“Help, Accident Ahead!”: Using Mixed Reality Environments in Automated Vehicles to Support Occupants After Passive Accident Experiences

Abstract

Currently, car assistant systems mainly try to prevent accidents. Increasing built-in car technology also extends the potential applications in vehicles. Future cars might have virtual windshields that augment the traffic or individual virtual assistants interacting with the user. In this paper, we explore the potential of an assistant system that helps the car’s occupants to calm down and reduce stress when they experience an accident in front of them. We present requirements from a discussion (N = 11) and derive a system design from them. Further, we test the system design in a video-based simulator study (N = 43). Our results indicate that an accident support system increases perceived control and trust and helps to calm down the user.