  Age-related macular degeneration is a leading cause of blindness worldwide
and is one of many limitations to independent driving among old adults. Highly
autonomous vehicles present a prospective solution for those who are no longer
capable of driving due to low vision. However, accessibility issues must be
addressed to create a safe and pleasant experience for this group of users so
that it allows them to maintain an appropriate level of situational awareness
and a sense of control during driving. In this study, we made use of a
human-centered design process consisting of five stages - empathize, define,
ideate, prototype, and test. We designed a prototype to aid old adults with
age-related macular degeneration to travel with a necessary level of
situational awareness and remain in control while riding in a highly or fully
autonomous vehicle. The final design prototype includes a voice-activated
navigation system with three levels of details to bolster situational
awareness, a 360 degree in-vehicle camera to detect both the passenger and
objects around the vehicle, a retractable microphone for the passenger to be
easily registered in the vehicle while speaking, and a physical button on the
console-side of the right and left front seats to manually activate the
navigation system.
