At Kean University, I have established a research program focused on human-centered applications of Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR). My current research involves studying human behavior through the development of immersive VR environments, online interactive simulations, and mobile AR applications.
This research uses Virtual Reality (VR) to investigate how pedestrians make road-crossing decisions when interacting with autonomous vehicles, with a particular focus on external Human-Machine Interfaces (eHMIs) across diverse road and traffic environments. As part of this research, two immersive VR experimental studies using Meta Quest Pro headsets have been conducted, with undergraduate students contributing to the development and implementation of the 3D virtual environments and research experiments under my mentorship. Two manuscripts resulting from these studies are currently under review at leading journals. Three undergraduate students are currently co-authors on manuscripts resulting from these projects.
This research investigates whether pedestrian interactions with autonomous vehicles can be studied using a scalable online interactive environment. We developed a web-based simulated road-crossing application that allows participants to make crossing decisions using their own devices while interacting with autonomous vehicles and external Human-Machine Interfaces (eHMIs) across different road and traffic environments. The study was conducted through the Prolific crowdsourcing platform with more than 100 participants, enabling behavioral data to be collected from a substantially larger and more diverse sample than is typically feasible in an in-person VR study. Three undergraduate students have contributed to this research and are serving as co-authors on the resulting manuscript under preparation.
This research investigates the use of Augmented Reality (AR) to support student learning and engagement in computer programming. As part of this project, students developed a mobile AR application that visualizes programming concepts, allowing learners to interact with these concepts through AR-based visualizations. Students enrolled in Computer Programming course participated in this study. One graduate student and one undergraduate student contributed to this research and are serving as lead authors on the resulting journal manuscript, which is currently under review.
I was part of Hank Virtual Environments Laboratory during my PhD program in the University of Iowa. My research advsiors were Prof. Joseph Kearney from Computer Science and Prof. Jodie Plumert from Psychology and Brain Sciences.
Using Simulation to Study Communication between Autonomous Vehicles and Vulnerable Road Users
The goal of this study was to use an CAVE-based pedestrian simulator to examine how adults and children respond to visual cues conveying a driverless vehicle’s intent to yield to them at an unsignalized, midblock crossing. The specific objective is to examine the relationship between implicit kinematic cues for yielding, as indicated by vehicle deceleration, and the timing of an explicit cue given by an external Human-Machine Interface (eHMI) that signaled an intent to yield. This research is published in the Accident Analysis and Prevention journal.
A comparison of daytime and nighttime pedestrian road-crossing behavior using an immersive pedestrian simulator
Reduced visibility for both drivers and pedestrians is a key factor underlying the higher risk of vehicle-pedestrian collisions in dark conditions. This study investigated the extent to which pedestrians adjust for the higher risk of road crossing at night by comparing daytime and nighttime pedestrian road crossing using an CAVE virtual environment. Thie research is published in the Journal of Traffic Injury Prevention.
Using a virtual environment to study how pedestrians' and bicyclists' respond to vehicle Adaptive Headlamp Systems (AHS) in Nighttime Condition
Adaptive Headlight Systems (AHS) offer the potential to improve the visibility of pedestrians and bicyclists for drivers and alerting them to approaching vehicles. The goal of this study was to investigate how pedestrians and bicyclists respond to different types of AHS using between-subject conditions in nighttime CAVE virtual environment. This research is published in the Accident Analysis and Prevention journal and Journal of Safety Research.
Using Bicyclist Simulator to Assess Right-Hook Conflicts Between Bicycles and Cars at Protected and Unprotected Intersections
The study systematically examined whether protected bike intersections reduce the likelihood of bicycle-vehicle conflicts involving right-hook turns by examining how bicyclists respond to cars making right-hook turns at protected vs. non-protected intersections. The results show significant differences in the margin of safety between riders and turning vehicles at the conflict point where their paths cross in protected vs. unprotected intersections. The study is published in Driving Simulation Conference 2020 Europe VR