Applied Design Science Research in the Context of Smart and Sustainable Mobility - The Case of Vehicle Supply and Demand Management in Shared Vehicle Services

In this dissertation, the design of “information systems” (IS) for the future of mobility in form of smart, environmentally sustainable, flexible and dynamic mobility services are investigated. Specifically, the challenge of balancing vehicle supply and demand in shared vehicle services is addressed in a series of studies. One study includes the development of a taxonomy of vehicle relocation problems as a tool to describe them comprehensively and by this, facilitating a more precise solution development. The second study investigates the potential of IS in increasing the electric vehicle utilization in e-carsharing fleets that employs both electric and conventional vehicles. The third study includes the design and implementation of an IS that enables carsharing providers to construct pricing areas, which are designed to influence customer rental behavior. The fourth study addresses the vehicle supply and demand problem in services which provide autonomous driving vehicles for its customers, e.g. self-driving taxis, by adapting concepts from carsharing literature. Lastly, the gathered insights from applying design-oriented research in various research projects and contexts are formulized in study five. It provides a research framework, method and publication schema for practical and iterative design-oriented research. Thus, the presented research addresses topics of smart and sustainable mobility as well as foundations of design-oriented research.