Research on Age-Friendly Design Strategies for Autonomous Buses Based on Service Design Concepts

In the context of the accelerating development of an aging society, the inconvenient mobility of the elderly conflicts with the design of existing vehicles. The promotion and development of autonomous vehicles can provide solutions to this conflict to a certain extent. But existing autonomous vehicles lack a systematic age-friendly design. This study is based on a service design idea and employs the KJKANO hybrid model. The KJ method is used to construct a three-tier demand framework of “safety-function-emotion.” The KANO method is applied to identify the priority classification of each demand within the tiered framework. The study derives an aging-friendly design strategy for autonomous buses that prioritizes safety demands as the foundation, with functionality and emotional demands balanced accordingly. These strategies are then implemented in design practice. This study provides a user-centered systematic solution for the age-friendly design of autonomous buses, offering insights for research on age-friendly smart transportation.