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Modeling and Measurement
Electroacoustic Simulation in COMSOL Multiphysics 6.0

Getting to The Next Level in Transducer Development

March 2, 2022
9:00 AM Pacific (12:00 PM Eastern)

Overview

With the audio industry increasingly initiating new product development efforts with simulation-driven designs, and gradually progressing to Digital Twins, it becomes increasingly important to understand all the vast possibilities these tools can offer. The Audio Product Education Institute (APEI) promotes a webinar that focus on what is new in Electroacoustic Simulation and very specifically the significant improvements to transducer development introduced with the latest release of COMSOL Multiphysics 6.
 
As discussed in previous sessions in this education pillar, using modeling and simulation systematically through the design and optimization stages of an acoustic device, is proving to enable significant performance breakthroughs. Not only by removing variables, but by identifying key undesired properties and effects, while enabling practical solutions that can be prototyped, verified and implemented.
 
The Acoustics Module in COMSOL Multiphysics 6 introduces many highly requested features that reflect the software’s increasing use in the audio industry. In this session, Mads J. Herring Jensen, Technology Manager, Acoustics, at COMSOL will provide an overview of those important areas of improvement, such as the possibility to model piezoelectric phenomena in the time domain for wave propagation using a time-explicit formulation, physics-controlled mesh for pressure acoustics problems, or new high-frequency wave methods. Speaker designers in particular can benefit from a new Lumped Loudspeaker boundary condition and sector symmetry options in the exterior field.
 
This event will benefit from the participation of Roger Shively (JJR Acoustics, LLC), highly experienced in the areas of transducers, automotive audio, psychoacoustics, and computer modeling, and Tim Whitwell (Tectonic Audio Labs) which currently leading cutting-edge efforts in transducer development and has started to explore the new COMSOL 6 features. Roger will share his experience and ask questions, while Tim will discuss his work with the new software, and modeling external pressure fields using the new cyclic symmetry feature. The session will be open for questions following presentations.
 
 
Mads J. Herring Jensen, COMSOL
Copenhagen, Capital Region, Denmark
Technology Manager, Acoustics, at COMSOL
 
Tim Whitwell, Tectonic Audio Labs
Washington, United States
Vice President Engineering at Tectonic Audio Labs
 
Roger Shively, JJR Acoustics
Seattle, WA, United States
Co-founder and Principal of JJR Acoustics
Mads Herring Jensen

Technology Manager, Acoustics, COMSOL
Copenhagen, Denmark

Mads Herring Jensen joined COMSOL in 2011 and is the technology manager for the acoustics products. Mads has a PhD in computational fluid dynamics from the Technical University of Denmark. Before joining COMSOL, he worked in the hearing aid industry for five years as an acoustic finite element expert.

Tim Whitwell

Vice President Engineering at Tectonic Audio Labs
Woodinville, Washington, USA

Tim Whitwell is a physicist and acoustics engineer with more than 20 years of experience in loudspeaker research and development as well as transducer and system design. Vice President Engineering at Tectonic Audio Labs, he specializes in electro-acoustic design, simulation, and measurement; electromagnetics and multi-physics finite element analysis; distributed mode loudspeaker (DML) design; balanced mode radiator (BMR) design; laser vibrometry; and audio system tuning. His designs have sold in the hundreds of millions and won many prestigious awards, including What Hi-Fi Product of the Year (twice). Furthermore, Tim is the cited inventor on a number of technology and audio patents. Having lived and worked in UK, Hong Kong and USA, Tim has an international perspective on the audio industry with experience of the transducer production environment, and a proven ability to build and lead world-class engineering teams.

Roger Shively

JJR Acoustics, LLC
Seattle, Washington, USA

Roger is a Co-founder and Principal of JJR Acoustics. He has over 34 years of experience in engineering research and development, with significant experience in product realization and in launching new products at OEM manufacturers around the world. Before co-founding JJR Acoustics in 2011, Roger worked as Chief Engineer of Acoustic Systems as well as functional manager for North American and Asian engineering product development teams in the Automotive Division of Harman International Industries Inc; a journey that began in 1986.
Roger received his degree in Acoustical Engineering from Purdue University in 1983, and finished post-graduate work in the field of finite element analysis. He is a member of the Audio Engineering Society, Acoustical Society of America, and Society of Automotive Engineering. He has published numerous research papers and articles in the areas of transducers, automotive audio, psychoacoustics, and computer modeling. Roger also holds US and International Patents related to the design of advanced acoustic systems and applications particularly in the field of automotive audio. Roger is Co-Chair of the AES Automotive Audio Technical Committee.