AR boosts cyclist safety around autonomous vehicles

Known as CycleARcade, the platform is the latest development in the university’s efforts to make cycling safer when autonomous vehicles (AVs) arrive on our roads.

AR headsets allow cyclists to see and interact with simulated AVs in real-world environments, with different scenarios and setups easily swapped out. As described in two separate research papers, CycleARcade was used to test different warning systems for cyclists as well as to assess how cyclists in different countries might react to AVs on their roads. 

“Ultimately, we’re aiming to thoroughly explore the ways in which cyclists and autonomous vehicles can speak the same language on the roads to keep both as safe as possible,” said research lead Professor Stephen Brewster from Glasgow’s School of Computing Science.

“Human drivers and riders have developed a sophisticated series of signals to help decide who has the right of way or who has priority in a change of lanes, for example, and it’s vital that cyclists can have the same level of trust and understanding with self-driving cars.