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Lotus, the blind, and legislation?

18 messages,  Last post on Oct 05, 2008 at 1:13 PM

You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires

What is this discussion about? Toyota, GMC, Ford, Legislation


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#11 of 18
Re: Please, [bwilson4web] by steve_ HOST
Oct 04, 2008 (12:48 pm)
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Replying to: bwilson4web (Oct 04, 2008 10:50 am)

We had a chat with an auto industry exec here once, who I won't embarrass by naming (translation - I forgot who it was ); anyway the exec was testing a prototype hybrid electric and someone asked if the exec was cruising parking lots creeping up on people and the exec admitted that was a fun trick.
 
I always relied on tire and general car noise when I did a lot of biking back in the 70's, and could hear a car approaching behind me a long way away, but I could see where a clip-clop or other noise would be a beneficial addition to an electric car in slow moving situations, like at intersections or in parking lots (beneficial to pedestrians that is).
#12 of 18
Re: Please, [steve_] by boaz47
Oct 04, 2008 (1:13 pm)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 04, 2008 12:48 pm)

"but I could see where a clip-clop or other noise would be a beneficial addition to an electric car in slow moving situations, like at intersections or in parking lots (beneficial to pedestrians that is). "
 
I sat back and thought about this after I read it. What I pictured was what life in a city would be like with several million vehicles driving down the street with a clip clop sound coming from each one. Imagine a back up beeper on every car in LA driving down the street. Or maybe a voice saying..."woops watch out here comes a car.." over and over again. Even a ching ching like bell would drive us nuts if it were magnified 300,000 times in a small City. We have laws in some cities where you are not allowed to let you dog back for more than 10 minutes at any one time. How will people feel when they hear a noise loud enough to get a pedestrians attention 24/7.
#13 of 18
Re: Please, [boaz47] by steve_ HOST
Oct 04, 2008 (1:33 pm)
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Replying to: boaz47 (Oct 04, 2008 1:13 pm)

I could see a noise only coming on when the car is idling along at, say, less than 10 mph.
 
Cars are pretty noisy as it is. My last house was near an intersection and you'd frequently hear brake squeal and grinding shifters as people navigated through the intersection.
 
But yeah, when I used to hike in bear country, other hiker's bells would drive me batty. Sort of depends on what you get used to I guess. When the weather is right I can hear the roar of tire noise on a highway 2 miles away and it's not pleasant.
#14 of 18
Re: Please, [steve_] by boaz47
Oct 04, 2008 (3:22 pm)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 04, 2008 1:33 pm)

If the contention mentioned in the earlier post was that the blind had a problem with a stopped hybrid then the noise would be duplicated by all the hybrid, EV and now GM type of vehicles that shut down their engines at a stop. So ten cars on each side of a street waiting at a stop light would all have to be making some sound. As soon as the other light went red the cars pulling up to that stop would be making the warning noise. This would go on all day and all night. In down town LA or San Diego it would be the cumulative effect of all those cars that would drive you nuts. At night in the cool waterfront air you could hear the beeping for miles.
#15 of 18
Re: Please, [boaz47] by steve_ HOST
Oct 04, 2008 (3:41 pm)
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Replying to: boaz47 (Oct 04, 2008 3:22 pm)

If a car is stopped, there's not much risk of it hitting someone. Someone might walk into it though. Shouldn't be too difficult to have the software figure out when to chime or clip clop or stay silent.
#16 of 18
Re: Please, [steve_] by boaz47
Oct 04, 2008 (6:56 pm)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 04, 2008 3:41 pm)

I agree, but if the car is moving then the tire noise should be enough unless the blind person is also hard of hearing. If they are also hard of hearing a clopping sound isn't going to solve the problem. I have been into cycling for a while and you can hear cars coming from quite a distance from the tire noise alone. In fact most modern cars today run so quiet even with gas engines it is hard to tell if the are running standing right next to them blind or not. It simply is a non-issue that someone with a Chicken Little, (LOWETHAL) attitude has fallen upon and wants the government to take notice of.
 
I shouldn't be surprised that someone would suggest we study this issue, which is after all the purpose of the legislation, to pay some friends and family to conduct a study at taxpayers expense to see if there is an issue. The study contracts will cost less than 800 billion I hope. I also hope it doesn’t create another department like CARB. But if it does it could be called, California Research Against Possible Silence. Even the Feds had enough common sense to ignore this suggestion.
#17 of 18
Re: Please, [boaz47] by steve_ HOST
Oct 04, 2008 (7:20 pm)
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Replying to: boaz47 (Oct 04, 2008 6:56 pm)

Maybe some folks with screen readers will find this discussion and give some real world insight. I suspect that the visually impaired community doesn't enjoy common agreement on the issue either.
#18 of 18
Re: Please, [steve_] by boaz47
Oct 05, 2008 (1:13 pm)
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Replying to: steve_ (Oct 04, 2008 7:20 pm)

Like I said the feds found no merit worth commissioning a study and they were better able to fund one. Now after the bail out California is asking for several Billion dollars to shore up its short fall and if it gets it there will be strings attached that might keep them from financing studies like this that have not been an issue.

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