SatNav or SatNag? - Human-Computer Interaction and Innovation in Handheld, Mobile and Wearable Technologies - page 320

CONCLUSION styles. Such interfaces would aim to provide

navigation information in a form which ensures
that the demands of the navigation task in wholly
unfamiliar areas are at an acceptable, low level,
whilst aiming to support drivers in the cognitive
mapping process. In essence, these interfaces
would aspire to move people onwards through
the various stages of cognitive map development,
ultimately to a level in which they are able to
navigate effectively for themselves and others,
independent of any external information. Some
initial progress was made on this topic in a recent
simulator study we conducted at Nottingham
which was presented at the ACM Mobile HCI
conference (Oliver and Burnett, 2008).
The reliance/dependency issue is also of
relevance to a wider range of in-car computing
systems, specifically those which provide infor-
mation relevant to the driving task, or control
aspects of driving. As such, these systems offer
varying degrees of automation for which there will
inevitably be changes to a user's behaviour and/or
performance, some of which may be negative. For
instance, research studies have shown a tendency
for drivers to rely on adaptive cruise control sys-
tems (providing both speed and headway control),
such that their reaction times are diminished in
an emergency braking event (Rudin-Brown and
Parker, 2004).
As a final point, I believe it is worth empha-
sising that in-car computing systems will not be
used independently, but in combination with each
other. Research studies generally neglect this fact
and consider the impact of drivers and passengers
interacting with single systems. In reality, for the
complex driving situation there will be consider-
able interaction effects. For instance, a vehicle
equipped with a system that automates lateral
control of the vehicle is likely to have a signifi-
cant effect on the tasks that drivers are willing to
undertake with other systems, e.g. those provid-
ing entertainment or productivity services. How
drivers will trade-off the various tasks that occur
in future cars will provide a rich vein for research.

In this position paper I make two key arguments
for in-car computing systems, as an example of
mobile HCI in a safety-critical context. Firstly,
I propose that there are four key tensions in the
design process for this technology which impact
on methods, tools and user-interface design prac-
tice. Secondly, I express the view that issues of
reliability and reliance for in-car computing have
a fundamental impact on the overall impact of the
technology on driving safety and traffic efficiency.
Using vehicle navigation systems as an example,
I argue that the styles of user-interface recom-
mended by the research community have actually
exacerbated problems. A wide range of research
questions emerge from these perspectives which,
it is hoped, will stimulate mobile HCI researchers
to undertake a variety of novel studies.

REFERENCES

Adler, J. L. (2001). Investigating the learning
effects of route guidance and traffic advisories
on route choice behaviour. Transportation Re-
search Part C, Emerging Technologies , 9 , 1-14.
doi:10.1016/S0968-090X(00)00002-4

Burnett, G. E. (1998). Turn right at the King's
Head: Drivers requirements for route guidance
information. Unpublished PhD dissertation
(Loughborough University, UK).

Burnett, G. E. (2008). Designing and evaluat-
ing in-car user-interfaces. In Lumsden, J. (Ed.),
Handbook of Research on User-Interface Design
and Evaluation for Mobile Technology ( Vol. 1 , pp.
218-236). Hershey, PA: IGI Global.

Burnett, G. E., & Lee, K. (2005). The effect of
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cognitive maps. In Underwood, G. (Ed.), Traffic
and Transport Psychology: Theory and Applica-
tion (pp. 407-418). Elsevier. doi:10.1016/B978-
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