The Impact Of Semantic And Acoustic Properties On Auditory Icons In Collision Avoidance Systems

Road traffic accidents are a global issue,resulting in millions of injuries and fatalities each year.One of the primary causes of these accidents is improper driving behavior,with rear-end collisions being the most common type of accident.Therefore,drivers need to be guided in safe driving behaviors through collision avoidance systems to promote road safety.A well-designed in-vehicle auditory warning system can quickly and accurately notify drivers of abnormal situations on the road.Auditory icons,due to their intuitiveness and comprehensibility,have the potential to alert drivers of emergencies without distracting them.However,their usability in driving contexts still lacks direct evidence.The rapid mapping ability of auditory icons is influenced by semantic and acoustic properties,but these factors are rarely considered in sound design.The effectiveness of auditory icons in ecological environments is also unclear.Therefore,the present study investigates the impact of semantic and acoustic properties on the effectiveness of auditory icons in collision avoidance systems and validates the optimal auditory icon design in distracted driving scenarios,to promote the optimization of in-vehicle auditory warning systems and enhance driving safety.This research includes two studies: Study 1 examines the impact of semantic information and acoustic property design of auditory icons on driving behavior and subjective experience,determining the most effective auditory icon warning design.Experiment 1 examines the impact of semantic directionality of auditory icons on driver behavior and subjective experience,and whether dynamic changes in pitch can enhance the warning effect.Experiment 2 examines the impact of compressed design and semantic mapping degree of auditory icons on driver behavior and subjective experience and further investigates the optimal degree of dynamic pitch changes.Study2 validates the effectiveness of the optimal auditory icon warning identified in Study 1in a distracted driving context and explores the impact of different types and presentation methods of auditory distractions.The main conclusions of this research are:(1)Danger-indicated auditory icons and earcons result in better driving performance than those indicating the direction to avoid danger.Dynamic sounds lead to more thorough braking and enhance the warning advantage of auditory icons.Additionally,subjective ratings of auditory icons are superior to earcons.(2)Compressed design of auditory icons results in better driving performance and is perceived as more urgent,more understandable,and less annoying.Iconic auditory icons more directly represent the objects they signify,but only show an advantage in compressed design,exhibiting faster accelerator release and braking responses.Moreover,compressed iconic auditory icons are more effective in high dynamic situations,providing faster and more urgent braking.(3)Compressed,collision-related,iconic,and high dynamic auditory icons outperform earcons in driving performance under different distraction tasks and presentation methods,providing quicker accelerator release and braking,and more thorough braking.Compared to receiving distracting information through headphones,auditory icons are more effective at quickly alerting drivers when played externally.