http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/ Engadget Comments for http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:16AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:16AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
I was thinking a good way of notifying people of the presence of an electric car would be a speaker system that plays the sound of a gasoline car .. but after seeing this clip .. maybe the honk system is better. Seems like the blind prefer that (assuming the matter was discussed properly).
]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:30AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
That idea was already discussed a long time ago. In fact, it's available even today, just google "vroombox." It's a silly idea.]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:52AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 2:24AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 2:29AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Well this car can remember to do it for you...
(my point isn't about blind people... it's about slow regular people. this is great for the blind).]]>Nov 27th 2009 5:04AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Also yea good to see GM doing its part.]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:19AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:28AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:29AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Couldn't agree more. It blows me away how the majority of American's think thy wouldn't be able to hear a quiet car if all the cars were quiet. Everyone's so used to filling up the airwaves around them with useless noise that they're freaked out when it's actually quiet.]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:44AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
...a little safer for less than 0.3% of the population. Noise reduction is one of the most-overlooked benefits of moving to non-ICE-powered vehicles. ]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:49AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Everyone also ignores that existing cars made within say, the past 5 years, are generally nearly noiseless when at city speeds anyway.

Go ahead and go outside and listen to something like a 08 Camry driving by slowly. Chances are the most you'll hear are the tires. A Prius is louder at these speeds, due to the high pitched noise it also emits due to some of the electric components I imagine.

I think this issue is something to be taken up by wanna be corporate rebels, so that we can start talking about how the "super greedy, murderous, capitalist car companies" just want to kill blind people the world over for PROFIT!]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:55AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 2:08AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Regardless, electric cars are certainly loud enough to be heard by anyone with even modest hearing...tire and wind noise are still very present, and those make up the vast majority of noise emitted by a modern car at neighborhood speeds. So, unless the blind guy is also listening to his iPod, he'll hear it. In the end, however, it's the driver's responsibility to not hit the pedestrian.

Of course, if the blind guy IS wearing headphones while trying to cross the street, well, maybe he's trying to be a Darwin Award candidate.]]>Nov 27th 2009 2:19AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:32AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:37AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Hate the fact that most of those people don't realize that 99% of the electricity they will use to recharge these "green" vehicles will come from burning fossil fuels like coal. Oh, there is no "clean coal", btw.

No change, just more brainwash.

Can't wait for the implementation of no-fuel, no electricity magnetic-kinetic engines. Maybe in 2090 or so...]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:38AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Off topic. And magnetically-driven motors aren't anything new.]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:55AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
And kudos to GM for engaging the blind community instead of just ignoring them.]]>Nov 27th 2009 3:27AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
I live in Arizona. All of my power comes from the Palo Verde nuclear power plant, which is 100% pollution-free, as does a good portion of this country's power. There's also a million other ways to get electricity, so you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about, sir.]]>Nov 27th 2009 3:40AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/I think you'll find most people who are interested in electric cars also advocate more nuclear, hydro, solar and wind power. As far as clean coal -- the name is misleading. It's "cleaner coal" and it's not ideal but over time cleaner solutions are going to phase it out -- especially as regulations get tighter and coal is no longer a cheap & easy solution. If demand starts going up dramatically due to electric cars we'll see a pretty quick shift towards new infrastructure and most of it will be a lot cleaner. ]]>Nov 27th 2009 3:55AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/No one with a even a modicum of sense advocates nuclear power. When the residue of the power production has to wait 10 thousand years to be "safe", most people realize the inherent danger and refuse that option.

No such thing as cleaner coal. That's like being a little bit pregnant. 40% of electrical power production in the US is from coal. Dirty or other wise.

Electrical cars are not the answer either. How do you propose to dispose of the worn out batteries. There is no good solution on the horizon, even if most people wanted to change from fossil fuels; which they don't]]>Nov 27th 2009 9:57AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 10:35AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/energyexplained/images/charts/electric_power_industry_net_generation-pie-large.gif]]>Nov 27th 2009 10:38AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
You don't "dispose" of these batteries any more than you would trash the battery on your current car; you recycle them.]]>Nov 27th 2009 10:36PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:41AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/visually impaired yes... but why stop there, if a person is deaf, and i am sitting for a long period, and make the decision to go after some time, how do i warn them...

and for those who are not blind or deaf for that matter, they may want to know where the sound is coming from... a visual cue is a great idea too.

in-fact, that should be applied to the normal horn. its hard to tell where a horn comes from when your in your own car.

]]>Nov 27th 2009 10:50AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/plantiff - the car said "oh shit!!]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:45AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:48AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:51AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Wow, Chevy has dollar signs in their eyes? First off, I think you meant GM. Secondly, of course they do. They're this silly little thing called a "business."

And if this is an issue, your silent cars creating more pedestrian injuries/fatalities is not good for business. Thus, it would be in their financial interest to reduce this and other types of possible issues from a quieter car.

Otherwise, you can bet product liability attorneys will have a field day. And guess what that means? Yes, lost $$

So you see, the pursuit of the "evil dollar" produces... good. Huh... ]]>Nov 27th 2009 1:58AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 2:02AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
GM thought a little too hard on this one..]]>Nov 27th 2009 2:03AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 2:14AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Really.funny my 10k i have in studio equipment says other wise so maybe i need to rephrase this. My point is that its much easier for the car (and the driver) to avoid some one at a longer range than the other way around .. especially in traffic heavy areas where there is more noise pollution (the city etc.) and not some country road they are testing this on. ]]>Nov 27th 2009 3:50AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:26PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 2:04AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 2:08AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 3:07AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 4:14AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
It is a good start to show that they care...long may it continue...]]>Nov 27th 2009 4:32AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 4:36AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/
Blind people crossing highways, and drivers not watching the road for 30 second spans? Thus causing an embarassing accident in Amish country.

"I wish my car told me there was a blind guy there! If only there was a way to see... in front of me..."

]]>Nov 27th 2009 4:38AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 8:50AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 10:04AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/FLAMEBATE. stop wasting our time.

this is a great idea, you are blinded by hate and just don't see how smart this is.

if a Japanese or German car company did this you would likely say what a great idea... why don't NA car companies come up with great idea like these.

Frankly the lights blinking with the horn is brilliant, and having more than one horn is something i have wanted for years.]]>Nov 27th 2009 10:57AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 1:45PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 9:08AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/27/chevrolet-volt-gets-driver-activated-warning-system-for-the-blin/Nov 27th 2009 11:19AM