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Acoustic source identification is an important issue in both early and prototype validation stages of NVH design. OEMs and suppliers need to assess the entire description of vehicle noise emission, to understand and address interior comfort and exterior radiation issues. Today, none of the existing methods allow engineers to get a quick snapshot of sources contributing to the external pressure level affecting pass-by noise emission compliance, requiring long and arduous testing projects with & without physically masked components. A new acoustic imaging technique provides an important solution. The method is based on a microphone array. Like a camera, but unlike current holographic methods, the software delivers focused, near-realtime 2D colour snapshots and movies, corresponding to the sound pressure level at the region of interest. Typically, the entire side of a vehicle can be analysed during one pass-by run.

As worldwide competition for agricultural and construction equipment increases, manufacturers need to distinguish their products in areas such as operator comfort and perceived quality. Advances in digital audio recording and high speed computers have presented the noise and vibration engineer with the possibility of new tools and techniques for analyzing and processing sound. This paper discusses some of the recent developments in sound quality analysis in passenger cars and how they can be applied to similar engineering problems in off-highway vehicles.