A Non-Invasive Method for the Safe Interaction of Cities and Electric Vehicle Fleets

TL;DR

This paper proposes a non-invasive audio-based detection system for electric vehicles, enhancing pedestrian safety in cities by alerting them to EVs' presence through high-frequency sound emissions.

Contribution

It introduces a novel method leveraging high-frequency audio emissions from EVs for safe detection, validated through experimental testing on multiple vehicles.

Findings

Successful detection of EVs using high-frequency audio signals

Experimental validation with four different test vehicles

Preliminary EV detection algorithm demonstrated effectiveness

Abstract

Electric and hybrid vehicles are growing in popularity. While these vehicles produce less pollution, they also produce less audible noise, especially at lower speeds. This makes it harder for pedestrians and cyclists to detect an approaching vehicle. Thus, an additional system is required to detect electric and hybrid vehicles and alert pedestrians and cyclists of their whereabouts, especially while these vehicles are driving at low speeds in cities. This paper introduces one such method based on high frequency audio emissions that are present in EVs, which arise, for example, from the process of magnetostriction. Our method is tested experimentally using 4 different tests vehicles, and a preliminary EV detection algorithm is also presented.