About
Michael Clamann is the senior human factors engineer at the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center (HSRC). He applies his background in engineering and psychology to research how technology can be designed to help reduce human error by understanding human strengths and limitations. Dr. Clamann is a Science Policy Fellow with the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) and a member of the NC Department of Transportation’s Fully Autonomous Vehicle Committee.
PAVE: How does your work in human factors align with the our mission to educate the public on AV technology and its promise?
Vulnerable road users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, persons with disabilities, seniors, and children walking and biking to school, have different needs in their interactions with AV technology. I work to understand the travel behaviors of all users of transportation systems and assess how individuals influence the shared design of automated vehicles, built physical environments, and local policies.
PAVE: How can we work to improve public education about automated vehicles?
Sources of concise, accurate information are often missing in conversations about AVs. There needs to be a shared understanding of the functional capabilities of vehicle automation so decision makers and the general public understand what vehicle automation realistically can and can’t do.