INTER-NOISE 2024 REPORT
INTER-NOISE 2024, the 53rd International Congress and Exposition on Noise Control Engineering, co-organized by the French Acoustical Society, on behalf I-INCE, was held on August 25-29, 2024, in Nantes, France.
With over 1800 participants, 1150 presentations, 117 sessions, 72 exhibitors, 63 online videos, 2 plenary lectures, 4 keynote presentations, 3 technical visits, social events, your professional workshops, and much more, this was a record-setting INTER-NOISE congress! While organizing a conference of this size requires significant time and effort from many individuals, the principal congress organizers were Adrien Pelat (Congress President), Judicaël Picaut (Congress Co-President), Julien Cesbron (Secretary General), Jean-Michel Ville (Finance Chair), who were assisted by the Technical Program Team: Kerem Ege, Benoît Gauvreau, Catherine Guigou, Catherine Lavandier, Sabine Meunier, Morvan Ouisse, and Charles Pezerat.
This year, the theme of the conference was “From Jules Verne’s world to multi-disciplinary approaches for Acoustics & Noise Control Engineering.” The technical program not only integrated sessions on the usual topics of INTER-NOISE congresses but also gathered contents around the universe of Jules Verne, born in Nantes in 1828. His adventure novels, known throughout the world, evoke scientific progress and technological projections, giving rise to the science fiction genre. The multi-disciplinary vision built by Jules Verne, between literature and science, inspired the organising committee to introduce special contents in the program, allowing exchanges on the different forms of multi-disciplinary approaches in the noise control context.
Congress Opening Ceremony
The opening ceremony took place as a live ceremony with some key figures in attendance in Nantes. It included a series of welcoming remarks, an overview of the congress and its technical program. Congress President Adrien Pelat took to the podium to welcome everyone to the congress, as well as expressing his gratitude to the I-INCE board for their help in the organization of the conference. I-INCE President Luigi Maffei also welcomed everyone, and, as president of I-INCE, he declared the congress officially open. Following an excellent opening plenary lecture, attendees were in for a special treat – with a wonderful performance from Ophenius, a jazz quintet that demonstrates how art and science can combine to something wonderful.
Plenary Lectures:
There were two plenary lectures, one to open the congress, and the second occurred on the Wednesday in keeping with tradition.
Plenary Lecture 1: Ocean Noise and its Effects on Marine Mammals
Presenter: Christine Erbe, Director, Centre for Marine Science and Technology (CMST), John Curtin Distinguished Professor, School of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Australia
Christine Erbe is the Director of the Centre for Marine Science and Technology (CMST) at Curtin University in Perth, Australia, and the Director of the Centre of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (COEST) at Curtin Mauritius. With a background in Physics (M.Sc., Dortmund University) and Geophysics (Ph.D., University of British Columbia), she is studying marine soundscapes, underwater noise generation and propagation, marine bioacoustics, and the effects of noise on animals. She is a Fellow of the Acoustical Society of America, Board member of the International Commission for Acoustics, and member of the intersessional expert group on underwater noise and light pollution of the International Seabed Authority. She chaired the international conference series on the Effects of Noise on Aquatic Life for several years. She has worked on International Standardization Organization (ISO) working groups on underwater noise and on the scientific committee to assess operations in Antarctica for the German Environmental Protection Agency.
Plenary Lecture 2: Advanced Characterization of Urban Sound Environments
Presenter(s): Arnaud Can, Research Director, Joint Research Unit in Environmental Acoustics (UMRAE), Gustave Eiffel University, Nantes, France
Pierre Aumond, Researcher, UMRAE, Gustave Eiffel University, Nantes, France
Dr. Arnaud Can is a researcher in environmental acoustics at the Gustave Eiffel University, in the Joint Research Unit in Environmental Acoustics (UMRAE). He also holds a part-time position of associate professor in Ghent University. His research interests deal with (i) the characterization of urban noise environments, including participatory and citizen-based approaches, and (ii) the evaluation of the links between mobility and urban sound environments, relying on mobility and road traffic modelling at different spatial scales. He is currently the coordinator of the ANR SYMEXPO and ANR SONOREZE II projects, and the animator of the axe “Urban Sound Environments” at the Research Federation IRSTV (CNRS FR2488).
Dr. Pierre Aumond, a researcher in environmental acoustics at Gustave Eiffel University’s UMRAE laboratory, is dedicated to understanding the interplay between the physics and perception of urban sound environments. He actively contributes to the development of numerical modelling methodologies for urban soundscapes and serves as the main animator of NoiseModelling, an open-source noise mapping tool.
Keynote Lectures
We were also treated to four separate keynote lectures which included:
- Listening to Simulations: Audio-rate Virtual Acoustics and Sound Synthesis, from Stefan Bilbao
- From the Laboratory to the Field: The Development of In-Situ Measurements on Noise Barriers in Europe, from Massimo Garai
- The Opportunities and Challenges in Additively Manufacturing Acoustical Materials, from Bhisham Sharma
- A Child Perspective on Noise Exposure and Health Effects – Challenges and Strategies, from Kerstin Persson Waye
Technical Sessions & Exhibitor Space (Monday – Thursday)
The technical program began on Monday, August 26, and this year, to accommodate the extra demand for presentations, the conference was extended to Thursday. There were five streams, covering 21 main topics, spread out over 117 sessions over the three and a half days. The sessions covered everything from flow-induced noise and vibration to noise policy and management, and everything in between.
There were three and a half days of excellent technical sessions
There were 72 separate exhibitors participating in the conference, that included industrial sponsors, emerging companies and institutional partners. Some exhibitors delivered 40-minuute workshops during the week. All workshops were free to attend for all congress delegates, and a full list with description was made available to all attendees so they could choose which to attend.
Young Professionals
The encouragement of young professionals is vitally important, and in recognition of this, I-INCE funds a number of Young Scientists Grants to assist with participation at each INTER-NOISE congress. On Sunday there was the I-INCE Practice School. The goals of the Young Professional Practice School are to provide mentorship via case studies and professional issues presented by world-renowned experts and to hold informal discussions between young professionals and I-INCE leaders and senior noise control engineers.
Monday afternoon saw the I-INCE Young Professional Workshop which was followed by the presentation of travel awards and a social networking hour. Starting from 2010, I-INCE has been leading a grant program for the young professionals (students, young engineers/scientists) who are attending to the INTER-NOISE congresses.
In parallel, there was a separate PhD Market, offering the opportunity to meet prospective employers. Students were invited to register and upload their CV to a dedicated database that was shared with interested exhibitors, who could contact students to schedule in-person meetings at the conference. Dedicated venues were provided to facilitate these meetings throughout the week.
Social Event
The congress dinner was held in MAGMA on the Tuesday evening. The Magma food hall, in the heart of Nantes’ Quartier de la Création, features restaurateurs offering a variety of cuisines, from pizza to South Korean flavours, revisited bistro cuisine, fused South American flavours, Mediterranean street food and burgers in different versions. The Congress dinner featured culinary specialties from French-style chefs, accompanied by live music.
INTER-NOISE meets MAGMA
Other Highlights
Note: All photos courtesy of Simon Bianchetti