Minimisation of the sound power radiated by a submarine through optimisation of its resonance changer

An important cause of sound radiation from a submarine in the low frequency range is fluctuating forces at the propeller. The forces are transmitted to the hull via the shaft and the fluid. Sound radiation occurs due to hull and propeller vibrations as well as dipole sound radiation caused by the operation of the propeller in a non-uniform wake. In order to minimise sound radiation caused by propeller forces, a hydraulic vibration attenuation device known as a resonance changer can be implemented in the propeller/shafting system. In this work, cost functions that represent the overall radiated sound power are investigated, where the virtual stiffness, damping and mass of the resonance changer were chosen as design parameters. The minima of the cost functions are found by applying gradient based optimisation techniques. The finite element and boundary element methods are used to model the structure and the fluid, respectively. The adjoint operator is employed to calculate the sensitivity of the cost function to the design parameters. The influence of sound radiation due to propeller vibration on the optimisation of the resonance changer as well as the influence of the reduction in amplitude for higher harmonics of the blade-passing frequency on the control performance is investigated.     

Effects of internal mass distribution and its isolation on the acoustic characteristics of a submerged hull

The primary aim of machinery isolation in marine vessels is to isolate structural vibration of the onboard machinery from the hull and to reduce far-field radiation of underwater noise. A substantial proportion of the total submarine mass is on flexible mounts that isolate supported masses from the hull at frequencies above the mounting system resonant frequency. This reduces the dynamically effective mass of the hull and affects the signature of the marine vessel due to propeller excitation. A fully coupled finite element/boundary element (FE/BE) model has been developed to investigate the effect of mass distribution and isolation in a submerged hull. The finite element model of the structure includes internal structures to represent the machinery and other flexibly mounted components. Changes in the radiated sound power demonstrate the effect of machinery isolation on the acoustic signature of the submerged hull due to the external propeller forces. Results are also presented to show how the arrangement of flexible mounts for a large internal structure can influence the radiation due to machinery forces.     

基于声辐射模态的有源控制解耦在固定支承板上的研究

基于声辐射模态的主动控制理论,以固定支承板为例,通过四组作动器在固定支承板上的布放,使其能分别控制不同阶声辐射模态辐射的声功率,来使控制方程解耦,从而设计了比较简单与稳定的单输入/单输出控制系统,模拟计算取得了较好的控制效果。同时本文对控制过程中的溢出等问题进行了一定的探讨。     

Active control of low-frequency sound radiation by cylindrical shell with piezoelectric stack force actuators

A novel active control method of sound radiation from a cylindrical shell under axial excitations is proposed and theoretically analyzed. This control method is based on a pair of piezoelectric stack force actuators which are installed on the shell and parallel to the axial direction. The actuators are driven in phase and generate the same forces to control the vibration and the sound radiation of the cylindrical shell. The model considered is a fluid-loaded finite stiffened cylindrical shell with rigid end-caps and only low-frequency axial vibration modes are involved. Numerical simulations are performed to explore the required control forces and the optimal mounting positions of actuators under different cost functions. The results show that the proposed force actuators can reduce the radiated sound pressure of low-frequency axial modes in all directions.     

Structural and acoustic responses of a fluid-loaded cylindrical hull with structural discontinuities

This paper studies the low frequency vibrational behaviour and radiated sound of a submarine hull under axial excitation. The submarine is modelled as a fluid-loaded cylindrical shell with internal bulkheads and ring-stiffeners and closed at each end by circular plates. A smeared approach is used to model the ring stiffeners. The external pressure acting on the hull due to the fluid loading is calculated using an infinite model and is shown to be a good approximation at low frequencies. The radiated sound pressure is obtained by considering the finite cylindrical hull to be extended by two semi-infinite rigid baffles. The sound pressure is then only due to the radial displacement of the cylindrical shell, without taking into account the scattering at the finite ends. The main aim of this paper is to observe the influence of the various complicating effects such as the bulkheads, ring-stiffeners and fluid loading on the structural and acoustic responses of the finite cylindrical shell. Results from the analytical models presented in this paper are compared to the computational results from finite element and boundary element models.     

Reduction of vibration and noise radiation of an underwater vehicle due to propeller forces using periodically layered isolators

Using periodic structure theory, the suppression of vibration and noise radiation from an underwater vehicle due to excitation from propeller forces is investigated. The underwater vehicle is modelled in two parts (the hull and the propeller/shafting system). A model of the propeller/shafting system is constructed using a modular approach and considers the propeller, shaft, thrust bearing, isolation structure and foundation. Different forms of isolator are considered – a simple spring-damper system, a continuous rod and a periodically layered structure. The dynamic properties of the underwater vehicle and the isolation performances of various isolators are compared and analysed. The stop band properties of the periodic isolator are used to enhance the passive control performance. Furthermore, an integrated isolation device is proposed that consists of the periodic isolator and a dynamic absorber, and its isolation performance is investigated. The effects of the absorber parameters on the performance of the integrated device are also analysed. Finally, the radiated sound pressure is calculated to verify the attenuation. The numerical results show that the vibration and noise radiation are greatly attenuated in the stop bands. By optimising the design of the periodic isolators and its integrated structures, the suppression of the vibration and noise radiation can be improved effectively.     

船尾伴流场-导管-螺旋桨互作用噪声预报研究

研究了导管螺旋桨低频离散谱噪声辐射机理和预报方法。依据线性声学原理,导管螺旋桨噪声场为螺旋桨直接辐射噪声与导管散射噪声之和,并利用速度势面元法分析流场,得到导管螺旋桨非定常力,将其作为FW-H方程的源项,求解得到螺旋桨直接辐射声。导管散射声通过Kirchoff积分方程求解获得。由于导管桨的导管是短导管,其算例分析计算表明,低频情况下导管散射声级远小于螺旋桨直接辐射声级。并将导管螺旋桨离散谱噪声级与测量所得的实桨离散谱噪声级进行了比较,证实导管螺旋桨离散谱噪声理论预报结果能够较合理的反映实桨离散谱噪声的量值。     

Acoustic signature of a submarine hull under harmonic excitation

The structural and acoustic responses of a submarine under harmonic force excitation are presented. The submarine hull is modelled as a cylindrical shell with internal bulkheads and ring stiffeners. The cylindrical shell is closed by truncated conical shells, which in turn are closed at each end using circular plates. The entire structure is submerged in a heavy fluid medium. The structural responses of the submerged vessel are calculated by solving the cylindrical shell equations of motion using a wave approach and the conical shell equations with a power series solution. The far-field radiated sound pressure is then calculated by means of the Helmholtz integral. The contribution of the conical end closures on the radiated sound pressure for the lowest circumferential mode numbers is clearly observed. Results from the analytical model are compared with computational results from a fully coupled finite element/boundary element model.     

Reduction of radiated exterior noise from the flexible vibrating plate of a rectangular enclosure using multi-channel active control

This study attempted to control the radiated exterior noise from a rectangular enclosure in which an internal plate vibrates by acoustic excitation and noise is thus radiated from that plate. Multi-channel active control was applied to reduce the vibration and external radiation of this enclosed plate. A piezoelectric ceramic was used as a distributed actuator for multiple mode control of the vibration and radiated noise in the acoustically excited plate. To maximize the effective control, an approach was proposed for attachment the piezoelectric actuator in the optimal location. The plate and internal acoustic space in the enclosure are coupled with each other. This will change dominant frequency characteristics of the plate and, thus, those of the externally radiated noise. Active noise control was accomplished using an accelerometer attached to the plate and a microphone placed adjacent to that plate as an error sensor under acoustic excitation of sine wave and white noise. It was found that the control of radiated external radiation noise requires a microphone as an error sensor, a sound pressure sensor due to vibration of the plate, differences in the dominant frequency of externally radiated noise, and complex vibration modes of the plate.     

Broadband flow-induced sound control using plasma actuators

Plasma actuators were used in this work to control flow-induced broadband noise radiated from a bluff body. The model consists of a cylinder and a component (torque link) that is installed on the lee side of the cylinder. The objective is to reduce the broadband noise mainly generated through the impingement of the cylinder wake on the torque link. The flow-structure interactions between the cylinder wake and the torque link are reduced by manipulating the cylinder wake with the externally imposed body force from the plasma actuators, which lead to the attenuation of the broadband noise. The control performance with the plasma actuators is studied in an anechoic chamber facility by examining far-field sound level and near-field acoustic source changes. At a free stream speed of 30 m/s, corresponding to the Reynolds number of 2.1×10⁵, far-field measurements suggested that a reduction of up to 3.2 dB in overall sound pressure level. The near-field beamforming results also show approximately 3 dB reduction in the interested frequency ranges. The physical mechanisms related to broadband noise control were also discussed. This work suggests that plasma actuators offer the potential for solving flow-induced noise control problem at broadband frequencies.     

Active control of radiated sound power of a smart cylindrical shell based on radiation modes

A new approach is proposed in this paper based on radiation modes to control the radiated sound pressure of a smart cylindrical shell equipped with piezoelectric sensor and actuators. The radiation modes determine the specific distribution of normal velocity of the shell that independently radiates sound to the surrounding space. In this study, the first radiation mode is controlled since it is the most effective mode in terms of the radiated power. The results indicate that most of the sound power is attenuated by controlling only this mode. The extended Hamilton’s principle, the Sanders shell theory and the assumed mode method are used to derive the equations of motion in a state space form that is suitable to design the controller. The radiated sound pressure is calculated using the simplified Kirchhoff-Helmholtz integral along with a Kalman filter to observe the system states, and a modified higher harmonic control (MHHC) is designed to attenuate the sound power. A numerical simulation demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed approach compared to active vibration control (AVC) in attenuating the radiated sound in the low frequency domain.     

极点配置法弹性平板有源隔声系统优化

对混响声场中的弹性平板有源隔声系统进行优化。根据激励频率范围确定受控模态阶次,在模态空间中建立系统降阶方程,基于极点配置方法,采用分布式系统增加受控模态的阻尼,降低低频共振声传输。同时设计模态滤波器,为控制器提供所需的状态信息。为提高控制效能,本文对传感器和作动器布放位置进行优化,尝试不同极点配置方案,并对耦合控制与独立模态控制方法的隔声效果进行比较。仿真结果显示,极点配置法有源隔声可以有效降低共振声传输,优化布放和独立模态控制方式下,控制力明显降低。优化后的有源隔声系统效能有所提升。     

船舶无空泡螺旋桨非定常推力脉动及其诱导线谱噪声分析

对船舶无空泡螺旋桨非定常推力脉动及其诱导的线谱噪声进行了研究,主要目的在于螺旋桨非定常推力脉动理论预报方法的验证。基于速度势面元法计算得到非均匀流场中无空泡螺旋桨的推力脉动,在大型循环水槽中利用非定常动力仪测试得到全附体船后螺旋桨的脉动推力,以脉动推力作为声源项预报得远场线谱噪声。一阶叶频非定常推力系数理论计算值与试验值最大相差29.3%,由此引起的线谱噪声差别为3.0 dB。上述结果表明,面元法预报船后螺旋桨非定常推力脉动已达到较高精度,为船舶螺旋桨低频线谱噪声的预报提供了物理基础和重要参数。     

Novel active noise-reducing headset using earshell vibration control

Active noise-reducing (ANR) headsets are available commercially in applications varying from aviation communication to consumer audio. Current ANR systems use passive attenuation at high frequencies and loudspeaker-based active noise control at low frequencies to achieve broadband noise reduction. This paper presents a novel ANR headset in which the external noise transmitted to the user's ear via earshell vibration is reduced by controlling the vibration of the earshell using force actuators acting against an inertial mass or the earshell headband. Model-based theoretical analysis using velocity feedback control showed that current piezoelectric actuators provide sufficient force but require lower stiffness for improved low-frequency performance. Control simulations based on experimental data from a laboratory headset showed that good performance can potentially be achieved in practice by a robust feedback controller, while a single-frequency real-time control experiment verified that noise reduction can be achieved using earshell vibration control.     

Active control of radiation from a piston set in a rigid sphere

Active control of the sound radiated from a piston set in a rigid sphere with a set of control point sources around is considered in this paper, where the scattering sound field of the control sound from the rigid sphere has been taken into account to minimize the total radiated sound power. Analytic results of the sound power are obtained and numerical simulations show that it is possible to reduce the radiation from a small piston set in a rigid sphere similar to the size of a human head up to a certain frequency. It is found that the introduction of the scattering object makes significant differences from the active control without scattering objects. This being the case, the scattering object makes the active noise control easier. To increase the global reduction of sound-power output, the optimal number and locations of the control sources and the optimal number and locations of error sensors are discussed. Finally, experiments with one control source and one error sensor around a head simulator have been carried out to verify the simulation results.     

On the sound radiation of a rolling tyre

The sound radiation from rolling tyres is still not very well understood. Although details such as horn effect or directivity during rolling have been investigated, it is not clear which vibrational modes of the tyre structure are responsible for the radiated sound power. In this work an advanced tyre model based on Wave Guide Finite Elements is used in connection with a contact model validated in previous work. With these tools the tyre vibrations during rolling on an ISO surface are simulated. Starting from the calculated contact forces in time the amplitudes of the modes excited during rolling are determined as function of frequency. A boundary element model also validated in previous work is applied to predict the sound pressure level on a reference surface around a tyre placed on rigid ground as function of the modal composition of the tyre vibrations. Taking into account different modes when calculating the vibrational field as input into the boundary element calculations, it is possible to identify individual modes or groups of modes of special relevance for the radiated sound power. The results show that mainly low-order modes with relative low amplitudes but high radiation efficiency in the frequency range around 1 kHz are responsible for the radiated sound power at these frequencies, while those modes which are most strongly excited in that frequency range during rolling are irrelevant for the radiated sound power. This fact is very essential when focusing on the design of quieter tyres.     

Broadband radiation modes: estimation and active control

In this paper we give a formulation of the most efficiently radiating vibration patterns of a vibrating body, the radiation modes, in the time domain. The radiation modes can be used to arrive at efficient weighting schemes for an array of sensors in order to reduce the controller dimensionality. Because these particular radiation modes are optimum in a broadband sense, they are termed broadband radiation modes. Methods are given to obtain these modes from measured data. The broadband radiation modes are used for the design of an actuator array in a feedback control system to reduce the sound power radiated from a plate. Three methods for the design of the actuator are compared, taking into account the reduction of radiated sound power in the controlled frequency range, but also the possible increase of radiated sound power in the uncontrolled frequency range.     

环筋对水下平底圆柱壳的声振特性影响

本文建立了计算两端带平底板的有限长圆柱壳水中声辐射的FEM／BEM三维模型，探索了加筋的高度、宽度、数目对平底圆柱壳的辐射功率、辐射效率、法向声强、声场指向性的影响规律。计算方法是在有限元软件ANSYS中做加筋平底圆柱壳建模、模态分析基础上，将有关数据（网格、模态）导入边界元软件SYSNOISE中计算流体结构耦合状态下的辐射声场特性。结果表明：（1）随着环筋高度、宽度增大，激励点声压峰和法向声强峰在0-400Hz频率范围内数目减少且峰向高频方向移动，同时辐射声功率在减小（除个别模态峰值外），而辐射效率随筋高增大而增大。（2）环筋数目的增加使激励点辐射声压和法向声强峰数目明显减少，使辐射声功率明显低于无筋圆柱壳的辐射声功率，辐射效率随环筋数目增大而增大。（3）环筋宽度变化对声场指向性影响不大；圆柱壳声场指向性随环筋高度和数目增加出现较大变化，尤其是在研究的频段内的f=51Hz和f=301Hz上。这对于水下结构辐射噪声预报以及噪声抑制具有重要意义。     

Comparison of decentralized velocity feedback control for thin homogeneous and stiff sandwich panels using electrodynamic proof-mass actuators

Theoretical and experimental work is presented to compare the effect of decentralised velocity feedback control on thin homogeneous and sandwich panels. The decentralised control system consists of five control units, which are composed of a proof-mass electrodynamic actuator with an accelerometer underneath its footprint and an analogue controller. The stability of the feedback loops is analysed by considering the sensor-actuator open-loop frequency response function of each control unit and the eigenvalues of the fully populated matrix of open-loop frequency response functions between the five sensors and five actuators. The control performance is then analysed in terms of the time-averaged total kinetic energy and total sound power radiated by the two panels. The results show that for a stiff sandwich panel higher stable feedback gains can be implemented than on a thin homogeneous panel of comparable weight per unit area. Moreover the implementation of decentralised velocity feedback can offset some of the undesirable sound transmission properties of lightweight sandwich structures by efficiently reducing structural vibration and sound power radiation in the mid audio frequency range.     

Modelling and characterization of a piezoceramic inertial actuator

An inertial actuator (also known as a proof mass actuator) applies forces to a structure by reacting them against an “external” mass. This approach to actuation may provide some practical benefits in the active control of vibration and structure-borne noise: system reliability may be improved by removing the actuator from a structural load path; effective discrete point-force actuation permits ready attachment to curved surfaces, and an inherent passive vibration absorber effect can reduce power requirements.This paper describes a class of recently developed inertial actuators that is based on mechanical amplification of displacements of an active piezoceramic element. Important actuator characteristics include resonance frequencies, clamped force, and the drive voltage to output the force frequency response function.The paper addresses one particular approach to motion amplification, the “dual unimorph,” in detail. A model of actuator dynamic behavior is developed using an assumed-modes method, treating the piezoelectrically induced stresses as external forces. Predicted actuator characteristics agree well with experimental data obtained for a prototype actuator. The validated actuator dynamic model provides a tool for design improvement.