Mental workLoad Accumulation Effect of Mobile Phone Distraction in L2 Autopilot Mode

Zhao, Hongfei; Ma, Jinfei; Zhang, Yijing; Chang, Ruosong · 2022 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-1209327/v1

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Summary

This study investigates the mental workload accumulation effects of mobile phone distraction during Level 2 (L2) autonomous driving, addressing a regulatory gap regarding permissible phone use in automated vehicles. While L2 systems handle longitudinal and lateral control, drivers must remain vigilant and ready to take over. The research aims to determine how driving mode (manual vs. automatic), call content complexity (simple vs. complex), and driving duration influence driver psychological load, thereby providing a theoretical basis for safety regulations and distraction detection systems. The researchers employed a 2 (driving mode) × 2 (call complexity) × 6 (driving phase) mixed experimental design using a driving simulator. Fifty-eight novice drivers participated in a 60-minute session divided into six 10-minute phases. Participants were assigned to manual or automatic driving groups, each further split into simple (naturalistic conversation) or complex (logical reasoning/arithmetic) call tasks. Mental load was assessed using a multimodal approach: peripheral visual detection task (PDT) performance (reaction time and accuracy), pupil diameter via eye-tracking, and electroencephalography (EEG) alpha band power across frontal, prefrontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal regions. Results indicated that mental load levels converged between manual and automatic driving modes as driving duration increased, regardless of call complexity. Initially, drivers in automatic mode exhibited lower mental load indicators (e.g., smaller pupil diameter, higher alpha power in certain regions) compared to manual drivers. However, by the 60-minute mark, these differences disappeared. Specifically, EEG analysis showed significant interactions between driving stage, mode, and call complexity in prefrontal and frontal areas, suggesting that prolonged phone use in L2 mode disrupts cognitive resource balance. PDT performance also deteriorated in the automatic group over time, converging with the manual group’s slower reaction times and lower accuracy. Pupil diameter data similarly showed significant interactions between stage and driving mode, with initial differences vanishing after extended driving. The findings suggest that mobile phone conversations impair cognitive control, problem-solving, and judgment in L2 autonomous driving, particularly as fatigue accumulates over time. Contrary to the hypothesis that phone use might mitigate passive fatigue, the study demonstrates that it increases mental load and compromises safety by crowding attentional channels. This implies that current assumptions allowing unrestricted phone use in automated modes are unsafe. The results support the development of EEG-based distraction detection systems and inform policy recommendations to restrict mobile phone usage during L2 driving to prevent cumulative cognitive overload and ensure driver readiness for vehicle takeover.

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Topics

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• mobile phones
• cognitive
• manual
• auditory
• visual manual
• mind wandering

Information type

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• Empirical Findings: physiological data
• Theoretical Contribution: theory or model, conceptual framework