A Usability Evaluation of the BMW Active Cruise Control System With “Stop and Go” Function

Abstract

While adaptive cruise control (ACC) systems have been broadly few studies have investigated the user experience characteristics of recent production systems. The present study was designed for the express purpose of testing one such system. Nineteen participants drove a 2014 BMW X-5 M, equipped with adaptive cruise control, in two scenarios designed to be representative of the usage scenarios described by the vehicle manufacturer. During testing, user interactions with the system were recorded while opinions regarding the usability and operation of the system were elicited through a series of interviews and questionnaires. While participants responded favorably to the system conceptually, participants expressed considerable dissatisfaction with the ACC’s braking behavior and with specific aspects of the system’s user interface. These findings add to a growing body of research that suggests that mode confusion or insufficient awareness of system status may be a significant impediment to the use of ACC systems generally.