[ui!] ECOMAT
Manual
This app is provided as a beta version.
Status: 08.07.2020
Contact:
The idea
behind [ui!] ECOMAT
The [ui!] ECOMAT app is a so-called "traffic light phase assistant" that supports drivers when driving through a city. For this purpose, the smartphone is visibly mounted on the dashboard or on the windshield so that it can be easily viewed while driving. Operation while driving is neither necessary nor permitted.
The user of the [ui!] ECOMAT app is provided with speed recommendations during the car journey to promote the most economical and relaxed driving at traffic lights. Depending on the current position, the speed and the expected route of the vehicle, driving recommendations are calculated and displayed via the app. For this purpose the app uses the predicted green times of the signal systems. Therefore the [ui!] ECOMAT app is linked to the [ui!] TRAFFIC data platform, which receives and evaluates data from the traffic management system of a city.
To avoid distracting the driver while driving, the visualization of information and recommendations is limited to the most important contents. The driver himself is responsible for safe driving adapted to the environment. It is not necessary to interact with the cell phone while driving and should be avoided. In return, great care is taken in the design and function of the [ui!] ECOMAT app to ensure that the information provided is correct and consistent and is displayed without distraction.
Depending on the agreement with a city, the [ui!] ECOMAT service can be operated for specific routes or an entire city network. Previous simulations in various research projects (e.g. in UR:BAN) show that if a sufficiently large number of users are involved, liquefying effects on the traffic flow in a city can be achieved. In conjunction with appropriate public relations work, this will give cities new options for action in traffic management to improve traffic quality and help reduce pollution.
The current version of the [ui!] ECOMAT supports Android-based smartphones. Important requirements for suitable smartphones are (as of March 2020):
- Android Operating system Version 6.0 or later
- 2GB or more of memory
- GPS-Module
Suitable manufacturers based on previous experience are e.g. Samsung, LG or HTC.
The User Interface
The [ui!] ECOMAT uses data from the traffic management system to reduce the number of stops before red lights during a car journey. Via the connection to the [ui!] TRAFFIC platform recommendations can be displayed to the driver on their mobile phone. For this purpose the smartphone must be permitted to access its GPS receiver.
Each lane of the next traffic light intersection is displayed as an arrow. The arrow color indicates whether the vehicle will arrive at the next traffic light at green or red while maintaining the current speed. If the current speed would lead to a stop, the app tries to give a suitable speed recommendation. In certain cases, additional colors indicate that no reliable forecast is possible or that no data is available at all.
If the vehicle comes to a stop, additional information is displayed that would distract the driver too much while driving. One example of additional information is the countdown display, which shows when the signal will change its color from red to green (or vice versa) at the earliest.
If several tracks are controlled by different signals, the arrow colors and other information based on the respective predictions are also displayed differently.
If the user approaches a signalized intersection, the name of this intersection also appears at the bottom of the screen. During the test phase, the name of the intersection appears partly as a street name, partly as an identifier that the city uses internally (here, for example, Darmstadt, intersection A4).
Example
Green Display
If the driver maintains the current speed, he will probably reach the next traffic light at green.
No recommendations are shown because the driving style is already optimized.
Red Display
A red arrow indicates that the driver with the current speed is likely to reach the next traffic light at red and come to a stop. If it makes sense, a change of speed is also recommended, either at the top of the arrow when accelerating or at the bottom of the arrow when slowing down.
Uncertain predictions
Due to the strong traffic dependency (flexibility) of many traffic light systems in many driving situations, it is completely normal that it cannot be predicted with certainty whether a vehicle will arrive at red or green at a given speed. In the case of such an uncertain prediction, the arrow color changes to yellow. This color should not be confused with the signal color "yellow" at traffic lights, which represents the transition state between red and green. If a driver is expected to arrive at green by accelerating or decelerating, a change in speed above (acceleration) or below (deceleration) is indicated.
Ending the trip
If the driver touches the touchscreen during a stop, they will be asked to rate the trip. In this way, the driver supports [ui!] in the further development of the app and contributes to the ongoing research activities. All data is stored and evaluated anonymously. It is important to evaluate each trip at the end to obtain enough data for the research projects. Comments can also be sent subsequently from a computer to
Settings
Click on the extended menu (see figure 7) to access the settings. Which include:
- The current version number of the [ui!] ECOMAT-App
- Feedback-Menu
- Terms of Use
- Privacy policy
- Logout
Furthermore, the user has the possibility to manually select intersections with their access roads for their own experiments or for demonstration purposes. This demonstration mode is explained in more detail below.
Feedback
"Send feedback" can be used to upload information and the recorded trip history to [ui!] so that we can analyze trips and improve the [ui!] ECOMAT.
The app has controls for tests and demonstrations that can be used from any location. Via the menu you can access the settings. Below the heading "Testing" the following adjustments can be made: "Select access route manually":
- Only possible in test mode: A city and in it an intersection or an access road can be selected independently of the location to analyze the functionality.
You can return to the main page by clicking on the yellow symbol. The green symbol changes between the access roads of the selected intersection.- "Distance to the signal (m)": The distance from the holding line to be assumed
- "Speed (km/h)": The speed to be assumed. At 0 the app switches to stop mode (display of the rings).
