Integrated Autonomous Housing for Remote Australian Communities: Analysis, Synthesis and Testing. At remote mining communities, little consideration is given to comfort or energy efficiency in housing - services have not been optimised to minimise greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption and solid waste. This project will address these environmental issues and the associated social problems by combining the resources of BHP Billiton and the University of Newcastle to develop a model for remot ....Integrated Autonomous Housing for Remote Australian Communities: Analysis, Synthesis and Testing. At remote mining communities, little consideration is given to comfort or energy efficiency in housing - services have not been optimised to minimise greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption and solid waste. This project will address these environmental issues and the associated social problems by combining the resources of BHP Billiton and the University of Newcastle to develop a model for remote housing. The project aims to design and test an integrated low impact or autonomous transportable house. The results of this research are applicable to remote defence sites, small rural townships and Aboriginal communities as well as for international export.Read moreRead less
Using acoustic retroreflection in architecture to improve rooms for speech. This project aims to discover how a novel form of acoustic treatment can improve acoustics for speech in rooms such as classrooms and open-plan offices. The project will generate new knowledge on the theory, design, and effects of acoustically retroreflective surfaces in room acoustics. Expected outcomes include solutions for effective acoustic retroreflectors, knowledge on how retroreflection influences people’s voice r ....Using acoustic retroreflection in architecture to improve rooms for speech. This project aims to discover how a novel form of acoustic treatment can improve acoustics for speech in rooms such as classrooms and open-plan offices. The project will generate new knowledge on the theory, design, and effects of acoustically retroreflective surfaces in room acoustics. Expected outcomes include solutions for effective acoustic retroreflectors, knowledge on how retroreflection influences people’s voice regulation and sound quality perception, and guidelines and simulation tools for integrating retroreflective treatments to improve speaking comfort. This should provide significant benefits including opportunities to resolve seemingly intractable design dilemmas in the acoustics of education and workplace environments.Read moreRead less