Nissan has announced that its 2021 model year LEAF electric vehicles (EVs) will feature new safety measures. A useful safety addition for pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicle users around the car is the new Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System (AVAS) that Nissan have named ’Canto’.
The AVAS has been specifically designed to transmit artificially simulated driving sounds which alert road users of its presence. This is a great safety addition resolving a problem that is sometimes raised by pedestrians, cyclists and other road users.
In 2017, Marco Fioravanti, Nissan’s regional vice president of product planning AMIEO, had the opportunity to drive forward the creation of the signature brand sound for all Nissan electric vehicles. From this Canto was developed as an added safety measure and the new system is fully compliant with the new European regulations.
Marco Fioravanti, Nissan regional vice president of product planning AMIEO, said “Customer safety is paramount, not only for those behind the wheel but those surrounding the car as well.
“As the world becomes more and more electrified, this sound will soon become part of the soundscape of our roads as Nissan’s signature EV sound moving us closer to our goal of a zero-fatality driving experience.”
Canto has been carefully created by sound designers and engineers at Nissan Japan and locally adapted for Europe using a spectrum of sonic palettes. The sound has been purposely composed to ensure it varies in tone and pitch depending on whether the vehicle is accelerating, decelerating or reversing.
It’s automatically activated when travelling at speeds up to 18mph (29kph) and Canto carefully complements its surroundings. It is clearly audible, without being too alarming to pedestrians, residents or passengers. This is a good solution to a problem that arises, especially in urban areas.
Paul Speed-Andrews, noise and vibration development danger at Nissan Technical Centre Europe, said: “After engineering the Canto sound, we installed it to the LEAF MY21 to enable us to carry out both subjective and objective evaluations to better match the expectations of the European customer.
“It was important that we not only created a sound that aligned with the new regulations, but also matched Nissan’s brand image. We have always been pioneers in safety and innovation and it is great to know we are helping to shape the future of electrification.”
In addition, the 2021 model year LEAF also features Intelligent Blind Spot Intervention (IBSI) as standard adding to its safety measures.
