Vehicle Proximity Notification System

I've read elsewhere that they did significant consultation with sight disability advocate groups; the same folks that helped with pedestrian crosswalk signaling systems. Sorry I don't have anything more specific.

 

On my Gen3, 2017 PP, and now 2020 PP, the VPNS sounds they made (makes), which I think is akin to spaceship hoovering, were (is) almost inaudible. This is all at default loudest setting I believe. I really doubt that it would have alerted nearby pedestrians. However, my friend has I believe 2019 Rav4 Hybrid, and his VPNS is very loud. It is the same spaceship sound, but much louder than my three cars so that I can hear the sound from inside of the house with windows closed when he pulls into our driveway almost 30 feet away.

 

I've never understood the need for that particular noise. I've owned many high quality cars that were so quiet that you could not tell that the engine was running.

Personally, if audio cues for locating cars is a problem, I'd rather see free sonar based traffic detectors that could be integrated into the handle of the cane that the blind have to carry anyway. It would work like the cross traffic sonar that we have on our cars, only it would be tuned to focus on cars approaching from all directions. Sonar modules are dirt cheap, and it would be more efficient to provide such a device to the 1 million blind people in the US instead of every car.

Dan

 

There have been quite a few threads already discussing this. You can always just force the PRIUS to start the ICE.

 

I shoved my pedestrian speaker with packing peanuts. If the pedestrian can't hear or see me going 1 MPH that is their problem. If they get in my way thats when my aftermarket 120db train air horn comes in very handy. (Horn a necessary thing here in So. CA traffic. [Even more so now with all the potheads smoking on the road and the cant breathe, mask wearers in this pandemic.])

 

I do believe that our 2021 is louder than the 2020 we had. The difference was enough for me to ask - why is the new car louder?
I think this is the answer to my question. Speaker/setting is simply a big higher volume, it seems.

 

I just accessed mine on my 2021. Putting my hand over the speaker did virtually nothing. I just shrink-wrapped it and then covered the shrink wrap with black duct tape so it doesn't unravel and isn't very visible that it has been modified as you can see the speaker thru the grille. It is still plugged in so as not to trigger the dash warning.

Now, how's it sound? Nearly inaudible with the window down in D. Still pretty audible in reverse but significantly reduced. This is what I was looking for. Still nice to have it for reverse I suppose. I'm happy. =)