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

Sat Jul 10 17:45:29 UTC 2010

Deb, I'll try and sort this out for you.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jCEfT3hkLPgHtx2qPCw1T8ETaV
QgD9GO7F600

-----Original Message-----
From: quietcars-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:quietcars-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Deborah Kent Stein
Sent: Saturday, July 10, 2010 12:50 PM
To: Discussion of new quiet cars and pedestrian safety
Subject: Re: [Quietcars] Quiet hybrids: An end to their sounds
ofsilence?Information Article

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.
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Quietcars mailing list
> Quietcars at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/quietcars_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> Quietcars:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/quietcars_nfbnet.org/dkent5817%4
> 0worldnet.att.net

_______________________________________________
Quietcars mailing list
Quietcars at nfbnet.org
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/quietcars_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
Quietcars:
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/quietcars_nfbnet.org/mrtownsend%40opto
nline.net