Impact of Auditory Takeover Wake-up Direction on Drivers’ Attention Allocation under Dangerous Scenarios Based on Eye-tracking

This study examines how auditory takeover arousal direction influences drivers’ attention allocation in hazardous scenarios through a two-factor within-subjects eye-tracking experiment. Utilizing the Carla autonomous driving simulator, 20 experienced drivers (≥1 year of driving experience) were exposed to two hazard types—explicit and latent—paired with three auditory arousal modes: basic warning (B1), ipsilateral mapping (B2), and contralateral mapping (B3). Eye-movement analysis revealed that B2 significantly reduced first fixation latency in latent hazards, whereas B1 was more effective in explicit hazards. Hazard type exhibited a significant main effect, with interaction effects highlighting auditory directionality’s stronger attention-guiding role in latent scenarios. The findings offer theoretical insights for designing auditory arousal strategies in autonomous driving takeover systems.