Video: Japanese road plays music while you drive
posted at 6:35 pm on November 14, 2007 by Bryan
Another “only in Japan” moment brought to you by Hot Air. In this one, the road plays music. The “melody road” has ridges spaced at intervals so your tires play a song if you drive at the right speed, which is 28 mph. Too fast, and you either get the song in speed mode or it’s a mush. Too slow and its pitch drops until you get woozy. Even at the right speed it’s hard to dance to, but it beats getting a ticket. To me, it sounds a little like a mosquito playing a kazoo.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
Not nearly good as holiday road.
Vizzini on November 14, 2007 at 6:40 PM
Hahaha! My brother, who is in the US Navy, just got his Japanese driver’s license earlier this week! Har har har!
gryphon202 on November 14, 2007 at 6:43 PM
mram on November 14, 2007 at 6:49 PM
OK so like I think it’s time to ask this question. Has anybody, you know, like actually checked the Japanese water, to, you know like, see if it’s safe to drink? Because, there’s definitely something wrong with the Japanese, and I’m thinking, you know, it’s got to be the water…
doriangrey on November 14, 2007 at 6:50 PM
I can play music I actually like in my car, and still go insane if I drive anything less than 50 mph.
Mark V. on November 14, 2007 at 6:52 PM
Actually it is our water – little too much brown acid. What you think you saw was not really what you thought.
Bradky on November 14, 2007 at 6:55 PM
Darn I swore I heard “Breakdown dead ahead”
William Amos on November 14, 2007 at 6:59 PM
Make that an asthmatic mosquito playing a kazoo.
Truly another “I’m proud not to be Japanese” moment.
Splashman on November 14, 2007 at 6:59 PM
must be nice day after day after day aft..
amend2 on November 14, 2007 at 7:02 PM
Cool,can it be configured to play different tunes,
like Kraftwerks Autobahn,Scorpion’s Turbo Lover,or
I can’t drive 55 by Hager.
Hey,if they have an earthquake would it skip a beat!
canopfor on November 14, 2007 at 7:10 PM
Here in New Orleans we get those sounds just because the damned streets haven’t been repaved in years. I’m particularly fond of the 1812 cannon sequence I get on one street.
highhopes on November 14, 2007 at 7:31 PM
You have been making kool-aid with your bong water again haven’t you. I keep telling you that that isn’t a good idea, when are you going to listen?
doriangrey on November 14, 2007 at 7:33 PM
I’m guessing the music in question is Splash Wave.
/I’m such a geek…
ZK on November 14, 2007 at 7:44 PM
Had this same idea a bunch of years back when they first started putting rumble strip edging on roads, and thought of it, first, more as a way to put a warning burst “melody” into the edge of the road (e.g.: a mimick of the European police siren type of “WEE–ooo-WEEEE–ooo” sound, instead of the monotonous drone used) in order to wake people up more forcefully if they drifted off and over.
Based on balloon ribbon strips that play a little tune when you scrape down them, you could extrapolate this to the entire road for a “tune” (Willie Nelson’s theme song, obviously, would be the first to try.)
Looked into a patent, but were are too many similar already that it didn’t seem feasible/worth the funds.
The Japanese patent must be a very limited one.
profitsbeard on November 14, 2007 at 8:56 PM
cool!
ThackerAgency on November 14, 2007 at 9:47 PM
I promise that the very next time I see Hendrix on my buttered toast I will start listening to every word!
Bradky on November 14, 2007 at 10:46 PM
Wouldn’t it be just lovely to hear that every single day on your way to work? I’m wondering what suicide rates will be in that area after about 6 months. Its not like you can just turn on the radio to cover it up either.
taznar on November 14, 2007 at 11:27 PM
Want to know something else crazy about Japan? The national speed limit is 100 km/h (about 62 mph). Many Japanese-market vehicles are wired to sound a really annoying gong when the speedometer exceeds the limit, and it won’t shut off until you drop your speed below the limit. Can you imagine if NHTSA tried a stunt like that here? The road rage-body count would be astonishing. East is east….
Travis Bickle on November 15, 2007 at 3:42 AM