Loudspeaker array beamforming for sound projection in a half-space with an impedance boundary

Sound projection is a method of using highly focused sources to project sound onto reflective surfaces to create the impression of surround sound, which can be realized via beamforming using loudspeaker arrays. Generally, these devices are mounted near a surface with a finite acoustic impedance, such as a TV accent wall. The beamforming performance degrades in this half-space with an impedance boundary when the filters are designed using transfer functions measured in the free field. This paper proposes a model for predicting the beamforming performance in a half-space with an impedance boundary in terms of the transfer functions in the free field. A mathematical model is presented, and the results are compared with practical measurements for a 16-driver line array in real-use environments. The results show that reflections from the boundary lead to "dark bands" in the beam, causing the beam to deviate from the designed direction. Using filters designed with transfer functions calculated by the proposed model yields improved beamforming performance.

Sound pressure around dipole source above porous surface

A technique for in situ measurements of acoustic properties of a fibrous porous material is proposed in this paper. Proposed technique exploits a directivity pattern of a dipole source in its very near field. Theoretical analysis for the proposed technique is based on the Rayleigh integral with a complex reflection included. Results are compared with results of FEM analysis and show that flow resistivity of a porous material placed in the very near field of the dipole source has significant influence on the sound pressure at its ring. Results provide an excellent starting point for the design of the sensor for sound absorption.