Quiet Cabin Makes Buick LaCrosse a Better Listener

[ne_one]

Quiet Cabin Makes Buick LaCrosse a Better Listener
GM
February 21, 2013

When General Motors speech recognition engineer Robert Sims worked to develop one of the industry’s first in-car hands-free calling systems years ago, his goal was to make the call quality clear enough that his wife wouldn’t hang up on him.

Today, Buick’s IntelliLink system can do far more than place a call, and QuietTuning technologies like those in the LaCrosse luxury sedan make using voice controls easier for owners regardless of marital or relationship status.

QuietTuning is Buick’s comprehensive engineering process to reduce, block and absorb interior noise. For LaCrosse, that means features like laminated window glass, triple door seals and liquid applied sound deadening.

“There’s definitely an advantage when we’re developing voice controls in a quieter cabin,” said Sims. “The system’s ability to hear a command relies on SNR, or signal-to-noise ratio. If noise is extremely low like it is in the LaCrosse, the user’s voice, or signal, can be lower. In other words, a LaCrosse driver can easily speak to the IntelliLink system at a normal, conversational volume.”

As someone who drives an 80-mile commute each day, quietness and minimizing distractions are a personal matter for Sims. That’s helped drive him to make Buick’s IntelliLink voice commands simple, intuitive and designed around the controls drivers need most.

With IntelliLink – standard on every 2013 Buick – drivers can use voice commands to control navigation and audio functions with the push of a button while keeping eyes on the road. With a smartphone paired, IntelliLink’s voice commands can even tune to a Pandora internet radio station or “like” a song.

How does it work? Using a microphone in the cabin’s headliner – optimally placed by Sims and his team – the system uses a speech engine to match spoken words to known voice commands. When the engine finds a match, that command is executed.

“We’ve also designed the system with speaker adaptation, which means the engine is trained for different accents or dialects,” said Sims. “It can begin to predict speech patterns based on those models. Your LaCrosse remembers your speech patterns even after the car is turned off and on, but it can also identify another user and predict his or her patterns as well.”

[ByTheLake]

I've recently spent some quality time with a new Buick Lacrosse, and I was impressed. It's quite comfortable, had plenty of pep, and had a ton of features. I'd even suggest that the interior was more luxurious than my CTS and had more features. A great car to travel in.

[rueben44]

I'm sorry but who in their right minds would drive 80 miles a day for work? I know someone must but my god really.....really? Still a very good system and I agree the Lacrosse has always been feature rich and a little plusher than the CTS but that is because Caddy is after the Euro makes and Buick is after Lexus driver. I once owned a LS and ES that I was using just to sell and I had to admit the seats were so soft and relaxing and I think there is a market for that old world kind of luxury.

[MCGARRETT]

I'm sorry but who in their right minds would drive 80 miles a day for work?

Plenty of people do.

[germeezy1]

I can't wait to see the Lacrosse revisions, and I would hope that a Lacrosse Super or Ultra variant would receive the 3.6TT.

[BlackGTP]

I'm sorry but who in their right minds would drive 80 miles a day for work? I know someone must but my god really.....really? Still a very good system and I agree the Lacrosse has always been feature rich and a little plusher than the CTS but that is because Caddy is after the Euro makes and Buick is after Lexus driver. I once owned a LS and ES that I was using just to sell and I had to admit the seats were so soft and relaxing and I think there is a market for that old world kind of luxury.

I know a few - I think they are nuts. They have to fill their tanks up several times a week, the cost of gas alone is crazy, let alone the wear and tear on their car. Then the commuting time - just makes no sense to me.

[cad1cts]

That would be nice Germeezy!

[kafuller]

I have a job I love and is 45 miles from the house my wife and I love. So, 90 mile a day in my 2011 cruze that already has 49 K miles on it. I'm thinking a nice quiet Buick would be nice for my next car.

[richmond2000]

Plenty of people do.

ONE of my cousins does as houses near MICROSOFT are 1 MIL PLUS or real holes and 40+ miles gets you into nice houses for WAY LESS not to mention nice schools the wife's job @ the Hospital

[JudgeNjury]

I can't wait to see the Lacrosse revisions, and I would hope that a Lacrosse Super or Ultra variant would receive the 3.6TT.

Now that would be cool...

Buick needs as much cool as it can muster.

It certainly has the style and its one of the fastest growing brands in america...these days..

A twin turbo LaCrosse would be luxury ride cool..

Obviously not as cool as Mercedes new annouuncement of "Magic Ride Control" but still very cool!

[germeezy1]

Should it be named Lacrosse Super or Lacrosse Ultra were it to come to fruition?

[mchicha]

I drive around 62 miles round trip daily. I love the drive, its almost the time I 'rest' between chaos at work and home

[Jesda]

VR tech has come a long way. The recognition in my 03 Navigator Ultimate was pointless.

[Jesda]

I drive around 62 miles round trip daily. I love the drive, its almost the time I 'rest' between chaos at work and home

I worry that I'll fall asleep if my drive is too relaxing. 5-6pm seems to be when I'm most inclined to doze off so I pop open the convertible roof and soak in some fresh air.

I know a few - I think they are nuts. They have to fill their tanks up several times a week, the cost of gas alone is crazy, let alone the wear and tear on their car. Then the commuting time - just makes no sense to me.

For a while I did 100 miles a day in an Infiniti Q45. I went to the far west side for college, the far east side for work, downtown to pick up my roommate, and then we'd go home. For a while I was changing my oil every 5-7 weeks. Fortunately, fuel was under 2 bucks a gallon back then.