Wed 19th April 12:30 – 13:30. This seminar will be available on Teams.
Abstract
NASA maintains multiple psychoacoustic laboratories across the United States. One focus of research in these facilities is to investigate the human reaction to the noise of notional UAM vehicles. This effort will look for answers to several questions: What does a “good” UAM sound like? What might be the impact on existing urban soundscapes? What will people think when there are an [economically viable] number of these machines operating? Although this effort is ongoing, a number of advances have already been made: A psychoacoustic test to guide UAM sound design has been recently completed. Several algorithms to assess the audibility of a UAM vehicle in an existing background soundscape have been put forward. A technical memorandum detailing best practices for recording and reproduction of background sounds for UAM psychoacoustic research has been published (TM 20210017504). Flexible data analysis methods that could be agile to changes in perception that occur when large numbers of vehicles are flying have been developed by extending existing metrics. This presentation gives an overview of this completed and continuing research.
Biography
Andrew Christian works in the field of psychoacoustics at NASA Langley Research Center. He received a degree in applied math from The New Jersey Institute of Technology, and then a masters in acoustics from The Pennsylvania State University. While he was in school, his primary occupation was as an audio engineer for concerts, theatres, etc. At NASA, he primarily helps to run the Exterior Effects Room – a small auditorium that has been equipped with a 3D (or 2D, depending on how you count) array of speakers. There, he conducts psychoacoustic tests regarding the noise of various aircraft, most of which do not yet exist. Accordingly, another facet of his job is to create signal processing flows that generate “auralizations” – bring the sounds of future aircraft to life.
Andrew Christian (https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Andrew-Christian-6)