Tools to tame noise and vibration
In a recent interview, Alan Humphrey of Bruel & Kjaer discussed the growing need for sound and vibration measurement in a wide range of applications.
By Larry Maloney -- Test & Measurement World, 9/1/2008 2:00:00 AM
 ALAN HUMPHREY President Brüel & Kjaer North America Norcross, GA With more than 24 years of physical testing, simulation, and business management experience, Alan Humphrey joined Brüel & Kjaer in 2003 as president of the company’s American operations. His career started in the automotive industry at Jaguar Cars, where he worked in R&D applications involving instrumentation, data acquisition, analysis, and simulation testing of components and full vehicles. In 1987, he moved to the US to work for MTS Systems, with management responsibilities focusing on the automotive, aerospace, and defense industries. Humphrey holds a BSc in mechanical engineering from the UK’s University of Salford. Contributing editor Larry Maloney conducted a phone interview with Alan Humphrey on the growing need for sound and vibration measurement in a wide range of applications. |
Q: What industries are driving the need for better control of sound and vibration?
A: There’s quite a variety, including automotive, aerospace, defense, telecom, audio, office equipment, consumer goods, and heavy industry. Another growing area is “community comfort,” which targets the control of environmental noise from many sources, such as airports, roads, rail yards, and construction sites.
|
Alan Humphrey addresses more questions on sound and vibration applications, including environmental noise, in the continuation of this interview. |
Q: Are tougher government regulations also a factor?
A: Many of the product areas I’ve mentioned are heavily regulated by national and international standards and legislation, such as occupational safety, health regulations, and product noise-level requirements. It may come as a surprise that hearing loss from workplace noise is second only to the broad category of “disorders of the locomotor system” on the list of occupational diseases. As a result, many countries have implemented hearing conservation programs to assess and control noise problems. Companies that fall under these regulations must manage, retrieve, and report data on noise measurements, as in cases where worker claims are filed.
Q: How do your products help customers address these challenges?
A: A good example is our recently released LAN-XI data-acquisition hardware. You can deploy this equipment to make multichannel measurements using several large-rack systems, or you can make a simple two-channel measurement using a single module. Running on AC, DC, or Power over Ethernet (PoE), this modular hardware can operate as a stand-alone instrument or as part of a distributed setup, such as in an aircraft application.
Our Type 2270 handheld analyzer offers two-channel measurement capability, LAN and USB interfaces, a ruggedized design, and an integrated digital camera to document the measurement environment, such as a construction site or an automotive test lab. It serves many purposes, including sound-level metering, real-time frequency analysis, and sound and vibration recording.
Q: What is the purpose of your noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) center in Canton, MI?
A: We set up this new facility with our partners, Material Sciences and Link Engineering, to support customers who must address noise and vibration issues in such industries as automotive, medical, and appliances. Staffed by experienced NVH engineers, the research center helps customers with applications and also trains them to do their own testing. State-of-the-art equipment includes a hemi-anechoic chamber equipped with a four-wheel-drive dynamometer to test light-duty trucks. A Sound Transmission Loss (STL) suite features a large hemi-anechoic chamber, as well as reverberant chambers for transmission loss testing of horizontal panels, such as floor and carpet systems, as well as vertical panels and firewalls.
Q: Do customers also use your equipment to design in sound characteristics that enhance the customer experience?
A: That’s the part of our business we call “sound quality,” and it is a growing segment. For example, we offer special modules and NVH simulators for the automotive industry to help engineers achieve sound characteristics that correlate to consumer perceptions of quality, such as the sound that a car door should make when it closes.
Many companies today want to differentiate themselves based on the acoustic characteristics of their products, whether it’s a quiet dishwasher or the sound of a high-performance engine.
Read the continuation of this interview.
More mechatronics by 2010
02/29/2004PXI instruments handle automotive test
09/10/2006
-
FLIR offers IR camera for under $3000
-
Don't let the economy compromise quality (Guest commentary)
-
Danaher speeds up restructuring, acquires life-sciences businesses
-
Agilent’s Cover-Extend technology eliminates need for physical test points for in-circuit test
-
So many combinations: Testing a switch-matrix board
View All Webcasts
