Researchers at the University of Glasgow have developed a new tool which can rapidly prototype augmented reality (AR) experiences, providing insights which could allow cyclists to safely share the roads with self-driving cars.

The AR tool, called CycleARcade, uses augmented reality headsets to allow cyclists to see and interact with simulated autonomous vehicles as they ride in real-world environments, and could equip cyclists with a ‘sixth sense’ to help them be more aware of self-driving cars’ intentions.

Plugging cyclists into an AR environment, the research team also used the new system to examine how cyclists from different countries could anticipate different behaviours from autonomous vehicles on their local roads.

Unlike traditional simulators, which use stationary bikes surrounded by computer screens to mimic real-world situations, CycleARcade enables a more realistic experience, where cyclists ride freely in open spaces with graphics of virtual vehicles displayed in their headsets.

The system provides researchers with precise control over the virtual vehicles, allowing cyclists to safely test out immersive scenarios that could prove dangerous on real roads with actual cars.

The Glasgow team used CycleARcade to test new designs for interfaces which could alert cyclists to nearby autonomous vehicles and provide information about the cars’ intentions, developing and testing three virtual displays giving riders information about the vehicles around them.

One prototype, RoadAlert, displayed signals about the cars’ intentions directly onto the road surface and played spatial audio beeps which got louder as vehicles approached, while another, called reARview, gave riders a virtual rear-view mirror through augmented reality glasses. 

“Technology offers an opportunity to augment cyclists’ awareness of the roads around them, providing a kind of ‘sixth sense’ to help them navigate safely,” said Ammar Al-Taie, the paper’s lead author from Glasgow’s School of Computing Science.

 “It’s important to emphasise, though, that we’re not expecting cyclists to have to adopt this kind of technology in order to stay safe on the roads in the future. 

“Instead, we’re expanding the toolbox for cyclists who want additional support or awareness, who could choose to buy devices specifically designed to do so.”

Recommended reading

• Glasgow Researchers Investigate AR’s Social Impact
• Abertay Uni VR Project Explores AI and Nature
• Glasgow Study Explores Face-Controlled VR Tech

The team’s research, which will be presented later this month at the CHI Conference in Japan, builds on previous work around how autonomous vehicles can communicate effectively with cyclists to replace the complex set of nods, waves, and eye signals that drivers and riders have developed over decades to signal their intentions.

CycleARcade is the latest development in the research led by Professor Stephen Brewster, of the University of Glasgow’s School of Computing Science, which focuses on how cyclists can communicate with self-driving cars in the years ahead.

“Ultimately, we’re aiming to thoroughly explore the ways in which cyclists and autonomous vehicles can speak the same language on the roads to keep both as safe as possible,” said Professor Brewster.

“CycleARcade is a powerful tool to help explore how that new language can be developed, using real bikes in real physical spaces, with virtual elements that can be tweaked or replaced in real-time. 

“We’re continuing to work on research in this area, and we hope that our insights will help influence the design of future generations of autonomous vehicles.”