The course gives knowledge and applies knowledge obtained in previous courses in the development and methodology used in the design of silent products. Different products exemplify the strategies for low noise design using passive techniques.
When: | Quarter 5+6 |
Course code: | VTA155 |
Credits: | 7.5 ECTS |
Exam: | Written project report and individual reflection report |
Contact: | Kirster Larsson, |
Course Materials |
This course is one of the last courses in your education as a specialist in sound and vibration. There are just a few months left until you will work in real life as an acoustic engineer. You will experience a substantial change when you exchange your well organised educational situation with a working life, where you have to work by your own, without the guidance of teachers.
This course is a little step in this direction. There will be not the typical teacher/student situation but we will work together in small groups towards one goal. This goal is to learn how to design a silent product and to demonstrate our knowledge at an example.
Consequently we have:
- to develop a strategy for the design of silent products
- to study noise generation processes
- to get familiar with specialised techniques such as material tailoring for silent design
- to apply this knowledge at our example
I know that these steps are quite ambitious and they will demand a substantial portion of initiative, energy and work from you (and probably also from me).
In the course schedule there are very few hours fixed as lecture hours. We will certainly need more time, which we will locate during the course. You will also have to work a substantial part by your own.
Contents
The course is divided in five parts:
Part 1: Development of design strategy for silent products
At the end of this part we would like to have a general strategy which we could apply to our problem. In the first meetings we will try to develop our own strategy based on the knowledge we have at the beginning of the course. However, it is worthwhile to see how other people have attacked problems in these areas. There is substantial work in the area of noise control presented in literature. All groups will carry out a literature study. Focus of the study should be put on design strategies (not on the results of noise control!). The results from these studies will be summarised in a short written report and a presentation (20 minutes) which will be presented on one of our lecture times.
Part 2: Learning of Noise control techniques
Although you have quiet a substantial background in acoustics, your knowledge is more on the theoretical side than on the practical application. This part will focus on noise generation mechanisms and their potential for noise reduction, on the possibilities to reduce noise by secondary measures, their application potential in practise and their limitations.
Part 3: Investigation of the problem, collection of required knowledge
Each year a different product will be chosen as an example for the design of silent products. We will carry out measurements and will investigate the noise generation mechanisms. It will be your task to suggest design changes, which are realistic and at the same time lead to decreased annoyance due to noise.
Part 4: Suggestion for design changes
Part 5: Final study of the improvements, report
The course will be finished by a final report, which is compulsory. Additionally, an individual reflective report on the learning process is compulsory.
For the course syllabus (e.g. intended learning outcomes) please see the course page at Chalmers.
Literature
Course literature produced by the department of Applied Acoustics, international standards, European directives and selected technical papers.