Active Sound Design

Several firms including Lotus are working on technologies to synthesize the sound of a rumbling engine so that silent running cars like hybrids and electric vehicles can be made safer for those with poor vision. While this could be as simple as playing a sound of an engine running, BMW is now taking the concept to the next level. Its engineers have developed a technique for changing the way a driver perceives engine noise, with the eventual hope to turn the sound of a diesel-powered car, which can often sound more like a noisy truck than a luxury car, into something that sounds more like a...