Sonic Movement
| Sonic Movement | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Mission statement | The age of the electric car deserves its own sound |
| Commercial? | Yes |
| Type of project | Company division |
| Owner | Semcon |
| Founder | James Brooks, Fernando Ocaña |
| Established | 10 September 2013 |
| Funding | Semcon |
| Status | Active |
| Website | sonic-movement |
 VIDEO: New transport strategies: Fernando Ocaña at TEDx Göteborg (Dec 5, 2013) |
Sonic Movement is a research project operated by the Swedish company Semcon. Premiered in September 2013, Sonic Movement proposes an "adaptive" system of warning sounds and noises for electric cars, which is in opposition to industry trend of replicating combustion engine noises for electric car sound effects.
Founders James Brooks and Fernando Ocaña are on the design team, as well as artists Holly Herndon and Matt Dryhurst. The project aims to meet a proposal for a US mandate which would require silent electric and hybrid vehicles to emit warning sounds, as well as legislation passed by the European parliament in April 2014, which states that all new electric cars sold in the EU must emit noise by 2019. However, Ocaña notes that while legislators are "looking at this from a technical point of view, [Sonic Movement is] looking at it from a user experience point of view."
Sonic Movement is a research project headed by a group of designers, artists and musicians that advocates a new approach to the sound of electric vehicles. According to Car Design News, "The Sonic Movement manifesto states that 'the dawn of electric and hybrid travel allows us to fantasize on what the future of our city streets could sound like.'"
Designer James Brooks had the initial concept, after testing a number of electric cars and finding their warning sounds underwhelming. In early 2013, Brooks contacted Fernando Ocaña, who was a fellow alumni of the Royal College of Art Vehicle Design in London and creative director of the Swedish technology firm Semcon.Car Design News stated that "Brooks and Ocaña have shaped the project with their unconventional attitude towards car design...the architectural shape of Ocaña's final RCA project, 'Monoform,' encouraged us to view our environment from an all-important new perspective, while the 'BOX,' a joint project by Brooks and RCA student Richard Bone, was an innovative new take on urban car sharing."
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