Visual and Cognitive Demands of Using In-Vehicle Infotainment Systems

New infotainment and In-Vehicle Information Systems (IVIS) have greatly expanded in recent years, creating a wide array of tasks that motorists can perform while behind the wheel. Given the potential safety concerns, understanding how these new technologies impact drivers’ workload and performance is paramount. This report described the results of an on-road study looking at the visual and cognitive demand as well as the task completion time for a variety of infotainment tasks and interaction methods. Thirty 2017 model year vehicles, representing a wide range of manufacturers, were included in the study. For each of the 30 vehicles tested in the current research, 24 participants were evaluated as they drove on a residential road with a posted speed limit of 25 mph. After familiarization with the road, the vehicle, the IVIS tasks, and the modes of interaction, testing commenced, with the order of the testing conditions counterbalanced across participants. A number of performance measures were obtained while participants performed the tasks including primary-task measures, secondary-task measures, and subjective measures. The data collected from each participant provided a measure of cognitive demand, a measure of visual/manual demand, a subjective workload measure, and a measure of the time it took to complete the different tasks. These metrics were evaluated separately and also combined to provide an overall demand score for the different tasks, modes of interaction, and vehicles. The research provides empirical evidence that the workload experienced by drivers systematically varied as a function of the different tasks, modes of interaction and vehicles that were evaluated. The objective assessment suggests that many of these IVIS features are too distracting to be enabled while the vehicle is in motion.

• Record URL:
  https://aaafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/VisualandCognitive.pdf
• Summary URL:
  https://aaafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/VisualandCognitiveFact.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Cover date: September 2017. ©2017 AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.
• Corporate Authors:

  AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety

  Washington, DC  United States 
• Authors:
  • Strayer, David L
  • Cooper, Joel M
  • Goethe, Rachel M
  • McCarty, Madeleine M
  • Getty, Douglas
  • Biondi, Francesco
• Publication Date: 2017-10

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Appendices; Figures; Glossary; Maps; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 104p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automotive computers; Cognition; Distraction; Driver information systems; Driver performance; Drivers; Evaluation and assessment; Vehicle electronics; Workload
• Uncontrolled Terms: Infotainment
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01650929
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Nov 15 2017 11:34AM