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[Display omitted] • Qualitative semi-structured interview study with 29 end-users. • Investigating their requirements of L4 AV. • They need remote drivers to clarify what happened and explain what to do next. • They need the remote drivers to be located in the same country with the L4 AV. • Dedicated remote drivers are preferred over random ones. The Level 4 Automated Vehicles (L4 AV) potentially deliver social, economic, safety and environmental benefits. A key feature for the L4 AV is the failsafe mechanism which ensures the safety of the vehicle without human driver input when reaching system limitations. An important solution for the failsafe is the 5G-enabled teleoperation system controlled by a remote driver. However, understanding end-users' perception, needs and requirements towards the L4 AV is a significant under-researched area. To fill the research gap, this study conducted semi-structured interviews with 29 potential end-users to qualitatively explore the new driver-automation-remote driver interaction in the L4 AV. Results showed that end-users would like to understand how the remote driver operates the vehicle remotely and would not expect them to be multitasking or distracted. They also show that remote drivers' sensing and information about the driving environment are important. Remote drivers should also be qualified and experienced drivers and must have undergone background security checks before teleoperating the L4 AV. They require remote drivers based in the same country as the L4 AV to prevent issues such as unfamiliar road layouts, different traffic rules, cultural driving style variations, liability concerns, and time differences from affecting performance. They require the remote drivers to clarify what had happened and explain how they will deal with the situation and operate the vehicle in the situation of failsafe in the L4 AV. Dedicated remote drivers are preferred over random ones. A review and feedback system is important for the end-users to evaluate the services and choose preferred remote drivers. Finally, end-users are concerned about the liability and legal implications of utilising a L4 AV, especially during the period that the L4 AV is being operated by the remote drivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Connected and automated vehicles have the potential to deliver significant environmental, safety, economic and social benefits. The key advancement for automated vehicles with higher levels of automation (SAE Level 4 and over) is fail-operational. One possible solution for the failsafe mode of automated vehicles is a 5G-enabled teleoperation system controlled by remote drivers. However, knowledge is missing regarding understanding of the human–machine interaction in teleoperation from the perspective of remote drivers. To address this research gap, this study qualitatively investigated the acceptance, attitudes, needs and requirements of remote drivers when teleoperating a 5G-enabled Level 4 automated vehicle (5G L4 AV) in the real world. The results showed that remote drivers are positive towards the 5G L4 AV. They would like to constantly monitor the driving when they are not controlling the vehicle remotely. Improving their field of vision for driving and enhancing the perception of physical motion feedback are the two key supports required by remote drivers in 5G L4 AVs. The knowledge gained in this study provides new insights into facilitating the design and development of safe, effective and user-friendly teleoperation systems in vehicle automation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Graphical abstract Highlights • Anaerobic co-digestion of microalgae with potato process waste was evaluated. • Methane yields were enhanced by up to 47% under co-digestion conditions. • Addition of high proportions of potato waste significantly enhanced methane yields. • Potato discarded parts produced higher methane yields than potato peel. • High SIR limited the methane yields due to elevated concentrations of soluble COD. Abstract This investigation aimed to evaluate the feasibility of potato processing waste (PPW) as a co-substrate for Chlorella vulgaris in batch biochemical methane potential (BMP) tests. Three parameters were examined: C. vulgaris and PPW mixing ratios (100:0, 75:25, 50:50, 25:75 and 0:100), PPW type (potato discarded parts (PPW dp) and potato peel (PPW p)), and substrate to inoculum ratio (0.5 and 1.0 SIRs). The mixing ratio was a significant factor with higher methane yields obtained with 25:75 C. vulgaris : PPW. The type of PPW also affected methane yield, as C. vulgaris co-digested with PPW dp increased methane yield by 22–47%, versus a 12–32% enhancement with PPW p. Moreover, a SIR of 1.0 led to an accumulation of soluble COD, resulting in decreased methane yield relative to a SIR of 0.5. Overall, the current study showed that PPW are suitable feedstocks for co-digestion with microalgae, with the enhanced methane yields attributed to a balance C/N ratio. However, the extra nitrogen in the seed inoculum of the BMP test may have obscured the full benefits and hidden some synergistic effects. Therefore, the follow-up studies should be carried out in continuous anaerobic digesters to verify the full potential of PPW as co-digestion substrate for microalgae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence of the level 3 automated vehicles (L3 AVs) can enable drivers to be completely disengaged from driving and safely perform other non-driving related tasks, but sometimes their takeover of control of the vehicle is required. The takeover of control is an important human–machine interaction in L3 AVs. However, little research has focused on investigating the effect of gender on takeover performance. In order to fill this research gap, a driving simulator study with 76 drivers (33 females and 43 males) was conducted. The participants took over control from L3 AVs, and the timing and quality of takeover were measured. The results show that although there was no significant difference in most of the measurements adopted to quantify takeover performance between female and male. Gender did affect takeover performance slightly, with women exhibited slightly better performance than men. Compared to men, women exhibited a smaller percentage of hasty takeovers and slightly faster reaction times as well as slightly more stable operation of the steering wheel. The findings highlight that it is important for both genders to recognise they can use and interact with L3 AVs well, and more hands-on experience and teaching sessions could be provided to deepen their understanding of L3 AVs. The design of the car interiors of L3 AVs should also take into account gender differences in the preferences of users for different non-driving related tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Quantitative driving simulator study with 39 older drivers. • Comparing performance of two subgroups of older people interacting with L3 AV. • Older people should not be considered as a homogeneous group in L3 AV. • Older people aged 60–69 exhibited better performance than those aged 70 and over. • Both two age groups exhibited positive attitude towards L3 AV. Exploring the future mobility of older people is imperative for maintaining wellbeing and quality of life in an ageing society. The forthcoming level 3 automated vehicle may potentially benefit older people. In a level 3 automated vehicle, the driver can be completely disengaged from driving while, under some circumstances, being expected to take over the control occasionally. Existing research into older people and level 3 automated vehicles considers older people to be a homogeneous group, but it is not clear if different sub-groups of old people have different performance and perceptions when interacting with automated vehicles. To fill this research gap, a driving simulator investigation was conducted. We adopted a between-subjects experimental design with subgroup of old age as the independent variable. The differences in performance, behaviour, and perception towards level 3 automated vehicles between the younger old group (60–69 years old) and older old group (70 years old and over) was investigated. 15 subjects from the younger old group (mean age = 64.87 years, SD = 3.46 years) and 24 from the older old group (mean age = 75.13 years, SD = 3.35 years) participated in the study. The findings indicate that older people should not be regarded as a homogeneous group when interacting with automated vehicle. Compared to the younger old people, the older old people took over the control of the vehicle more slowly, and their takeover was less stable and more critical. However, both groups exhibited positive perceptions towards level 3 automation, and the of older old people's perceptions were significantly more positive. This study demonstrated the importance of recognising older people as a heterogeneous group in terms of their performance, capabilities, needs and requirements when interacting with automated vehicles. This may have implications in the design of such systems and also understanding the market for autonomous mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the ever-pressing challenges of societal ageing, robotic technologies for older people are increasingly portrayed as a solution for better independent living for longer. However, the application of human-following robots for elderly citizens has not yet been considered, and any prospective benefits offered by the technology for active ageing have previously been overlooked. This qualitative research aimed to explore older people's needs and requirements towards the human-following robot through the reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured interview data from 17 independent older adults, supported by a video-based demonstration of the robot. The results indicate that older people believed that human-following robot has the potential to provide social benefits to an independent older adult by encouraging walking trips and prompting social interaction with others in the community. Practical limitations and cost of the robot are barriers to adoption at present. The findings indicate that there is potential for human-following robots to support active ageing, through increasing opportunities for the social participation of an older adult, but further development of the robot is needed for this potential to be realised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the ever-pressing challenges of societal ageing, robotic technologies for older people are increasingly portrayed as a solution for better independent living for longer. However, the application of human-following robots for elderly citizens has not yet been considered, and any prospective benefits offered by the technology for active ageing have previously been overlooked. This qualitative research aimed to explore older people's needs and requirements towards the human-following robot through the reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured interview data from 17 independent older adults, supported by a video-based demonstration of the robot. The results indicate that older people believed that human-following robot has the potential to provide social benefits to an independent older adult by encouraging walking trips and prompting social interaction with others in the community. Practical limitations and cost of the robot are barriers to adoption at present. The findings indicate that there is potential for human-following robots to support active ageing, through increasing opportunities for the social participation of an older adult, but further development of the robot is needed for this potential to be realised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rate of urbanization in Europe is increasing rapidly. Traffic congestion has become one of the biggest challenges for cities. Additionally, thousands of people die each year in accidents on European roads. In addition, road transport is one of the biggest reasons for the increase in air pollution and greenhouse gases in Europe. To solve these problems, cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITS) have accelerated in Europe, after more than ten years of research and development. The European Commission has carried out significant work in this field in recent years and has prepared a strategy document for the deployment of C-ITS services in Europe. The Commission considers that C-ITS have significant potential in reducing the negative effects of road traffic and expects these systems to deploy rapidly in European cities. However, in order to achieve this, it is imperative to clearly identify the needs of cities in implementing and managing these systems, the extent to which these systems will respond to different mobility problems of the cities, and the important barriers to widespread deployment. This study focused on qualitatively examining the C-ITS deployment from the stakeholder perspective. The knowledge generated is useful to facilitate the large-scale future deployment of C-ITS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]