Can Anthropomorphic Interfaces Improve the Ergonomics and Safety Performance of Human-Machine Collaboration in Multitasking Scenarios?-An Example of Human-Machine Co-Driving in High-Speed Trains.

Abstract

High-speed trains are some of the most important transportation vehicles requiring human-computer collaboration. This study investigated the effects of different types of icons on recognition performance and cognitive load during frequent observation and sudden takeover tasks in high-speed trains. The results of this study can be used to improve the efficiency of human-computer collaboration tasks and driving safety. In this study, 48 participants were selected for a simulated driving experiment on a high-speed train. The recognition reaction time, operation completion time, number of recognition errors, number of operation errors, SUS scale, and NASA-TLX questionnaire for the icons were all analyzed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test. The results show that anthropomorphic icons can reduce the drivers' visual fatigue and mental load in frequent observation tasks due to the anthropomorphic facial features attracting driver attention through simple lines and improving visual search efficiency. However, for the sudden takeover human-computer collaboration task, the facial features of the anthropomorphic icons were not recognized in a short period of time. Additionally, due to the positive emotions produced by the facial features, the drivers did not perceive the suddenness and danger of the sudden takeover human-computer collaboration task, resulting in the traditional icons being more capable of arousing the drivers' alertness and helping them take over the task quickly. At the same time, neither type of icon triggered misrecognition or operation for sufficiently skilled drivers. These research results can provide guidance for the design of icons in human-computer collaborative interfaces for different types of driving tasks in high-speed trains, which can help improve the recognition speed, reaction speed, and safety of drivers.