Cascade: a novel computacional design system for architectural acoustics

Computation of sound propagation in enclosed spaces is needed for a variety of purposes such as noise exposure in industrial spaces, acoustic privacy conditions in open-plan office settings, and speech intelligibility in auditoriums. In this context, the present paper offers a twofold contribution: First, the concept of a prototypical computational environment (SEMPER) is described in which the informational basis for performance simulation is derived from the structurally homologous general (architectural) building representation without additional user intervention. In other terms, modifications to the building design are automatically mapped into the underlying model of performance analysis, thus enabling the user to rapidly and efficiently perform simulations of sound propagation in enclosed spaces from the early stages of design to the final (detailed) design solution. Second, the underlying computational approach to the acoustical simulation is outlined. The sound propagation model (CASCADE) is essentially a hybrid stochastic one that combines features of sound particle concept and statistical energy distribution analysis.