Index

• Home
  • Our Organisation
    • Science Engineering and Health
      • Schools
        • Electrical and Computer Engineering
          • Research Specialties
            • Acoustics, speech and audio research
            • Biomedical Electronics
            • CUDOS
            • Engineering Education
            • Industrial Automation and Control Systems
            • Information and Signal Processing
            • Micro Nano Electronics and Sensors Technology
            • Microelectronics and Materials Technology Centre
            • OPNET
            • Postgraduate research
            • RF and Antennas

Acoustics, speech and audio research

RMIT reverberation chamber.

Model of RMIT reverberation chamber.

Spatial audio lab facility.

The research team in acoustics, speech and audio at RMIT investigates a variety of areas, including the development of novel 3D microphone arrays to record 3D soundfields, techniques to accurately reproduce high quality multizone soundfields, spatial audio coding and compression, the emotional and forensic analysis of speech, and acoustics testing of industrial materials.

NATA-accredited acoustic laboratory

RMIT hosts Australia's only acoustic laboratory that has the National Association of Testing Authorities, Australia (NATA) accreditation for the laboratory based measurement of both sound absorption and sound transmission loss. The facilities include a 200 cubic metre reverberation room and a sound transmission loss suite comprising 2 adjoining rooms each of approximately 115 cubic metres. The laboratory scope of accreditation is detailed below:

3.70 Acoustic characteristics of materials and structures

• .21 Sound absorption
• Determination of normal incidence sound absorption coefficient, specific normal acoustic impedance and statistical absorption coefficient over the frequency range 62 to 2440 Hz by the methods of - AS/NZS 1935 and ISO 10534-1
• Determination of sound absorption coefficient over the frequency range 100 to 5000 Hz in one third octave bands by the methods of - ASTM C423, AS ISO 354, AS ISO 11654
• .31 Sound transmission
• Sound transmission loss measurements of building partitions over the frequency range 100 to 5000 Hz in one third octave bands by the methods of - AS 1191, AS/NZS ISO 717.1, ASTM E90, ASTM E413, ISO 140-3

3.73 Sound power

• .03 Diffuse field
• Measurements of sound power in a reverberant field over the frequency range 100 to 10000 Hz by the methods based on ISO 3741 and similar standards

3.74 Acoustic performance

• .23 Acoustic enclosures and booths
• Noise reduction performance of audiometric booths over the frequency range 100 Hz to 10000Hz by the methods based on AS ISO 140-4 and similar standards

In addition, a spatial audio lab facility is capable of the recording and reproduction of higher-order soundfields and personalised soundfield environments, where the team utilise a Brüel & Kjær 4222 anechoic test chamber, Brüel & Kjær 2270 dual channel acoustics system and KEMAR manikin head and torso simulator for various research activities.

Key contact

Ian Burnett, Professor and Head of School
School of Electrical and Computer Engineering
E-mail: ian.burnett@rmit.edu.au