There is particular uncertainty among older people with regard to their future role as pedestrians in a traffic situation with automated vehicles.
“A new study by the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology looked at the possibilities, barriers and effects of automated mobility from the perspective of older people. The requirements and acceptance factors of age-appropriate automated driving were analyzed. The various roles of older people, such as drivers AIT Austrian Institute of Technology said in a broadcast by the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology.
“With the help of a qualitative acceptance analysis, the concerns of older people were raised and the potential of age-appropriate automated mobility examined. The results show that older people see the greatest value in automation in mobility, regardless of their own driving ability. In highly automated individual transport the own car to the chauffeur, which allows driving with a high level of comfort and without the need to be able to drive “, it continues. “Another advantage is seen in the relief and thus in” stress-free driving “, but only if it really is a relief. The study participants feared that the new system could quickly overwhelm them For example, a touchscreen can become a burden for people with impaired vision or fine motor skills. “
Human-machine interfaces
“The communication and technical handling of the system must not lead to additional workload or even excessive demand. Based on our results, older people should therefore be confronted with as few unforeseen interventions and requests to take over the vehicle as possible. This must be ensured by carefully designing the systems and the human-machine interfaces, ”explains project manager Peter Fröhlich from the Center for Technology Experience at AIT.
The acceptance analysis with future users and experts gave a very complex picture of the various motivations and expectations of older people towards automated driving technologies. For example, topics such as trust, opportunities for interaction, assistance in everyday life and data protection were discussed. There is particular uncertainty among older people with regard to their future role as pedestrians in a traffic situation with automated vehicles.
“Here it is advisable to work out solutions together with older people and other road users with special needs, such as children or cyclists, and to incorporate the results into appropriate regulations,” says Peter Fröhlich. The aim should be to standardize the communication between automated vehicles and other road users.
Innovative mobility solutions
Further solutions in the mobility system that go beyond the automated vehicle were viewed by the respondents as very interesting. For example, the possibility of submitting personalized requirements for the taxi or bus ordered (e.g. space for a wheelchair).
“All participants in the workshops could imagine using a shuttle service tailored to their individual needs. There is also a certain willingness to pay for such areas, ”says Fröhlich. “But automated robotic trolleys that bring the shopping home to wheelchairs with emergency assistants and rollators with intelligent navigation systems are also exciting helpers for everyday life.”
This project was funded by the Federal Ministry for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology (BMK) and commissioned by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) as part of the benefit program.
