'Smiling' autonomous car to improve pedestrian safety

Swedish company creates an autonomous car with a reassuring human response to make pedestrians feel safer around the emerging technology

To make pedestrians feel safer around autonomous cars Semcon, a Swedish technology company, has developed a self-driving vehicle that indicates it is stopping at a safe distance by 'smiling'.

The Smiling Car concept is based on findings that eight out of ten pedestrians seek eye contact with the driver when they cross the street.

Autonomous cars no longer make this possible, so car manufacturers must find new ways for the cars to communicate with the people around them so that they feel safe. In an international survey, conducted by research company Inzio for Semcon, 47% of respondents answered that they do not trust autonomous cars.

“A lot of the discussions regarding self-driving cars are about the car’s technology. But how these vehicles will interact with unprotected road users is just as important. Self-driving cars need to communicate in a way that feels familiar and creates trust,” said Karin Eklund, who is responsible for user experience at Semcon.

This prompted the development of The Smiling Car that can interact easily and quickly by using a ‘smile’ light on the front – a message that Semcon says is readily understood by everyone.

Future models of The Smiling Car might include systems for eye tracking and laser technology, known as Lidar, for a more detailed analysis of the surrounding environment. This would make it possible to perceive small head movements or read the eyes to create an even safer interaction between humans and cars, said Semcon.

“The strength behind The Smiling Car is that we allow people to communicate in the way they are used to, instead of taking an unnecessary detour via technology,” said Eklund.

The Smiling Car is the first step in a long-term process in which Semcon, together with research institute Viktoria Swedish ICT and partners in the automotive industry, wants to create a global standard on how self-driving cars communicate with their surroundings.

“Today there are clear agreements on how cars must indicate when changing lanes. We now need to develop a common language for how self-driving cars will interact with pedestrians,” says Markus Granlund, president and chief executive at Semcon.