Navigating in the Dark -- Designing Autonomous Driving Features to Assist Old Adults with Visual Impairments

Lashawnda Bynum; Jay Parker; Kristy Lee; Nia Nitschke; Melanie LaFlam; Jennifer Marcussen; Jana Taleb; Aleyna Dogan; Lisa J. Molnar; Feng Zhou

arXiv · 2302.00499

Navigating in the Dark -- Designing Autonomous Driving Features to Assist Old Adults with Visual Impairments

Lashawnda Bynum·Jay Parker·Kristy Lee·Nia Nitschke·Melanie LaFlam·Jennifer Marcussen·Jana Taleb·Aleyna Dogan·Lisa J. Molnar·Feng Zhou

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Abstract

Age-related macular degeneration is a leading cause of blindness worldwide and is one of many limitations to independent driving among old adults. Highly autonomous vehicles present a prospective solution for those who are no longer capable of driving due to low vision. However, accessibility issues must be addressed to create a safe and pleasant experience for this group of users so that it allows them to maintain an appropriate level of situational awareness and a sense of control during driving. In this study, we made use of a human-centered design process consisting of five stages - empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test. We designed a prototype to aid old adults with age-related macular degeneration to travel with a necessary level of situational awareness and remain in control while riding in a highly or fully autonomous vehicle. The final design prototype includes a voice-activated navigation system with three levels of details to bolster situational awareness, a 360 degree in-vehicle camera to detect both the passenger and objects around the vehicle, a retractable microphone for the passenger to be easily registered in the vehicle while speaking, and a physical button on the console-side of the right and left front seats to manually activate the navigation system.

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Lashawnda Bynum, Jay Parker, Kristy Lee, Nia Nitschke, Melanie LaFlam, Jennifer Marcussen, Jana Taleb, Aleyna Dogan, Lisa J. Molnar, Feng Zhou. 2023-02-01. Navigating in the Dark -- Designing Autonomous Driving Features to Assist Old Adults with Visual Impairments. https://arxiv.org/abs/2302.00499

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