A company called Syng, have released a new loudspeaker called the Cell Alpha Triphonic Speaker. Company co-founder, Christopher Stringer worked for Apple during 21 years and left in 2017 to create Syng. He was involved directly in developments for the iPhone and iPad, Apple Watch, and the HomePod. Stringer is referenced on more than 1,400 US patents. The first Triphonic sound system was actually patented in 1984 by Emil L. Torick (inventor) on behalf of CBS Broadcasting.
The global situation with COVID continues and has caused many conferences to change to a virtual conference, and dates have been rescheduled. The Events Calendar on Noiseboard has been updated with conference dates.
The shutdown of international travel due to COVID-19 has meant that most international conferences have been cancelled, delayed, or they have transitioned to e-conferences. Here is a list of upcoming conferences related to acoustics and vibrations:
An additional siren, which emits low-frequency noise, has been fitted to several Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service vehicles. The Whelen Howler, is a big speaker inside an enclosure for protection. The operators report that everyone takes notice when the siren is used. The siren emits deep tones that penetrate other vehicles, alerting drivers and pedestrians of the approaching vehicle.
Read the article on SirenNet.
A report titled “UK Acoustics: Sound Economics”, by the University of Sheffield and Imperial College London, calculate that UK’s acoustics industry has a turn-over of £4.6 billion annually. This is generated by around 750 companies, and over 200 active research grants in over 47 UK universities.
The founder of Head Acoustics, Klaus Genuit, said that
“A soup might be delicious or not, but you can’t answer this by knowing the temperature of the soup. It is the same with restaurant soundscapes—you need a lot more information than just noise level.”
At the 177th Acoustical Society of America conference in May 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, Genuit will present an application of the standard ISO 12913-3, Acoustics — Soundscape, which is still under development.
The new standard requires the use of binaural recording equipment, which Head Acoustics happens to make and sell.
Read the conference abstract on the Acoustical Society America web site.
Fujitsu in Japan has developed a device called Ontenna, that converts sound into light and vibration, that provides an aid for deaf people. Fujitsu plans to distribute the device for free to 30 schools for the deaf in Japan.
Read the news article on the web site nippon.com.
Read about some of the best sounding concert halls, and how they are designed, on the web site Interesting Engineering.
Zoom, who make portable audio recorders, have released the Zoom H3-VR recorder that has 4 microphones arranged in a tetrahedron to enable recording of ambisonic spatial audio.
Engineers at PCB have published an interesting article at audioxpress.com on how microphones are calibrated.