Intelligent Structures for Low Noise Environments

不断增长的国际贸易导致了全球航运量的爆炸式增长，这反过来又增加了我们海洋中的噪音污染水平。这种情况由于船舶的大规模使用而加剧，这些船舶的振动结构产生的低频声辐射会传播很远的距离。噪音的增加及其对海洋生物的有害影响是一个重大的环境问题。推动这种大型集装箱船所需的动力也导致了与健康和安全相关的重大内部可居住性问题。更普遍的是，不断减少的自然燃料储量，加上对温室气体排放的担忧，正在导致海上和陆地可再生能源发电装置的激增。这些项目都加剧了噪音污染，这些污染在许多情况下以次声（即低于人类听觉阈值的频率）的形式辐射，对人类造成独特的生理影响和不适。在汽车行业，类似的环境压力正在导致更轻的材料结构和越来越多的电力使用。这些趋势给声音控制带来了类似的挑战，在电动汽车的情况下，这涉及到考虑独特的心理效应，这些效应会引起烦恼，而内燃机汽车则不会出现或掩盖这些烦恼。这里提出的工作的主要愿景是通过雄心勃勃的研究计划来解决低频噪声缓解要求，旨在通过主动和半主动控制，流体结构相互作用，声学建模，信号处理和数值优化以及增材层制造等关键不同学科的工具和技术的整体结合，开发一系列节能新型智能结构。本文将智能结构定义为集成了包含新型传感器、驱动（包括变形材料）、能量清除和能量存储、印刷电子、数据存储、计算和通信的结构元件的结构；不仅可以作为分立的嵌入式设备，还可以使用先进的增材制造技术打印。这些组件结合在一起，可以满足多种目标，包括节能、容错、低噪音、低振动和重量轻。拟议的合作伙伴关系将由BAE系统海事公司的噪声与振动工程系和南安普顿大学（UoS）的噪声与振动研究所领导，这将汇集在船舶噪声和振动缓解技术方面的成熟和世界领先的专业知识。与劳氏船级社（LR）合作，UoS在流体结构相互作用和机电设计方面的领先专业知识以及世界著名的诺丁汉大学EPSRC增材制造中心，这代表了一个强大的合作伙伴关系，将提供智能，节能，低噪音的结构和机器，以改善环境，增强广泛应用领域的安全性和安全性。

Increasing international trade is leading to an explosion in the amount of shipping worldwide, which in turn is increasing the levels of noise pollution in our oceans. This is exacerbated by the large scale of the vessels used with low frequency acoustic radiation from vibrating structures propagating over long distances. The elevated noise and its detrimental impact on sea-life is a significant environmental concern. The power needed to propel such large container vessels is also leading to significant internal habitability issues with associated health and safety concerns. More generally, dwindling natural fuel reserves together with concern over greenhouse gas emissions is leading to a proliferation of offshore and land-based renewable energy generating installations. Such projects are all contributing to increasing noise pollution that in many cases radiates as infrasound (i.e. at frequencies below the threshold of human hearing) that causes unique physiological effects and discomfort in humans. In the automotive sector, similar environmental pressures are leading to lighter material construction and the increasing use of electric power. These trends lead to similar challenges for sound control and in the case of electric vehicles, this involves consideration of the unique psychological effects that cause annoyance that are not present or masked in vehicles powered by internal combustion engines. The primary vision of the work proposed here is to address the low frequency noise mitigation requirement with an ambitious programme of research aimed at the development of a range of energy efficient novel intelligent structures through the holistic combination of tools and techniques from the key distinct disciplines of active and semi-active control, fluid structure interaction, acoustic modeling, signal processing and numerical optimization and additive layer manufacture. An Intelligent Structure is defined here as a structure that integrates structural elements that encompass novel sensors, actuation including morphing materials, energy scavenging and energy storage, printed electronics, data storage, computing and communications; not only as discrete embedded devices but also printed using advanced additive manufacturing techniques. In combination the components deliver behavior and performance that satisfy multiple objectives that could include energy efficiency, fault tolerance, low noise, low vibration and light weight.The proposed partnership will be led by the Noise and Vibration Engineering Department of BAE Systems Maritime and the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research at the University of Southampton (UoS) which brings together a well-established and world leading grouping of expertise in maritime noise and vibration mitigation technologies. Working together with Lloyd's Register (LR), UoS leading expertise in fluid structure interaction and electromechanical design and the world renowned EPSRC Centre for Additive Manufacturing at the University of Nottingham this represents a formidable partnership that will deliver intelligent, energy efficient low noise structures and machines to improve the environment and enhance security and safety across a wide domain of applications.