Acqua alta a venezia: Design of a urban scale auditory warning system

Abstract

A new warning system for high tide in Venice has been designed to replace the existing network of electro-mechanical sirens. The project was divided into four sections: (i) optimal placement of loudspeakers via constraint logic programming, (ii) simulation and visualization of the acoustic field in the city, (iii) design of the warning sounds, (iv) validation of the warning sounds. This paper reports the strategies and results of all four project stages, with special emphasis on sound design and validation.