About the Automated Mobility Lab
Design for a Desired Automated Mobility Future
In the Automated Mobility Lab we are working together to envision and create the future of automated mobility from a human-centered perspective instead of a purely technological angle. Topics we work on involve creating meaningful human robot interactions in mobility, the implementation of automated mobility in organizations or society at large, design-driven mobility capabilities, or how to create desirable use cases for automated mobility.
Some of the questions we ask ourselves within the lab are: How can we shape our co-existence with these technologies to be safe, sustainable, and comfortable? How should these technologies respond to us as users? What impact should these technologies have on inclusivity? What makes these technologies socially desirable, and what (justly) hinders their acceptance? How can we effectively regulate these systems?
As automated technology is maturing and is on the verge of larger implementation, we are in a unique position to influence how this form of mobility will evolve. We do this by doing in-depth-scientific research with human centered approach, but also by collaborating with industry partners to implement our findings. Additionally, the collaboration with industrial design graduation students gives us the unique opportunity to explore a large range of possibilities and designs and test them in a hands-on methods.
A few research fields are highlighted below:
Automation adoption in organizational settings
The implementation of Smart mobility solutions in larger organizations isn’t self-evident. Therefore, worker-centric automation adoption in organizational settings is one of the labs focusses. Which is pursued through an embedded research approach by one of our lab member Garoa Gomez-Beldarrain in collaboration with the Royal Schiphol Group – Amsterdam Airport. Her work maps the practice of innovation teams, and designs new tools aimed at their needs in the adoption of automation solutions.
Interaction design for smart mobility
In the transition to higher levels of automation our vehicles are getting equipped with an increasing amount of driver support systems, gradually transitioning to autonomous vehicles. This impacts the role of the driver in how it collaborates and interacts with the vehicle. It also impacts how other road users interact with the (partly) automated vehicle. We are doing design research to explore how to shape the interaction between humans (drivers and other road users) with this new technology.
In her inaugural lecture Prof.dr. Nicole van Nes (Professor of Human-Centered Design for Smart Mobility) clearly gives an outline of the scope
Desired smart mobility
As automation solutions are implemented in more mobility fields, we observe possible fields of friction, where user and business ambitions might collide with societal or sustainability ambitions. It is clear that smart mobility can have many benefits, such increasing movement freedom for people with reduced mobility. Facilitating people who in other cases would not be in the position to drive a car themselves. But blind implementation of automation could for instance lead to initial increased congestion or a deterioration of the public transport system. Therefore, Gerbera Vledder and Nicole van Nes are working on an approach to be smart about implementing smart mobility. They do this by exploring societal and user needs in different contexts and map out where these needs collide or where they could coincide. Leading to opportunities in creating desired automated mobility solutions.
Dynamic Stability in Mobility Eco-Systems
Mobility systems increasingly integrate automation, AI, and platform-based coordination, new forms of instability emerge at the intersection of technology, human behavior, and societal goals. While smart mobility solutions promise efficiency and inclusivity, poorly aligned implementation can unintentionally exacerbate congestion, organizational fragility, or inequitable access. In his research, Euiyoung Kim examines how mobility systems can achieve dynamic stability: the ability to continuously adapt to change while maintaining social, organizational, and infrastructural coherence. For example, the aviation project by Sarika Kumar reframes aircraft turnaround operations as dynamic socio-technical systems, while Lisa Laverman explores how AI agents can support adaptive mobility orchestration in urban contexts in the City of Amsterdam. Complementing these applied studies, recent empirical work by Nikolaos Kyriakopoulos demonstrates how design thinking and AI capabilities jointly enhance decision-making agility in new product development. Providing empirical evidence for how design- and AI-enabled capabilities support adaptive performance in complex, fast-changing external environments. Together, these examples illustrate how design enables mobility systems that are not only smart and efficient, but also resilient and societally grounded.
