ARU 303

BUILDING UTILITIES
(ACOUSTICS & LIGHTING
SYSTEMS)
ACOUSTICS
• the science of sound and vibration which refers to the
stress fluctuations as well as waves in a material medium
• the art and science of designing a room or building which
insures both comfort and communication, and provides
special features as the purpose and use of the structure
requires
• the science of sound phenomena in buildings dealing with
the production, transmission, and
• absorption of sound in order to secure the distinct
conditions in every part of the building or room
Definition of Acoustic-related terms
• Sound - It is a disturbance of energy that comes through
matter as a sine wave, it moves at a speed of 1100 ft per
second. the speed of sound in air is determined by the
conditions of the air itself (e.g. humidity, temperature,
altitude).
• Pitch - The pitch of a sound is generally thought of as the
'highness' or 'lowness' of a sound. Together with
amplitude, duration, and tone color, pitch is one of the four
basic elements of all musical sounds . it’s determined by
the rate of vibration, or frequency, of the sound wave.
• Frequency - Oscillations /hertz The sound fluctuation of
these waves, called oscillations, can be measured by the
number of wave cycles per second. referred to as the
frequency of the sound. Frequency is quantified using a
unit of measurement known as hertz (abbreviated Hz),
which defines the number of repeating cycles per second
• Voice - The distinctive quality, pitch or condition of a
person's speech produced
• Voice Box / larynx - A cartilaginous structure at the top of
the trachea; which contains elastic vocal cords that are
the source of the vocal tone in speech produced in all
humans located in the upper portion of the wind pipe of
the throat.
• Audible sound - The human ear can recognize the sounds
of frequencies in the range of 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz.
• Infrasonic sounds - Sounds of frequencies less than 20
Hz are called infrasonic sounds.
• Ultrasonic sounds - The sounds of frequencies greater
than 20,000 Hz are called ultrasonic sounds.
• Amplitude - of sound height of the sound wave.( our
perception of loudness ) is influenced by both the
frequency and timbre of a sound Tone / colour/Timber of
• Sound The unique sound or tone color produced by every
instrument and voice is known as it's timbre. It is also
referred to an instrument's color.
• Decibel - The system used to measure the loudness of
sounds, given the unit dB named after Alexander Graham
Bell, the inventor of the telephone, the decibel became a
standard . It is also defined as the signal to the noise
ratio, (SNR ) often expressed in decibels
Echo - In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo
(plural echoes) is a reflection of sound, arriving at the
listener some time after the direct sound . The human ear
cannot distinguish an echo from the original sound if the
delay is less than 1/15 of a second and it’s heard as a
reverberating sound. Sabin A unit of acoustic absorption
equivalent to the absorption by a square foot of a surface
that absorbs all incident sound Hi-Fi sound High fidelity
sound -Accuracy of the sound or image of its input
electronic signal. Phon A unit of subjective loudness of pure
tones.
• Phone - is an instrument for Electro-acoustic transducer
for converting electric signals into sounds
• Octave - (Latin: octavus: eighth) or perfect octave is the
interval between one musical pitch and another with half
or double its frequency. It is an most important musical
scale & referred to as the "basic miracle of music.
• Wi-fi - A local area network that uses high frequency
radio signals to transmit and receive data over distances
of a few hundred feet; uses ethernet (wireless ) protocol
All acoustic situations have three common
elements:
• 1.SOURCE - can be made louder or more quiet

• 2.TRANSMISSION PATH - the path can be made to
transmit more or less sound

• 3.RECEIVER - the listener ; assumed to have a pair of

healthy young ears with a detection range of 20 to 20,000
Hz.
TYPES OF ACOUSTICS

• PHSYCO ACOUSTICS - deals with the reaction of

human beings to audible sound
• ENVIRONMENTAL ACOUSTICS - deals with the effects
of the environment upon audible sound waves
• ARCHITECTURAL ACOUSTICS / ROOM ACOUSTICS
- may be defined as the technology of designing spaces,
structures, and mechanical systems to meet hearing
needs.
• LANDSCAPE ACOUSTICS
LANDSCAPE ACOUSTICS
• ELECTRO ACOUSTICS - deals with the generation
and detection of audible sound waves
• SONICS - deals with the technical application of
mechanical waves in basic scientific research, industry,
and medicine.
SOUND THEORY
• The sensation of sound is a result of vibrations in the air
caused by pressure fluctuations, which can be
measured with a sound level meter. Vibrations are more
commonly associated with mechanical systems, but air
also has mass and stiffness, and as sound travels in the
air it is locally compressed and expanded. The simplest
type of vibration is a pure tone, which is a one-
dimensional sinusoidal vibration with only one frequency
component. These sinusoidal vibrations are called
simple harmonic vibrations.
• Measuring sound is done with a sound level meter and
can be presented by both sound pressure, measured in
Pascal (Pa), and sound intensity, measured in Watt/m2.
Amplitude
• The amplitude of a periodic variable is defined as the
maximum difference of the variable's extreme values
over one single period, usually the distance between the
top and the bottom of the curve. A large amplitude
signifies high sound levels (noise) and a low amplitude
signifies low sound levels (quiet). The sound wavelength
is not altered when changing the amplitude, it only
increases or decreases the loudness of the sound.
Frequency
• The measurement unit of frequency is Hertz (Hz), and
describes the number of cycles the period is repeated per
second (1 Hz = 1 cycle per second). In sound theory the
most used frequencies are 20Hz to 20 000 Hz (20kHz),
which is the range where the human ear can respond.
However, the field of acoustics also includes ultrasonic
frequencies above 20kHz, and infrasonic frequencies
below 20Hz.
• The sound wavelength depends on the phase velocity
and frequency, and frequency is further defined by the
period. The period is measured in seconds and defined
as the time it takes to repeat one cycle. In other words,
the wavelength characterizes the distance it takes to
repeat one cycle.
• Typical low frequency sound has long wavelengths and
contains high levels of energy, while high frequency
sound has short wavelengths and contain low levels of
energy. Typical low frequency sound is represented by the
bass levels and high frequency sound is usually the high
pitched details.
The Human Ear
• The human ear can respond to frequencies from 20Hz to
20kHz, but has a peak of sensitivity around 3-4kHz. This
is due to the resonance of the ear cavity that amplifies
certain frequencies. Many years of evolution has taught
the ear to be more sensitive around the frequency spectre
of speech, because that is the main source of
communication between humans. Therefore the ear is not
equally sensitive at all frequencies.
• The measuring unit for sound is Decibel (dB), and is a
logarithmic unit used to express power or intensity. The
human ear can hear from 0dB to 120dB, the last being the
threshold of pain. A level of 120dB or higher can be
dangerous for the ear, and in worst cases contribute to
permanent reduced hearing.
Noise
• Another type of sound is noise, which normally is
undesired. The definition of noise is highly subjective, due
to people reacting differently to what noise is. One may
characterize noise from being casually disturbing to
health damaging. Being exposed to high noise levels on a
daily basis can reduce your hearing if no precautions are
taken. If the ear has been critically damaged, there is little
chance it will heal to its original state, once the ear has
been injured there is no going back. Even though the
definition of noise is very individual, acoustic engineers
have a more objective way of characterizing it by using
sound level meters.
SOUND
• Is a physical wave, or a mechanical vibration, or simply a
series of pressure variations in an elastic medium.
• For airborne sound – the medium is air
• For Structure-borne sound – the media are concrete,
steel, wood, glass and a combination of all of these
• Any vibratory motion of bodies, the transmission of these
vibrations in a medium, and the sensation produced on
the human auditory mechanism
• - An alteration in pressure (particle displacement in
velocity) projected and propagated in an elastic material
SOURCES OF SOUND
• SPEECH – produced by human voice
• MUSIC – produced by an instrument
• NOISE – produced by impact, by vibrating bodies,
even by speech or music
TYPES OF SOUND

• WANTED – sound heard as perfectly as possible at the

right level or loudness without pain or strain

• UNWANTED – sound which entails an annoyance factor

PROPERTIES OF SOUND
• Sound must always have a source, a path, and a receiver.
• SPEED - sound travels at 1130 ft. per second. Or 344
meters per second at normal room temperature (68°F)
- sound travels faster in denser media
• INTENSITY - rate at which sound energy is being
transmitted
- intensity diminishes inversely as the square of the
distance
• Decibel – the unit which sound intensity is defined for
architectural purposes
• Decibel-meter – instrument by which sound intensity is
measured
• SOUND PRESSURE - the fluctuation in the atmospheric
pressure caused by the vibration of air particles due to
sound wave
• WAVELENGTH - the distance a sound wave travels
during each complete cycle of vibration measured in
meters or feet
• LOUDNESS - subjective attribute of an auditory
sensation in terms of which sound may be ordered on a
scale of soft to loud
• THRESHOLD OF AUDIBILITY - minimum intensity that
is capable of evoking an auditory sensation in the ear
• THRESHOLD OF PAIN - minimum sound pressure level
which stimulates the ear to a point which is painful
• FREQUENCY - the number of displacements or
oscillations that a particle undergoes in one (1) second
• HERTZ – unit measure of frequency; numerically equal
to cycles per second
• PITCH - the attribute of an auditory system which
enables us to pinpoint sounds on a scale extending from
hight o low frequency -subjective response of human
hearing to sound frequency
• TONE - sound sensation having pitch
DIRECTIONALITY OF SOUND SOURCES
- the way in which it sound is distributed in a region free
from reflecting surfaces
- sound sources radiate sound waves in all directions;
- radiation pattern varies with the frequency
- high frequency sounds are more pronounced along the
longitudinal axis of the sound source.
NATURAL ELEMENTS THAT AFFECT SOUND
• TEMPERATURE - particles of sound tend to follow cold
air
• CLOUDS - if heavy, clouds can act as a reflecting surface
• WIND - may change the direction of sound
• BODIES OF WATER - can also act as a reflecting surface
CHARACTERISTICS OF SOUND
• SOUND REFLECTION
– sound reflected off a surface, usually one which is
hard, rigid and / or flat
 FLAT SURFACE – uniform reflection
 CONVEX SURFACE – sound dispersion
 CONCAVE SURFACE – sound concentration

As a sound wave strikes an interface between two media with normal incidence (i.e orthogonal
or perpendicular to the direction of the wave) sound can only either be reflected or transmitted
CHARACTERISTICS OF SOUND
• SOUND ABSORPTION
- sound waves absorbed into a material upon contact
- change of sound energy into some other form
• SOUND DIFFUSION- occurs when sound waves are
dispersed equally in a room
• SOUND DIFFRACTION - acoustical phenomenon which
causes sound waves to be bent or scattered around such
obstacles as corners, columns, walls, beams, etc.
SOUND DIFFRACTION
SOUND DIFFRACTION
SOUND DIFFRACTION
SOUND REFRACTION

- change of sound wave direction as it moves from one

medium to another of different density
Sound reflection, diffusion and absorption
Sound travels as a longitudinal wave - a wave that
causes air to compress and expand in the same
direction as it travels. A sound will vibrate the particles
in a material, whether it is a gas, liquid or solid, losing
a little bit of kinetic energy with each further
movement.
• The most effective method of stopping sound from
travelling is by putting some kind of vacuum in its path.
Sound works by compressing and vibrating matter, and
in a vacuum there's nothing to compress or vibrate. This
is why in space, no-one can hear you scream! Any given
material will pass on a small amount of the wave to
some extent, and the greater the distance it is passed,
the less noisy the sound is on the other side of the
material.
The frequency of the sound wave, without getting
technical, is the measure of how high or low the sound
appears to the listener. Deeper sounds like bass from
a stereo are low frequency, higher sounds such as
speech are around the mid to high level frequency
 When sound hits a solid surface, it can either be reflected, diffused or
absorbed.

When sound hits a solid surface, it can either be reflected, diffused or absorbed.
NOISE REDUCTION
• acoustic privacy, and good hearing conditions are
qualities we seek in almost every building. The details
of a building contribute in important ways to achieving
these qualities. To reduce noise inside a building, we
detail the exterior walls to exclude outdoor noise. We
detail potentially noisy components of a building in
such a way that they remain quiet. We use sound‐
absorbing materials within rooms to reduce noise levels
from conversations and machinery.
• To achieve acoustic privacy, we detail interior doors,
partitions, floors, and duct-work to reduce sound
transmission between rooms to a minimum. For good
hearing conditions, we reduce noise and provide an
optimum combination and configuration of absorbing
and reflecting surfaces within a room. Often it is
advisable to work with a specialized consultant to
achieve good acoustical qualities in a building, but
many ordinary problems of noise, hearing, and privacy
can be solved by means of four detail patterns
Four (4) detail pattern
• Airtight, Heavy, Limp Partition
-The ideal sound proof partition is airtight, heavy,
and limp. A thick, hanging sheet of soft lead that is
sealed around the edges fulfills all these requirements. It
is expensive and unattractive, however, so we detail
partitions using a combination of standard materials in
such a way that we incorporate the necessary qualities of
air tightness, heaviness, and limpness.
• Cushioned Floor
-The control of sound transmission through floors is often
critical,especially in apartments, hotels, and dormitories,
where people live above one another. In addition to blocking
airborne sound, floors must also impede impact and
vibration noises from heels and machinery. The criteria of
air tightness, heaviness, and limpness that apply to
partitions are joined, in designing floors, by a fourth
criterion, cushioning.
Quiet Attachments
-Squeaks, bangs, rumbles, and other structural and
mechanical noises in building scan be reduced or
prevented by careful detailing and proper maintenance.
Sound‐Absorbing Surfaces
-Soft, porous, thick finish materials absorb most
airborne sound and reflect little. This makes them useful
in achieving quiet conditions inside a building.
 Reverberation of time

-sound consists of pressure waves, so it makes sense

that in a room sound bounces around. Sound waves can
bounce off the floor, walls, ceiling, and any other
reflective surface; gradually losing energy over
time. Reverberation is the collection of the reflected
sounds. Reverberation time is the time after the source of
the sound has ceased that it takes the sound to fade
away.
Room acoustics
-describes how sound behaves in an enclosed space.
Sound of different frequencies behaves differently in a
room. Reflections between walls, floor and ceiling create
room modes at specific frequencies and locations.
Reflections also produce reverberation.