This page presents various projects around physical modeling and 3D printing of musical instruments.

3D Printing and Physical Modeling of Musical Instruments: Casting the Net (SMC-18)

Predicting the acoustics of objects from computational models is of interest to instrument designers who increasingly use Computer Assisted Design. We examine techniques to carry out these estimates using a database of impulse responses from 3D printed models and a custom algorithm for mode interpolation within a geometrical matrix. Test geometries are organized as a function of their physical characteristics and placed into a multidimensional space/matrix whose boundaries are defined by the objects at each corner. Finite Element Analyses is integrated into the open-source CAD environment to provide estimates of material vibrations also compared to measurements on the fabricated counterparts. Finally, predicted parameters inform physical models for aural comparisons between fabricated targets and computational estimates. These hybrid methods are reliable for predicting early modes as they covary with changes in scale and shape in our test matrix.

Paper

R. Michon, C. Chafe, and J. Granzow, " 3D Printing and Physical Modeling of Musical Instruments: Casting the Net," in Proceedings of the Sound and Music Computing Conference (SMC-18), Limassol, Cyprus, 2018.

Examples

Predicting the Acoustical Properties of 3d Printed Resonators Using a Matrix of Impulse Responses and Mode Interpolation (ASA-16)

Accurately predicting acoustical properties of 3D printed models is of interest to instrument designers who explore novel geometries. We introduce a technique to carry out these estimates using a database of impulse responses and mode interpolation.3D models are organized as a function of their physical characteristics and placed into a multidimensional space/matrix. The models at the boundaries of this space define the limits of our prediction algorithm and they are produced using 3D printing. Impulse responses of these models are measured, and modal information is extracted from each object. Mode parameters are interpolated within the matrix to predict the frequency response of unprinted models that fall within the geometrical space of the test matrix. A physical model using modal synthesis also allows us to listen to the resulting resonator.

Paper

R. Michon and J. Granzow, "Predicting the Acoustical Properties of 3d Printed Resonators Using a Matrix of Impulse Responses and Mode Interpolation", Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 2016, 139:4.