Formalization of the stages of conducting acoustic expertise when designing decision support systems

Abstract

Relevance. This work addresses the current scientific and technical problem of developing a functional model for conducting acoustic examinations of enclosed premises with different functional purposes as part of decision support systems. Different types of premises, including concert halls, conference halls, press centers, office spaces, and meeting rooms, have specific requirements for sound field characteristics, the sequence of examination stages, and the procedures applied at each stage. Consequently, the acoustic examination process for each type of premises is typically determined individually by a specialist based on professional experience. Therefore, there is a need to formalize the examination stages and develop a generalized functional model of the acoustic examination process for different types of enclosed premises as a basis for a specialized decision support system. The purpose of the study is to reduce the subjective component and improve the validity and reliability of acoustic examination results by developing a generalized functional model of the acoustic examination process for enclosed premises with different functional purposes. Research Methods.Statistical theory methods were used to calculate reverberation time. Geometrical acoustics was applied to analyze sound reflections from room surfaces and identify acoustic defects in rooms with complex geometries. The following results were obtained . A generalized functional model of the acoustic examination process was developed using the IDEF0 functional modeling methodology, followed by its decomposition. Four main functional blocks were identified: A1 – Auditoriums; A2 – Small Volumes with Predominantly Speech Content; A3 – Press Centers; and A4 – Special-Purpose Rooms. Each block was further decomposed into individual stages. The general approach to performing these stages was standardized while accounting for the specific sound field requirements of each type of premises. The functional model was tested during the acoustic examination of four meeting rooms. Conclusions. The relevance of developing a specialized decision support system for acoustic examination has been substantiated. As the first stage in developing such a system, the acoustic examination process was formalized through the development and decomposition of a functional model. The testing results confirmed the applicability of the proposed functional model. Future research will focus on developing the information, mathematical, and software and hardware components of the decision support system for acoustic examination.