Designing Driver Interface for the UM-D's Low Mass Vehicle for China, India and the United States

This paper presents a process and its results used to define and design interior items such as controls, displays, handles, etc. for a low mass vehicle (LMV) being developed at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. The exterior and interior design of the vehicle was done by students at the College of Creative Studies, Detroit. The size of the low mass vehicle is comparable to the current C-class production vehicles (such as Ford Focus), but it will weigh about 30% less than the Toyota Echo. The vehicle is targeted as a low cost, entry level, small car for markets in China, India and the United States. To assure that the feature content would be suitable for the three potential markets, students from China, India and the United States available on the UM-Dearborn campus were interviewed. The results from the survey were used to refine the exterior and interior features and content of the vehicle. The driver controls and displays were designed to meet ergonomic guidelines in the following nine areas: 1) Visibility, Obscurations and Reflections; 2) Forward Vision Down Angle; 3) Grouping, Association and Expected Locations; 4) Identification and Labeling; 5) Graphics, Legibility and Illumination; 6) Understandability and Interpretability; 7) Minimum and Maximum Comfortable Reach; 8) Control Area, Clearance and Grasping; and 9) Control Movements, Efforts and Operability. This paper presents views of a number of controls and displays developed using computer graphics, design considerations, ergonomics scoring scheme, and interior ergonomics evaluation summary sheet used in the design process. The resulting driver interface features were packaged into different base and optional groups that can meet market needs in China, India, and the United States.