Mode Awareness Interfaces in Automated Vehicles, Robotics, and Aviation: A Literature Review

With increasing automation capabilities and a push towards full automation in vehicles, mode awareness, i.e., the driver's awareness of the vehicle's current automation mode, becomes an important factor. While issues surrounding mode awareness are known, research concerning and design towards mode awareness appears to not yet be a focal point in the automated driving domain. In this paper, we provide a state-of-the art on mode awareness from the related domains of automated driving, aviation, and Human-Robot Interaction. We present a summary of existing mode awareness interface solutions as well as existing techniques and recognized gaps concerning mode awareness. We found that existing interfaces are often simple, sometimes outdated, yet are difficult to meaningfully expand without overloading the user. We also found predictive approaches as a promising strategy to lessen the need for mode awareness via separate indicators.