What should the electric car of tomorrow sound like?

Published:

12/18/2009

Electric cars are practically noiseless at low speeds, making them a potential danger to pedestrians. Equipping the cars with artificial sounds may solve the problem. A provocative study by the Danish company DELTA has called attention to the sound of electric vehicles – or rather the lack thereof.

Electric cars are quiet, especially at low speed - maybe too quiet for pedestrians, cyclists and the visually impaired, who are accustomed to listen for the sounds of approaching vehicles. So, while a noiseless car may be desirable from a design point of view, this very quality has also become a safety concern.

In a recent American scientific study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, it has been shown that a hybrid electric vehicle was twice as likely to be involved in a pedestrian crash while slowing, stopping, backing up or entering or leaving parking spaces than was an internal combustion engine vehicle.

To study this matter further, DELTA SenseLab invited sound designers from Sonic Brandig and Aarhus University to propose how electric vehicles (EVs) should sound at low speed. The resulting 13 sounds have been accessible on DELTA’s website, and visitors to the Bright Green Expo in Copenhagen during the COP15 weekend were also invited to vote for the sound they preferred. The resulting consumer poll, with over 600 respondents, has given an indication of which types of sound were most and least desired. (Use the links below, to hear the suggested sounds, and see the results of the poll)

Whilst none of the suggested sounds are viewed to be truly winning solutions, the study has illustrated the level of complexity and opinion around this important design matter, which will not only affect our sound environment, but also road safety.

During the Bright Green Expo, many comments were given that illustrate that this work is only just beginning: “These sounds are bit weird” or “Shouldn’t EVs be silent to avoid noise pollution”. Clearly, there is a need to find a balance between safety and minimizing noise pollution from future hi-tech vehicles.

You can help!

So how should electric vehicles sound? The challenge is to find a sound that is audible to most pedestrians above the general traffic “soundscape” without being frightening or annoying.

DELTA SenseLabs plans to establish a number of large scale consumer polls in the coming months to gauge consumer opinion – and welcomes suggestions on how electric cars might sound in the future in the form of descriptions or sound files (use contact information listed below)

Contact

Torben Holm Pedersen, Sound specialist, DELTA SenseLab, tlf. +45 72 19 46 17
Nick Zacharov, Head of department SenseLab, tel. no. +45 20 40 77 15

Links

DELTA on EnergyMap.dk

Listen to the suggested sounds here

See the results of the poll here