Patent ID: 9214153
Filing Date: 2015-12-15
Classification: B60W,G10K

Abstract:
1. A method of controlling sounds associated with a vehicle having a powertrain that includes an engine, the method comprising: performing on a processor, monitoring engine torque of the engine; receiving, as input, powertrain data associated with the powertrain, the data being indicative of a powertrain transition event; based on the powertrain data, determining a transition type and a transition stage associated with the powertrain transition event, said determining comprising evaluating the powertrain data against predetermined transition data, wherein transition stages include entering transition, transitioning, exiting transition, and transition complete; selectively generating one or more predetermined tones associated with the vehicle based on the engine torque, the transition type, and the transition stage; and selecting, based on the transition type and the transition stage, which speakers of a plurality of speakers in the vehicle to project the predetermined tones; wherein the transition type is indicative of a type of transition occurring, and the transition stage being indicative of a stage of a transition occurring; wherein the transition type includes at least one of an activation event of one or more engine cylinders, a deactivation event of one or more engine cylinders, a start event of an engine and a stop event of the engine; wherein the transition stage is based on a predetermined schedule of entering the transition and exiting the transition; wherein the one or more predetermined tones are configured and timed so as to remove or blend objectionable sounds emitted by the powertrain; said selectively generating one or more predetermined tones comprises accessing predetermined tone information from a datastore based on the engine torque, the transition type, and the transition stage, said predetermined tone information characterized according to amplitude, frequency, and timing; and wherein selectively generating one or more predetermined tones includes generating one or more tones having an entering transition component, a transitioning component, an exiting transition component, and a transition complete component, each component being emitted for a predetermined time period.