What was that loud noise I just heard?    Can I use Abaqus to simulate it?

In our physical world, there exists many noise sources, ranging from a pounding jack hammer to the sweetness of a vocalist in a musical ensemble.    The sound which is emitted by these sources, can either pleasing or annoying to our ears.   Any object, which vibrates or is in motion, can be classified as an acoustic source.   

We may want optimal sound output from a loudspeaker or we might want to explore ways of reducing noise levels caused by vibrating components such as engine or power-train in an automotive application.  Noise can be reduced either passively, designing for noise dampening (carpeting, acoustic foam etc) or active noise cancellation (piezoelectric smart sensors.

Simulation of underwater acoustics has been a subject of ongoing research for the better-part of 40-years.  Yet while massive increases in computational speed and power have allowed for the solution of larger and larger problems basic solution approaches have actually changed very little. 

The acoustic signature and target strength of any submarine is a very closely guarded secret, as acoustic detectability is among the few weaknesses of this weapons system.  Acoustic design is therefore one of the most important aspects to the development of a submarine.

In this study, Drs. Shantharam Dravida, Jonathan Arata and Andrzej Bajer outline the steps used to generate the various models and the platforms used to perform this analyses, as well as presenting the particular results. 

 This work has been presented and published at the 81st Shock and Vibration symposium 2010 (SAVIAC – Shock and Vibration Information Analysis Center –   http://www.saviac.org/ ).