Poisson Measures for Topological Groups and Their Representations

A class of unitary strongly continuous representations of infinite-dimensional groups such as geometric loop and diffeomorphism groups of real, complex and non-Archimedean manifolds is investigated. This class is constructed by producing Poisson measures P_m on configuration spaces of infinite-dimensional topological groups with the help of quasi-invariant measures m. Their irreducibility, equivalence and inequivalence is investigated.     

Mixing of Poisson random measures under interacting transformations

We derive sufficient conditions for the mixing of all orders of interacting transformations of a spatial Poisson point process, under a zero-type condition in probability and a generalized adaptedness condition. This extends a classical result in the case of deterministic transformations of Poisson measures. The approach relies on moment and covariance identities for Poisson stochastic integrals with random integrands.     

Stable compact motions of a particle driven by a central force in six-dimensional spacetime

We give a counterexample to the well-known Ehrenfest’s assertion that the existence of stable electromagnetic bound systems is impossible in spaces of more than three dimensions. If we require that the Maxwellian laws of electromagnetism be preserved for any even spacetime dimension, and that the dynamics as a whole be consistent, then the laws of mechanics must be amended by the addition of terms with higher derivatives. We consider a nonrelativistic particle with an acceleration-dependent Lagrangian which moves in an attractive 1/r³$1/r^3$ potential in five-dimensional space. There are compactly supported motions whose projections on the SO(5)$\left(5\right)$-reduced Hamiltonian system are Poisson equilibrium points. The nonlinearly stable equilibria correspond to physically stable motions over the direct product of two three-spheres in configuration space. The Energy-Casimir method turns out to be not appropriate for checking the stability. The studied system is shown to be stable through an analysis of numerical solutions to the equations of motion for small perturbations on the reduced phase space. This implies that falling to the center is prevented.     

A procedure for the assessment of wind turbine noise

The noise assessment at the receivers due to wind turbines in operation is usually performed through outdoor measurements. Background noise and wind turbines noise (WTN) are related to wind speed and both contribute to the overall measured noise levels (environmental noise). Nevertheless, the relation between noise and wind speed is not easily predictable, especially when the wind farms are installed in hilly terrains, where the wind shear is truly remarkable. In Italy and in other countries, this kind of assessment is even more difficult to perform due to the national regulations that require to compute the difference between environmental and background noise levels with the same weather conditions. Thus, to get a reliable and approved measure of the residual noise it would be necessary to turn off the wind farm. This work suggests a technical procedure to simultaneously estimate the immission and the residual noise components measured nearby a wind farm when the residual noise is mainly generated by wind. This allows the evaluation of the noise impact produced by operational wind farms, without requiring the farm shut down. The method aims to be fairly straightforward, thus maintaining the required scientific basis to be used as an assessment procedure by consultants and public bodies.     

Urban railway traffic noise: Looking for the minimum cost for the whole community

Nowadays, railway traffic noise is acknowledged to negatively impact the wellbeing of the whole community, particularly in urban environments. Unfortunately, the traditional approach to support decision making in noise reduction intervention seems to start only from the compliance to the regulations in place, rather than from the identification of an optimal trade-off between the cost of the annoyance of the community and the cost of the intervention. An advanced approach is proposed, which starts from any annoyance due to traffic noise, and which aims at identifying an optimal trade-off by means of evaluation of the minimum cost for the whole community. A case study in a railway noise-affected urban cluster of Milan, Italy, has been performed, which is representative of any urban environment affected by traffic noise. The sensitivity analysis on the parameters of the approach (the size of the buildings; the level of railway traffic; the cost per square meter of the acoustic barriers) shows that the results are robust and reliable, and in the specific case a noise reduction of 15–25 dB is optimal for the community.     

A note on a circular panel sound absorber with an elastic boundary condition

Panel sound absorbers are typically used to absorb low-frequency noise in concert halls, auditoriums, recording studios, and other architectural applications. These systems are composed of flexible panels mounted over an air space that can be either partly or completely filled with a porous material. In this paper, a theoretical model is derived for predicting the sound-absorption coefficient of a cylindrical low-frequency absorber made of a circular plate. The theory takes into account the mass, bending stiffness, damping loss and the elastic boundary condition of the circular plate. The effects of the stiffness of an air-back cavity and of partially adding a porous material into the cavity are also considered. It is observed that the low-frequency resonances of such a system are dependent upon the clamping condition, the width of the air-back cavity, and mechanical properties of the plate. There is good agreement between theoretical and experimental results.     

Numerical and experimental studies on housing optimization for noise reduction of an axial piston pump

This paper presents a methodology to reduce the noise of an axial piston pump through modification of the housing structure, combined with both numerical and experimental methods. The finite element models of the housing and cover are established, and are assembled together. The finite element models are validated and updated using experimental modal analysis. The frequency response function of the assembly is calculated, and the shell element in the inner surfaces of the housing is added. The effects of the thickness of the shell element on the frequency response function are identified. A topology optimization is conducted for the purpose of reducing the frequency response function and the increase of mass. The prototype pump is manufactured and assembled. Different experimental measurements are carried out, including the measurement of the vibration and the distributions of the sound pressure levels around the pump. Results show that the vibration and noise are reduced by using the optimized housing. In particular, the average sound pressure level is reduced by about 2 dB(A) at the discharge pressure of 250 bar, and the sound pressure level at the second harmonic is reduced significantly. The method proposed here can also be used for other kinds of displacement pumps.     

A new methodology to assess sound power level of tyre/road noise under laboratory controlled conditions in drum test facilities

Tyre/road interaction is the main source of noise emission caused by road traffic when cruising at speeds over 30 km/h. Several methods such as the Coast-By, the Close-Proximity, the Statistical Pass-By or the Controlled Pass-By have been used over recent decades to measure noise emission. However, since Regulation (EC) No. 1222/2009 on the labelling of tyres was published, only the method described in UNECE Regulation 117 concerning the approval of tyres with regard to rolling sound emissions, can be used in order to obtain tyre/road noise emission approved values. All these conventional methods have several disadvantages such as the lack of repeatibility, the influence of environmental factors or the different results that can be obtained depending on the test track or the vehicle upon which the tests are carried out. A new methodology based on drum tests and the ISO 3744:1994 has been developed in order to avoid these limitations. This paper describes the new method including the positioning of microphones, calculating correction factors, characterising the background noise caused by the drum and obtaining the sound power level of a tyre when rolling against a drum.     

The effects of speech intelligibility and temporal–spectral variability on performance and annoyance ratings

Ambient sound can impair verbal short-term memory performance. This finding is relevant to the acoustic optimization of open-plan offices. Two algorithmic approaches claim to model the impairment during a given sound condition. One model is based on the Speech Transmission Index (STI). The other approach relies on the hearing sensation fluctuation strength (F). Within the scope of our consulting activities the approach based on F can hardly be applied and the model based on the STI is often misinterpreted in terms of semanticity. Therefore we put to test the two models and elucidate the relevance of temporal–spectral variability and semanticity of background sound with regard to impairment of performance. A group of 24 subjects performed a short-term memory task and rated perceived annoyance during eight different speech and speech-like noise conditions, which varied with regard to STI and F. The empirical data is compared to the model predictions, which only partly cover the experimental results. Speech impairs performance more than all other sound conditions and variable speech-like noise is more impairing than continuous speech-like noise. Sound masking with continuous speech-like noise provides relief from the negative effect of background speech. This positive effect is more pronounced if the signal to noise ratio is −3 dB(A) or even lower.