Urban Air Mobility Noise: Further Considerations on Indoor Space

Abstract

Various countries are preparing for the introduction of urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles, which move freely within the space above a city, as a new means of urban transportation. However, UAM vehicles present new forms of challenges to many urban residents. This study aims to propose newly sensory standards for the noise levels of UAM vehicles in urban indoor spaces based on two fundamental questions: (1) Would UAM vehicles not have a lower and wider impact on city residents than a commercial aircraft? (2) Should the flight of UAM vehicles not consider the sensory noise, like the conventional noise standard? UAM vehicles, unlike commercial aircrafts, will cause noise pollution in a broad area of the city. Therefore, expanded aircraft noise standards will be required. In addition, the hybridized noise generated by conventional vehicles in the ground and UAM vehicles in the air will affect urban residents. Furthermore, urban residents will be exposed to sensory noise from UAM vehicles, which fly directly above them but not within their line of sight. Therefore, the noise standards for UAM vehicles should include the sensory properties in addition to the physical properties in the existing noise standards.