Traffic research so far was focused on accidents and accident prevention. With the introduction of automated or semi-automated cars into the public realm however, the question is, how automated cars must be designed to blend in.

The presentation is based on the approach of traffic seen as a cooperative activity, where people are implicitly collaborating in the frame of given traffic rules. The Perception Action Model (PAM, Stephanie Preston 2007) in short suggests that perception and action are inseparable - people perceive actions of others and act immediately. This process is mutual and draws on empathy to predict the activities of the others. “Mind-Reading” (Eric Kandel, 2012) enables to read mood, energy, intention out of the other traffic participants.

Today it seems sufficient to perceive the way other drivers move their vehicle to trigger the Mind Reading process and enable predictive behavior. In case of automated vehicles, human perception has to be triggered properly to avoid misinterpretation or just wrong results of the empathic process.

Based on this approach the presentation introduces an experimental external user interface for highly or fully automated vehicles to address the underlying functionality of traffic. It includes the following features

• Indication of highly automated mode according to and exceeding the SAE recommendation
• Signaling of cooperative behavior
• Communication especially with vulnerable road users.

The system is demonstrated in various everyday driving situations on highways and city roads, such as merging traffic or a stop for pedestrians at a cross walk. Especially the aspects of an intuitive and intercultural understanding are discussed.

In addition, the external user interface can be used to share the vehicle’s knowledge about impending dangerous situations with its immediate surroundings – thus helping others to avoid potential accidents.

The presentation aims to demonstrate and discuss how an intuitively designed external user interface can help build informed trust in highly automated vehicles as a major factor of success and even give back to society by sharing its situation awareness.

Informed Trust is a major factor of success for Real-Word Deployment of Automated Driving Systems.