Operating a Vehicle Using Steering Gestures

Public panel discussion for the “Vorreiter” research project closure.

The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, BMBF for short, has been funding the project "Vorreiter – Controlling semi-automated vehicles with the help of steering gestures like a rider controlling a horse” since January 2017. To finish off the research work, the project partners have organized a panel discussion, which the public is warmly invited to attend. The event begins on Wednesday, November 27, 2019, at 4.30pm at Generali Hall, Super C, Templergraben 57, Aachen. The panel discussion is part of a symposium.

Institute of Industrial Engineering and Ergonomics at RWTH Aachen University has coordinated the project. Besides the University of Stuttgart, the Berlin School of Economics and Law, and the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Engineering IAO in Stuttgart, the two companies Paravan GmbH and Valeo GmbH were also involved in the project, which the BMBF financed with 3.18 million euros. The project aimed to make controlling semi-automated and highly automated vehicles intuitive, simple, and safe at the same time.

The solution is modeled on the steering gestures that have evolved in nature in the interaction between rider and horse. The system developed in the project captures a driving situation and offers a sensible selection of maneuvers, which are selected by intuitive steering gestures, such as a wiping gesture on the steering wheel, and then automatically implemented. Examples include changing lanes, turning, or parking. This automation has much potential, especially for people with physical disabilities.

Source: Press and Communications