Moving Sound: the future of in-car sound systems
E.H. Van Grol · 2016
The design of a new in-car sound system using parametric technology for Bang&Olufsen Automotive. Bang & Olufsen (B&O) is a brand with a great heritage in the field of sound and design. The automotive activities of B&O are positioned in the segment of the market that is positioned above the upper-class. B&O products are famous for their surprising ‘magic’ like interactions. The products often react on someone or something approaching, which surprises the user positively and invites them to interact with the product. In cars, this ‘magic’ happens once the user starts the sound system: the tweeter then moves out of the dashboard. However, B&O finds itself in a difficult position: substitute products are coming on the market rapidly and it is easy for car manufacturers to change to these. Since B&O does not have direct contact with the end-users of their products, they might lose track of what the final consumers want. A series of interviews with car dealers shows that B&O might lack focus on the future. Research to users and future developments gradually reveals a model on user behaviour inside cars and the role of sound in this. The sound-behaviour model describes two important choices drivers and passengers make in the (self-driving and maybe shared) car of the future. The first choice is whether passengers want to connect with the act of travelling (an authentic experience) or want to do something else (take a wormhole to another task). This balance is already existent in current cars. The other choice is whether passengers want to be social or alone. When being together in the car, one can choose to socialise or retreat. When laying both choices in a grid, four different types of behaviour become visible, all with completely different needs regarding sound. Authenticity Retreat is about focus on driving on your own, like driving a motorcycle. When being in this mode, occupants hear engine sounds and other driving sounds from the environment. Authenticity Social is about enjoying the act of travelling together in the car, like exploring a new city. In this mode, voices are enhanced. Wormhole Retreat behaviour is doing a completely different task in the car, like working or watching a movie. If the task requires sound, this sound is enhanced, but if the passenger needs silence, the product should provide as much individual silence as possible. Wormhole Social behaviour is about catching up with friends or family, either digital or analogue. In this mode, (telephone) conversations are enhanced. The final concept is able to deliver all four ‘soundscapes’ to all individual passengers. In order to avoid restless ‘hopping’ behaviour, passengers should be enabled to make a clear choice. Since different passengers can have different needs, this means that every passenger gets the power to individually change the sound-mode of the product. A technology that enables individual sound-zones is ‘spotlight speaker’ technology, which uses ultrasound as a carrier of hearable sound and thus creates a very narrow beam of sound. After building a working prototype using this technology, the sound-behaviour model was validated by confronting respondents with the prototype. With this prototype, the two choices of the model were translated into two on/off buttons: ‘share’ (toggles social and retreat) and ‘input’ (toggles authenticity and wormhole). The final interaction design is based on the analogy of a ‘portal’, which is simple, inviting and magic. Passengers are able to wave away from other occupants to retreat and wave towards them to join their sound bubble. To avoid unwanted reflections, the system is located on the roof of the car. The products communicates its state by turning the brackets with the sound-producing transducers either towards other passengers in the car (shared) or away from them (individual). In good B&O tradition, the product is produced using aluminium and cloth. Several options regarding colours and material are possible to integrate the product in the roof. The main limitation is the sound quality of the technology, which needs serious development. As an intermediate concept, B&O could first launch the technology as add-on to current systems, with voice enhancement and a personal phone connection. B&O ‘Plus’ is focused on what users need in the car of the future, while still having the magic of Bang&Olufsen.