Sharing Vehicle Situation Awareness Reduces Driver-Initiated Overrides in Urban Environments

Abstract

Driver assistance technologies have rapidly advanced. However, using partially automated driving systems in urban environments is still challenging. The potential disuse of driving automation is one of the challenges that prevents users from taking full advantage of the system. To address this issue, we investigated whether sharing the vehicle’s situation awareness (SA) information could increase the proper use of driving automation in urban contexts. An Augmented Reality Head-Up Display (AR HUD) was developed to present the vehicle’s SA information, and its effect was tested using a driving simulator. We used a two-part mixed model to analyze driver reliance behavior. The results showed that sharing the vehicle’s SA information decreased override responses when the automation could handle the situation but had no significant effect on the override time. These findings suggest that providing drivers with the vehicle SA information can increase the appropriate use of driving automation in complex urban driving situations.