4.6 Article

From Driver to Supervisor: Comparing Cognitive Load and EEG-Based Attentional Resource Allocation Across Automation Levels

Journal

Publisher

ACADEMIC PRESS LTD- ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijhcs.2023.103169

Keywords

Automated driving; Attention; Attentional resource allocation; Cognitive load; P3a; Passive oddball task; Event-related potentials

Ask authors/readers for more resources

With increasing automation, drivers' roles transition from active operators to passive system supervisors, affecting their behaviour and cognitive processes. This study investigates attentional resource allocation and subjective cognitive load during different levels of driving automation. The findings suggest that during automated driving, drivers allocate fewer attentional resources to processing environmental information, highlighting the importance of managing drivers' attention and cognitive load for enhancing automation safety and user interface design.
With increasing automation, drivers' roles transition from active operators to passive system supervisors, affecting their behaviour and cognitive processes. This study addresses the attentional resource allocation and subjective cognitive load during manual, SAE Level 2, and SAE Level 3 driving in a realistic environment. An experiment was conducted on a test track with 30 participants using a prototype automated vehicle. While driving, participants were subjected to a passive auditory oddball task and their electroencephalogram was recorded. The study analysed the amplitude of the P3a event-related potential component elicited novel environmental stimuli, an objective measure of attentional resource allocation. The subjective cognitive load was assessed using the NASA Task Load Index. Results showed no significant difference in subjective cognitive load between manual and Level 2 driving, but a decrease in subjective cognitive load in Level 3 driving. The P3a amplitude was highest during manual driving, indicating increased attentional resource allocation to environmental sounds compared to Level 2 and Level 3 driving. This may suggest that during automated driving, drivers allocate fewer attentional resources to processing environmental information. remains unclear whether the decreased processing of environmental stimuli in automated driving is due top-down attention control (leading to attention withdrawal) or bottom-up competition for resources induced by cognitive load. This study provides novel empirical evidence on resource allocation and subjective cognitive load in automated driving. The findings highlight the importance of managing drivers' attention and cognitive load with implications for enhancing automation safety and the design of user interfaces.

Authors

I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.

Reviews

Primary Rating

4.6
Not enough ratings

Secondary Ratings

Novelty
-
Significance
-
Scientific rigor
-
Rate this paper

Recommended

No Data Available
No Data Available