Just wondering if there have been any aftermarket systems that cancel out the sounds of the engine/road/wind?

I know that the Acura TL comes with this type of cancellation system but I am not driving a TL so it doesn't do me any good

I have googled the hell out of this and I am starting wonder if I am over thinking or over complicating my search queries at this point. But for my best efforts the only products I can find are head phones.

Well if there is no aftermarket complete systems for this I do offer some hope... at least for myself. Below is a link to a do it yourself noise cancellation head phones. The idea I have would be simple, first covert the power over to 12v, and secondly build it so it can have multiple in and outs. So where the TL uses one big 3D canceling system, mine idea would be a "bunch" of 1D systems strategically placed in the car to do the same job. Granted I would rather go through the stereo like the TL lol
http://gilmore2.chem.northwestern.ed.../noise_prj.htm

 

no one makes active noise cancellation for a car that I know of. But passive noise cancellation yes. Dynomat does a very good job at reducing outside noise if installed correctly. One issue you will never get around is the glass. If you ever look at high end cars check out how thick the glass is compared to your car. The thicker the glass the less noise gets through.

 

ya I knew about passive ways of sound dampening, I just thought it would be cool it see there was an active method yet.

IDK i might make a my own as a small side project lol

 

oh and thanks for the brand name, while i knew about passive ways, I didn't know any good name brands for it lol

 

I wouldn't expect to see any aftermarket systems any time soon. The application of ANC to automobiles has seen incredibly viscious patent infringement battles. Luckily, some of the early patents are beginning to expire.

Especially with road noise, installation of one of these systems is NOT like installing a stereo. For road noise, you need to locate 4-6 accelerometers on the suspension. Finding good spots takes a masters in engineering and a few weeks of work for each vehicle make and model.

Engine noise is a lot easier but forget it with wind noise. Also, if the underlying vehicle design is poor, no amount of ANC will help.

The technology in the headsets will not work if you open it up. It is a feedback system that requires a very small acoustic cavity for it to work.

 

Sound doesn't have to be recorded at its source. Sound can be record/inverted/played back at any point, so long at the point of recording, and point on play back give enough space for the time needed for the sound to be inverted. But you are right that it will take some time to fine the best locations for to pick up the sound, play it back inverted. I am not expecting to cancel with all sound, just quite it.

What I purposed wasn't to just simply build some head phones and pray to a great divine that it works. My idea was to use the basic principles of the same technology and build multiple points of cancelation. I do a lot of work with stage sound and lighting, so I understand what feedback is, and how to lower it. I guess next time I will post more than a little run down, that gives the idea.

 

how much are these systems, should I even consider it with my new sound system

 

Mark101 - aftermarket systems are not yet available. When they are, they will be under $1000. In high volume (e.g. 10 million units), a limited bandwidth system (50-150 Hz) would have an end user price tag of $150.

This ANC stuff is very fun to work with in my opinion. I spent 10 years developing the technology in helicopters and cars. I would love to install a system in my own vehicles, but it would cost me around $25,000 for a prototype system, half of which is a software compiler.

A simple feedback circuit can alleviate "booming". That is what Handa did early on. One microphone under each front seat connected to a woofer. The obvious problem with a pure feedback design is that it will indiscriminately modify all sounds in the bandwidth, including music. The other is that time delay significantly restricts the area of effect and the frequency range.

Steve Elliott at ISVR looked into "quiet seats" which ammounted to a local set of microphones and speakers mounted in the headrest. The original application was for aircraft. He fould stability to be a huge issue as a result of the person's head location having a big impact on the transfer functions.

Engine harmonics are a bit easier since time delay is less of a problem. The challenge here is tracking through speed changes.

If you are really interested in the technology, Steve Elliott's book "Signal Processing for Active Control" (Academic Press) is considered the industry bible on the topic.

If you google "john long active noise control", you will find a presentation on slideshare that shows what can be achieved.