Effects of Marking Automated Vehicles on Human Drivers on Highways

Fuest, Tanja; Feierle, Alexander; Schmidt, Elisabeth; Bengler, Klaus · 2020 · Crossref

DOI: 10.3390/info11060286

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Summary

This study investigates whether marking automated vehicles (AVs) influences the behavior and subjective evaluations of human drivers in mixed traffic. The research is motivated by the expectation that early-generation AVs will exhibit cautious, rule-compliant driving strategies that differ from human norms, potentially causing confusion or distrust among other road users. Drawing parallels to marked driving-school vehicles, the authors hypothesize that explicit visual markings could help human drivers identify AVs and adjust their behavior accordingly. The researchers conducted a driving simulation study with 40 participants using a static simulator equipped with a 6-channel projection system. The experimental design was a 3×2 within-subject setup involving three highway scenarios: roadworks, a traffic jam, and a lane change maneuver. In each scenario, participants encountered an AV that either displayed a cyan LED strip on the rear window (marked) or appeared as a standard manual vehicle (unmarked). The simulated AV strictly adhered to German highway regulations, maintaining its lane and speed limits, which resulted in driving behaviors distinct from typical human drivers. Data collection included subjective ratings of the AV’s appropriateness and disturbance after each trial, as well as objective metrics such as lane change time and time headway. A preliminary survey of driving instructors was also conducted to gauge attitudes toward vehicle markings. The results indicated no significant differences in either subjective or objective data between the marked and unmarked conditions. Human drivers did not rate the AV’s behavior differently based on the presence of the marking, nor did their driving metrics (e.g., following distance, reaction time) change. The authors suggest that the AV’s atypical driving behavior itself was sufficiently informative for humans to recognize the vehicle as automated, rendering the explicit marking redundant in this context. Additionally, the study notes that participants experienced the AV behavior for the first time, implying that repeated exposure might lead to different adaptation patterns. The significance of these findings lies in the conclusion that explicit external markings may not be necessary for facilitating interaction between human drivers and AVs on highways. Instead, the distinct driving patterns of AVs serve as an implicit communication channel. This challenges the assumption that visual markers are required to prevent confusion in mixed traffic, suggesting that resources might be better directed toward refining AV driving algorithms or focusing on other communication interfaces, such as those for pedestrian interaction.

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Topics

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• automation surprise
• ehmi external hmi
• situational awareness