Steer-By-WiFi: Lateral Vehicle Control for Take-Overs with Nomadic Devices

Abstract

Automated vehicles could omit traditional steering controls to provide larger spaces for driver-passengers or prevent unnecessary interventions. However, manual control could still be necessary to provide manual driving fun or respond to Take-Over requests (TORs). This paper investigates, whether brought-in consumer devices (in this case a 10.2 inch tablet) can act as input alternative to classical steering wheels in TOR situations. Results of a driving simulator study (n=14) confirm that responding to Take-Overs with nomadic devices can reduce response times in imminent transitions during engagement in Non-Driving Related Tasks (NDRTs), as a change of the 'device in hands' is omitted. Further on, subjective scales addressing user experience show that the approach is well accepted. We conclude that nomadic device integration is a crucial pre-requisite for the success of automated vehicles, but for steering input several pivotal issues still need to be solved.