Abstract: A field-matching wave superposition method for sound prediction of typical structures is proposed.The method partially base on least square method(LSM),in which a few reference points of sound pressure should be measured ahead to search the optimal position of equivalent sources.Moreover,the effects of the number,position of measuring points and amplitude distribution of vibration were studied numerically.In order to prove the efficiency of this method,an experiment for predicting sound radiation from a cylindrical shell with hemi-cap has been done successfully in a half-space anechoic tank.The result shows that the sound radiation of a structure,for different excitations,can be predicted precisely from surface velocity by wave superposition method once the optimal position of equivalent sources is determined by LSM using the sound pressure of reference points.The method has a considerable adaptability for different frequency and vibration distribution.