Postdoc Position in Adaptive Multimodal Human-Technology Interaction for Automated Driving

Join TU Delft’s Human-Centered Design Department as a postdoctoral researcher in the EU project AutHUMate and shape the future of adaptive human-technology interaction for automated driving systems.

Job description

The Human-Centered Design Department at the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering of TU Delft is looking for a highly motivated postdoctoral researcher to join the European Horizon Europe project AutHUMate (Adaptive User Training & Human-Technology Interaction Strategy for Enhanced Traffic Safety).

AutHUMate investigates how automated driving systems (SAE Level 2–3) can interact with drivers in ways that are safe, adaptive, understandable, and trustworthy. As vehicles become increasingly automated, new challenges emerge around human-technology interaction, such as trust in automation, transitions of control, driver awareness, and the communication of system capabilities and limitations. The project brings together expertise from human-computer interaction, AI, human factors, cognitive science, and mobility research to develop adaptive interaction and training strategies for automated driving.

At TU Delft, the postdoctoral researcher will contribute primarily to the design exploration and prototype implementation of adaptive human-machine interaction concepts that integrate technical innovation with human-centred design principles and societal readiness considerations.

You will work at the intersection of:

• Human-computer interaction and human-centred AI
• Adaptive and multimodal interface design
• Driver state monitoring and contextual interaction
• Human factors and cognitive/perceptual ergonomics
• Design research and participatory design methods
• Prototyping and evaluation of intelligent interactive systems

The research will contribute to the development of adaptive interaction strategies that dynamically support drivers based on cognitive state, workload, attention, and situational context. This includes designing and evaluating multimodal interaction concepts using visual, auditory, and haptic communication modalities, as well as supporting prototype development and integration within simulation and real-world testing environments.

A key aspect of the role is bridging technical implementation with design-driven and societal perspectives. You will collaborate closely with interdisciplinary project partners from academia and industry across Europe, including experts in AI, automated driving, cognitive science, driver monitoring, and societal readiness assessment. The project explicitly integrates inclusive and participatory design approaches to ensure that adaptive automated driving systems are trustworthy, understandable, and accessible for diverse user groups.

You will be part of an interdisciplinary research environment within TU Delft and contribute to scientific publications, project deliverables, workshops, demonstrators, and international collaboration activities within the AutHUMate consortium.

Job requirements

Essential:

• PhD in Human-Computer Interaction, Human Factors, Interaction Design or a related field
• Strong interest in human-centred intelligent systems and adaptive interaction
• Experience with prototyping and implementing interactive systems
• Experience with Virtual Reality / Augmented Reality and/or physiological sensing
• Programming skills for research prototypes and data-driven systems (e.g., Python, Unity, web technologies, or similar)
• Experience with user studies and experimental design
• Ability to work independently in an interdisciplinary and international research team
• Excellent communication and academic writing skills in English

Nice to have:

• Knowledge of human factors, cognitive ergonomics, or usability engineering
• Experience with participatory design, co-creation, or societal aspects of technology design
• Dutch language proficiency is considered a plus, as this role involves conducting user research with participants in the Netherlands

TU Delft

Working at TU Delft means contributing to solutions that really make a difference.

At TU Delft, our people make the difference. With their knowledge and curiosity, our staff provide a high-quality education and conduct pioneering research that extends beyond the campus. You will have the opportunity to take the initiative, work with others, and grow as a professional. Working at TU Delft means joining an international community of professionals and students.

Faculty Industrial Design Engineering

The Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering focuses on matching the evolution of people with the speed of technological change. Delft designers act as a bridge between advances in technology and the needs of people, organisations and society to create products, services and systems with purpose.

IDE is a leader in design research across the application areas of mobility, sustainability and health, as well as in the development of design tools and methods.

In close cooperation with industry, the public sector and NGOs, the faculty explores possible futures in research and education to design for a complex future.

Conditions of employment

• Duration of contract is 20-25 months. Temporary.
• An excellent pension scheme via the ABP.
• The possibility to compile an individual employment package every year.
• Discount with health insurers on supplemental packages.
• Flexible working week.
• Every year, 232 leave hours (at 38 hours). You can also sell or buy additional leave hours via the individual choice budget.
• Plenty of opportunities for education, training and courses.
• Partially paid parental leave.
• Attention for working healthy and energetically with the vitality program.
• If you need to relocate to the Netherlands for this job, TU Delft offers support to help make your move as smooth as possible, including relocation information, events to help you settle in the Netherlands, and a Dual Career Programme to support your accompanying partner with their job search in the Netherlands.

As part of knowledge security, TU Delft conducts a risk assessment during the recruitment of personnel to help prevent the unwanted transfer of sensitive knowledge and technology. The assessment is based on information provided by candidates, such as their motivation letter and CV, and takes place at the final stages of the selection process. When the outcome of the assessment is negative, the candidate will be informed. The processing of personal data in the context of the risk assessment is carried out on the legal basis of the GDPR: performing a public task in the public interest.