Thorburn Associates has been commissioned to assist Kris Kringle with a very unique project this holiday season. Due to the ever-increasing population of children worldwide, Santa has outfitted his sleigh with jet engines to enable him to reach more children in less time. The elves working in the SANTA (Sleigh AeroNautical Test Area) Laboratories chose dual Rolls Royce V2500 series jet engines for the retrofit. Though producing plenty of thrust, these engines also produce over 140 decibels at the driver’s seat. Not only would this have violated most SAA (Sleigh Aviation Association) regulations for interior noise levels of the children’s residences, the excessive sound levels would wake the kiddies.
To address these issues an Active Noise Control System has been designed. Active noise control involves sensing the offending noise and then producing a sound that cancels out the offending noise (“Antinoise” as it is sometimes called). This particular design utilizes an array of microphones, sensors that collect thrust and operational data from the engines, digital signal processors, amplifiers and loudspeakers to produce the Anti-noise.
The system is currently undergoing test flight trials and is anticipated to be released for the official maiden voyage sometime in late December. The duration of the maiden voyage is still in question; the exact length will depend on the final good vs. bad count. TA would like to thank the Sleigh AeroNautical Test Area Laboratories, for allowing us to share this exciting post with you.