Driving across Markets: An Analysis of a Human–Machine Interface in Different International Contexts

Abstract

The design of automotive human–machine interfaces (HMIs) for global consumers’ needs to cater to a broad spectrum of drivers. This paper comprises benchmark studies and explores how users from international markets—Germany, China, and the United States—engage with the same automotive HMI. In real driving scenarios, N = 301 participants (premium vehicle owners) completed several tasks using different interaction modalities. The multi-method approach included both self-report measures to assess preference and satisfaction through well-established questionnaires and observational measures, namely experimenter ratings, to capture interaction performance. We observed a trend towards lower preference ratings in the Chinese sample. Further, interaction performance differed across the user groups, with self-reported preference not consistently aligning with observed performance. This dissociation accentuates the importance of integrating both measures in user studies. By employing benchmark data, we provide insights into varied market-based perspectives on automotive HMIs. The findings highlight the necessity for a nuanced approach to HMI design that considers diverse user preferences and interaction patterns.