Maximizing productivity with rapid noise mapping

The sound quality of home appliances is a critical competitive factor for Gorenje, one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of white goods. Part of the design and development process is to measure the sound levels of their appliances in relation to relevant standards. As investigating sound sources was taking too much time in their busy anechoic chamber, Gorenje looked to increase efficiency with a faster characterization system. And they turned to us.

Challenge

The overriding issue was to maximize the productivity of research time in Gorenje’s anechoic chamber. They wanted to accomplish this by minimizing the time required to investigate the sound sources in white goods of varying sizes and types – everything from two-metre-high refrigerators to small microwave ovens.

Solution

Brüel & Kjær developed a bespoke, portable microphone array that was coupled to a data-acquisition system optimized for rapid, easy setup and fast identification of noise sources.

Results

The speed, repeatability, and accuracy of the measurements has increased dramatically. And faster setup allows engineers to spend their time in the chamber more effectively, working to improve the sound quality of the appliances.