The plurality of current infotainment devices within the in-vehicle space produces an unprecedented volume of incoming data that overwhelm the typical driver, leading to higher collision probability. This work presents an investigation to an alternative option which aims to manage the incoming information while offering an uncluttered and timely manner of presenting and interacting with the incoming data safely. The latter is achieved through the use of an augmented reality (AR) head-up display (HUD) system, which projects the information within the driver’s field of view. An uncluttered gesture recognition interface provides the interaction with the AR visuals. For the assessment of the system’s effectiveness, we developed a full-scale virtual reality driving simulator which immerses the drivers in challenging, collision-prone, scenarios. The scenarios unfold within a digital twin model of the surrounding motorways of the city of Glasgow. The proposed system was evaluated in contrast to a typical head-down display (HDD) interface system by 30 users, showing promising results that are discussed in detail.

Dashboards in modern vehicular interiors, house multiple infotainment systems that allow a continuous flow of nonessential information maintaining driver connectivity. This results in distraction of the driver's attention from the primary task of driving, leading to a higher probability of collisions. This paper presents a novel head-up display (HUD) system which utilizes gesture recognition for direct manipulation of the visual interface. The HUD is evaluated in contrast to a typical head-down display system by 20 users in a high-fidelity virtual reality (VR) driving simulator. The preliminary results from a rear collision simulation scenario indicate a reduction in collision occurrences of 45% with the use of HUD. This paper presents the overall system design challenges and user evaluation results.