The interaction between humans and non-humans within our immediate environment makes up a significant percentage of our daily life. In urban areas, pedestrian interaction with vehicles is a common occurrence in a multitude of situations, leading to varying degrees of accident risk.
The critical nature of this interaction has inspired solutions such as lights, horns, and zebra crossings. However, the most efficient or popular means of communication within low-speed urban areas has been direct communication between drivers and pedestrians through gestures and eye contact.
Considering this, the growing acceptance of the autonomous vehicle, with the driver now missing, poses some significant challenges to pedestrians, as they must interact exclusively with the vehicle. On this note, my degree project explores the application of interaction design and industrial design methods in proposing solutions for the challenges pedestrians have with autonomous vehicle interaction, during right-of-way negotiations in low-speed environments, such as parking areas.
