The loudspeaker as a sustainable and aesthetic product using additive manufacturing

Isenegger M, Schedler E, Hutter V, Zumbühl C, Schälli O, Taghipour A. The loudspeaker as a sustainable and aesthetic product using additive manufacturing. In: AES Conference: AES 2024 International Acoustics & Sound Reinforcement Conference. Audio Engineering Society; 2024. Paper 11. Available from: https://aes.org/publications/elibrary-page/?id=22363

@inproceedings{Isenegger2024_22363,
  author = {Isenegger, Manuel and Schedler, Elias and Hutter, Verena and Zumbühl, Christoph and Schälli, Othmar and Taghipour, Armin},
  title = {{The loudspeaker as a sustainable and aesthetic product using additive manufacturing}},
  booktitle = {AES Conference: AES 2024 International Acoustics \& Sound Reinforcement Conference},
  note = {Paper 11},
  year = {2024},
  month = jan,
  publisher = {Audio Engineering Society},
  url = {https://aes.org/publications/elibrary-page/?id=22363}
}

TY  - CPAPER
TI  - The loudspeaker as a sustainable and aesthetic product using additive manufacturing
AU  - Isenegger, Manuel
AU  - Schedler, Elias
AU  - Hutter, Verena
AU  - Zumbühl, Christoph
AU  - Schälli, Othmar
AU  - Taghipour, Armin
T2  - AES Conference: AES 2024 International Acoustics & Sound Reinforcement Conference
M1  - Paper 11
PY  - 2024
DA  - 2024/01/06
UR  - https://aes.org/publications/elibrary-page/?id=22363
PB  - Audio Engineering Society
LA  - en
AB  - State-of-the-art loudspeaker development is mainly motivated by added functionality and improved audio quality. Consequently, innovations are typically located in the field of signal processing and electronics. In contrast, the loudspeaker design presented here is inspired by three main concepts: additive manufacturing, aesthetic design and sustainability. Initially, a prototype developed by Verena Hutter established a benchmark. This project focused on the possibilities of broadband sound radiation in an aesthetic cabinet with a secluded driver. To achieve an even spatial sound distribution, different reflective elements were produced and their respective frequency response at different listening positions was measured. Considering the limitations given by the additive manufacturing process and material, as well as the aesthetic vision of a Möbius ring, a cabinet was designed and electroacoustically optimized with a commercially available driver. To improve sustainability, the electronics were optimized for energy efficiency. Moreover, the possibility to easily disassemble and thus repair or replace different parts of the loudspeaker was included into the design. The project resulted in an aesthetically pleasing, 3D-printed loudspeaker out of sustainable material with a secluded driver, a wide frequency range, improved energy efficiency, and simple disassembly.
ER  -