Are You Ready for a Singing Nissan?
Base Photo: Mr G’s Travels
There’s no question that electric vehicles are pretty cool. Not only are they engineered to run with motors rather than engines, but their electric power is helping to reduce emissions in our atmosphere. However, if you drive an EV you might have noticed that these cars are every quiet, thanks to the lack of internal combustion going on under the hood. That might not be a big issue when you’re driving on the highway, but in highly-populated cities with pedestrians it can be a problem.
In the past, some EVs have been equipped with systems to make artificial car sounds to alert passersby. At the Tokyo Motor Show, Nissan’s latest concept was equipped with something called “Canto” that makes the vehicle sing instead. Canto is an Italian word that quite literally means “I sing,” and while the name and concept might sound odd, it actually makes a lot of sense.
The Canto system was unveiled on Nissan’s latest concept car, the Nissan IMx. According to Wired, it sounds like “the warm-up room at an 80s synth rock convention,” which is actually supposed to help its music blend into the noise of a city street. The Canto’s tone and pitch change as the vehicle drives to indicate what the car is doing and help pedestrians understand where the car will be next.
Other car manufacturers have their own sounds to alert pedestrians, so this probably will not be the last singing car idea we will see on a concept car. If a singing car ever comes to dealerships, we will be sure to tell you where to purchase concert tickets.
News Source: Wired
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