Spectral analysis of hearing protector impulsive insertion loss

Details

• Personal Author:
  Berger EH ; Fackler, Cameron J. ; Murphy, William J. ; Stergar ME
• Description:
  OBJECTIVE: To characterise the performance of hearing protection devices (HPDs) in impulsive-noise conditions and to compare various protection metrics between impulsive and steady-state noise sources with different characteristics. DESIGN: HPDs were measured per the impulsive test methods of ANSI/ASA S12.42- 2010 . Protectors were measured with impulses generated by both an acoustic shock tube and an AR-15 rifle. The measured data were analysed for impulse peak insertion loss (IPIL) and impulsive spectral insertion loss (ISIL). These impulsive measurements were compared to insertion loss measured with steady-state noise and with real-ear attenuation at threshold (REAT). STUDY SAMPLE: Tested HPDs included a foam earplug, a level-dependent earplug and an electronic sound-restoration earmuff. RESULTS: IPIL for a given protector varied between measurements with the two impulse noise sources, but ISIL agreed between the two sources. The level-dependent earplug demonstrated level-dependent effects both in IPIL and ISIL. Steady-state insertion loss and REAT measurements tended to provide a conservative estimate of the impulsively-measured attenuation. CONCLUSIONS: Measurements of IPIL depend strongly on the source used to measure them, especially for HPDs with less attenuation at low frequencies. ISIL provides an alternative measurement of impulse protection and appears to be a more complete description of an HPD's performance. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Ear Hearing Noise Occupational Health Protective Clothing Safety Sense Organs
• Keywords:
  Analytical Processes Author Keywords: Hearing Protection Ear Protection Ear Protectors Ears Hearing Protection Impulse Noise Insertion Loss Spectral Analysis
• ISSN:
  1499-2027
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Indiana ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DART - Division of Applied Research and Technology
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  56
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20049196
• Citation:
  Int J Audiol 2017 Jan; 56(Suppl 1):S13-S21
• Contact Point Address:
  Cameron J. Fackler, 3M Personal Safety Division, Indianapolis Acoustical Laboratories, 7911 Zionsville Road, Indianapolis, IN 46268, USA
• Email:
  cameron.fackler@mmm.com
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• NORA Priority Area:
  Construction ; Manufacturing
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  International Journal of Audiology
• Supplement:
  1
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a5b38e30efe2b25f6aa315fb5378d3f83e6778a060f23a9e0bae4ad41d4b18948c0e6735f1ee4982986558dce727751c1cdfc8b6d318d23554dd7c31372b226c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/203729/cdc_203729_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.26 MB ]