Ryan Jefferies
Psychology
(Royal Holloway, University of London)
Main supervisor: Professor Polly Dalton
Second supervisor: Professor Szonya Durant
Research project: Situation awareness during the remote operation
Research description: When a driverless car encounters circumstances beyond its capabilities, it will require human assistance to complete its journey. Consider, for instance, a scenario involving a person directing traffic through hand signals or adverse weather conditions like dense fog. In such cases, a remote human operator can be virtually 'dropped' into the car, assume control, and guide the vehicle back on track. To perform this role safely, the operator will need to quickly develop an understanding of the remote scene based on information transmitted from the driverless vehicle to their control station. This PhD project aims to investigate real-time remote situation awareness, involving participants who are controlling actual vehicles.
The research aims to illuminate various critical aspects. Firstly, it seeks to identify the types of information necessary and desirable to support effective remote situation awareness (e.g., video, audio, lidar, haptic). Furthermore, recognising that remote operation is poised to become a specialised skillset requiring training and expertise, this project aims to comprehend how remote situation awareness evolves with increasing proficiency. Finally, this research has practical applications in the field of engineering, particularly in shaping the design of interfaces for remote control. These interfaces are expected to play a pivotal role in the successful integration of autonomous vehicles onto our roads.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RyanNJefferies