Electric vehicles and electric motors are advancing rapidly, and while the use of strong magnetic materials and other innovations are great for efficiency, modern designs have become too quiet for some applications. The number of e-scooters currently on the road is also increasing, and in the UK capital, Transport for London’s e-scooter rental trial – which includes three operators, Tier, Lime and Dott – has been extended further and will now run until 2023 September. That’s good news in terms of reducing urban air pollution, but until e-scooters are equipped with acoustic vehicle warning systems, they could still scare pedestrians. To address these issues, developers are adding acoustic vehicle warning systems to their latest designs.
To fill the audible gap in e-scooter alarm systems, e-scooter rental providers are working on a universal solution that, ideally, will be recognizable to everyone. “Developing an industry-standard e-scooter sound that can be heard by those who need it and is not intrusive can greatly improve the experience of driving on some dangerous roads.” Dott co-founder and CEO Henri Moissinac said.
Dott currently operates more than 40,000 e-scooters and 10,000 e-bikes in major cities in Belgium, France, Israel, Italy, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the UK. Additionally, working with project partners at the University of Salford’s Center for Acoustic Research, the micromobility operator has whittled down the sounds of its future vehicle acoustic warning system to three candidates.
Key to the team’s success was choosing a sound that would enhance the presence of nearby e-scooters without causing noise pollution. The next step in this direction involves the use of realistic digital simulations. “Using virtual reality to create immersive and realistic scenarios in a safe and controlled laboratory environment will allow us to achieve robust results,” commented Dr Antonio J Torija Martinez, University of Salford’s Principal Research Fellow involved in the project .
To help validate its findings, the team is working closely with the RNIB (Royal National Institute for Blind People) and associations of the blind across Europe. The team’s research shows that “vehicle noticeability can be significantly improved by adding warning sounds”. And, in terms of sound design, tones that are modulated according to the speed at which the electric scooter is traveling work best.
safety buffer
Adding the vehicle’s acoustic warning system could allow other road users to detect an approaching rider half a second earlier than a “silent” electric scooter. In fact, for an e-scooter traveling at 15 mph, this advanced warning will allow pedestrians to hear it up to 3.2 meters away (if desired).
Designers have several options for linking sound to the vehicle’s motion. Dott’s team identified the electric scooter’s accelerometer (located on the motor hub) and the power dissipated by the drive unit as prime candidates. In principle, GPS signals can also be used. However, this data source is unlikely to provide such continuous input due to black spots in the coverage.
So, the next time you’re out in the city, pedestrians may soon be able to hear the sound of an electric scooter vehicle’s acoustic warning system.
Post time: Dec-21-2022