8–12 Sept 2026
Europe/Vienna timezone

On-board Acoustic Measurements on Drones: Self-Noise Characterisation and Detection of External Sound Sources

FA2026/700
10 Sept 2026, 10:40
20m
Galerie C (Messe Congress Graz)

Galerie C

Messe Congress Graz

A07 Flow Acoustics A07.00 Flow Acoustics

Speaker

Stefan Becker (LSTM, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg)

Description

On-board microphones on drones enable external sound acquisition without the need for ground-based arrays; they can be positioned flexibly and quickly to suit individual requirements and allow for wide-area sound measurements. However, measurement performance is significantly influenced by high self-noise, as well as by flow conditions, microphone arrangement and wind protection. This paper presents a measurement setup featuring a reference acoustic source and several reference microphones on the ground. Various reference signals are used at different measurement distances to validate the measurement capability. Furthermore, the measurement configuration and equipment on the quadcopter are explained, including the mounting of the on-board microphones and the measures taken to protect against flow-induced effects. Finally, the data processing is described, the aim of which is to reduce the influence of self-noise on the acoustic measurement. On this basis, the measurement capability is evaluated across a broad frequency spectrum, taking into account the influence of self-noise. From this analysis, the possibilities and limitations of the applied methodologies are ultimately identified.

Authors

Stefan Becker (LSTM, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg) Julian Benz (Institute of Fluid Mechanics)

Presentation materials