Studying the Effectiveness of MOVE: A Contextually Optimized In-Vehicle Navigation System

In-vehicle navigation has changed substantially in recent years, due to the advent of computer generated maps and directions. However, these maps are still problematic, due to a mismatch between the complexity of the maps and the attentional demands of driving. In response to this problem, we are developing the MOVE (Maps Optimized for Vehicular Environments) system. This system will provide situationally appropriate map information by presenting information that uses appropriate amounts of the driver’s attention. In this paper, we describe our findings of studies to help shape the design of the MOVE system, including studies on map reading and in-vehicle navigation, and studies on the effectiveness of a variety of contextually optimized route map visualizations in a simulated driving context. Results show that contextually optimized displays designed for the MOVE system should significantly reduce perceptual load in the context of driving. In our laboratory experiment there was a six-fold decrease in the total map display fixation time and nearly threefold decrease in the number of glances needed to interpret the contextually optimized display compared to a static display.