Autonomous Vehicle: The future of Mobility
Role
UX/UI Designer
Industry
Envisioning Mobility
Duration
3 months
Introduction
This project explores how self-driving vehicles can become not just a means of transport, but an extension of our homes and daily lives. Personalization, inclusivity, and sustainability are at the heart of this vision, to make time spent in the car a meaningful moment, tailored to each user.
The challenge
In today's growing global context, it is predicted that more than half of the world's population will live in urban centers by 2050. Given recent technological improvements, particularly in AI, self-driving electric vehicles appear to be the future of mobility. How can we imagine a future where self-driving cars are every home?
Role and Methodology
For this personal project, I analyzed the current automotive industry and technology, outlining a trend and future scenario based on current developments. To outline a desirable future as a solution to the challenge, carried out intensive desk research, shadowing and benchmarking of scenario and AS-IS usability applying the Design Over Time (DOT) methodology to the project. The 4 steps: Framing, Foster, Design, and Scale were iterated in the 3 DOT design phases: Next Future, Near Future and Now until the desired outcome.,
Next Futures
Where are we going?
Self-driving vehicles will change the value of travel time and enable everyone to move around autonomously, improving the inclusiveness of the city and promoting individual empowerment. The use of private cars in urban areas will be strongly discouraged in favor of car sharing, all aimed at reducing the impact and economic costs the city's inclusiveness (The future of sustainable urban mobility, Pdf).
Research goals
To understand the future of self-driving cars, I set goals of research. I have looked at the potential and benefits of the widespread adoption of these vehicles against the current trials on American roads. Americans are at the center of my research on this science fiction story, these vehicles are born in America and are therefore the product of American culture, social and psychological ethnographic aspects. How do Americans relate to cars?
Near Futures
At the moment, the general mood is strongly influenced by novelty and the futuristic ideal. Why would people want a self-driving car? Apparently people would use time saved by autonomous driving to sleep, work or read.
Deep with desk research
In addition to research utilizing platforms such as Reddit, Quora, and Google, YouTube emerged as a pivotal resource for remote analysis. Through a comprehensive review of numerous video reports from sources as CNBC, CBS and Marques Brownlee or more institutional resources such as A time of unprecedented change in the transport system (Pdf).
I identified several common mistakes:
Parking in temporarily prohibited areas;
Stopping in the middle of lanes due to misinterpretation of context;
Adopting the right-turn criterion for safety reasons, resulting in longer journeys;
Lack of communication with other road users, e.g. cyclists, pedestrians, etc.
Benchmark
The self-driving car panorama includes:
Waymo, the project initiated by Google, which sowed the seeds in this sector in 2009 and has become a symbol of the self-driving car concept, also known as the "robotaxi". A similar project has been developed by the start-up;
Zoox, currently acquired by Amazon, which, in addition to its completely innovative and urban design, aims to provide a shared mobility service. Finally, the competitor;
MayMobility focuses on the issue of accessibility; although it uses self-driving cars, it guarantees the presence of an operator specialized in assisting passengers who are not fully autonomous.
The discovery
So what is the relationship between Americans and cars? The automobile is an object that has been rooted in American culture since the early 20th century, when the advent of the Ford Model T revolutionised the way we perceive the space around us. Much more than a means of transport, the car became a symbol of individual freedom, allowing people to decide when and where they wanted to go, without the constraints of public transport timetables or routes.
The extension of home
Many Americans customise their cars with personal items, transforming them into cosy, familiar spaces. The car becomes an emotional and safe place, similar to home.
A safe haven
Many Americans use their cars as a kind of refuge where they can experience everyday moments and manage their lives.
The vision
How could we tailor the experience to the user?
Users will be able to order a fully customized car tailored to their specific needs directly from the app. During the booking process, they can specify the items or services they require, which will be made available on board, ensuring a bespoke and highly satisfying travel experience.
To enable this feature, an add-on has been developed within the app for booking autonomous taxis, allowing users to personalize every aspect of their journey.
Experience Personalization
The main feature allows users, after logging into the app, to access the booking section and select the specific occasion for their trip.
Once the desired option is chosen, a detailed overview of the included services is displayed, enabling users to configure their transportation experience to their preferences.
Service ecosystem
Now
How can we improve the self-driving car experience today? Among the problems that emerged during the research, I decided to prioritise:
Communication and interaction between the car and the outside world, i.e. the lack of understanding between autonomous vehicles and road users such as pedestrians and cyclists;
The service areas of Waymo and other competitors are currently limited and sometimes do not allow passengers to reach their areas of interest.
Interaction and communication
Self-driving vehicles seem to be able to accurately detect the presence of actors in the context in which they are moving, and the intelligence they use processes the precedence of other traffic actors, allowing the most vulnerable pedestrian, such as kids, elderly people or with impairments and cyclist to move safely.
To improve communication between vehicles and people, it would be necessary to introduce elements that allow the actions of these vehicles to be interpreted from the outside. All of this could be achieved with the use of lights with acoustic signals.
Limitation
In addition to not covering interstate routes, self-driving vehicles do not cover all areas of the city, as they are still in development projects. In fact, the experience of many users is of incomplete journeys due to the lack of interaction of the vehicle with certain areas not covered by the service, resulting in the negative experience of having to reach their destination by other means. In light of these experiences, it is worth considering the possibility of providing charging stations and parking spaces for secondary vehicles such as bicycles, electric scooters, etc., so that users can reach their destination quickly and safely.
Los Angeles
Los Angeles
Phoenix
