Example 2: choosing a model

Choosing a model is certainly one of the most delicate operations in any optimization process.

It is, however, the keystone of most solution-oriented research and the scientist's fundamental tool. The engineer's art lies not only in finding the right model, but also, and above all, in getting it to say the right things.

This is particularly true for room acoustics engineers, who are constantly confronted with laws based on radically different principles. For example, the acoustic field in a room can be described by geometric laws as well as by wave or statistical laws. What's more, each of these laws can itself call on different models.

For example, geometric laws can be developed from analytical equations, image source representations or ray methods.

To crown it all, assessments of the quality...