STUDY OF SOUND AND HAPTIC FEEDBACK IN SMART WEARABLE DEVICES TO IMPROVE DRIVING PERFORMANCE OF ELDERS

Abstract

Traffic accident is a concerning issue in Thailand. Almost half of the reported traffic accident in 2013 involved personal cars, and the number has a potential to rise as the number of cars increases. Many resources have been allocated to lighten this issue, along with new technologies. For this study, we proposed a smart wearable device, a device that drivers can wear to receive information regarding the state of upcoming red lights, in sound and haptic forms. A total of 22 drivers were measured on how long they applied the brake and were observed if introducing the smart wearable device would have influence on the time. The result is the increase in brake time by 12.39% and 10.19% for sound feedback and haptic feedback respectively. This benefits driving as shorter brake time could imply a more sudden stop. We also conducted a survey to ask participants about their background, their assessment on NASA-TLX, and TAM. This is to further study the factors that influence the brake times and to find out what could affect the participants’ attitude toward the device. For background, age, driving experience, and whether one wear glasses while driving are the most influential factors toward brake time. For NASA-TLX, the participants found frustration to be the heaviest task while using the device. And lastly, perceived usefulness and social norm is the most important factors that influence participants’ attitude toward the device.