Designing for Trust: How Human-Machine Interface Can Shape the Future of Urban Air Mobility

This study investigates the influence of human-machine interface (HMI) design on passenger trust in autonomous electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) vehicles. An immersive simulator-based experiment was conducted with 34 participants, exposing them to four HMI conditions: baseline, movement, hazard detection, and full information condition. As related measures of passenger trust, we collected self-reported measures including trust, perceived safety, perceived reliability, and intention to use. In addition, physiological measures including gaze behavior, electrodermal activity, and heart rate were collected. The results indicated that movement and hazard detection information improved passenger trust, suggesting that HMI design could play a crucial role in enhancing the acceptance of autonomous eVTOLs. In addition, gaze behavior showed a stronger relationship with self-reported trust than other physiological measures. The findings underscore the importance of HMI design in fostering passenger trust, which is critical to the success of urban air mobility.