Led by France’s Dassault Aviation, the nEUROn is an experimental UCAV demonstrator being developed with the international cooperation of six European countries. Dassault chose Brüel & Kjær to supply high-pressure versions of their surface microphones to conduct flight test measurements.
Surface microphones provide information about the true pressure load on components during flight. The microphones are typically flush-mounted on flat and curved surfaces, for example on aircraft fuselages. They must be capable of withstanding both high pressures and the harsh environments experienced during in-flight measurements. Importantly, the microphones must be able to perform in the presence of high velocity airflow, whilst producing minimal wind-generated noise.
Brüel & Kjær Sound and Vibration Measurement A/S (www.bksv.com) has headquarters in Denmark, and is a subsidiary of UK-based Spectris plc. Brüel & Kjær is a world-leader in acoustic and vibration measurement solutions. Brüel & Kjær produced the first range of measurement microphones in the 1950s, and its microphones still set the standard to which others are compared. The design of surface microphones was pioneered in cooperation with Airbus to measure in-flight sound pressure (noise), where the traditional flush-mounting of conventional microphone/preamplifier combinations would not be possible.