What can we do to influence the automakers and the rule makers? If the
result is the horrible beep that commercial vehicles make backing up (I'll
not that in Seattle, the new garbage trucks have a much more polite noise
now), it will be unbearable. If we have to have noise, my take is the
amount of noise should be rougly equivalent to a properly working quite ICE
vehicle. That seems to have worked without complaint for years, so anything
more is overreaction.
It's true that peds will step out without looking, relying on ears. Having
some sound is probably a good idea. I bicycle a lot and one time hit a ped
who stepped out in front of me without looking! (We both fell, but no
significant injuries.) Being hit by a car would be a lot worse.
Peri
-----Original Message-----
From:
[email protected] [mailto:
[email protected]] On Behalf
Of Bill Dube
Sent: 17 December, 2010 3:03 PM
To: Electric Vehicle Discussion List
Subject: Re: [EVDL] Noisy EVs?
For the Pike's Peak International Hill Climb, Eva was required to have some
sort of noise-making device on her ElectroCat electric motorcycle. In that
specific situation, it makes perfect sense to have the machine make some
sort of simulated racing vehicle noise.
The course has no fences and spectators line the sides of the roads (even
the outside of corners!) Without some sort of simulated race car/motorcycle
noise, spectators will walk out into the road in front of you, injuring
themselves and you.
Our buddy Joe Sellars made a nifty noise-maker that sounded like a
2-stroke bike shifting gears, infinitely.... It would get folks out of the
way, but by the time they heard the bike rev through the 10th identical
gear, they realized the noise was a fake and the bike was electric. It was
also well past them at that point. Perfect solution from our perspective.
Others that have entered this race with EVs over the years have
experimented with different noises, like a siren. If it doesn't sound like a
race car, folks will step out into the road to see what is making that weird
noise. It makes the situation worse instead of better unless it sounds
something like an ICE race car, like a racing transmission with square gear
teeth or exhaust noise, etc.
On the normal street vehicle, there is no need for anything but
perhaps a polite "ding ding" type bell needed beyond the regular car horn.
As the driver, it is your job to not run anyone over on a cross walk or side
walk. If they are crossing against the signal, or jay walking, they will
hear your squealing tires and blowing horn, and then quickly step back on
the sidewalk if you are both doing your jobs.
I should note that your tires make noise rolling on the pavement.
Most folks don't know that, because their engine makes so much noise.
If there are no other cars around, a pedestrian can easily hear this.
Listen a bit the next time you are waiting for the bus and you will hear it
for yourself.
There are many completely silent luxury ICE cars. Bicycles go fast
and are silent. A coasting ICE car is silent.
Bill D.
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