Assessing user expectations, requirements, and concerns toward automated driving progressed by internet of things – a user-centric development approach

Road vehicles are becoming increasingly automated and connected due to rapid technological progress and digitalization trends. Vehicle connectivity might improve automated driving (AD) in various ways. The EU project “AUTOPILOT” develops, tests and evaluates different services and use cases of automated driving focusing on the potential of Internet of Things (IoT) to progress AD. In order to provide early insights on expectations, requirements and concerns of potential users, an online survey was conducted following a usercentric development approach. Three different scenarios of AD progressed by IoT as well as desirable functions of the services were evaluated from user perspective. The analyses look into how IoT enhances, enables and accelerates AD. The results suggest the following benefits of IoT for AD when considering user acceptance: first, IoT can enable using the services with AD through easier trip planning by providing real-time traffic system information. Second, IoT can accelerate the market deployment of AD services as trust in the system is increased by providing information about the vehicle operation – one aspect which is crucial for user acceptance of AD. Third, IoT can contribute enhancing the user experience by providing real-time information about POIs and enabling customization options. This contribution summarizes the main results and discusses their implication for the development of the technology.