Light-based solutions for the acceptance of facing rearward in autonomous vehicles

The introduction of autonomous vehicles into road traffic is accompanied by the development of innovative seating layouts. Concepts of such layouts often include rotatable front seats, which are supposed to enable a new level of social interaction during autonomous driving and find much approval among potential users. This contrasts with a seemingly very low willingness to be driven autonomously while sitting in the opposite direction of travel. Two reasons for this emerge, lack of trust in the autonomous vehicles and fear of motion sickness. With both being a point of concern in AVs in general, research suggests them being even more eminent when facing against the direction of travel.
Based on current literature, a new model is proposed taking seating orientation and motion sickness into account. Building on this model, the use of light-based HMIs to increase transparency with respect to perception and intention of the AV is discussed. The goal of the work is to gain a more detailed understanding of the acceptance of rearward seating orientations in autonomous vehicles, incorporating trust and motion sickness.