Voice-Controlled In-Vehicle Systems: Effects of Voice-Recognition Accuracy in the Presence of Background Noise

This paper presents initial findings from a driving simulator studyThis paper presents initial findings from a driving simulator studycomparing user responses to a noise-robust voice-controlled system while drivingto a noise-sensitive one in the presence of background noise. Twenty participantsinteracted with both noise-sensitive and noise-robust simulated voice-controlledinfotainment systems while driving under three background noise conditions (nonoise, music, and children). While both systems were viewed as useful andsatisfying, user acceptance was affected by background noise with the noisesensitivesystem, but not the noise-robust one. There was also no evidence that useracceptance was calibrated by having background noise as a context for varyinglevels of accuracy. No significant differences were observed between the twosystems in driving performance metrics analyzed (average speed, speed variability,and standard deviation of lane position), but the use of either system affecteddriving performance compared to baseline driving. A larger sample size at the endof this study along with the analysis of a larger set of performance metrics willprovide further insights

Capturing Voluntary, Involuntary, and Habitual Components of Driver Distraction in a Self-Reported Questionnaire

To maximize the effectiveness of strategies for mitigating driver distraction, it is crucial to understand the factors underlying drivers’ engagement in distractions. This article describes a step toward an improved version of the Susceptibility to Driver Distraction Questionnaire (SDDQ), namely the development of an exploratory questionnaire based on findings from the original SDDQ. In this exploratory questionnaire, the Theory of Planned Behaviour continues to serve as the framework for investigating voluntary distractions, relating intentional actions to attitudes, perceived behavioural control, and perceived social norms regarding distractions. Involuntary distractions are captured by investigating the difficulty associated with ignoring information that is not critical for safe driving. A new component of habitual behaviours is also added to measure distractions that involve minimal conscious control, yet were once intentional and goal-driven. The resulting exploratory questionnaire will be used in an upcoming online survey study to determine the items that most effectively capture voluntary, involuntary, and habitual distraction. An improved SDDQ will be generated based on analyses of this pending study

Modified Cooper Harper Scales for Assessing Unmanned Vehicle Displays

In unmanned vehicle (UV) operations, displays are often the only information link between operators and vehicles. It is essential these displays present information clearly and efficiently so that operators can interact with the UVs to achieve mission objectives. While there are a variety of metrics to evaluate displays, there is no current standardized methodology for operators to subjectively assess a display’s support and identify specific deficiencies. Such a methodology could improve current displays and ensure that displays under development support operator processes. This report presents a quasi- subjective display evaluation tool called the Modified Cooper-Harper for Unmanned Vehicle Displays (MCH-UVD) diagnosis tool. This tool, adapted from the Cooper-Harper aircraft handling scale, allows operators to assess a display, translating their judgments on potential display shortcomings into a number corresponding to a particular deficiency in operator support. The General MCH-UVD can be used to diagnose deficiencies for any UV display, while the Specific MCH-UVD is UV and mission specific in its evaluation of displays. This report presents the General MCH-UVD and provides guidance on how to adapt it to create a Specific MCH-UVD through the use of UV mission taxonomies and a questioning method. A UGV search mission case study provides a how-to guide example for generating a Specific MCH-UVD. The report also presents an experiment conducted to validate the MCH-UVD and assess if a mission-specific version is necessary, or if the general form of the MCH-UVD is sufficient for different UV display evaluation. The report concludes with discussion on how to administer the scale, when a Specific scale is necessary, MCH-UVD diagnosis tool limitations, and future work.Prepared for US Army Aberdeen Testing Cente

The Relation Between the Driver Behavior Questionnaire, Demographics, and Driving History

This paper presents an analysis of responses obtained on the Driver Behavior Questionnaire (DBQ) and self-reported history of the frequency of crashes, citations, and warnings in a sample of 562 drivers. The sample was closely balanced by gender and distributed in a broadly proportional manner across an age range of from 20 to 69 years. As has been previously reported, age and gender were found to be related to both DBQ scores and crash rates. The size and demographic distribution of the sample allowed an analysis to be run looking at the relationships of DBQ subscale scores with crashes, citations, and warnings, while controlling for age and gender. The results show that higher violation scores are positively associated with increases in self-reported crash and citation likelihoods; the less serious but apparently more common experience of receiving a warning for one’s driving behavior has a significant positive association with both violation and lapse scores. The extent to which these findings can be considered relevant to the overall driving population is enhanced from previous research given the sample size and age/gender balance

Modified Cooper Harper scales for assessing unmanned vehicle displays

Unmanned vehicle (UV) displays are often the only information link between operators and vehicles, so their design is critical to mission success. However, there is currently no standardized methodology for operators to subjectively assess a display's support of mission tasks. This paper proposes a subjective UV display evaluation tool: the Modified Cooper-Harper for Unmanned Vehicle Displays (MCH-UVD). The MCH-UVD is adapted from the Cooper-Harper aircraft handling scale by shifting focus to support of operator information processing. An experiment was conducted to evaluate and refine the MCH-UVD, as well as assess the need for mission-specific versus general versions. Participants (86%) thought that MCH-UVD helped them identify display deficiencies, and 32% said that they could not have identified the deficiencies without the tool. No major additional benefits were observed with mission-specific versions over the general scale.U.S. Army Aberdeen Test Cente

EFFECTS OF TIME PRESSURE ON THE USE OF AN AUTOMATED DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR STRIKE PLANNING

This paper describes the results of an experiment designed to examine the effects of time pressure on behavioral patterns. The main research hypothesis is that people under time pressure tend to increasingly rely on automation in order to cope with the added workload. The context is that of a missile strike planner having to create a set of matches between resources (missiles) and requirements (missions). We introduce time pressure by changing the temporal requirements towards the end of the mission. Overall performance, calls to automation and qualitative strategies are recorded and analyzed using ANOVA and other nonparametric tests. The main finding of this study is that while the number of calls to the automation did significantly increase under time pressure, there did not seem to be a statistically significant shift in problem solving strategies under time pressure. The experimental results show the importance of good automation-human interface design so as to gain maximum benefit from the use of an automated decision support systems.Boeing Corporatio

Attention Allocation Aid for Visual Search

This paper outlines the development and testing of a novel, feedback-enabled attention allocation aid (AAAD), which uses real-time physiological data to improve human performance in a realistic sequential visual search task. Indeed, by optimizing over search duration, the aid improves efficiency, while preserving decision accuracy, as the operator identifies and classifies targets within simulated aerial imagery. Specifically, using experimental eye-tracking data and measurements about target detectability across the human visual field, we develop functional models of detection accuracy as a function of search time, number of eye movements, scan path, and image clutter. These models are then used by the AAAD in conjunction with real time eye position data to make probabilistic estimations of attained search accuracy and to recommend that the observer either move on to the next image or continue exploring the present image. An experimental evaluation in a scenario motivated from human supervisory control in surveillance missions confirms the benefits of the AAAD.Comment: To be presented at the ACM CHI conference in Denver, Colorado in May 201

Effects of laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy on serum lncRNA levels in obese patients

Obesity is a disease associated with excessive fat accumulation in the body, which body mass index (BMI) is greater than 30 kg/m. Bariatric surgery technique is one of the most common treatment options for obesity with the advantage of faster weight loss in a short time. lncRNAs play a role in adipogenesis and metabolic diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease (CVD), osteoarthritis, and hypertension, so they are significant targets for therapeutic options. In this study, we aimed to determine lncRNAs and specific parameters that show different expressions in the plasma of patients with obesity. We included fifteen patients with BMI greater than 30 kg/m2 before and less than 30 kg/m2 after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) in the study. Total RNAs, including lncRNAs and other non-coding RNAs, were isolated from plasma samples of patients, and eight lncRNAs (H19, Neat1, HOTAIR, ANRIL,  MALAT1, ATB, SNGH5, UCA1) were quantified by real-time PCR. Gene Ontology, KEGG, and relation of obesity analysis were utilized. Unpaired Student's t-test Pearson correlation analysis was used for statistical analysis. We observed a statistically significant increase in the expression levels of all lncRNAs in the patients with the post-operative BMI change. We have added a new dimension to the biomarker studies related to obesity and the clinical follow-up of patients undergoing LSG surgery. Further studies are required for enlighting the molecular mechanisms

Design of Effective Feedback: Understanding Driver, Feedback, and Their Interaction

Risky driving behaviors such as speeding, close car following and engaging in non-driving related secondary tasks are commonly observed and may increase crash risks. Providing effective feedback to drivers of their risky behaviors may decrease the likelihood of hazardous situations, thereby reducing crashes or crash severity. However, inappropriate feedback could lead to distraction and/or added workload to the driver, resulting in undesirable effects on road safety. Successful design of effective feedback builds on a comprehensive understanding of the characteristics of the driver, the feedback, and their interaction. As a first step to this approach, we summarize literature and propose a cognitive model of driver-feedback interaction. This model considers characteristics of the driver and the feedback, and illustrates three feedback loops through which feedback can influence the driver. Although still at a preliminary stage, the model provides a framework for future feedback design and empirical investigations

The Influence of Visual-Manual Distractions on Anticipatory Driving

Objective The aim of this study is to investigate how anticipatory driving is influenced by distraction. Background The anticipation of future events in traffic can allow potential gains in recognition and response times. Anticipatory actions (i.e., control actions in preparation for potential traffic changes) have been found to be more prevalent among experienced drivers in simulator studies when driving was the sole task. Despite the prevalence of visual-manual distractions and their negative effects on road safety, their influence on anticipatory driving has not yet been investigated beyond hazard anticipation. Methods A simulator experiment was conducted with 16 experienced and 16 novice drivers. Half of the participants were provided with a self-paced visual-manual secondary task presented on a dashboard display. Results More anticipatory actions were observed among experienced drivers; experienced drivers also exhibited more efficient visual scanning behaviors as indicated by higher glance rates toward and percent times looking at cues that facilitate the anticipation of upcoming events. Regardless of experience, those with the secondary task displayed reduced anticipatory actions and paid less attention toward anticipatory cues. However, experienced drivers had lower odds of exhibiting long glances toward the secondary task compared to novices. Further, the inclusion of glance duration on anticipatory cues increased the accuracy of a model predicting anticipatory actions based on on-road glance durations. Conclusion The results provide additional evidence to existing literature supporting the role of driving experience and distraction engagement in anticipatory driving. Application These findings can guide the design of in-vehicle systems and guide training programs to support anticipatory driving.The funding for this study was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)