UK-based audio technology company, Warwick Acoustics Ltd., believes it is primed to disrupt the $8 billion automotive in-car audio market with its ElectroAcoustic Panels based on patented electrostatic loudspeaker technology.

The company built its automotive offering around technology it developed for high-end headphone systems like the Sonoma Model One, limited-edition 24-kt-gold Aperio, and Bravura. The audio quality of Warwick Acoustics’ electrostatic technology has earned the company over 30 global awards in that space.

With intense automotive R&D having taken place over the last five years, it is now exiting “stealth mode” as the self-proclaimed world’s first audio technology company to engineer electrostatic-based audio systems for automotive applications.

“It is exciting to finally exit ‘stealth mode’ after many years of intense R&D,” said Dr. Mike Grant, CEO of Warwick Acoustics. “While we have proven our electrostatic loudspeaker technology in the high-end headphone market—securing widespread critical acclaim for unequaled, immersive, and precise sound quality—it was always clear that it was in the automotive sector where the initial significant opportunity for the company lies.”

The company has been rapidly growing its portfolio of fundamental patents on electrostatic transducer design characteristics and manufacturing processes to deliver immersive listening experiences to the premium in-car audio sector. It says its ElectroAcoustic Panels bring significant system benefits over conventional audio technology, being up to 75% lighter and consuming up to 75% less power while offering significant interior design and packaging freedom.

“The substantial improvements we have made in terms of weight saving and power reduction become even more compelling with EVs than ICE-powered vehicles,” said Grant. “In addition, the sustainable benefits of our speakers in terms of the use of upcycled and recyclable materials is a game-changer for OEMs who are all rapidly seeking to decarbonize their supply bases.”

Warwick Acoustics says its panels can deliver speaker solutions for automakers looking to set key sustainability objectives to become carbon neutral. Its solution uses 100% by-mass upcycled and recyclable materials and does not use any unsustainable rare earth elements, which the company says that conventional speakers rely upon in the manufacturing process.

The technology offers automotive designers and engineers significant freedom over speaker and cabin integration. Unlike conventional speakers, the ElectroAcoustic Panels can be molded into many forms and incorporated into almost all interior surfaces of components like the dashboard, A-pillar, headrest, headlining, and front/rear doors. This can create additional space within interiors for passengers and enables greater interior design flexibility.

“We have assembled a world-class team with an exceptional depth of industry experience,” added Grant. “With strong financial backing, the company is now scaling the business rapidly to capitalize fully on the opportunity in front of us to be a global leader in our field.”

A spin-out of the School of Engineering at University of Warwick, Warwick Acoustics is headquartered at a new state-of-the-art facility at Horiba MIRA Technology Park in Warwickshire, the heart of the UK’s automotive industry. Its automotive team is led by a management team that includes CEO Grant, CCO Ian Hubbard, Head of Programmes Graham Landick, Head of R&D Ben Lisle, Head of Marketing Orazio Pollaci, and Finance Director Tony Hawken.

In 2020, the company secured £2.1 million in syndicated investment, including £0.5 million from Mercia Asset Management, and a £0.4 million grant from Innovate UK in conjunction with the University of Warwick.

The ElectroAcoustic Panels are made up of two elements—a patented EST (electrostatic transducer) and a custom-designed EDM (electronics drive module).

According to the company, its EST gets closest to providing the ideal loudspeaker transducer, which it says should have zero mass, respond infinitely quickly to any signal, be perfectly damped, have no distortion, and be perfectly linear.

The EST module vibrates air using a thin, 15-μm conductive multi-layer membrane centered between two thin, electrically conductive stators. The membrane is kept at a high DC potential relative to the stators and the audio signal is applied across the stators, resulting in the membrane moving in response to the audio signal and generating acoustic output. Since the moving membrane has a low mass, it responds very quickly and precisely to changes in the audio signal, making for clear, accurate sound reproduction.

Each ElectroAcoustic Panel comes with a matched EDM providing bias power and audio signals to drive the EST. The EDM can be powered by a vehicle’s standard 12-V power rail, supplying a transducer bias voltage of 1300 to 2000 V for an audio input signal ranging between 100 mV and 2.2 V. Due to the ultra-low mass of the transducer and capacitive nature of the load, EDM power consumption is said to be extremely low, with typical average power requirements as low as a quarter of that required to drive a conventional transducer.

The EDM is compatible with Analog Devices’ Automotive Audio Bus (A2B) network and can use the A2B phantom power rail for DC drive. Inertia and other safety devices can be connected to the vehicle’s CAN at the system or A2B level to disconnect power in the event of a crash.