speed, and completed task rate. In addition, the framework was deployed and tested by two case-study applications and some interesting results were discovered. Moreover, it was found out using the safety library by third-party developers is quite easy, which is one of the most important factors in the usability area

A framework for evaluating in-vehicle applications regarding safety

Driver distraction is a serious and growing hazard to road safety. With the rapid introduction of the new information, communication, and entertainment technologies, this problem is becoming more threatening in the coming years. For instance, drivers who use mobile phones while driving are more likely to be involved in the car crash than those who do not. However, using technologies such as mobile phones and navigation systems in a vehicle can have different personal, social, practical, and psychological advantages which outweigh the risk. Therefore, there are number of metrics and methods for evaluating in-vehicle technologies, their services, applications, and functionalities to improve and make them safer. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate and develop a new framework which consists of a safety evaluation library and server for evaluating in-vehicle applications with safety consideration. By the use of the framework, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and third-party developers can get safety feedback from their in-vehicle applications in the real driving situation. For the safety analysis, different metrics were investigated. Due to the time restriction and based on the possible information that could be collected from an application and a vehicle, four metrics were used in the safety analysis including, total task time, number of interactions, speed, and completed task rate. In addition, the framework was deployed and tested by two case-study applications and some interesting results were discovered. Moreover, it was found out using the safety library by third-party developers is quite easy, which is one of the most important factors in the usability area