QNX on how OEMs use sound to differentiate the user experience

Differentiation in the automotive market is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve.  With conventional differentiators like fuel mileage, cargo space, engine types, reliability and even styling becoming more consistent from brand to brand, the in-cabin user experience is where many OEMs are turning to create differentiation and a sense of uniqueness to their brand. 

While technology continues to allow the delivery of new and unique user experiences, they all have some tenets in common.  One of these is the fact that vehicles can generally communicate with drivers and passengers via three different methods – haptics, visuals, and sound. 

Increasingly, sound is becoming an “X factor” which defines the user experience within a vehicle. For many it is the differentiator between one model or marque and the next, particularly in the era of the software-defined vehicle and quieter electric vehicles.

In-cabin sound systems are a vital communication tool which fills a range of functions – entertainment through music or podcasts, guidance through the map system, and warning signals. The functions need to be seamlessly integrated, with none dominating the vehicle experience.

“When we developed the General Automotive Platform, it was evident that the on-time and easily audible delivery of warning sounds would be critical to Volvo, our principal customer who has safety built directly into their DNA”, says Jorge Jara, director of audio development at Haleytek. 

“We worked with QNX because their QNX Sound tools are integrated with their Hypervisor, which has direct visibility into the different guest operating systems that provide the different sounds.”

That way, when for example an ADAS alert needs to be heard in the cabin, we have the visibility into how loud the entertainment audio is playing and can reduce the volume appropriately so that the alert is clearly audible to the driver and doesn’t get lost in the music”.

Jara is referring to QNX Sound, a digital audio platform which leverages new central-computing architectures prevalent in software-defined vehicles.  By moving audio processing from dedicated audio hardware onto powerful centrally utilized system on chips (SOCs), QNX Sound decouples audio and acoustics software from single-purpose and expensive audio hardware.

This approach streamlines development, saves money, enhances flexibility, and speeds time-to-market for automakers employing centralized computing architectures.  

This integration is driving the development of in-vehicle sound systems, which are evolving from the simple radios of past decades to complex signal management and delivery systems tightly integrated into the other aspects of the in-cabin user experience.  Audio speaks directly to the driver without having to take their eyes off the road or their hands off the wheel.

Every aspect of what is heard in a vehicle cabin- engine noise, EV propulsion sound synthesis, and the nuance of every ADAS alert, chime, and notification is very carefully thought out by OEM sound designers and is critically important from not only a brand context but a safety and driver awareness context as well.  This challenge increases in complexity as multiple vehicle trim levels, platforms, and vehicle brands are taken into account.

An additional challenge for audio system designers: listening experiences that are unique to each vehicle seat.  Many signals, such as alerts or navigation prompts, don’t need to be audible to all the occupants of the vehicle.  While the delivery of the right acoustic signals to the correct seats at appropriate times could be a daunting task, OEMs have solutions available to provide brand-defining audio experiences and in-vehicle support.  

“As in-vehicle audio evolves and the expectations of our automotive partners grow, meeting those demands requires more sophisticated audio policy management than ever before,” says Dave Royfe, Senior Director of Product Management at Bose Automotive.

“Bose technology like SeatCentric wouldn’t be possible without it – It’s what enables the concurrent delivery of different sounds to different seats, such as navigation only to the driver, a phone call to a rear passenger, and uninterrupted music for others.”

The QNX system is scalable and adaptable for more complicated listening environments as well.  For example, some global branded audio providers are developing technology that allows individual listeners to tailor what they hear in the vehicle to their own preference, allowing different vehicle occupants to hear completely different sounds.  

Built on the secure and widely used QNX Hypervisor platform, QNX Sound provides a unique vantage point—offering visibility into all signals from the car’s different operating systems and applications. This ensures drivers and passengers hear precisely what they need, when they need it.

Additionally, QNX Sound’s cloud-based development capabilities allow dispersed audio teams to design and test sound systems remotely, even before hardware is available.

This early test capability is crucial- audio engineers are being tasked with integrating all of the next-gen listening experiences referenced earlier in this discussion while dealing with reduced staff, lower development budgets, and a continual pressure to achieve results in less time due to drastically accelerated time-to-market cycles. 

Software-defined audio platforms like QNX Sound support these new demands via its ability to decouple audio and acoustics software from vehicle hardware. This allows for remote collaboration and testing in the cloud, significantly improving development efficiency, especially in scenarios where physical hardware is limited or unavailable.

Teams can simulate and fine-tune audio experiences in parallel, ensuring consistency and quality across different vehicle models and configurations, ensuring that vehicle occupants will always hear exactly what they want, when they want.

 “We’re at an inflection point where we see several trends coming together that will shape the future of in-vehicle listening experiences”, says John Pelliccio, Global Product Marketing Director at QNX.

“The move away from purpose-built audio hardware, the rise of SoC-based in-vehicle architectures, and the continual innovation of companies all over the world creating new and exciting ways to use sound to bring both fun and information to drivers and passengers mean that next-generation vehicle owners will be immersed in sound from the minute they get into their vehicles to the minute they arrive at their destinations. 

“QNX is excited to offer our QNX Sound platform as an enabler that helps OEMs integrate and deliver all of these sounds in a way that enhances the driving experience for every vehicle in their portfolio”.

Click here to learn more about QNX Sound.