Driver Reaction towards Unintended Acceleration in Automated and Silent Vehicle

Abstract

Unintended accelerations (UA) occur in vehicles unexpectedly and uncontrollably. Every year, numerous critical injury and death cases related to UA occur. Recently, researches related to the development of automated driving systems are attracting a lot of attention among researchers and vehicle manufacturers. Additionally, silent vehicles such as electric power and hybrid vehicle are increasing. However, there are negative effects on driver safety. Recognition time (RT) and recognition velocity (RV) are some of the important factors lead to avoiding crashes. Early detections give the drivers more time in decision-making toward the UA hazards. In this study, RT and RV toward UAs under various environments were analysed. The findings highlighted that RTs toward UAs were longer in no engine sound environment. Drivers were unable to respond to UA earlier in silent vehicles compared to conventional vehicles. The findings provide insights that can be useful in developing automation vehicle and silent vehicle.