Abstract
Taxonomy Based modeling was applied to describe drivers’ mental models of variable message signs (VMS’s) displayed on expressways. Progress in road telematics has made it possible to introduce variable message signs (VMS’s). Sensors embedded in the carriageway every 500m record certain variables (speed, flow rate, etc.) that are transformed in real time into “driving times” to a given destination if road conditions do not change.
VMS systems are auto-regulative Man-Machine (AMMI) systems which incorporate a model of the user: if the traffic flow is too high, then drivers should choose alternative routes. In so doing, the traffic flow should decrease. The model of the user is based on suppositions such as: people do not like to waste time, they fully understand the displayed messages, they trust the displayed values, they know of alternative routes. However, people also have a model of the way the system functions. And if they do not believe the contents of the message, they will not act as expected.
We collected data through interviews with drivers using the critical incidents technique (Flanagan, 1985). Results show that the mental models that drivers have of the way the VMS system works are various but not numerous and that most of them differ from the“ideal expert” mental model. It is clear that users don’t have an adequate model of how the VMS system works and that VMS planners have a model of user behaviour that does not correspond to the behaviour of the drivers we interviewed. Finally, Taxonomy Based Modeling is discussed as a tool for mental model remediation.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ackermann D., Tauber M.J. (1990). Mental Models and Human-Computer Interaction, vols.1 and 2. Amsterdam: North Holland.
Cohen, S. and H. Hadj-Salem: 1996, Évaluation comparative des affichages bouchons et temps de parcours. L’expérience de la ville de Paris, RTS 51.
Danech-Pajouh, M. and S. Bercu: 1998, Projet DACCORD, prévision des temps de parcours sur le BP et les voies rapides. Rapport INRETS.
J.C. Flanagan (1954) ArticleTitleThe Critical Incident Technique Psychological Bulletin 51 IssueID4 327–359
Jardin, P. and J. Laterrasse: 1998, Méthode d’analyse de l’impact des informations dynamiques des panneaux à message variables sur le comportement des usagers franciliens. In Congrès International de l’ATEC: Déplacements: l’ère de la gestion. Presses des Ponts et Chaussées eds.
S. Poitrenaud (1995) ArticleTitleThe Procope Semantic Network: an Alternative to Action Grammars International Journal of Human-Computer Studies 42 31–69 Occurrence Handle10.1006/ijhc.1995.1003
C.A. Tijus S. Poitrenaud J. Barcenilla (1997) ArticleTitleSemantics Networks of Action for Conception and Evaluation of Interfaces Revue Internationale de Systémique 11 95–107
C.A. Tijus S. Poitrenaud J.F. Richard (1996) ArticleTitlePropriétés, Objets, Procédures: les Réseaux Sémantiques d’Action appliqués à la Représentation des Dispositifs Techniques Le Travail Humain 3 209–229
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
de Lavalette, B.C., Tijus, C., Leproux, C. et al. Taxonomy Based Models for Reasoning: Making Inferences from Electronic Road Sign Information. Found Sci 10, 25–45 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-005-3004-7
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10699-005-3004-7