JonsMazda
06-12-2012, 04:30 PM
"To anyone who’s ever had a deep sleep or quiet, romantic dinner interrupted by the sound of a loudly-roaring car, help is at hand.
Alberta electrical engineer Mark Nesdoly has created a noise-monitoring device — the Noise Snare — designed to help police and bylaw officers track down the offenders.
The device, designed to be mounted on a car, monitors passing traffic for noise levels, then automatically takes a video of any offenders who rev up past 96 decibels. Think of it as a red-light camera, but for obnoxiously-loud cars. The first one goes into action this month in Calgary says Nesdoly, who created a prototype seven years ago.
“It’s pretty exciting that it’s happening. Nobody wanted to be the first one to take a chance, but now that Calgary’s doing it, I’m getting more interest,” said Nesdoly.
He’s hoping interest will pick up more once the first $200 fine issued under Calgary’s anti-noise bylaw winds its way through the court system.
“If I had to guess, I’d say it might take until August before there’s a conviction. I’ll be celebrating,” said Nesdoly, who was inspired to create the Noise Snare when his then-infant daughter was startled awake by a neighbour’s motorcycle 11 years ago.
Loud cars are more than just a nuisance for the neighbourhood. The people driving them are more likely to cause accidents, and are at risk of damaging their own hearing, says Rex Banks, chief audiologist at the Canadian Hearing Society.
“At 96 decibels, you’re drowning out all the traffic noises, so you wouldn’t be as aware of your surroundings. And you’d be damaging your own hearing,” said Banks, who liked the sound of Nesdoly’s invention.
“Anything that reduces noise pollution, I’d be in favour of. This sounds like a great idea,” said Banks.
Don’t expect Nesdoly’s invention in Toronto any time soon, said city spokesperson Bruce Hawkins via e-mail.
“The City is not exploring this option at this time,” said Hawkins, who explained that Toronto’s noise bylaws are enforced on a “complaint basis.” Toronto’s noise bylaws don’t have any specific decibel level. Instead, it’s a bit of a judgment call.
“No person shall make, cause or permit noise or vibration, at any time, which is likely to disturb the quiet, peace, rest, enjoyment, comfort or convenience of the inhabitants of the City,” reads the introduction to the city code section dealing with noise.
In addition to a wait-and-see attitude from some cities he’s approached, Nesdoly faces another potential obstacle to sales: His gadget isn’t exactly cheap. If he’d actually sold it to Calgary, it would have cost the city $112,500. Instead, he gave it to them. By next year, he hopes to have a cheaper model available for roughly $50,000.
If your quiet moments have been interrupted by other urban nuisances such as leaf blowers, Nesdoly warns you shouldn’t get your hopes up: He has no plans to turn the Noise Snare into a multi-purpose device.
“This is only for vehicles. And besides, if your neighbour was using a leaf blower and you wandered over to them with a piece of electrical equipment, they’d probably figure something was up,” said Nesdoly. "
Alberta electrical engineer Mark Nesdoly has created a noise-monitoring device — the Noise Snare — designed to help police and bylaw officers track down the offenders.
The device, designed to be mounted on a car, monitors passing traffic for noise levels, then automatically takes a video of any offenders who rev up past 96 decibels. Think of it as a red-light camera, but for obnoxiously-loud cars. The first one goes into action this month in Calgary says Nesdoly, who created a prototype seven years ago.
“It’s pretty exciting that it’s happening. Nobody wanted to be the first one to take a chance, but now that Calgary’s doing it, I’m getting more interest,” said Nesdoly.
He’s hoping interest will pick up more once the first $200 fine issued under Calgary’s anti-noise bylaw winds its way through the court system.
“If I had to guess, I’d say it might take until August before there’s a conviction. I’ll be celebrating,” said Nesdoly, who was inspired to create the Noise Snare when his then-infant daughter was startled awake by a neighbour’s motorcycle 11 years ago.
Loud cars are more than just a nuisance for the neighbourhood. The people driving them are more likely to cause accidents, and are at risk of damaging their own hearing, says Rex Banks, chief audiologist at the Canadian Hearing Society.
“At 96 decibels, you’re drowning out all the traffic noises, so you wouldn’t be as aware of your surroundings. And you’d be damaging your own hearing,” said Banks, who liked the sound of Nesdoly’s invention.
“Anything that reduces noise pollution, I’d be in favour of. This sounds like a great idea,” said Banks.
Don’t expect Nesdoly’s invention in Toronto any time soon, said city spokesperson Bruce Hawkins via e-mail.
“The City is not exploring this option at this time,” said Hawkins, who explained that Toronto’s noise bylaws are enforced on a “complaint basis.” Toronto’s noise bylaws don’t have any specific decibel level. Instead, it’s a bit of a judgment call.
“No person shall make, cause or permit noise or vibration, at any time, which is likely to disturb the quiet, peace, rest, enjoyment, comfort or convenience of the inhabitants of the City,” reads the introduction to the city code section dealing with noise.
In addition to a wait-and-see attitude from some cities he’s approached, Nesdoly faces another potential obstacle to sales: His gadget isn’t exactly cheap. If he’d actually sold it to Calgary, it would have cost the city $112,500. Instead, he gave it to them. By next year, he hopes to have a cheaper model available for roughly $50,000.
If your quiet moments have been interrupted by other urban nuisances such as leaf blowers, Nesdoly warns you shouldn’t get your hopes up: He has no plans to turn the Noise Snare into a multi-purpose device.
“This is only for vehicles. And besides, if your neighbour was using a leaf blower and you wandered over to them with a piece of electrical equipment, they’d probably figure something was up,” said Nesdoly. "