NTL Record

Title In-Vehicle Voice Control Interface Evaluation: Preliminary Driver Workload and Risk Analysis
Record ID 68885
Personal Name
Creator
Jenness, James; Boyle, Linda Ng; Lee, John D.; Miller, Erika; Yahoodik, S.; Huey, Richard; Lee, Ja Young; Benedick, A.; Petraglia, Elizabeth
Corporate Creator Westat, Inc.
Corporate
Contributor
United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Publisher United States. Department of Transportation. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Publication Date 20200101
Language English
Abstract This project evaluated distraction and relative risk associated with using voice control systems (VCS) while driving. The objective was to explore potential empirical measures and to use a modeling approach for evaluating risk with these voice-based systems. The project included three studies. Study 1 and Study 2 were designed to assess potential measures of the workload and demands on the driver imposed by voice-based and hybrid (audio plus visual) tasks. Participants interacted with a “Wizard of Oz” VCS while driving and a novel radio tuning benchmark task was used. Study 1 (n = 9) compared response times for the tactile detection response task (TDRT), which is a standardized measure of cognitive load, with a modified remote detection response task (RDRT) which was implemented in this study to provide a complementary measure of visual attention toward the forward roadway. Response time was sensitive to differences between VCS tasks, and there was a significant interaction between detection response task (DRT) type and VCS task. Study 2 (n = 9) included both on-road data collection and data collection with a driving simulator. In three different sessions, measurement protocols included TDRT, response time to the lead vehicle (LV) brake light, speed matching to a speed-varying LV, and off-road eye glance measures. Results indicated that task completion time, TDRT performance, and eye glance measures distinguished between VCS tasks and provided similar results in the on-road and simulated driving contexts. Study 3 used an analytical approach to develop relative risk estimates and crash severity estimates for the VCS tasks tested in this project. Counterfactual -- or “what if” -- simulations made use of a set of crash events and near crash events recorded in the second Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP 2) naturalistic driving study. These events were then replayed as a set of simulations, where the eye glance data collected in Study 1 and Study 2 were substituted for the original eye glance data recorded from drivers in the SHRP 2 study. Risk estimates and crash severity estimates developed using this technique varied considerably by VCS task and by driver.
Rosap ID dot:43640
Rosap URL https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/43640
TRT Terms Distraction; Driver performance; Driver vehicle interfaces; Drivers; Errors; Speech recognition
General Subjects Driver distraction; in-vehicle technologies; voice control system; counterfactual simulation; on-road; driving simulator; N-back task
Geographical
Coverage
United States
TRIS Online
Accession No
1732494
Contract Number DTNH22-11-D-00237/0013
Report Number DOT HS 812 813
Resource type Tech Report
URL https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/68000/68800/68885/14456_VOICE2study_100419-v2-tag_Rem.pdf
Format PDF
Database NTL Digital Repository