Effects of In-vehicle Information on Driver Blink Characteristics and Workload

WU, Ling; ZHAO, Weihua; ZHU, Tong; LIU, Haoxue · 2019 · Crossref

DOI: 10.22158/asir.v3n3p166

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Summary

This study investigates the impact of in-vehicle information systems (IVIS) on driver workload, addressing the safety risks associated with increased cognitive load from navigation devices. While previous research relied on subjective evaluations or simulated environments, this work utilizes real-vehicle experiments to analyze physiological indicators, specifically blink duration and frequency, as sensitive metrics for mental workload. The research aims to determine how IVIS usage, device mounting positions, and information prompt modes (visual vs. multi-channel) affect driver attention and fatigue. The experiment involved twelve licensed drivers operating a vehicle equipped with an EyeLink II eye tracker on urban expressways. The study employed a within-subjects design with nine stages, comparing baseline driving without IVIS to conditions involving IVIS usage. Variables included three mounting positions for the navigation device (Position A: middle windshield; Position B: above center stack; Position C: below center stack) and two prompt methods (image-only vs. image-plus-voice). Data on blink characteristics were collected during non-peak traffic hours to minimize external interference. Results indicated that IVIS usage significantly increased driver workload, evidenced by a rise in short (0–60ms) and medium (61–130ms) blinks, while long blinks (131–200ms) remained unchanged. Analysis of blink distribution revealed a bimodal pattern; when IVIS was used, the peak for 50–60ms blinks exceeded that of 10–20ms blinks, reversing the trend observed without IVIS. Regarding mounting positions, Position B (above the center stack) resulted in the lowest average blink duration and frequency, indicating minimal workload. Positions A and C showed higher workload metrics, with Position A exhibiting the highest values. Furthermore, the inclusion of voice prompts significantly reduced blink duration and frequency compared to image-only prompts. Specifically, voice navigation decreased the occurrence of short and medium blinks, suggesting that multi-channel information delivery reduces the occupation of mental resources. The findings conclude that IVIS increases driving workload, but this effect can be mitigated through ergonomic design and interface optimization. Mounting the navigation device above the center stack and utilizing voice-assisted prompts are effective strategies for reducing cognitive load. These results provide empirical evidence for optimizing human-machine-environment systems in intelligent transportation, highlighting the utility of blink characteristics as real-time indicators of driver workload in naturalistic driving settings.

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Topics

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• temporal
• visual
• workload measurement
• visual occlusion
• attention allocation
• road complexity

Information type

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• Empirical Findings: physiological data, behavioral performance data
• Methodological Resource: tool software