Product Sound Design is Tomorrow's Challenge - New measurement tools and turnkey solutions for simulated indoor and outdoor pass-by test bed systems.

Noise reduction was yesterday - product sound design is tomorrow's challenge

By Udo Wagner/Microtech Gefell/MTG

E-mobility is changing the world of acoustic technology. The development of a new generation of vehicles is accompanied by immense advances in test bench technology and in the world of acoustic measurement technology: e-mobility presents new challenges for acousticians. In the century of e-mobiles, noise emissions are lower than they ever were in the era of combustion engines.

But noise emissions that are too low are dangerous, especially for pedestrians. Legislation therefore requires a minimum noise level in most countries (European Directive No.540/2014). AVAS systems (Acoustic Vehicle Alerting Systems) have been mandatory in electric, hybrid and fuel-cell vehicles since July 1, 2019.

MTG offers a wide range of measurement tools and equipment for acoustic engineers designing e-vehicle noise, including both individual measurement tools and turnkey indoor test benches for simulated pass-by and outdoor pass-by test bench systems.

New to the MTG lineup are sound power hemispheres for ISO 3744 and ISO 3745 sound power measurements and the WME 980 CN - a weatherproof microphone unit for long-term outdoor noise monitoring and stationary or mobile noise monitoring of industrial, traffic and environmental noise.

Another professional tool for the sound designer is the SIS 190 double for locating sound emissions from subcomponents - a sound intensity probe (according to DIN EN IEC 61043) covering the entire sound frequency range from 40Hz to 12kHz , .

There are no limits to the creativity of sound engineers. Prof. Stefan Sentpali says: "People have a certain expectation of how an object sounds. ... The sound must be high-quality, must not creak or grate ... People know how vehicles sound in science fiction movies. They'll take their cue from that with electric vehicles, too...." [(DPA), "Between 'Star Trek'and silence: sound design in e-cars"/OTZ 15.12.202]