The Influence of Shape Design on the Acoustic Performance of Concert Halls from the Viewpoint of Acoustic Potential of Shapes

Shape design is critical to the acoustic performance of concert halls, and room shapes obtained in the shape design stage should have the potential to be acoustically desirable when appropriate materials are assigned in the late design stage. However, the importance of shape design to acoustics, as well as the relationships between shape designs and acoustic performance, has not been thoroughly explored to meet the requirements of design practice. This research employs a method combining acoustic simulation, Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines and Monte Carlo Simulation, to investigate the influence of shape design on the acoustic performance of shoe-box and fan-shaped concert halls from the viewpoint of acoustic potential of shapes. The acoustic functionalities of materials and the multiplicity of acoustic parameters are taken into account in order to meet the real situations of shape design. The results first quantify and prove the importance of shape designs in achieving desirable acoustic performance for shoe-box and fan-shaped concert halls, and then reveal the relationships between the probability of acoustically desirable shapes and shape parameters, which could help architects stay in an appropriate design direction for acoustics. Finally, a method to evaluate the acoustic potential of shapes in real-time is provided, which can help architects make decisions in shape designs.