My research interests lie in the role human factors and ergonomics play in the design of navigation and entertainment systems in automobiles. My current research is trying to measure and predict the workload and level of fun a driv er has in operating on board telematics. My team will attempt to identify stressors and to establish a linear scale of fun for measurement purposes, to quantify the relationship between stress, workload, and fun from preliminary laboratory and literature results. The work focuses on the development of an experiment, in which selected physiological parameters of a telematics operator are measured and correlated against the subjectively assessed state of mind such as frustration, anger, happiness, and fun, and the workload. Amongst other projects, I am currently involved in the design of the next generation of in-car radio and entertainment systems.
New technology allows the broadcasting of hundreds of channels of audio using satellites.
This affords for nationwide coverage without the need to switch radio stations. The user has many choices regarding the type of broadcast, and since there are literally hundreds of channels to search, there is substantial reason to be concerned about driver distraction. The last thing we want is to have drivers fixate on the satellite radio for any length of time, thus reducing attention to the roadway. We will investigate mockups of satellite radios, one with good display and the other with the 12 character British flag font to serve as an example of a poor display. Software called Guide has been developed with which it is possible to design a digital dashboard and instrument cluster in an automobile in a matter of minutes.