Improved Customer Experience through Electric Vehicle Sound Enhancement 2020-01-1361

Electric Vehicles are typically thought of as being quiet and refined, but they do come with some unique N&V challenges. Some of these challenges include a natural sound that can be undesirable due to its tonal nature, presence of high frequency, discontinuities in sound, and characteristics and levels that do not always naturally increase with motor torque and vehicle speed. One approach to address those challenges is Electric Vehicle Sound Enhancement (EVSE) which is a software feature embedded within the infotainment system. EVSE can be used to improve the perception of the vehicle by enhancing the preferred natural sounds of the vehicle, masking unusual and annoying components of the sound and aurally conveying information related to the vehicle performance. A jury study was conducted to better understand how EVSE can be used to accomplish this. This paper will summarize a typical EVSE system and highlight some of the tools and methods that can be used to develop an EVSE tuning that mitigates unpleasant sounds while enhancing the customer experience without completely changing the vehicle DNA. Vehicle examples that mitigate issues and enhance the vehicle sound will be used to help describe the benefits and methods of EVSE.