A Comparison between a Touchpad-Controlled High Forward Head-down Display (HF HDD) and a Touchscreen-Controlled Head-down Display (HDD) for In-Vehicle Secondary Tasks

Abstract

This study compared a touchpad-controlled High Forward Head-down Display (HF-HDD) and a conventional touchscreen Head-down Display (HDD) In-vehicle infotainment system (IVIS). These two systems differ from each other on two design factors. First, the HF-HDD has a shorter visual scanning distance between the forward road scene and the display. Second, the HF-HDD is remotely controlled by a touchpad in locations where the input device is more manually accessible. It has been argued, however, that such an indirect display-control system is less intuitive than the touchscreen HDD that is a direct display-control system. Seventeen users under the age of 35 performed secondary tasks using the HF-HDD with the touchpad and the touchscreen HDD while driving. The results showed that the HF-HDD with a touchpad was associated with more positive driver feedback and better secondary task performance than the touchscreen HDD, although, no difference was found in driving performance.