Researchers develop a unique sound to help you to hear escooters passing by
What sound should an escooter make?
How do researchers develop an escooter sound?
The researchers plan to test a range of combinations of sounds and environments at UCL PEARL with people who are less likely to detectescootersnearby.
The sound will encompass the needs of people with sight loss, hearing loss, and neurodiverse conditions.
According to Dr. Antonio J Torija Martinez, Principal Investigator at the University of Salford, researchers have developed a standalone system to generate sound signals according to the scooter’s operating conditions, such as vehicle speed, and investigated pedestrian awareness of an approaching scooter with a series of added warning sounds.
Notably, there’s also an intention not to addsound pollutionto the already loud city streets.
The researchers aim to produce the sound and have it tested by operators in London this year. This will extend to the attainment of an industry-standard, ultimately scaling up to other cities in the UK and beyond.
A good start to improving the relationship between pedestrians and escooters
Ok, so this won’t solve the problem of visually impaired people tripping over abandoned scooters, but it will help reduce collisions. Personally, I’d like to see an escooter make a noxious sound when escooters exhibit noxious behavior like double riding, like a badge of shame. I wonder what other scenarios it could be used in?
What sound do you think an escooter should make?
I’ve been thinking about what noise an approachingescootershould make. It needs to be distinct enough to not blur into the cacophony of the cityscape, but also suitably pitched for those who have lost the upper tiers of their hearing.
Also, it needs to not make neurodiverse people feel more stressed than they should be.
This is a challenge that has already been faced by EV automakers, all of whom havechosen their own soundto denote a traveling EV. According to the team at TNW,some sounds are better than others. The team ranks the sound of the Porsche Taycan Turbo S as the best out of a fairly bad lot, with the Rivian Prime delivery van worthy of being killed with fire.
Then there’s this kinda stuff (shudder):
So, I think the sound would need to be somethinglikethis, but softer and still distinctive. It’s a definite challenge for the researchers.
Got a sound in mind?Let us knowon Twitter.
Story byCate Lawrence
Cate Lawrence is an Australian tech journo living in Berlin. She focuses on all things mobility: ebikes, autonomous vehicles, VTOL, smart ci(show all)Cate Lawrence is an Australian tech journo living in Berlin. She focuses on all things mobility: ebikes, autonomous vehicles, VTOL, smart cities, and the future of alternative energy sources like electric batteries, solar, and hydrogen.
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