Aeronautical and Automotive Engineering

Staff

Dr Nicholas Oettle MEng, PhD

Photo of Dr Nicholas Oettle

Technical Specialist for Aeroacoustics at Jaguar Land Rover

Visiting Research Fellow

Background:

Nicholas is the Technical Group Leader for the Aeroacoustics at Jaguar Land Rover, where his is responsible for the definition and delivery of the wind noise attribute for all vehicle programmes; the aeroacoustics technical development strategy; the development and application of virtual and physical aeroacoustics development techniques; and training and development of his team and the wider organisation on aeroacoustics.

He gained his MEng (First) from the University of Cambridge in 2008. His final year project, Deposition in a Drug-Delivery Line with a Sudden Expansion, involved an assessment of CFD methods in predicting near-wall flow behaviour and particle deposition against experimental data, in collaboration with Cambridge Consultants and supervised by Professor John Young.

He later gained his PhD in 2014 from Durham University with his thesis, ‘The Effect of Unsteady On-Road Flow Conditions on Cabin Noise’, supervised by Dr David Sims-Williams and Dr Rob Dominy. This investigated how the cabin noise and external aerodynamics of a vehicle is affected by the unsteady wind conditions on-road and how this differs to the response predicted in the wind tunnel. During his PhD in 2010 he spent time as a Visiting Researcher at FKFS at the University of Stuttgart.

Qualifications:

  • PhD (2014) Durham University
  • MEng (2008) University of Cambridge

Key Awards:

  • SAE Lloyd L Withrow Distinguished Speaker Award (2016)
  • SAE Best Paper and Presentation of SAE NVH Conference, Grand Rapids, USA (2015)
  • ECARA Award for Best PhD Thesis in the field of Automotive Aerodynamics (2013)

Research Interests:

  • Automotive aeroacoustics
  • Unsteady aerodynamics, particularly onset flow unsteadiness experienced by a vehicle on-road
  • Applications of computational aeroacoustics
  • Acoustic beamforming
  • Vibroacoustics
  • Psychoacoustics
  • Loughborough University: Vehicle Aerodynamics MSc, Aeroacoustics module, 2018-present
  • Jaguar Land Rover: Technical Accreditation Scheme, Aeroacoustics NVH module, 2013-present
  • Durham University: Senior Laboratory Demonstrator, 2008-2010

Recent publications:

  • Oettle, N., Powell, R., Senthooran, S., and Moron, P. (2019). “A Computational Process to Effectively Design Seals for Improved Wind Noise Performance," SAE Int. J. Adv. & Curr. Prac. in Mobility 1(4):1690-1697. https://doi.org/10.4271/2019-01-1472.
  • Oettle, N. and Sims-Williams, D. (2017). “Automotive Aeroacoustics: An Overview,” Proc. Inst. Mech. Eng. D 231(9): 1177-1189. https://doi.org/10.1177/0954407017695147.
  • Oettle, N., Bissell, A., Senthooran, S., and Meskine, M. (2015). "Assessment of Broadband Noise Generated by a Vehicle Sunroof at Different Flow Conditions using a Digital Wind Tunnel," SAE Int. J. Passeng. Cars - Mech. Syst. 8(3):1042-1052. https://doi.org/10.4271/2015-01-2321.
  • Oettle, N., Meskine, M., Senthooran, S., Bissell, A. et al. (2015). "A Computational Approach to Assess Buffeting and Broadband Noise Generated by a Vehicle Sunroof," SAE Int. J. Passeng. Cars - Mech. Syst. 8(1):196-204. https://doi.org/10.4271/2015-01-1532.

Other Selected Publications and Conference Proceedings:

  • Riegel, M., Blumrich, R., Oettle, N., Vickers, H. et al. (2019). New Large Microphone Array at FKFS Proceedings Wind Tunnel. In: Wiedemann, J. ed. Progress in Vehicle Aerodynamics and Thermal Management, 12th FKFS Conference, Stuttgart, October 1-2 2019.
  • Blumrich, R., Riegel, M., Oettle, N., Vickers, H. et al. (2018). A Comparison of Wind Tunnel Array-based Aeroacoustic Measurement Techniques. IMechE International Vehicle Aerodynamics Conference. Birmingham, 16-17 October 2018.
  • Staron, D., Riegel, M., Blumrich, R., Oettle, N. and Wiedemann, J. (2018). Vergleich von Methoden zur Bestimmung des instationären Windgeräuschs im Fahrzeug. Tagung Fahrzeug-Aerodynamik, Haus der Technik, München, 3-4 July 2018. Tagungsschrift Fahrzeugakustik und -schwingungen.
  • Oettle, N., Bissell, A., Senthooran, S. and Meskine, M. (2016). Assessment of Broadband Noise Generated by a Vehicle Sunroof at Different Flow Conditions using a Digital Wind Tunnel. 9th International Styrian Noise, Vibration & Harshness Conference, Graz, Austria, 22-24 June 2016.
  • Sims-Williams, D., Kounenis, C., Dominy, R. and Oettle, N. (2015). Three Dimensional Beamforming for Improved Noise Source Localisation. In: Wiedemann, J. ed. Progress in Vehicle Aerodynamics and Thermal Management, 10th FKFS Conference, Stuttgart, November 29-30 2015. Germany: Expert Verlag, pp. 17-29.
  • Gaylard, A., Oettle, N., Gargoloff, J., and Duncan, B. (2014). "Evaluation of Non-Uniform Upstream Flow Effects on Vehicle Aerodynamics," SAE Int. J. Passeng. Cars - Mech. Syst. 7(2):692-702, https://doi.org/10.4271/2014-01-0614.
  • Oettle, N., Sims-Williams, D., and Dominy, R. (2014). "Assessing the Aeroacoustic Response of a Vehicle toTransient Flow Conditions from the Perspective of a Vehicle Occupant," SAE Int. J. Passeng. Cars - Mech. Syst. 7(2):550-558. https://doi.org/10.4271/2014-01-0591.
  • Verrecas, B., McQueen, A. and Oettle, N. (2014). The Application of Spherical Beamforming Techniques to Localise Aeroacoustic Sound Sources in the Vehicle Cabin, IMechE International Vehicle Aerodynamics Conference. Loughborough, 14-15 October 2014. Woodhead Publishing, Loughborough.
  • Oettle, N., Mankowski, O., Sims-Williams, D., Dominy, R. et al. (2013). "Evaluation of the Aerodynamic and Aeroacoustic Response of a Vehicle to Transient Flow Conditions," SAE Int. J. Passeng. Cars - Mech. Syst. 6(1):389-402, https://doi.org/10.4271/2013-01-1250.
  • Oettle, N., Sims-Williams, D. and Dominy, R. (2013). Evaluation of the Aeroacoustic Response of a Vehicle to Transient Flow Conditions. In: Wiedemann, J. ed. Progress in Vehicle Aerodynamics and Thermal Management, 9th FKFS Conference, Stuttgart, October 1-2 2013. Germany: Expert Verlag, pp. 63-78.
  • Gaylard, A. P., Oettle, N., Duncan, B. and Gargoloff, J. (2013). Effect of Non-Uniform Flow Conditions on Vehicle Aerodynamics. In: Wiedemann, J. ed. Progress in Vehicle Aerodynamics and Thermal Management, 9th FKFS Conference, Stuttgart, October 1-2 2013. Germany: Expert Verlag.
  • Oettle, N., Sims-Williams, D., Dominy, R., Darlington, C. et al. (2011). “The Effects of Unsteady On-Road Flow Conditions on Cabin Noise: Spectral and Geometric Dependence," SAE Int. J. Passeng. Cars – Mech. Syst. 4(1):120-130. https://doi.org/10.4271/2011-01-0159.

External Positions: 

  • Associate Editor of SAE International Journal of Vehicle Dynamics, Stability, and NVH
  • Reviewer for Applied Acoustics Journal
  • Chairman of UK Automotive Aerodynamics Forum (UKAAF)
  • Organising Committee for IMechE International Vehicle Aerodynamics Conference
  • Organising Committee for SAE World Congress Experience
  • Member Liaison of SAE Road Vehicle Aerodynamics Forum Committee

External Collaboration:

  • Durham University (unsteady aeroacoustics and aerodynamics, acoustic beamforming, psychoacoustics)
  • FKFS, University of Stuttgart (unsteady aeroacoustics and aerodynamics, acoustic beamforming)
  • Dassault Systèmes Simulia PowerFLOW (computational aeroacoustics)
  • Siemens PLM (acoustic measurement technology) 

Invited Presentations:

  • IMechE Oxford Area Technical Lecture: Aeroacoustics - Reducing Wind Generated Noise in Cars. Oxford, 11 December 2018.
  • SAE-China Academic Annual Conference of Automotive Aerodynamic Committee: Future Challenges in Automotive Aeroacoustics. Shanghai, China, 5 September 2018.
  • Exa User Forum: Towards a Multi-domain Approach for NVH Simulation. Frankfurt, 11 September 2017.
  • ISVR Engineering Research Seminar Series: Can the Steady Flow Conditions of the Wind Tunnel Predict the Unsteady Wind Noise Measured On-road? Southampton University, 18 February 2014.
  • FKFS Seminar: The Effects of Unsteady On-Road Flow Conditions on Cabin Noise. Stuttgart, October 2010.