I average 18mph (burst of up to 30mph) on a7 mile ride and I have never been unable to hear approaching cars from behind. Do I trust my ears alone? No. But I've never been surprised by Prius, Volt, Tesla Roadster, or any other hybrid or electric vehicles. In biking events or on bike paths I can even hear approaching bicycles from behind (bike chain, wind, and tire noise). So I'm surprised that wind noise overpowers car noises for you.
It's been interesting to see all the comments about this! Obviously it's struck a nerve...and danger aside, I'm happy to see a number of people less than thrilled about the idea of noisier hybrids and EVs. There has to be a better solution.
The Locomotive Acts (or Red Flag Acts) were a series of Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom to control the use of mechanically propelled vehicles on British public highways during the latter part of the 19th century.
...
The 1865 act required all road locomotives, which included automobiles, to travel at a maximum of 4 mph (6 km/h) in the country and 2 mph (3 km/h) in towns and have a crew of three travel, one of whom should carry a red flag walking 60 yards (55 m) ahead of each vehicle.
Backup audible warning is already implemented on most trucks, commercial vehicles, municipal vehicles, etc. That is not a bad idea; the driver has limited view, and risk is higher. But that is totally different than always on noise generators.
Extra: Noun: An item in addition to what is usual or strictly necessary.
If you have to add the noise to an EV or Hybrid, it is extra. The world is way too noisy today.
While they are at it, why not ban wearing earbuds, headphones, hats covering the ears, earplugs, earmuffs, or anything else which reduces the auditory acuity of pedestrians?
We have too many rules, too many regulations, too many laws.
I support a rule requiring EV drivers to crank their stereos below 15 mph. Would be easy to implement in the electronics already there, and cost nothing.
Andrew Morris designed a circuit that could detect a stroke victim's groan and convert the sound into a signal so caregivers would know when help was needed.
New disc magnet motors fit into the design trend of stepping up to closed loop performance while maintaining the cost advantage of stepper motor technology.
At the Design News webinar on June 27, learn all about aluminum extrusion: designing the right shape so it costs the least, is simplest to manufacture, and best fits the application's structural requirements.
On April 21, NASA launched a novel project, putting into orbit three satellites that employ an off-the-shelf commercial smartphone as the control system.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 5
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
For industrial control applications, or even a simple assembly line, that machine can go almost 24/7 without a break. But what happens when the task is a little more complex? That’s where the “smart” machine would come in. The smart machine is one that has some simple (or complex in some cases) processing capability to be able to adapt to changing conditions. Such machines are suited for a host of applications, including automotive, aerospace, defense, medical, computers and electronics, telecommunications, consumer goods, and so on. This radio show will show what’s possible with smart machines, and what tradeoffs need to be made to implement such a solution.
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
0 
