Acoustic Panel With Openable Drainage Covers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Drainage slots in acoustic panels can negatively impact noise attenuation, and existing patterns may not effectively support drainage, particularly during freeze-thaw cycles, reducing the panel's ability to abate acoustics or noises effectively.
Innovation Solution
An acoustic panel design featuring a face sheet, a back sheet, and an intermediate layer with cells that include drainage slots covered by openable covers, allowing for controlled drainage while minimizing the number of slots to maintain noise attenuation, optionally manufactured using additive manufacturing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If drainage slots are provided in the acoustic panel to drain liquid, then drainage function is improved, but noise attenuation performance deteriorates due to openings reducing acoustic abatement
Solution Approach 1:
The drainage slot cover is designed to be movable between open and closed positions, allowing the panel to dynamically adapt its drainage capability based on operational conditions. This enables the panel to maintain noise attenuation when drainage is not needed while providing effective drainage when liquid accumulation occurs.
Solution Approach 2:
The drainage slot cover is positioned specifically at strategic locations within the acoustic panel structure, providing localized drainage functionality only where needed. This minimizes the impact on overall noise attenuation while ensuring effective liquid removal from critical areas.
2Reliability
If a large amount of drainage slots are provided to support drainage, then drainage capability is improved, but acoustic performance worsens due to increased openings
Solution Approach 1:
The movable cover design allows the panel to provide full drainage capability only when necessary, rather than having permanently open slots. This dynamic control enables effective drainage during freeze-thaw cycles or liquid accumulation events while maintaining acoustic performance during normal operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The drainage function is extracted as a separate, controllable feature through the movable cover, rather than being integrated into the panel structure itself. This allows the drainage capability to be activated or deactivated independently of the acoustic panel's primary noise attenuation function.
3Ease of manufacture
If drainage slots are provided in default or standard patterns, then manufacturing is simplified, but drainage support is insufficient for freeze-thaw cycles
Solution Approach 1:
The movable cover mechanism provides adaptive drainage capability that responds to actual liquid accumulation conditions, making the drainage system more reliable than fixed standard patterns. The cover can be positioned to allow drainage when needed while maintaining structural integrity and acoustic performance when not needed.
Data Source
AI summary
An acoustic panel comprises: a face sheet comprising a plurality of openings; a back sheet opposite to the face sheet; and an intermediate layer comprising a plurality of cells each comprising a cavity and a plurality of walls extending between the face sheet and the back sheet and surrounding the cavity, the plurality of walls comprising a plurality of drainage slots and a plurality of covers covering the plurality of drainage slots and openable for drainage. A method for making the acoustic panel is also described.