Abstract

Saws used in the wood, metal, food, and granite sectors generate noise levels of 90-100 dB(A). Solutions developed to control noise in specific workplaces have not proved generally applicable, due to the wide variation in working and production conditions from one industry to another, and the absence of a model of the excitation-vibration- propagation cycle.

To remedy this situation, this project will develop a comprehensive model of the behaviour of saw blades, based on a vibro-acoustic model of a rotating disks. In addition, test beds for fixed and mobile disk will be developed and used to validate the fixed and mobile disk models.

The development of the test beds is well under way. When completed, they will be used to validate the models and evaluate currently available commercial solutions. An inventory of these solutions has been drawn up, and samples have begun to arrive.

The project will further our understanding of the behaviour of circular saw blades and the conditions required to minimize sound propagation from them, and identify optimal blade shapes, dimensions, and materials. The study will also define design principles which, over the longer term, will facilitate the development of quieter equipment.