Have you been measuring or simulating vibration and sound without having learned the fundamentals? Drawing from my many tutorials in the Noise-Con and Inter-Noise congress proceedings and the book ‘Engineering Vibroacoustics’ (Wiley), I will teach you the basics using computational and experimental practical examples. We’ll start with structural vibrations, where you will learn about different wave types, modes of vibration, mobility and impedance, infinite structure theory (one of your most useful tools!), and structural power flow. Next, I’ll explain sound-structure interaction: how structures radiate sound and how sound excites structures, sound power transmission loss, and coupling between structures and acoustic cavities. Finally, I’ll give an overview of numerical methods (finite elements, boundary elements, statistical energy analysis) used to solve vibroacoustic problems and their frequency ranges of applicability. You will use my online vibro-acoustic demonstrators to visualize the main concepts.

Topics Covered

Structural Vibrations

• Longitudinal, shear, and bending waves in beams and simple, stiffened, and composite panels
• Modes of vibration
• Mobility and impedance
• Infinite structure theory – one of your best friends!
• Structural power flow between coupled oscillators – the basis of Statistical Energy Analysis

Sound-Structure Interaction

• Basic loudspeaker sound radiation and the concept of radiation efficiency
• How acoustic regions ‘load’ and couple with structural vibrations
• How structural vibrations radiate sound
• How sound fields induce structural vibrations
• Sound power transmission loss through panels
• Coupled panels and interior acoustic cavities

Overview of Numerical Methods for Vibroacoustics

• Finite Element Analysis (FEA) for structural vibrations
• Boundary Element Analysis (BEA) for acoustic fields
• Statistical Energy Analysis (SEA) for coupled structural and acoustic systems
• Short survey of advanced techniques like Transfer Path Analysis, Energy Finite Element methods, and wave-based vibration modeling

Dr. Stephen Hambric — Author / Presenter
Dr. Stephen Hambric has worked for 40 years in flow-induced vibration and sound and noise control for the US Navy, Penn State University, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and several US companies. He has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals, books, and conference proceedings. While at Penn State he advised 36 graduate students in the Graduate Program in Acoustics (acs.psu.edu) where he taught a class on sound and vibration and directed the Center for Acoustics and Vibration (CAV). He edited and co-wrote the book Engineering Vibroacoustic Analysis – Methods and Applications and has co-edited four books on Flow Induced Noise and Vibration Analysis (FLINOVIA series by Springer). He is a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the Institute for Noise Control Engineering (INCE). He has developed and taught short courses on vibration and sound, flow-induced vibration, and signal processing to US government agencies and private companies for over 25 years. He retired from Penn State in Fall 2022 and currently consults for the US NRC, US Navy, US Industry, and is Lead Instructor for the Noise Control Engineering Courses for INCE-USA (students who pass the courses qualify for INCE-board certification in Noise Control Engineering), and gives webinars and writes technical white papers on sound and vibration instrumentation for the PCB piezotronics corporation.