Software Allows for Creating 'Audibility' Maps

A team of British researchers at Cardiff University, sponsored by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), announces the development on a new type of computer software capable of producing audibility maps. The program basically simulates the proposed design of a room, and shows through playback how sounds would spread throughout the space, and how conversations will be affected. The tool is bound to have tremendously exciting applications in the field of architecture, its creators say. The system was based entirely on the patterns of human hearing.

One of the most significant applications that architects could use the new software for will be eliminating “hot spots.” These are places in a room where conversations are not intelligible if the place is filled with people. Large amounts of reverberation permeate the air, and audibility decreases considerably. With the program, it could be possible to fine-tune the design of the chamber until reverberation is brought down to “harmless” levels, or completely eliminated, or until all hot spots are removed. The main advantage is that this will be done before the first brick is laid at the foundation of the building housing these rooms.

“A lot of work has been done to understand acoustics in places used for public performances. But little has been done to improve the acoustics of day-to-day meeting-places, even though this would help all of us in our working and social lives,” says the leader of the project, CU professor John Culling. He explains that software destined for larger venues, such as concert halls and theaters, already exists, but that the programs cannot be applied for spaces such as open-plan offices, cafes and other areas.

“Our objective now is to identify and work with a software company to help us develop the software further and market it. Hopefully it will be available for architects to use within the next 12 months,” the expert adds. He states that the success of the new approach is guaranteed by the complex and highly accurate mathematical equation that sets its foundation. This also ensures that the simulations conducted with this particular software will be both faster and more precise than currently possible with existing models. The project, called “Effects of Reverberation on Conversation in Rooms,” is due to run until July 2010, when it will complete its three-and-a-half-year course.