Rise of the Chatbots: Trust in Artificial Intelligence During Extreme Weather Events

Technology embodying artificial intelligence (AI) might be the solution to the complex challenges we face today, such as an increasing occurrence of extreme weather events. Chatbot technology paired with AI have the potential to be utilized beyond consumerism, and perhaps even during emergency management of extreme weather events. The objective of the present thesis was to gain a better understanding of the factors facilitating trust in chatbots, and how trust may affect the intention to use chatbot technology in the context of emergency response management. This was explored through examining (1) how the functionality, helpfulness, reliability and human likeness of chatbots affect trust in chatbot technology, and whether these variables are moderated by the users’ attitudes towards technology, and (2) how trust affect intention to use chatbot technology, and if this effect is moderated by the perceived risk of the situation. 34 participants solved a task assignment related to emergency management during a simulated extreme weather event by interacting with a chatbot prototype. Data was collected through a questionnaire (n=34) and interviews (n=10). The results indicated chatbot reliability as the most important feature for predicting trust in chatbots, closely followed by helpfulness and functionality. The relationship between reliability and trust was not moderated by the users’ attitudes towards technology. However, there was found a conditional interaction effect of attitude towards technology between helpfulness and trust, and functionality and trust. Human likeness correlated positively with trust, but the variable was not found to predict trust when accounted for or moderated by attitude towards technology. Lastly, trust was found to be a predictor of future use of chatbot technology. This effect was however not found to be moderated by perceived risk. Summed up, chatbot technology has the potential to be used as a supplementary aid during emergency management of extreme weather events, however, more research and testing are necessary. Overall, this study provides valuable insight to trust in and intention to use chatbot technologi in a field with no previous research

Patterns of E-Scooter Use in Combination with Public Transport

Shared e-scooters may complement public transport by offering a solution to the first/last mile problem by easing, or increasing the radius of, access and egress trips. We have gathered real time e-scooter supply and demand data and performed a web survey of e-scooter users in Oslo, Norway. We find that e-scooters stand out as a popular first/last mile mode to many public transport passengers. E-scooters can play an even stronger such role if the two modes are integrated further.acceptedVersio

Bus stop design and traffic safety: An explorative analysis

One way to prioritize public transport over private vehicle mobility, is to implement curbside rather than layby bus stop designs. There is, however, uncertainty about the consequences of implementing curbside rather than layby stops for traffic collision risks. To begin investigating this issue, we describe an exploratory analysis in which national data describing bus stops, road properties, traffic collisions and built-up areas were merged based on geographical location. Analysis of the resulting data set suggests that the relative rates of traffic collisions resulting in personal injury within 60 m of the bus stop, is higher for curbside than for layby stops in built-up areas (0.32 vs. 0.22 collisions per ten million passing vehicles, respectively). Our analyses suggest that the higher risk of nearby collisions for curbside stops is not necessarily due to bus stop design, but rather because they tend to be located closer to junctions and side roads, where collisions are more likely. Our data are not consistent with hypotheses that curbside stops are associated with greater shares of head-on or rear-end collisions than layby stops, nor that layby stops are associated with greater shares of side-on collisions than curbside stops. The limitations of this exploratory analysis, and of the use of national-level data for studying the effects of bus stop design on collision risk, are related to lack of control of bus stop design features other than curbside vs. layby, statistical power, data registration and compromises made when coupling data based on geographical location. Future work should attempt to build on our approach, and supplement database analyses with analysis of in-depth reports of bus stop collisions, observations of road user conflicts near bus stops, and before-after studies following conversion from layby to curbside stops or from curbside to layby stops.publishedVersio

Patterns of E-Scooter Use in Combination with Public Transport

Shared e-scooters may complement public transport by offering a solution to the first/last mile problem by easing, or increasing the radius of, access and egress trips. We have gathered real time e-scooter supply and demand data and performed a web survey of e-scooter users in Oslo, Norway. We find that e-scooters stand out as a popular first/last mile mode to many public transport passengers. E-scooters can play an even stronger such role if the two modes are integrated further

Patterns of E-Scooter Use in Combination with Public Transport

Shared e-scooters may complement public transport by offering a solution to the first/last mile problem by easing, or increasing the radius of, access and egress trips. We have gathered real time e-scooter supply and demand data and performed a web survey of e-scooter users in Oslo, Norway. We find that e-scooters stand out as a popular first/last mile mode to many public transport passengers. E-scooters can play an even stronger such role if the two modes are integrated further

Bus stop design and traffic safety: An explorative analysis

One way to prioritize public transport over private vehicle mobility, is to implement curbside rather than layby bus stop designs. There is, however, uncertainty about the consequences of implementing curbside rather than layby stops for traffic collision risks. To begin investigating this issue, we describe an exploratory analysis in which national data describing bus stops, road properties, traffic collisions and built-up areas were merged based on geographical location. Analysis of the resulting data set suggests that the relative rates of traffic collisions resulting in personal injury within 60 m of the bus stop, is higher for curbside than for layby stops in built-up areas (0.32 vs. 0.22 collisions per ten million passing vehicles, respectively). Our analyses suggest that the higher risk of nearby collisions for curbside stops is not necessarily due to bus stop design, but rather because they tend to be located closer to junctions and side roads, where collisions are more likely. Our data are not consistent with hypotheses that curbside stops are associated with greater shares of head-on or rear-end collisions than layby stops, nor that layby stops are associated with greater shares of side-on collisions than curbside stops. The limitations of this exploratory analysis, and of the use of national-level data for studying the effects of bus stop design on collision risk, are related to lack of control of bus stop design features other than curbside vs. layby, statistical power, data registration and compromises made when coupling data based on geographical location. Future work should attempt to build on our approach, and supplement database analyses with analysis of in-depth reports of bus stop collisions, observations of road user conflicts near bus stops, and before-after studies following conversion from layby to curbside stops or from curbside to layby stops

Examining the most accident-prone sector within commercial aviation: Why do accidents with light inland helicopters occur, and how can we improve safety?

Light inland helicopter has for several years been the most accident-prone sector within commercial aviation, with a more than 10 times higher accident risk than offshore helicopters. The main aims of this article are to: 1) Examine why accidents with light inland helicopters occur, focusing especially on the situation in Norway, but also internationally and 2) discuss how these accidents can be prevented. These questions are examined based on three data sources: 1) Analysis of reports from the Accident Investigation Board Norway (AIBN), 2) Qualitative expert interviews, and 3) Systematic literature review. Most of the reviewed studies point to combinations of human errors and technical failures as the major risk factors contributing to helicopter accidents. Our analysis contributes to existing research by also indicating the critical importance of work-related factors like inadequate safety management systems, poor safety culture and challenging framework conditions for pilot behaviour and safety. The literature review indicates a lack of robustly evaluated helicopter safety interventions to address the identified risk factors. Our analysis of the AIBN reports and the interviews indicates a need for measures aiming to improve the safety culture in a sector with challenging framework conditions. Measures focusing on the development of self-imposed and commonly accepted operational limits and guidelines in the sector are discussed

An Overview of Interfaces for Automated Vehicles (inside/outside) (Deliverable D2.1 in the H2020 MSCA ITN project SHAPE-IT)

This Deliverable starts with a short overview of the design principles and guidelines developed for current Human Machine Interfaces (HMIs), which are predominantly developed for manually driven vehicles, or those with a number of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), at SAE Levels 0 and 1 (SAE, 2018). It then provides an overview of how the addition of more capable systems, and the move to higher levels of vehicle automation, is changing the role the human inside an Automated Vehicle (AV), and the ways in which future automated vehicles at higher levels of automation (SAE level 4 and 5) must communicate with other road users, in the absence of an “in charge” human driver. It is argued that such changes in the role of the driver, and more transfer of control to the AV and its different functionalities, means that there will be more emphasis on the roles and responsibilities of HMIs for future AVs. In parallel, the multifaceted nature of these HMI, presented from different locations, both in and outside the vehicles, using a variety of modalities, and engaging drivers in a two-way interaction, means that a new set of design guidelines are required, to ensure that the humans interacting with AVs (inside and outside the vehicle) are not distracted and overloaded, that they remain situation aware and understand the capabilities and limitations of the system, having the right mental model of system capabilities and their responsibilities, as responsible road users, at all times Following a summary of suggested frameworks and design principles which highlight the significant change needed for new AV HMIs, an overview of results from studies investigating human interaction with internal (or iHMIs), and external (or eHMIs), is provided, with examples of new and innovative methods of communication between humans and their vehicles. The Deliverable then provides a summary of the innovative approaches that will be tackled by the ESRs of the project, which focus on factors such as use of AI and AR for future design of more intuitive and transparent HMI, studying how HMI can support the long term interaction of humans with AVs, and the use of neuroergonomic methods for developing safer HMIs. The Deliverable concludes by summarising how each ESR’s project contributes to the development of HMIs for future AVs

Methodological Framework for Modelling and Empirical Approaches (Deliverable D1.1 in the H2020 MSCA ITN project SHAPE-IT)

The progress in technology development over the past decades, both with respect to software and hardware, offers the vision of automated vehicles as means of achieving zero fatalities in traffic. However, the promises of this new technology – an increase in road safety, traffic efficiency, and user comfort – can only be realized if this technology is smoothly introduced into the existing traffic system with all its complexities, constraints, and requirements. SHAPE- IT will contribute to this major undertaking by addressing research questions relevant for the development and introduction of automated vehicles in urban traffic scenarios. Previous research has pointed out several research areas that need more attention for a successful implementation and deployment of human-centred vehicle automation in urban environments. In SHAPE-IT, for example, a better understanding of human behaviour and the underlying psychological mechanisms will lead to improved models of human behaviour that can help to predict the effects of automated systems on human behaviour already during system development. Such models can also be integrated into the algorithms of automated vehicles, enabling them to better understand the human interaction partners’ behaviours. Further, the development of vehicle automation is much about technology (software and hardware), but the users will be humans and they will interact with humans both inside and outside of the vehicle. To be successful in the development of automated vehicles functionalities, research must be performed on a variety of aspects. Actually, a highly interdisciplinary team of researchers, bringing together expertise and background from various scientific fields related to traffic safety, human factors, human-machine interaction design and evaluation, automation, computational modelling, and artificial intelligence, is likely needed to consider the human-technology aspects of vehicle automation. Accordingly, SHAPE-IT has recruited fifteen PhD candidates (Early Stage Researchers – ESRs), that work together to facilitate this integration of automated vehicles into complex urban traffic by performing research to support the development of transparent, cooperative, accepted, trustworthy, and safe automated vehicles. With their (and their supervisors’) different scientific background, the candidates bring different theoretical concepts and methodological approaches to the project. This interdisciplinarity of the project team offers the unique possibility for each PhD candidate to address research questions from a broad perspective – including theories and methodological approaches of other interrelated disciplines. This is the main reason why SHAPE-IT has been funded by the European Commission’s Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network (ITN) program that is aimed to train early state researchers in multidisciplinary aspects of research including transferable skills. With the unique scope of SHAPE-IT, including the human-vehicle perspective, considering different road-users (inside and outside of the vehicle), addressing for example trust, transparency, and safety, and including a wide range of methodological approaches, the project members can substantially contribute to the development and deployment of safe and appreciated vehicle automation in the cities of the future. To achieve the goal of interdisciplinary research, it is necessary to provide the individual PhD candidate with a starting point, especially on the different and diverse methodological approaches of the different disciplines. The empirical, user-centred approach for the development and evaluation of innovative automated vehicle concepts is central to SHAPE- IT. This deliverable (D1.1 “Methodological Framework for Modelling and Empirical Approaches”) provides this starting point. That is, this document provides a broad overview of approaches and methodologies used and developed by the SHAPE-IT ESRs during their research. The SHAPE-IT PhD candidates, as well as other researchers and developers outside of SHAPE-IT, can use this document when searching for appropriate methodological approaches, or simply get a brief overview of research methodologies often employed in automated vehicle research. The first chapter of the deliverable shortly describes the major methodological approaches to collect data relevant for investigating road user behaviour. Each subchapter describes one approach, ranging from naturalistic driving studies to controlled experiments in driving simulators, with the goal to provide the unfamiliar reader with a broad overview of the approach, including its scope, the type of data collected, and its limitations. Each subchapter ends with recommendations for further reading – literature that provide much more detail and examples. The second chapter explains four different highly relevant tools for data collection, such as interviews, questionnaires, physiological measures, and as other current tools (the Wizard of Oz paradigm and Augmented and Virtual Reality). As in the first chapter this chapter provides the reader with information about advantages and disadvantages of the different tools and with proposed further readings. The third chapter deals with computational models of human/agent interaction and presents in four subchapters different modelling approaches, ranging from models based on psychological mechanisms, rule-based and artificial intelligence models to simulation models of traffic interaction. The fourth chapter is devoted to Requirements Engineering and the challenge of communicating knowledge (e.g., human factors) to developers of automated vehicles. When forming the SHAPE-IT proposal it was identified that there is a lack of communication of human factors knowledge about the highly technical development of automated vehicles. This is why it is highly important that the SHAPE-IT ESRs get training in requirement engineering. Regardless of the ESRs working in academia or industry after their studies it is important to learn how to communicate and disseminate the findings to engineers. The deliverable ends with the chapter “Method Champions”. Here the expertise and association of the different PhD candidates with the different topics are made explicit to facilitate and encourage networking between PhDs with special expertise and those seeking support, especially with regards to methodological questions