June 19, 2025

The new system warns pedestrians with headphones on approaching cars

The new system warns pedestrians with headphones on approaching cars

Researchers have developed a security system,which analyzes ambient noise to detect moving vehicles within a radius of 60 meters and warns the pedestrian with headphones about their approach.

Newer car models have sensors that automatically detect the threat of a collision with a person, but the distracted pedestrian still has On his way to work in the morning, one of the engineers at Columbia University noticed that his new noise-canceling headphones made him more distracted than usual on the road.After telling colleagues at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Barnard College about this, they decided to jointly develop a prototype of a pedestrian sound warning system.

As a low-power sensor, the scientists used four low-cost microphones powered byA special integrated circuit extractsonly the most important audio signals from the ambient noise and transmitsthis information in the app on the connected smartphone.

The program on the mobile device uses machine learning algorithms to determine the approach of the car.The AI system is able to distinguish the sounds of 60 types of vehicles on the road in different environments: a residential area, a busy centerHowever, its range is still limited to 60 meters, which gives a pedestrian about a few seconds to react to the signal.

The new system warns pedestrians with headphones on approaching cars

Technology is at an early stage of development andstill having difficulty determining the trajectory of the vehicle, therefore, it even responds to cars that may not move in the direction of the pedestrian. The team is currently working on this feature using other information. In parallel, researchers are developing optimal sound signals that allow pedestrians to clearly identify the location of the threat.

The invention will not solve all pedestrian safety problems, but a warning in a few seconds can help.

Development of unmanned vehicle technologiesencourages researchers to work even harder towards safety. For example, Rivian is patenting technology for safely transporting children, the elderly or mentally retarded passengers in self-driving cars with a remote monitoring and control system.

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