Researchers at Boston University have found that when feet are vibrated, people have less tendency to sway. They conducted tests by getting people to stand on a vibrating platform and found that people swayed several millimeters less than when the platforms were stationary.
Read the article on the New Scientist web site.
Triad has developed a single chip tri-axial accelerometer that weighs 0.25gm.
Read the product specs on the Triad web site.
Akustica is a US start-up company (not to be confused with the journal of the same name), that is developing MEMS that have combined on-chip microphones and electronics, and also speaker and electronics. This new technology allows the components to be miniaturised and produced extremely cheaply. They have developed microphones that are less than 1 mm^2, and a miniature speaker array that has 8 individually controllable speakers.
Read about the technology on the Akustica web site.
A model will be shown at the Science Musuem in London, of a tooth implant that has a receiver and shaker. The device will receive RF signals and vibrate the jaw bone so that an audible signal can be heard in the ear of the wearer.
Read the full story on the Telegraph web site.
Silence International, a Norwegian company, has developed an active noise control headrest called the “Silent Zone headrest”. The Silent Zone headrest will first be introduced in diesel locomotives.
Read the full story on the Silence International web site.
Researchers at Vanderbuilt University, Department of Mechanical Engineering are developing active control systems to reduce the noise inside the payload bay of rockets. The take-off noise and vibration inside the rocket is responsible for many satellite failures and satellite manufacturers have to re-inforce the construction of their satellites to withstand the harsh conditions. By reducing the noise inside the paylaod bay, the weight of the satellite can be reduced, which substantially reduces the cost per launch. Ken Frampton’s group is designing modular active vibration control systems that will be scalable, as the number of nodes increases.
Read the full article on the Vanderbuilt University, Department of Mechanical Engineering web site.
Matsushita (usually known as Panasonic), have developed an ultra-thin speaker called the “Sound Slim”. Conventional speakers have a cylindrical arrangement of the voice coil and magnet, whereas the Sound Slim speakers has the voice coil placed horizontally between two permanent magnets, which results in reduction in size of about 3/4 the thickness and 1/2 the width compared to a conventional speaker.
Read the press release on the Matsushita web site.
BAE System’s Advanced Research Centre is developing an active vibration isolator that combines a conventional spring and an electromagnetic shaker. The SmartSpring is targetted for use in Naval vessels where the minimization of the acoustic signature is important to avoid detection.
Read the full article on the web site.
Rion have released a new sound level meter model, the NL-32/NL-22 Type 1 / Type 2 Noise Analyser. Data can be stored on to compact flash cards. Remote download and control option for GSM or landline.
Read the full article on the ANV Measurement Systems website.
I am extremely happy that the number of hits to noiseboard.com has been steadily increasing. The stats page shows that for September there were 908 hits, and in October there were 1999 hits, more than double from the previous month! Thanks for your continued interest.