Aerodynamic Noise of Ground Vehicles

As engine, tire, and other automobile noise is reduced and as driving speeds increase, aerodynamic noise sources on ground vehicles are becoming relatively more important. They often dominate at cruise speeds of 65 mph. Aspiration and leak noise are strong sources but generally can be controlled by known methods. Turbulent pressure fluctuations due to separated and vortical flows are also strong sources. Much interior noise is caused by transmission of these external pressure fluctuations through windows and other surfaces. The paper presents the variety of aeroacoustic sources on automobiles and reviews the state of experimental data, of analysis methods, and noise reduction principles. A new correlation method for predicting external fluctuating pressures in separated regions is presented.