Audioptimization: goal-based acoustic design

The authors present a new inverse, interactive approach to acoustic design that applies optimization techniques to an acoustic simulation system. For a new building, the system may suggest optimal configurations that would not otherwise be considered; for a hall with modifiable components or for a renovation project, it may assist in optimizing an existing configuration. Our system allows the designer to constrain changes to the environment and specify acoustic performance goals as a function of time. The constraints include the specification of a range of allowable materials as well as geometric modifications for surfaces in the hall. The designer also specifies goals for acoustic performance in space and time via high-level acoustic qualities such as decay time and sound level. Using this information, the system performs a constrained optimization of surface material and geometric parameters for a subset of elements in the environment. The system operates at varying accuracy levels, offering trade-offs between time and quality. Visualization tools facilitate an intuitive assessment of the complex time-dependent nature of sound, and they provide a means to express desired performance. By using optimization routines within an interactive application, our system reveals complex acoustic properties and steers the design process toward the designer's goals.