Fast evaluation of the Rayleigh integral and applications to inverse acoustics

In this paper we present a fast evaluation of the Rayleigh integral, which leads to fast and robust solutions in inverse acoustics. The method commonly used to reconstruct acoustic sources on a plane in space is Planar Nearfield Acoustic Holography (PNAH). Some of the most important recent improvements in PNAH address the alleviation of spatial windowing effects that arise due to the application of a Fast Fourier Transform to a finite spatial measurement grid. Although these improvements have led to an increase in the accuracy of the method, errors such as leakage and edge degradation can not be removed completely. Such errors do not occur when numerical models such as the Boundary Element Method (BEM) are used.Moreover, the forward models involved converge to the exact solution as the number of elements tends to infinity. However, the time and computer memory needed to solve these problems up to an acceptable accuracy is large. We present a fast (O(n log n) per iteration) and memory efficient (O(n)) solution to the planar acoustic problem by exploiting the fact that the transfer matrix associated with a numerical implementation of the Rayleigh integral is Toeplitz. In this paper we will address both the fundamentals of the method and its application in inverse acoustics. Special attention will be paid to comparison between experimental results from PNAH, IBEM and the proposed method

Near Source Acoustical Particle Velocity Measurements with Ambient Noise

An acoustical measurement very near a structure can be a cheap alternative to other contactless vibration measurement techniques such as laser vibrometry. However, measurements of the acoustical pressure suffer greatly from ambient noise, making these measurements unsuitable for many industrial applications. De Bree and Druyvesteyn suggested that a measurement of the acoustical particle velocity does not have this drawback and provided theory and qualitative measurement results [1]. We present quantitative measurement results of the relative noise contribution in pressure and particle velocity measurements. The ratio of these quantities receives special attention. The model used in previous research is a lumped model, in which some important aspects are neglected. We present results of a numerical model of the vibrating structure and the air. The numerical model and the measurements indicate the same trends but the lumped model does not describe the trends well. Nevertheless, this study also suggests that the sensitivity to background noise is generally considerably greater in pressure measurement than in a particle velocity measurement

Distributed multilevel optimization for complex structures

Optimization problems concerning complex structures with many design variables may entail an unacceptable computational cost. This problem can be reduced considerably with a multilevel approach: A structure consisting of several components is optimized as a whole (global) as well as on the component level. In this paper, an optimization method is discussed with applications in the assessment of the impact of new design considerations in the development of a structure. A strategy based on fully stressed design is applied for optimization problems in linear statics. A global model is used to calculate the interactions (e.g., loads) for each of the components. These components are then optimized using the prescribed interactions, followed by a new global calculation to update the interactions. Mixed discrete and continuous design variables as well as different design configurations are possible. An application of this strategy is presented in the form of the full optimization of a vertical tail plane center box of a generic large passenger aircraft. In linear dynamics, the parametrization of the component interactions is problematic due to the frequency dependence. Hence, a modified method is presented in which the speed of component mode synthesis is used to avoid this parametrization. This method is applied to a simple test case that originates from noise control. \u

Bond Strength Tests Between Silicon Wafers and Duran Tubes (Fusion Bonded Fluidic Interconnects)

The fusion bond strength of glass tubes with standard silicon wafers is presented. Experiments with plain silicon wafers and those coated with silicon oxide and silicon nitride are presented. Results obtained are discussed in terms of homogeneity and strength of fusion bond. High pressure testing shows that the bond strength is large enough for most applications of fluidic interconnects. The bond strength for 525 /spl mu/m thick silicon with glass tubes having outer diameter of 6 mm and with wall thickness 2 mm, is more than 60 bars after annealing at a temperature of 800/spl deg/C

Near-source error sensor strategies for active vibration isolation of machines

Due to lightweight construction of vehicles and ships, the reduction of structure borne interior noise problems with passive isolation of engine vibrations might be not sufficient. To improve the isolation, a combination of passive and active isolation techniques can be used (so-called hybrid isolation). This paper focusses on the influence of the sensor positions on the performance of the active isolation. In general two strategies can be distinguished: sensors located in the accommodation with a direct minimization of the sound field and sensors located near the source of vibration. In this paper attention will be paid to an effective weighting of the near-source sensors in such a way that the interior noise in the vehicle is reduced. Also the nearsource strategy of minimization of the injected power is considered. The latter strategy is theoretically very attractive, but is much more difficult to implement in practice. The techniques are explained and compared to each other with the help of numerical models