Building Trust in Autonomous Vehicles: Role of Virtual Reality Driving Simulators in HMI Design

TL;DR

This paper presents a VR-based simulation methodology to evaluate and improve human trust in autonomous vehicles by analyzing physiological signals and user experience with different HMI designs.

Contribution

It introduces a novel VR simulation approach for validating AV HMI designs using physiological data, enhancing understanding of trust and user acceptance.

Findings

A comprehensive visual interface reduces stress despite higher cognitive load.

More informative interfaces increase willingness to test real AVs.

Physiological signals effectively assess user experience in VR simulations.

Abstract

The investigation of factors contributing at making humans trust Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) will play a fundamental role in the adoption of such technology. The user's ability to form a mental model of the AV, which is crucial to establish trust, depends on effective user-vehicle communication; thus, the importance of Human-Machine Interaction (HMI) is poised to increase. In this work, we propose a methodology to validate the user experience in AVs based on continuous, objective information gathered from physiological signals, while the user is immersed in a Virtual Reality-based driving simulation. We applied this methodology to the design of a head-up display interface delivering visual cues about the vehicle' sensory and planning systems. Through this approach, we obtained qualitative and quantitative evidence that a complete picture of the vehicle's surrounding, despite the higher cognitive load, is conducive to a less stressful experience. Moreover, after having been exposed to a more informative interface, users involved in the study were also more willing to test a real AV. The proposed methodology could be extended by adjusting the simulation environment, the HMI and/or the vehicle's Artificial Intelligence modules to dig into other aspects of the user experience.