[Quietcars] Quiet hybrids: An end to their sounds of silence?Information Article

[Deborah Kent Stein]

Dear Mike,

This is a very nice article.  If you can send me the URL we might put it on 
the quiet cars website.  Do you have more information on where it came from?

Debbie


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "michael townsend" <mrtownsend at optonline.net>
To: <quietcars at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Monday, July 05, 2010 10:32 AM
Subject: [Quietcars] Quiet hybrids: An end to their sounds of 
silence?Information Article


>A really well written article that doesn't play the blame game as many
> articles on this and other lists do.
>
> Mike T in NJ
>
>
> Quiet hybrids: An end to their sounds of silence?
>
> By KEN THOMAS
> July 4, 2010 - 9:18am
>
> WASHINGTON (AP) - The age of the silent hybrid may be coming to an end.
>
> Gas-electric hybrids, propelled by electric motors at low speeds, are
> well-known for their quiet ride and great mileage. But their silence isn't
> always golden.
>
> Some researchers and safety groups say that quiet operation _ "hybrid 
> creep"
> _ can pose risks for unsuspecting pedestrians and the blind, who use sound
> cues.
>
> Advocates for the blind have sought the addition of artificial noises in
> hybrids for several years, concerned that the expected sales growth of
> hybrids could lead to more pedestrian fatalities and injuries. Hybrids
> account for about 2 percent of new car sales each year but auto companies
> are expected to boost production in advance of tougher fuel efficiency
> standards this decade.
>
> "This is an example of too much of a good thing," said John Pare, 
> executive
> director for strategic initiatives with the National Federation of the
> Blind. "Cars got quieter, that was good. Suddenly they got to be so quiet
> that it added an element of danger."
>
> The government's auto safety agency said in a research report last year 
> that
> hybrid vehicles are twice as likely to be involved in pedestrian crashes 
> at
> low speeds compared with cars with conventional engines. The study by the
> National Highway Traffic Safety Administration examined circumstances in
> which the vehicles were slowing down or coming to a stop, backing up or
> entering or departing a parking space.
>
> More than 4,300 pedestrians were killed in 2008, according to the most
> recent data available. The government has been researching the safety 
> risks
> that hybrids and electrics could pose for pedestrians, particularly the
> blind, along with the elderly and children, for vehicles traveling at 20 
> mph
> or less. When a car is going faster, the friction between the tire and the
> road's surface makes the vehicle louder.
>
> The quiet hybrid phenomenon already has its place in pop culture. In an
> episode of NBC's "The Office," paper salesman Andy Bernard uses his 
> stealthy
> blue Toyota Prius to sneak up on Dwight Schrute and pin his bitter rival
> against a hedge. One concerned co-worker, watching the unfolding drama, 
> says
> "the Prius is silent if he keeps it under 5 miles per hour."
>
> Congress is heeding the warnings, adding sound performance requirements 
> for
> hybrids and electric cars to an auto safety bill being considered after 
> the
> massive Toyota recalls. Lawmakers could consider the changes this summer 
> and
> car companies most likely would have to have the sounds ready to go three
> years after the release of new government rules.
>
> Automakers helped develop the proposal in Congress and are moving forward
> with new artificial sounds that will be emitted from electric cars and
> future hybrid models.
>
> Nissan Motor Corp. has produced distinct sounds for the Leaf, the electric
> car expected to go on sale this year, when the vehicle accelerates or 
> moves
> in reverse. When the Leaf speeds up to 20 mph, it automatically will use a
> soft whirring sound that changes pitch as the car accelerates. When the 
> Leaf
> backs up, an intermittent bell will ring to warn those nearby.
>
> The Japanese automaker consulted with acoustic psychologists and Hollywood
> sound designers to find a tone that addresses drivers, pedestrians and the
> community.
>
> "It was kind of like peeling back an onion. The more we worked on it, the
> more issues came up, the more of a balancing act it became," said Andy
> Christensen, a manager with Nissan's North American Technical Center near
> Detroit. Nissan plans to use the sounds on the Infiniti M35 hybrid to be
> released in 2012.
>
> General Motors Co. wanted a more subtle chirp on its Chevrolet Volt, so it
> chose an alert horn that lets the driver warn an unknowing bystander.
>
> "We didn't want to blast the horn at them and figuratively smack the 
> people
> in the nose," said Doug Moore, a vehicle performance engineer for the Volt
> project. "We just wanted to tap them on the shoulder and say, 'Hey I'm
> here.'"
>
> Other automakers are hard at work, too.
>
> Toyota Motor Corp., which makes the top-selling Prius hybrid, is studying
> artificial sounds for hybrids when the vehicle is propelled by its 
> electric
> motor at low speeds. Ford Motor Co. is working to bring external sounds to
> future hybrids and electrics, including its Focus electric car, expected 
> in
> 2011, and a next-generation hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicle planned for
> 2012.
>
> Nancy Gioia, Ford's director of global electrification, said car companies
> should consider standardizing tones from future hybrids and electrics to
> avoid a cacophony of confusion on the streets.
>
> "It can't be like cell phones where we all select our own sound and we 
> tune
> out everybody else's but our own," Gioia said.
>
> Some green car advocates have questioned the need for the extra tones and
> noted that the requirement could add more noise to neighborhoods. Paul
> Scott, vice president of Plug In America, said the sounds could help under
> certain circumstances, but drivers should have the right to activate the
> tones.
>
> "After hearing how innocuous the Nissan Leaf sound is, maybe it'll be a
> minor irritant for us, but I suspect people will tire of it eventually and
> seek ways to disable the noise," Scott said in an e-mail from Japan, where
> he was test-driving the car.
>
> Les Blomberg, who is the founder of the Noise Pollution Clearinghouse, 
> said
> reducing noise from the loudest vehicles, such as trucks, buses and
> motorcycles, would increase the ability of pedestrians to detect sound.
> Adding sounds to hybrids, however, would simply enhance noise pollution 
> and
> make it more difficult to hear an individual vehicle in traffic.
>
>
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