Speaker
Description
The increasing deployment of air-to-water heat pumps and other outdoor technical systems in residential areas introduces new challenges for environmental noise, acoustic comfort, and public acceptance. Conventional planning approaches often rely on single-number sound power levels and simplified distance-based conversions to sound pressure levels. However, these methods typically neglect frequency-dependent emission characteristics, source directivity, operating conditions, and interactions with the built environment.This contribution presents the continued development of an integrated framework linking a web-based 2D sound propagation tool with a 3D augmented reality system developed within the RAARA project. The 2D tool enables users to position heat pump outdoor units in real geospatial environments and visualize calculated sound pressure levels on an interactive map. Its simplified ISO 9613-based model considers geometric spreading, façade reflections, ground effects, directivity, and barrier attenuation, allowing rapid preliminary assessment of residential installation scenarios.The 3D augmented reality tool extends this assessment into a spatial, in-situ experience. Noise sources, future façades, and mitigation measures can be virtually placed on site before installation, with acoustic effects visualized at points and lines of interest. Future developments include the visualization of sound pressure levels on surrounding surfaces and real-time auralization, considering frequency content, directional radiation, operating state, and automatically recognized environmental geometry.By combining analytical 2D noise mapping with immersive 3D visualization and future auralization, the proposed approach supports a more intuitive interpretation of sound propagation and improves communication between experts, planners, residents, and decision-makers.