When a refrigerator at home, or the air conditioning at the office cause irritating noises, it can quickly destroy living/working conditions, sometimes causing serious health problems if not corrected. Engineers need to identify the source for potential acoustic problems early in order to prevent it from happening. However, measuring a sound field accurately is not an easy task.
The Linz-based company SevenBel has found an innovative solution to make sound sources visible in images. To measure a sound field, SevenBel uses a sensor equipped with highly sensitive microphones, which is set into a rotating motion, enabling acoustic information to be captured very accurately. The data is then sent to a data processing centre via the SevenBel app, where the signals are combined with a photo of the measured environment. The user receives a high-resolution image showing the sound sources color-coded by intensity. The individual frequency ranges (250Hz - 10,5kHz) can then be thoroughly analyzed through the app.
The company's name Seven Bel is derived from the sound level 70 decibels (or 7 Bel), the limit above which noise can be potentially harmful to human health in the long term. Creating an acoustic image only takes three minutes with the SevenBel system. Even inexperienced users can record the sound field of devices or rooms without complicated measurement set-ups and preparations. All they need is a mobile device and the SevenBel system, which consists of the app and a sound scanner. This way, the technology required for measuring is reduced to a minimum, allowing flexible use virtually anywhere.
Manufacturers of products such as refrigerators, cars and other devices can use the sound scanner to examine their products for undesirable noise sources already in the development phase and optimize them where necessary. Likewise, planners of office buildings or schools can identify early on if ventilation or other technical systems might cause disturbing noise. In industry, production facilities can be optimized to keep employees’ exposure to noise to a minimum. In addition, reviewing the acoustic behavior of systems can also support maintenance, for example when inspecting high-voltage insulators.
To make the design of the sound scanner as compact as possible while still allowing high-resolution images of the sound field, SevenBel relies on tiny digital microphones, which are realized as miniaturized electromechanical systems directly on a high-tech printed circuit board made by AT&S. By using up to five such microphones on a rotating sensor, measurement geometries specifically aligned to the respective application can be achieved, which allow very accurate differentiation of volume levels.
Austria Technologie & Systemtechnik Aktiengesellschaft – Advanced Technologies & Solutions – (AT&S) is a leading manufacturer of high-end printed circuit boards and IC substrates and will be presenting this and many other solutions for the first time at CES in Las Vegas, in the Austria Pavilion at the Venetian Expo (booth #51134), Level 2, Halls A-C. Demonstrations include also integration of antennas for high-frequency signals directly into PCBs with virtually no losses, high-resolution optical sensors integrated directly in PCBs for automotive applications, and 5G solutions using the company's HDI and substrate-like printed circuit boards (SLP) made for driver assistance systems and self-driving cars.
www.sevenbel.com
www.ats.net
