Beamforming with a circular microphone array for localization of environmental noise sources

Area of Science:

• Acoustics
• Signal Processing
• Array Signal Processing

Background:

• Environmental noise source localization is crucial for various applications.
• Circular microphone arrays offer uniform 360° resolution for sound source identification.
• Comparing different beamforming techniques is essential for optimizing acoustic sensing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the performance of delay-and-sum beamforming and circular harmonics beamforming.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of these techniques for localizing noise sources using circular microphone arrays.
• To validate simulation results with experimental data.

Main Methods:

• Utilized circular microphone arrays for sound field capture.
• Implemented classical delay-and-sum beamforming.
• Applied circular harmonics beamforming, which decomposes the sound field into circular harmonics.
• Conducted computer simulations to assess performance.
• Performed experimental validation.

Main Results:

• Both delay-and-sum and circular harmonics beamforming were analyzed.
• The study provides a comparative performance analysis of the two beamforming techniques.
• Simulation and experimental results were used to validate findings.

Conclusions:

• Circular microphone arrays are effective for planar noise source localization.
• Circular harmonics beamforming offers a viable alternative to classical methods.
• The findings contribute to the advancement of acoustic sensing and noise analysis techniques.