Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone Displays

Automated driving will require new approaches to the communication between vehicles and vulnerable road users (VRUs) such as pedestrians, e.g., through external human–machine interfaces (eHMIs). However, the majority of eHMI concepts are neither scalable (i.e., take into account complex traffic scen...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kai Holländer, Marius Hoggenmüller, Romy Gruber, Sarah Theres Völkel, Andreas Butz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2022-04-01
Series:Frontiers in Computer Science
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcomp.2022.844245/full
_version_ 1798018954343481344
author Kai Holländer
Marius Hoggenmüller
Romy Gruber
Sarah Theres Völkel
Andreas Butz
author_facet Kai Holländer
Marius Hoggenmüller
Romy Gruber
Sarah Theres Völkel
Andreas Butz
author_sort Kai Holländer
collection DOAJ
description Automated driving will require new approaches to the communication between vehicles and vulnerable road users (VRUs) such as pedestrians, e.g., through external human–machine interfaces (eHMIs). However, the majority of eHMI concepts are neither scalable (i.e., take into account complex traffic scenarios with multiple vehicles and VRUs), nor do they optimize traffic flow. Speculating on the upgrade of traffic infrastructure in the automated city, we propose Smart Curbs, a scalable communication concept integrated into the curbstone. Using a combination of immersive and non-immersive prototypes, we evaluated the suitability of our concept for complex urban environments in a user study (N = 18). Comparing the approach to a projection-based eHMI, our findings reveal that Smart Curbs are safer to use, as our participants spent less time on the road when crossing. Based on our findings, we discuss the potential of Smart Curbs to mitigate the scalability problem in AV-pedestrian communication and simultaneously enhance traffic flow.
first_indexed 2024-04-11T16:32:56Z
format Article
id doaj.art-aaac5b84af4e46cc80223d9cc7f87a65
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 2624-9898
language English
last_indexed 2024-04-11T16:32:56Z
publishDate 2022-04-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Computer Science
spelling doaj.art-aaac5b84af4e46cc80223d9cc7f87a652022-12-22T04:13:56ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Computer Science2624-98982022-04-01410.3389/fcomp.2022.844245844245Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone DisplaysKai Holländer0Marius Hoggenmüller1Romy Gruber2Sarah Theres Völkel3Andreas Butz4LMU Munich, Munich, GermanyDesign Lab, School of Architecture, Design and Planning, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaLMU Munich, Munich, GermanyLMU Munich, Munich, GermanyLMU Munich, Munich, GermanyAutomated driving will require new approaches to the communication between vehicles and vulnerable road users (VRUs) such as pedestrians, e.g., through external human–machine interfaces (eHMIs). However, the majority of eHMI concepts are neither scalable (i.e., take into account complex traffic scenarios with multiple vehicles and VRUs), nor do they optimize traffic flow. Speculating on the upgrade of traffic infrastructure in the automated city, we propose Smart Curbs, a scalable communication concept integrated into the curbstone. Using a combination of immersive and non-immersive prototypes, we evaluated the suitability of our concept for complex urban environments in a user study (N = 18). Comparing the approach to a projection-based eHMI, our findings reveal that Smart Curbs are safer to use, as our participants spent less time on the road when crossing. Based on our findings, we discuss the potential of Smart Curbs to mitigate the scalability problem in AV-pedestrian communication and simultaneously enhance traffic flow.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcomp.2022.844245/fullsmart citieseHMIscity infrastructureautomated vehiclesVRUsAV-VRU communication
spellingShingle Kai Holländer
Marius Hoggenmüller
Romy Gruber
Sarah Theres Völkel
Andreas Butz
Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone Displays
Frontiers in Computer Science
smart cities
eHMIs
city infrastructure
automated vehicles
VRUs
AV-VRU communication
title Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone Displays
title_full Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone Displays
title_fullStr Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone Displays
title_full_unstemmed Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone Displays
title_short Take It to the Curb: Scalable Communication Between Autonomous Cars and Vulnerable Road Users Through Curbstone Displays
title_sort take it to the curb scalable communication between autonomous cars and vulnerable road users through curbstone displays
topic smart cities
eHMIs
city infrastructure
automated vehicles
VRUs
AV-VRU communication
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcomp.2022.844245/full
work_keys_str_mv AT kaihollander takeittothecurbscalablecommunicationbetweenautonomouscarsandvulnerableroadusersthroughcurbstonedisplays
AT mariushoggenmuller takeittothecurbscalablecommunicationbetweenautonomouscarsandvulnerableroadusersthroughcurbstonedisplays
AT romygruber takeittothecurbscalablecommunicationbetweenautonomouscarsandvulnerableroadusersthroughcurbstonedisplays
AT sarahtheresvolkel takeittothecurbscalablecommunicationbetweenautonomouscarsandvulnerableroadusersthroughcurbstonedisplays
AT andreasbutz takeittothecurbscalablecommunicationbetweenautonomouscarsandvulnerableroadusersthroughcurbstonedisplays