Hands free, but not eyes free: A usability evaluation of Siri while driving
Authors
Scheel, Alexander Nuka ; Larsen, Helene Høgh
Term
4. term
Publication year
2018
Submitted on
2018-05-31
Pages
138
Abstract
Dansk lov forbyder brug af håndholdte mobiltelefoner under kørsel, men behovet for at løse mobilopgaver er stadig til stede. Intelligente personlige assistenter som Siri ses ofte som en håndfri løsning. Vi undersøgte, hvor let og sikkert det er at bruge Siri til almindelige opgaver ved at sammenligne fire situationer: brug af Siri under kørsel, manuel brug af iPhone efter at være kørt ind til siden, samt de samme to i et laboratoriemiljø. Vi indsamlede data via spørgeskema, kvalitative interviews og en brugervenlighedstest, suppleret med øjensporing og videooptagelser. Resultaterne viste, at brug af Siri under kørsel forringede brugervenligheden: det krævede meget mental indsats og visuel opmærksomhed og førte ofte til frustration. Et tilbagevendende problem var fejl i stemmegenkendelsen, især for kvindelige deltagere under kørsel, men mindre udtalt i laboratoriet. Manuel opgaveløsning efter at have holdt ind virkede bedre for brugervenlighed og især sikkerhed, men er ikke altid mulig. Vi foreslår forbedringer til stemmeassistenter i bilen, fx at svar altid læses højt, når bilen kører, og at brugerne får længere tid til at formulere deres anmodninger. Fremtidigt arbejde bør undersøge, om erfarne Siri-brugere klarer sig bedre og oplever højere brugervenlighed.
Danish law prohibits any use of handheld mobile phones while driving, yet people still need to handle tasks on the go. Intelligent personal assistants like Siri are seen as a hands-free option. We examined how easy and safe Siri is to use for common tasks by comparing four situations: using Siri while driving, using an iPhone by hand after pulling over, and doing both in a lab. We collected data through a questionnaire, qualitative interviews, and a usability test, supported by eye-tracking and video recordings. The results showed that using Siri while driving reduced usability: it demanded substantial mental effort and visual attention and often led to frustration. A recurring issue was speech recognition errors, especially for female participants while driving, but less prominent in the lab. Manually completing tasks after pulling over appeared better for usability and especially safety, but is not always feasible. We propose improvements for in-car voice assistants, such as always reading responses aloud when the car is moving and giving users more time to speak their requests. Future work should examine whether frequent Siri users perform better and perceive higher usability.
[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]
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