Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT
Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT
Automotive-Messtechnik
© Fraunhofer IDMT/Leona Hofmann

Retrofittable and quickly ready for measurement

The Fraunhofer IDMT in Oldenburg has developed an intelligent measurement technology for recording acoustically perceptible noises in and around vehicles.

© Fraunhofer IDMT/Leona Hofmann

Multimodal data acquisition for The Hearing Car

Display mit Interface eines Systems für die Datenerfassung und -darstellung in The Hearing Car
© Fraunhofer IDMT/Leona Hofmann
Interface of a specially designed system for data collection in The Hearing Car

The multimodal recording tool developed by Fraunhofer IDMT is an innovative acoustic measurement platform for The Hearing Car. It enables the seamless integration of various types of acoustic sensors, such as external microphones and road condition sensors. In addition, vehicle data such as speed and RPM are recorded via the OBD II connection, while the geolocation is determined precisely using GPS.

The user interface offers functions for writing comments or notes, which facilitates the analysis of the collected data. The measurement system is designed so that it can be easily retrofitted to test vehicles and is ready for use in a very short time.

By using pre-trained recognition modules from acoustic event detection, the platform enables easy exploration, evaluation, and demonstration of use cases related to the support systems in the field of acoustic ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems). The system thereby significantly increases flexibility and efficiency in data analysis.

Use Case: Acoustic monitoring put to the test

What do worn brakes sound like?

The Fraunhofer IDMT in Oldenburg is developing intelligent sensor solutions to detect damaged or worn brake systems acoustically. In the future, experts could also use these technologies for their objective assessments of brake condition. For our developments, we are collecting audio data on the test bench in compliance with data protection regulations and using anonymized test reports in the data evaluation.

The Hearing Car on a test drive to Sweden

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For many years, we have relied on cameras, lidar, and radar to detect the environment around passenger cars. However, the perception of external sounds has been lacking, even regarding automated driving. That is why Fraunhofer IDMT-HSA is researching the integration of acoustic sensor technology in the KI4BoardNet project with The Hearing Car. The Oldenburg branch has now equipped research vehicles with new microphones and specially developed measurement technology. To test both, the team traveled to a test site in Sweden together with project partner CARIAD SE.

Further Information

 

© Fraunhofer IDMT

Press Release / 30.6.2025

The Hearing Car on a test drive

Acoustic sensor systems and Fraunhofer measurement technology for automated driving in practical testing

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© AdobeStock/安琦-王

New solutions for the mobility of tomorrow

With our “Hearing for the car”, our "YourSound", checking drivers' attention or monitoring in production, we offer a wide-ranging portfolio for the automotive sector.

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© Fraunhofer IDMT/Anika Bödecker

Press Release / 1.9.2023

Intelligent acoustic sensor systems support The Hearing Car

From September 5 to 8 at IAA MOBILITY 2023 in Munich, researchers from Fraunhofer IDMT in Oldenburg will showcase their latest developments in smart acoustic sensor technology on and in vehicles in Hall B1, Booth D11.

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Funding

The Oldenburg Branch Hearing, Speech and Audio Technology HSA is funded in the program »Vorab« by the Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture (MWK) and the Volkswagen Foundation for its further
development.

Data Privacy

Data processing in connection with our hearing car

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