Patent ID: 8111832

Claim:
A method of adjusting acoustic impedances for impedance-tunable acoustic segments, comprising the steps of: providing a plurality of impedance-tunable acoustic segments for exposure to an acoustic wave wherein a first acoustic segment through an N-th acoustic segment are defined; designating said first acoustic segment as a leader; determining a noise-reducing impedance for said acoustic segment so-designated as said leader using (i) at least one metric associated with said acoustic wave at said leader, and (ii) said at least one metric associated with said acoustic wave at said N-th acoustic segment; tuning said leader, said N-th acoustic segment, and remaining ones of said acoustic segments exclusive of said leader and said N-th acoustic segment, to said noise-reducing impedance so-determined; excluding said leader so-tuned from subsequent steps in said method; re-designating one of said remaining ones of said acoustic segments to be said leader; and repeating said steps of determining, tuning, excluding, and re-designating, for each of said acoustic segments through an (N−1)-th one of said acoustic segments.