Evaluation of Gesture-Based In-Vehicle Interaction: User Experience and the Potential to Reduce Driver Distraction

Objective: We observe the effects of in-vehicle system gesture-based interaction versus touch-based interaction on driver distraction and user experience. Background: Driver distraction is a major problem for traffic safety, as it is a contributing factor to a number of accidents. Visual distraction in particular has a highly negative impact on the driver. One possibility for reducing visual driver distraction is to use new forms of interaction in the vehicle, such as gesture-based interaction. Method: In this experiment, participants drove on a motorway or in a city scenario while using touch-based interaction or gesture-based interaction. Subjective data, such as acceptance and workload, and objective data, including glance behavior, were gathered. Results: As a result, participants rated their subjective impressions of safe driving as higher when using gesture-based interaction. More specifically, acceptance and attractiveness were higher, and workload was lower. The participants performed significantly fewer glances to the display and the glances were much shorter. Conclusion: Gestures are a positive alternative for in-vehicle interaction since effects on driver distraction are less significant when compared to touch-based interaction. Application: Potential application of this research includes interaction design of typical in-vehicle information and entertainment functions.