Tech News: Japan's Melody Roads Play Music as You Drive

[Garritan]

According to The Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,2209957,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=technology):

"A team from the Hokkaido Industrial Research Institute has built a number of "melody roads", which use cars as tuning forks to play music as they travel.

The concept works by using grooves, which are cut at very specific intervals in the road surface. Just as travelling over small speed bumps or road markings can emit a rumbling tone throughout a vehicle, the melody road uses the spaces between to create different notes.

Depending on how far apart the grooves are, a car moving over them will produce a series of high or low notes, enabling cunning designers to create a distinct tune."

http://gizmodo.com/assets/resources/2007/11/pavement_1GI.jpg


This looks like a great opportunity for jingle writers!

[Leaf]

This looks like a very important advancement in highway design.:)


If you get outside the white lines and mow down the guardrails, it sounds kinda like percussion instruments.

[Raymond62]

Invite them to set out those things on Route 66, playing that particular song while you drive from note to note......... *()

Raymond

[DDW]

hmmmm..."Classical Gas"??

[Tony Monaghan]

hmmmm..."Classical Gas"??
)(~.....................

[danpowers]

I thought of this years ago, but forgot about it. I'm so mad now that I didn't patent it! :mad:

[germancomponist]

This is very cooooool! :)

[ALynn]

How long before this is exploited for forced advertisements? A company purchases a stretch of road and inputs their latest ad campaign song into the road. Like an aural billboard.

Or maybe they should put soothing classical music on ALL roads to try and calm down all of the crazy drivers (like they do at the mall to keep young hooligans from loitering)! :wow:

[vivmarsh]

A real shame I didn't get to Hokkaido to examine the evidence on my recent trip to Japan ... what chance, do you think, that it's all a joke ?

[AlanPerkins]

In a war, you parachute into the enemy territory, chuck a bit of Brahms into all the major roads, then everyone falls asleep behind the wheel...

[robh]

I hope they didn't put repeat signs in the section of road that get clogged during rush hour.:)

Rob

[chesterdesmond]

How long until some genius figures out that swerving all over the road allows melodies to be played?