•MM

NOISE LEVELS ON AIRCRAFT- CARRIER FLIGHT DECKS,

AND THEIR EFFECTS -- -- 4

Updated measurements at MATC and aboard USS KITTY HAWK show degradation
of speech communications and risk of deafness to personnel

J.C. Webster Research and Development 30 April 1971

NOIE
EVES NARCAFTVARRELCRONCFLGH RTORDECKS, E

SAN DIEGOACALIFORNIA 92152

•,,÷Ava-i'abll Copy
 UNCL/6SSI El El)
Sectinty Classification
DOCUMENT CONTROL DATA.- R & D
'Secir,, jr classi fircation of tile. hody of AlASt,ar antitd e "I'l e,,rnotu~
)tin eI ed ,0~e -- e,,IIr all Ii. I I, tiny

1. ONIGINATINIG AC TIVI TY (Corpoi~t~alauthor) 24. AKPORT SITCUr4 TV CL. StF'yr A 110t,

Naval LHectronics Laboratory ('enter UNCL..SSI11:1-1:1)

San D~iego. California 92-152
3 REPORT TITLE

MI[,\SURIZE) NOISE 1-1:']E[S ON IIR I-A L FLIGHIT 11.('[\S. AND 'I hIR hIlK I1

oADEC
RIPT IVE NOT ES (TYpe of repott and iticl,,ts'e datex)

K~ec~carcIl and Dvcvopiuleiit. I Jul 3i1 I)vcCcmbI'r 1I

S
5AL, TiO.4051(IF~ .&~
nMe. Middle inital. last n-m)

J. C. Webster

8.REPORT CIAtE 7$. TOTAL '40O F-00

A'', FrIS F

30 April 1970 s
Ba. 170,r OR
IRC GPAN T NO 'AD. ORtIGIAjA TOR'S PEOA
0 7 ..- II"

SI: 14 224 001. Taisk 4950

h. PROJECT NO (NlE'LC 13.50i) 17(1,2

c. 'Ob. 0 NE R RE POk- tIO(S) (Any ofhet tlfl rithat t ,,n

5Ca. .,R-nd
this ,eport)

d.

10 DISTRIBUTION STATEiýENT

Approved for public rolcase: distribulion01 11nhlmited

11 S,,PPLEIVi[NTAR. NOTES Id PCSCOl.ASRI, lO.n

\.d';dI Ship Sv',tcIINU Iiillid iii(

AjSS r0AAC~

Nleaisurcmn Ies were nuade of no ise leVels 11roduLced by four ai rc:ra I diriTiW- 1it( Ip(It1ýIiIahi
Cationf
exercises aboard the Ilhi.!h deck of USS K.TY 1I\WK . Thesc: mcasu rcincift s. on1bth~l iliv A- 2h
frequency wveighting, networks, were augnmen! ed [)\'~11CIkiat inns of' speech-intercreiance IC% CIS 1haIL C
later Ironi tape recordings. These datta were compmred to sim ikir cineslirvelietS nidci':t tlwc aV\Al
A\ir Test ('enter at Pat uxent R~iver. MId .. and i nterpret ed in termis ofdealcatlss risk and iat erlecrenCe
With speeChC coin mu n1iC1t ionls. Thle levels measured onl thlecarrier shocd di02 illOfll s Of to\\-
frequency energy tat octaves centered at 02 anld 125 11/.) not piecsint iiith data takeni a~hhore:
this variation isascribed to thc presence of' blast d eflect ors onl the carrier anil [0 t 1w WeeCI ()I
strong- wind across the (deck anil the measutringi in icrophione in its winld-screcen. 'li:11woiSe Ii7VCIS
lieaisured are shown to severely deuradIe speech commn1111catioins and to preSe i a risTk ol' d.*11 ca
to personnel.

DD OR 1 4 7 3 (Ar i1 shh1:

Best Available COPY

 LINK 11 LIN4 '
LIN K A

Airc'r~i II carii i•rs

\udiior~v dect'cts

I:liht decks

Nois.e rduction

LISS KITTY HAWK (C\VA 6)

DD FORM 1473 (•A -) UNiCLASSIFII)

AI 2) • tSecurity Classification

Best Available COPY ..

PROBLEM
OIT Croin H'ight dlecks 01' airoixi't ca:rriers. A\ssess theise lli~vtkcilil' 11
I1) the I 'drilig ll.ad IldlSthy IWC5CIlt to1 peisOiltite vxtposck li) t(Ilk.Il I'm~

e ton ( whikch tile'\ d(leufli LI peLcil comiilulik:'fli~aI l.

RESULITS

[lie Noval Ail. Test (enter~l shiny.' 10\:I'. ý111IM1ItLt 'd~~~ I 1 l)I
h~tW~'Cl1122 tit1 137 (Ili.\ a1t ajljit'j\ Iartwl
ý I-,ait I1)11h I(VA e
the aleh iin s tperitillt..!

2.\\inois~~e
o c\po()5tirC w\'l'C Ill-ediCat.'( 011 aI 2-ho 'LIt j Ii ý l

devices mvere ut iilied.C.

levels1 itihiCatech SjL!Ilific~lilt &(I~el.llcltill voiCe' CIlll~ltltliC:,!tiMIl111k ih

nloise conithit ons.

RECOMMENDATIONS
I . ke- i~llil~l'ic~ite sclep' to cOH*Vkct [Ilk prIOhleim, 'ir-st h\eltatttl
de.l'!lers.;inlhl adminili ratlyve ;1iiid liiiedci;I anId Opera! lug po.r"Imlnel. \611tht h
Il;I/M;irS illiheelIt ill hiieb 110ke. Re~ltile%\\'ider dkIstI-011lionl .1iid betilvr
tflliiltell~icc ()I* pruitetiVC C(Illilplllellt. Jild CO~llIIICI nia aniditttlet lli,
tests Oil IIjlight-d~eck perison ili.

2.A\t tile nu~iSieroctins ililpiove hearinlg. protkcclAOrN ad 1)t()\ the.

bettere letisccit ( iila

v~ liii .Obje 'C.-ohi
le.t of lkesilk

4.is
I.Clii(lioll 1 lVC1,601lU.
Objec 1tive. etcso \1t-ai h~-llIii

ueIWIeAiuet lItliStS Oil hitititaii p~elTO I'll;IlltCV.

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION
Work \\I' IN erhTriiieth tin1der SIF 14 2_24 l001. 1ask 4()5(o (NiITC
Bý5U5 by1 iliieiters of, til I lili [a,ýctors heehInOlo'., !)Iio~l't dttrirte- I he
p.'rij(d I .I1il\ 31 O~ckxiiih"e 1,)-0. '1lie report \\:S :11III-rovet l'or 1pubIiC~i-
11011 3(0 Aprilh Q I
CONTENTS
INNI ROM(CI)O(lN) . . . 3

N( )I St It \1.. SL RI M IKNIS AT NAI . 9

Noise I ewel Arounid the Airci.,ft . . . 9

Spcora I-I cvl I i ffcrcticcs Willi D ist ance . . 1.

(oinparison Witli NAI( l~qta . . . i

DI)RIMFIKNAI, ITI-T(lS OF Fl.It dHI*DI)I(K NOISI:. . . :0

IVelIt10e0%IRiSk to I'VI'rS'uneI

(I 10 1 :F(OF
COM I,INI('A'H( NSTR ANSMIT
)t!IRS . .. 0

C'ONCLU1 SIONS . . .33

Areas for Furt her I nvestgal on ... 3

RIK(OMNIFINI)ATIONS . . . 34

REFE'IR F.NC'ES . ... ?

AI PIT N 1)1 N: S11, PA\ST, I'RISIKN. AND) FUUE3

ILLUSTRATIONS
1-0 Photographs ol aircraft in operalionat Situations% ... ,'ge 4-9

7-10 i) ot, of, noise levels in eighit octave handis. 5o feet awa-Y f-rom
eaich o- [nor aircraft . .. 10- 13
11-1I6 Pltots ot noise spectrai at various utistmnees. 00" oH miose of
each of four aircral't.. .....- 17

17. I S Spectral plots of A4 and F4 aircraft uMeaStired abloard conipared

with those mmeasured ashore . . . 19)

14) Time variatinn in A-weighted sonnid-prvssnre levels over :i 45-minute

Ianctincing, sequenice . . . 22

20) TYPiCal es posore-time contour for flighmI-itck 11crsominel working

on eve ie air-operationsý schedule .,.23

'1-25 Calcultated SI l,'s in terms of their effcts%on various types; (it

fliglut-uleck comomniucatiow-.....265.1 3.311

TABLES
I Acceptable Fxposures; to Noise w; a Fmunction oft thmeNunmber of
Occkurrenices Per DI
)y . . . page 21

2 Slpeecti-(omnununiiiicuitiomi Capabilitiesý in Various 1.6cles of Aumubemut

Acowistic Noise.. . 29
INTRODUCTION
There is probably no( harsher noise enlvi ronmlciit ill which people:
must perl'orn cant plex and vital jobs than onl thle tli ight deck ot* an ailrcr'llIt
carrier ope rating with in ul1ti-enigine. Ii igh-perf'ormance jet araf.The h igh
noise levels not only degrade speech cam nit~linCation1 but plrese it alrisk' of
deaf'ness or hearing loss to the personnel exposed to them I'm ýariatis periods
at' thime. Precautions against these hazards icludeILI heari Ji-protective
devices for personnel. and speckially deVsi1ened ~li,,hit-deck radios;.
Thle primary objective at* thle study reported her i t past
pd
UJi~to
om (1' t.e iewcr 'c1ir-
nloiSe-level n1Iasu~relnents oil aircraf't to in)Chode SOf
eralft and to interpret theCse me~SUrecl levels and thle perk d)J, wh i ch
personnel arc exposed to them inl termis of speech in ree inead I cariln
danmage. lb niak ing-the tieasuremen ts. special note wýas (4fii
111c
proximity of' personnel to thle noise sources.
A secondary objective is to study the discrepancies betwcit the data
produced by measurements miade onl land and( those made aboard ('VA'N
(where blast deflectors and approximately 30 knots of'wind across the how
mlay affect thle sound levels).
.The study involved measurement of' noise levels (I ) dii ring a 1
carrier-q ualIit'icatIion ((A RQUA L operation onl USS 1KlITTY IIAWIK I nild
(2 At the Naval Air Test ('enter at Paituxcut River. I-- (See list of, refer-
enices at enid of report. ) The airera ft involved were ail A4 Skv hawk, ai
R,\5 Vigilante, anl A0 Intruder, anld an 1:4 Phantom,. The data obtalined
are presen ted in the lbollowing, sect ions.

THE SHIPBOARD ENVIRONMENT

Bef'ore presenting and anallyzing theC IeaZsurementls. a brie i' descri p-
tion ot' the operational situation oil a carrier flight dleck will be hlpfutl inl
understanding the nature of' the noise problem it presents. Fig~ures I
through 6 are photographs of' mnii engaged inl represen tathve tasks iiivolvedl
inl lau nchiing and recovery of' aireratft.
Figure IA shows anlA4 being taxied al0ong thle deck inl a slight
cross wind. Note personnel hanging Onto the wing and riding along to help
stabiliz~e the aircraft. Figure 113 shows a crash and sallvage crew standing by
anl A4 which hias just been released l'rom the arresting-e-ear \vlire.
Figure -2shows an RA5 (A) being, klaunched With aftterburners, and
(B) being recovered. I'n bath cases deck- personnel ;ire within very close
range. Inl thle afterburner pass-by, noise levels reach or e."eeedL 145 dB1.
Figure 3 shows an A6 beinig, launched 1*'roin thle waist Calta pLl s Onl
thle angled (leek. Note a D~irector signialing, another pilot to taxi his aiircraft
along the (leek..
In f'igure 4, the bridle crew is seen preparing, to hook upl an I:4 to thec
caltapullt inl another view, thle IA is bridled inl1to place and is beingV 11anded
over by a Director to thle CatapuLlt Officer.
Occasioiially these operations (10 not go wvell. Figure 5A dllows a
whole cointingenat af' ptariie puLshers who hiave roim t'roni posi't iol 1*in1t al1
arounld thle island, or t'rout the relaitihe safe tv o I' positions dwvbtweenlhi
anld slightl l' orwa rd at' t he eatau pilits ( tig .511) to piush a downied RA5 Cronm
allt a catapult.
Figure 6 shows a pilot withi his flight helmet ofT trý iiw to tailk 1'ace-
to-lace with a D~irector.

3
 A.

NG

Hi-~rc L.The A4 SkxIijA k (A) on deck Nilih "pushiers"' standinig by. one hanii~ng on wing
t1 hieI[Iall II Ilie IiI% hen taxiing. anid (B) witIl crash and sa Iavge crew standIng by joit aIt Cr
the plane haj,been iceteawd frwn [lhe arresting-gear wire.
 !74L

I btitm I.ihe RAS \igiIliic (A) lIJdIntII (hcitw Hipped - ml I 1 ilk I-iihi: I Ci
pitlttd in jtic~hrbiric V No~the 11iC1)io\iiit 1i tlie 0,1\1 jnid .!'.~..... i I
w \ a;d i to[lie
ruinner oin ;Ct fcc c p al Ol 1i1eAld
. J'; I: L 1111.1111a; .'Ickji,i 11
IaudlLi.
 Figure 3. The A6 Intruder being catapulted from the angled deck. The Director is motion-
ing for another aircraft to come into position on the port bow catapult which has just
fired. Note the escaping steam.

These photographs are neither posed nor atypical and show only
a few of the jobs performed by personnel working neiar operating jet aircraft
on a tlight deck. Othcr tasks includC: (I) rolling undcr the aircraft on the
catapult to check the bridle and hold-back connectors, (2) inspecting one
or both a|fterburners to see that they arc lit off, by looking in from near the
blast deflectors. (3) running along beneath the wings of a taxiing, returning
aircraft and replacing safeties on the untused returned ordnance. etc. It
shoutld be immediately obvious that personnel often are within actual
contact with the aircraf't and more of'ten within five feet of it - and
therefore exposed to dhingerously hiigh sound levels. (Such closeness
prcsents the additional phyVsical danger that a man may be sucked into, or
blown off his fect by. the jet engines. Both of these accidents have
happened. particularly the latter.)

0
 A.r

BP.

Figure 4. ,Aii F4 P1hawomII (A) being bioiughi 11111 j1 o ,Il Il pol 1"m\ ~.IljlIt li il.
(11) W~ithi bidle ilpkrc:c (11 the "lthroird ho'A ciljpuIt bcl
. 111,c doti I',1; 111C1 1. (tIl
Miecow to Oil: (atipult Otlike
 A.

Ail'
-rwn hii l m.o,-c On

- nflk
s d-J 9:;x-oIc112
 1OL

Figure 6. Pilot trying to communicate to a Director, who is cquippcd with a tlight-dcck

radio. beside anl idling F4. Note that thc pilot has removed his helmlet and therefore has
no hearing protection.

NOISE MEASUREMENTS AT NATC

NOISE LEVELS AROUND THE AIRCRAFT
Noise levels around tile nose of' tour a ircrailt wre ni measured it 30-
dleiree in tervals antd at various distainces. Resul ts at a 50-foot diistance arc
presented inl f'igures 7-9. For the A 4 and A0 ffig. 7) onl]\ thle in ilitIa r\
power se tt ings are shown. For thle A 5 (i.8) anld F4 ( lfi!Ž. 9) both minlita r-v
pow'er and afterburner noise levels are- plot ted. On ll th101ree tfieu rels thle
meac~su red overall C-\veigh ted levels an1d CalCula ~ted A-we g-li t ing and Speech-
ii terference levels ( averace of' thle levels inl the three octaves trloil 300 to
2'400 I1/., ca,11lle SIt 31./24) are also p101 ted.
Figure 10 is aIreplot of the dtal for thle F-4 at in ilitary power.
dectailing (liv Connlect ing thle data p)Oilts f'or echd OetaVe imd iVidally,11 ) the
ueiv age Id angle off1 tilie nose,. It ca bý1
interact ion amllong- tilie rIeqj11C e
observed. f~or examinple. that thle low-fre energyý
tIenllcll ( oct ave 1 froml 3.ý
to 75 11/, and octave 2 f'rom 75 to 150 11,) inlcreaises towarld theC tail ( 11ipet
of' the aircraft.

9
 NOISE MEASURED AT 50 FT FROM
A6 A4
150

09

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71
 From figure 7 it can be seen, for example, that tile A6 shows an
A-weightCd level* about 10 dB greater than that of the A4. The noise level
of, the A6 increases from about 135 dBA in front (00) of' the aircraft
increasing to 150 dBA. 30 and 60 degrees off the tail (1200 and 150').
It is also evident that the A6 has relatively more of its noise energy in tile
higher octaves, 7 and 8 (above 1200 1iz), close to the tail. (Note differences
of about 20 dB between the A4 and A6 levels for octaves 7 and 8 at 150'.)
When comparing figures 7 and 8, note that tile C-weighted levels of
tlhe AS at military power are very similar to the A4 levels excepl) for a
faster fIall-off near the tail, while the A5 in afterburners is very similar to
the A6 at military power. I lowever, since the low-frequency energy is
more predominant in the A5, especially close to the tail, the A-weighted
levels drop ott considerably.
From figure () it is evident that the 1:4 noise levels are quite similar
to the A5 levels except that the A-weighted levels (to not drop off so fast
near Ilie tail. Figure 10 shows how the lower octave levels increase drama-
tically when measured closer to the tail, while the upper ones increase if
the same rate as the overall C-weighted level.

SPECTRAL-LEVEL DIFFERENCES WITH DISTANCE

Figures I 1-16 show how the octave band levels and the measured
C-weighted, calculated A-weighted. and 300-2400 lIz spleech-interference
levels change with distance from the aircraft on the 60-degree radial. It' all
measurement. power-source, and transmitting-medium (air) factors were
ideal, a plot of these data would show sets of parallel lines 6 dB apart for
each distance doubled. This is certainly not the case, although the trends
are apparent. For example, there is on the average about a 24-dB difference
between the closest ( 12.5 feet) and the furthest (200 feet) measurement
points. (For the A5 at military power no measurements were taken at 200
feet and the difference between 12.5 and 100-- 12.5 X 23 -- is about 16 dB
rather than the predicted 18 dB.) However, the difference between 100 and
200 feet exceeds (I dB while the difference between 12.5 and 25 is usually
(not always) less than 6 dB (for some octaves there is a reversal, i.e., more
energy at 25 feet thamn at 12.5).
These discrepancies between observed and predicted (theoretical)
measturements are certainly more than measurenlent error but are not
unexpected. There are many reasons for expecting such variations from
theory: ( I ) the sound source is not a point source nor is it fixed in loca-
tiOll. ( 2) tile medaium is far from homongeneous since among other things
the turbulence in the tIiediulin is the sound source and the temperature

*Sound-level reters conventionally have 1hree Irequency-weighting networks called A.

B and C. An A-weiehied measurement correspords roughly to how the car "healrs'"
the noise in terms of loudness and/or interference with speech. For convenience the
A.weighled level il decibels (dB) is sometimes called dBA. Whereas A-weighted levels
progressively discount sound energies at frequencies hclow 1000 !1/. the ('-weighted
level iives equal weightl to energy at ail frequencies. C-weighted levels. .)ften called di.
or dBC. hear very little relationship to how human beings "'lear"sOUnd and are used
oivl to relate levels to( physically oiienlled and/or older measurements. B-weighting is
seldom used. See Yutig.! We.Nbster and Khlmpp. 7 Webster. 8 and Websier und Gales,
It' Inoiu details oil how sound level meter weighlmii7 network levels and other Iore
c•um•le\ methods of mieasuring sound (noise) correspond to subjective attribules ol"
Il•tlt ess. ýimlv•u lne, and speech inierter 1ctme.

14
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repeatable1)I. Time iNmI-cqiired to make thle measurements a;n! thle cnwmiec
wouldli overhea.1 t' .11 allvmaSuix-IPCnts were' madeLI aIt OIt Setting". Cet.. etc.
tHe PointI is nlot so mluchl thait thle illeatiren11lets difler from pertf-ectly
pied ictatt11,le ImelsLi:-eIiknct"lisut that variations asereat Is those observed here

If one iseifl reo o)iIe'

theseV noiseS to sýitliktift tpclsotti1d fiýIids
ill al kbora torv sittiliton. Imoll(immeneOus s( nd fields woulId be aItyvpical.
Siimifll:-\ , ill liNingý these levels to interpret their ciTed:; onl speechl or hearing,
a1lt error of abot~ift3 Lil SIILIotd heacetle
It Shon Id be no ted ill corn pa,1111I ftcoie M ~Sp
Nectral of' thle a lion1s
na'va laircraf't that thle A4 aind 1:4 ha~ve spectral peaiks around 1000-2000 Hz.
(A4) anld 500. 1000, 2000 H/, (1:4. wfhile the A\5 sp)ct rum is rklativel' flat
"Ind thle A0 rise-, to 'about 1000 H II,adStays relative lVh elffteIrca ItII
aftc burnei tiftc 1:4 spec trum lihas a broad p~eak be t\\Cen 200 and 3ý0(tO

NOISE MEASUREMENTS ABOARD USS KITTY HAWK

COMIPARISON WVITHI NATC l)ATA~
The niiose data dIiscussed so I'a- have all been tiakenu from meaisu ic-
ments made at tile Nava\.l Ailt' Tst Center (NATrc) inl Patuxent Rvr>
Cowiparisonls wvill nlow be mvia1de bet \veen thle N Al( datiaLatilte noise levelS
Of A4 andL F"4 aica' aigcarrier-Ituiaification l:uImICleCs. recoveries, and
touich-a nd-glo passes onl USS 1KITT Y I IAWK . III th KITTY lIIAWK data',
enipilasis waIs Onl f'ilhdine variation1s o1f level At variouIs ConI IiCiicaing p)OSi-
lions onl thek flight deck and. more par-ticularly, (Ihe time vairiation at thle
bow-atault-midhipsconrolp~osition onl the flig~ht (leek.
From recorded steady-st ate portilots of' these lmeaSuremenC~ts.
Sped raI-()ctavI\e ha ld lCeves) wvere plot ted inl thle labora tory for tltree co1d i-
lions: ( I ) anilA4 and (2) an [F4 durine, miiittary power ("t wo-finner''
run1-upJS Onl thle boV caIta ptIlts, and I 3) 1lie amicnbit noise f'rom ,\4's anrd/lor
1:4's taxiling anld Idling inl the niear1 ýicinlity oif thle catapults. Thlese results
airc shtown inl fi'k res 17 amid i 8. wit a coinpa risoni of corresponlding
IMeasLIVicmentSsiridC ash ore by N AT('.
F iguire 17 shows octave-banld. C-wevigh ted. A-eghtIll.ad PSI V
spech-n
erterccelevels for octave-s cenutered at 500. 1000. and 2000 liz)
lcvcls I'or thle A4 il aIbow-catapil t posit ion iti ng up two-f'inger runl-up1 Onl
urr
liYIiA\ K. Aliso shown arc thle noise spectra f'or the amienicnt I no
runl-nv1) con1dition., duirilul. wvhich thle aircraft are taxiing but not inl military
Ipower. I~i!!iire IS8 is iden~tical to figureN 17 except that the F4 is the noise
"sM UCtee InI hothI cases the data were chosen For compaj~risonl with those
r.-portedI hy NATC> b cus tile 310-ilegree a n ie nd 50-foot distances
fttsel\v correCspond to wond it irls of' the 'NAT measurements.
It is mimiie iatefya paei in coinparing- thle on board noise levels
\itlftI0,
thos neSuIL re lShlore that there 'is aistrongo concentration of'
I1\ 1'eqf ienc), enemczestimred onhboaid . It is possible that ill tilie Case of*
the .iribhicnit noise. tile highi level Imay inludel~ thle noi.se gene~raCLcib thle
PreseC1" at lest 30 'Knots of' wmind across thle miiicrophone o f the sou iiiI-
o(eA
Ic~cf mkdci, Thmis effect is wevll knlown I10 hut hais not bieen docuimnieted
acuaey'notigfm1 to perm~it sulitabIlie corre2ctions. InI any case, thek wind(
%%hidil lt1 tw " c ross tile miicrophione of' thle son nd-level imete r ise mCicra'.incU
-1im fir i tiC aron nlll a person's ears and around tile mlicropliotics. erii's
 OCTAVE PASS B3ANDS. H/
45 90 180 355 710 1400 2,10O 500 11700

130
-J
>
1 A4(KH)Figure 17. Octave hand Plus C-. A-. and SI L-
120 -weighted noise levels for the A4 running at
mdiitary Power. InlCJSu red Onl a how CatapuIlt
LU of USS KITTY I IAWK (e). Also shown is,
~ 110k- ambihent noise Wx onl fli-lht deck of KITTY
zo I IAWAK with F4's and/or A4's idling or I-axiiT1g
10L--(Data fromi rel. 1.) Shaded areaCI(lipse
~ l00~- noise levels measured 30 degrees otf tie 11
Z I I o anA4 a 50and 100 feet. as reported hy
t 90 ~ - -A N
2
re f. 5.

CA S

!!CALCULATED 1

CALCULATED A-WE IGHTING

MEASURED C-WEIGHTING
2
101000

SIL 3/24
5 1 2 5 1
10000

OCTAVE PASS BANDS, Hi

45 -90 -180 - 355 -710 -1400-2800-5600-11200
N 150
E

S140 ------ ~---

130 ----- ~ .

i Figure 18. Octave hand plus C-. A-. an1d SI L-

Lu120 -- ~weighted noise levels for F4 running at mill-
D -
Lý I lary power. measured on a how catapult of'
110- USS KITTY I IAWK (e). Also shown is am-
CLbin noise (x) on flitht deck of KITTY
z I~IAWK with F4's and/or A4's idling or taxij~ue.
100 ~-x~- (Data from ref. 1.) Shaded area enlcomlpasses.
o, noise levels measured 3,0, deuiees, off tile lwc
z X of an F4 at 50 and1(100 Ie t .s repi
Ij0ted Ill
~~~X \XX-re.S

G AS 1 2~
jj 100 1000 i a000

CALCULATED) Lý
S'L
C.ALCULATEDI,) E T
VEASWI~ED CVWEIGHrf.ro.

I9
 an1d licadcsc ol , colin inn nica lionl alnd/or ear-protective dev ices. -I-The
diiOniit1 oI' iiiakiMiig t odILICCd 1w a 3,0-knot wind is about 52 dIB in the
spccJli raii nhcid ned by a litle
d cC.11 bet I more than 10 LIB by uising an ear
%%iliii-scrcenI In lie KI VYE HIAWIK inezsn remicntst madle byv the NF,LC
hc xatl anion1.11ni of miiSkiw- ill~UCed 1w tile winid 11cross tile
ILa ni. (Il
(c~a R Iadio~ ceriii miii-\liicI
C I)I01 liCici \%',s Used ill ai1 ;ll~l~r0Irialte
Vilild-scicfll) ks not kiilowni.
Ilie coil I rihuI ioul (o1 wind ito amibienlt noise suggests two problems
l"ic'inirin I'lirther invcstigationl: ( I) \\hat wind correctionis ar~e required ini
tic phi\ :,icatll\. 1meaured data and ( 2) how much noise is genlera ted 11y the
windo~ oii acoustic tra nisd ucers and hica ritig protectors used as integral parts of'
flielit-deck communiiiicaitioni e(iiipmients.
Thue presclice of ece\cssiv-e low-f'requency energyv in thle A4 and F4
spiectra can not he cx p'laine~d 0), wind acr-oss thle 11nelasring, mnicrophone. 'The
winid does 1i0ot increaise durinig, a two- iliger run1-np.) yet thle lowv-I req tiency1
ý:ciieiv increases 12 dB fe 17) or IS dlB (Ifi!e. 18). The explanation that
hirst coiiieCs 10 1n 11id poinits to t(lie preseiice o0 thle blast deflector aboard and
tielbeie of* it ashore. hure speculation is (I1) that low-frequency energy
,s ge caedb thle Jet blast unipiniging, onl the deflector or ( 2) that thle noise-
1te itera intle vortices aire deflected tiP) oft' thle (leek or to thle sides of, thle
defc'o. :t o r. File liv pothlesis is tha~t thle no0ise is "Ceifierted above or at the
sýides o0'th(lie elctor i istea,' oif belhiiid the tailpipe. thereby actuall~y
bri iteilytil te sou rce closer to tI ue mieasu rinrg inicrophone (and men) aflead of'
tlie air-craf't. Thiis Speculation should be follo0wed upj Withb tests and( meaCsu re-
mients to verkif or refulte it.

DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS OF FLIGHT-DECK NOISE

1)1AFNIESS RISK TO PERSONNEL
Althoughfl hecari11L kg
a iage is a mediteal problem and not tilie primary
conlkec n III e 1igi licrs desi-mmnui coinmu ncaliont~ls equkipmen~lt. it was never-
llicless deemled liCeSSary-ý and desirable in tliis report to reevalu~ate dealfnelss
risk iii teriiis of'thle mieasured noise levels of*cuirren t aircra ft opera tingI th
\vi

toda\ " sýICLtedUles. Thiis is coiisidered necessary if' for no other reason thaim
can:Jlt ion coin 1111inn
iitiol enginieers thait their equipment shoul.1d not be the
list t rat\% thiat makes tilie total noise envi ronlmen t potenltially deafening to
the menl ill it,
Flie problemi of* noise-inlduced hearing loss was recognized as soon as
jet ai rclra' Wffee pi)Lt aboa 1mL carrie rs. Prog'rams of* ii oise Measu reinent and
nionItoriii, wýere carried ou1t With thle general con1cIIluios that With
miorile
caeIprimiiari ly wea ring ca rinnfTs an11d giiving annutal aud iometric tests). no
da licer of' iiieiidue.prinantien hearing, loss existed. Subsequen tly. a
"eom p of, i.iilimcditary:. and inudust rial and iolOeiSts wvorki ng under thle
Mltlspikces ot* (11 .\ A (Co0mmit tee onl II earing and Bio-ACOnIstiCS) developed
precdic.t '%c form tla, lasor evalna ti lie expo0suire to noise as a correlative of*
flaroiin pall-nilki or' deafneiss. f` All iid Ustrial saf'ety engiciner. J. If.
Bot' ord.1- ]re I icd these f~oriii11las. a iid 11'1970 an iiitersociety comm lit tee I 5
hi mtLlit tilie preddiet ivc licetitods uIp to date. Table 1 (from ref'. I15) is a
sinpl fld u inlmar\n',of teir f'i id i lis Of' ackCeptable exp)osures to noise as a
the iniiier01
()t' 111 oftlileIS such1 CxpI)Suire, occur daily%.
-IIlie iloie lCevel to \vhiich iflgt-deck_ personnel are exposed varies
r%01.:1
,1CC wliat fiit operaltions. (01ps 11ae Che tiledandlWhIci
WIW tlie Iman

10
 TABLE 1. ACCEPTABLE EXPOSURES TO NOISE IN dBA AS A FUNCTION
OF THE NUMBER OF OCCURRENCES PER DAY.*
Daily
Duration Number of times the noise occurs per day
Hours Min 1 3 7 15 35 75 16 0 up
8 90 90 90 90 90 90 90
6 91 93 96 98 97 95 94
4 92 95 99 102 104 102 100
2 95 99 102 106 109 114
98 103 107 110 115
30 101 106 110 115
15 105 I10 115
8 109 115
4 113

To use the table, select the column headed by the number of times the noise occurs per day, read down to the average sound
level of the noise and locate directly to the left in the first column the total duration of noise permitted for any 24 hour period.
It is permissible to interpolate if necessary. Noise levels are in dBA.
*Froin ref. IS, p. 23.

is on the deck. Concerning flight-ops, two typical cascs will be cited:

carrier qualifications (CARQUALS) and cyclic air-ops off Soutlieast Asia.
In CARQUALS, pilots continually launch and land until they arc
"q11lified." Figure 19 shows the A-weighted sound-pressure levels
measured over a 45-minute period of continuous launchings o1 A4 and FI4
aircraft. The ambient noise is produced by the same aircraft taxiing onto
the catapults. The recordings were taken just aft of the instrument palnel
which is located between and forward of the bow caltalpults. Many men
gather ill their assigned locations, waiting to help in case of* cnierenci,.
Many personnel are in even noisier locations as shown in figures 1-6. The
sequence shown in figure 19 could run in roughly a 45-ininu te *'on" cycle
(as shown) with all "off" cycle of' 15 mitinutes to a few hours. for S hotr1s
0
a(day, but only for a 4- to 8-day cycle.
Another represcntative case is that of the cyclic air-ops schedules
carried on at Yankec (Dixie) station in WESTPAC. Figurc 20 is ;ll estimate
of the time sequence of noise levels during a I 2-hour cyclic-ai r-op. sch1ClItilC.
It is based oi:

1. Aircraft noise levels shown in fkigrics 7 throughl 18.

2. (liangi ng noise levels during laun1.chilng SCequCences similar to

fietire 19.

3, Resting noise levels (non-ait ops) typical of interior spacets. I i 7L

-

I:urther a',SStluiptions alppliCd to tihe datZa in fi1urscs 7-I1 thIat la•dI to

figtire 20 are:

4. Tlhe A3 anid A 6 aircraft operating oil WI-STPA(' ('VA's arc abotit

5 ilb noisier thain the 1:4 aind A4.

"21
 K.r

1- I
IA

-%Z7

< E1
-. E

40

<
I-
'-3
-' 11.
4

4VP.1A' SO

}ql),% 3 !
t '1A3 4
 HOUR OF THE DAY IF ON MIDNIGHT TO NOON CYCLE
23 24 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 -- -- 20 22 >
140
-130 U
00
0
30ACTUAL LEVELS L
AFTER A/C ENGINES -120
START0

120 ESTIMATED LEVELS UJ 0

U.)
UNDER EAR -110<
PROTECTORS V)
110 ./ j
zFLIGHT DECK 10 _

oj ENGINES START;
t10 NOISE DUE TO jU
0 -90 7
0 cGROUND _U z
z CLSUPPORT=W
EQUIPMENT V
0cc MESSING, <
> z
S0S HOP OR -

............. OFFICE 0,
. ....
.... AREAS
70 NOISE EXPOSURE PER DAY FOR FLIGHT DEK0

PESNNEL DURING CYCLIC AIR OPERATIONS 6

6 0.. .. . d B (A) E ER T H 'N :
5000
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 1 2----8--10 _ý

HOUR OF THE DAY IF ON NOON TO MIDNIGHT CYCLE

Figure 20. Estimated daily noise exposures tor men working onl Ilight
deck during 12-hr cycle air operationls. It is assumed that ( I tile men
will not wear hearing protection until the aircraft engines are started
that is, when ground-support equipmlent is producing noise levels
averaging around 80 dBA and (2) they will wear earmufts or plugs once
the engines have started.

s. rlc nloise levels at thle [3ow\ ('atapu It Offlicers Ioc:It loll arc typical'I
of th1w oise levels froml tliis p1ositil01:111 theC W',v 11ft onl the fli'_hi1 de.ck 011id
flic arca Ior~a Il 01' his l~lll
15101 is 1p Ic týr :1l1d totc01 rc b\ IP 0c) . I1
is apparenit (figI's. 1-0) that m111: pertsolneld a rc at noisier ioca iti )I (kclo~cr to
theC tilp'ip~e a ndL/or` nIsei'-LenerlCi vortex).
uI~g' NI~l\
an are at Ico Iliýi\\ posýit iO)1i'
(distances heyonld 100 IM)t .

0. The 30-second-oii. o-0-ecndo d I vcyle50\Vn'

C\- inl 1'i!urc
as kastint.g45 Iinii~tets for ('ARQIJALS LlaStS Il ~ih 1ýýIuiii1ttcý ditrile J
cýCiil'-tos laminci. The 15 m1initltc,, prior to theý !amtici aIl(d 111e 15 il11tiuc>
Of rcc:ovcrv il'tcr tile Iatinch are at tilic allibcii t Ie~k~
elso\n11j 1e1 h;:I~elee
in1fitzU rc s 17. 1S. and(I 11.

7. Thic 3-second tol I-by peaksý i risinU! to 140 d113A :I, "Iio\\ ni inl 1ic
dIc IIilCd t mc trac olI Ii-lC I~ thalt .accompany
1CIIdC 1 each aI'1 Chi o CCurI'T' I1ty111
A I)lniCs inIl Ilc 15 -nilnuic
1 ate
nci
u[k:IIc\ Clc I or for a toaol'
I . m)fI
Inut1111es).

23
 S. The paissive or flight-deck radio "Mickey Mouse" earmuffs provide
an aer'age ofl" 20-diB ittenuation* when worn.

9. The muTffs are worn only when the jet aircraft engines have started
that is. when the levels in figure 20 exceed 80 dBA.

10. The exposure to levels between 65 and 80 dBA are intermittent

because the ground-support equipment moves around over the deck exposing
different people for different amounts ofl time (estimated 50-percent duty
cycle).

I I. The exposure levels between 90 and 110 dBA (peaks to 125) with
the men wearing earmuffs are intermittent with a duty cycle of 50 percent
because on the averagae during cyclic air-ops two aircraft per minute are
lainclied for roughly 15 minutes.

Assuming these eleven conditions, the shaded areas in figure 20 really

represent tile noise-exposure contour because (I) at levels less than 80 dBA
(before aircraft engines are started) no one wears earmuffs and (2) at levels
above 80 dBA (once the engines have started) everyone on the flight deck
wears mufls. Daily exposures would, therefore, be roughly (I) between 110
aind 125 dBA (call it 115 d1BA), 1.5 minutes X 8 cycles or 12 minutes/ 12
hours: (2) at 110 dBA, 7.5 minutes X 8 cycles or 60 minutes /12 hours:
(3) at 90 d1BA. 30 minutes X 8 cycles or 240 minutes /12 hours. Interpreting
these exposures in terms of the 1970 intersociety committee's concensus
report, table I shows that for 8 cycles per day (use the 7 column):

1. 115 dBA could be tolerated for 15 minutes instead of the 12-

minute exposure calculated above,

2. 110 dBA could be tolerated for 30 minutes but the calculated

exposure is 60 minutes, and

3. Q0 dBA could be tolerated for 8 hours and its exposure is

cal CUIated at 4 hoUrs.

The implication is that un1less the launch-recovery cycles are

reduced by one-half, or unless the muffs attenuate 23 dB rather than 20 d113,
a deafness hazard exists. If nothing more, the calculations show that the
exposures are at or near the damage-risk area. This should indicate the need
for a continual search for better earmuffs. and measurement of noise levels
and hacaring losses on a con tinnuing basis.
In addition to shortening the air-ops cycle and providing the best
po,;sible ear protection, two steps should be taken immediately to minimize
LICA tiess risk: (I) the liq nid-filled scaling pads for the "Mickey Mouse"
mu ffs aid/or radios (SRC-22(V)) should be replaced whenever the seal is
broken and at least once a year. and (12) as part of the routine an.nounnement
over the flight-deck an nounCing system (5 M(C) prior to starting engines, a
statellil t shioulId Be added to the eftect. "..... all people without hearing
protectors leave the fl ight deck. all others don your carmn ff's stand by to
start englines.''

tBa,CILd
onithe fI'ct that the sealimi rimgs oil muffs found oil (VA's are il notoriously bad
Condition hard. hrittle, torn, missing. repaired with masking tape. etc. - and th•t
CvCln with n1Cw devices. IvCra-ge attenuation on most mulfs is om the order of 20 d13.
24 See Ief. IS.
D)EGRAD)ATION OF SPEECH CONINILN [CATIONS
A pri mary conicern in designing Corn mulliCIitioiis eq til)Ipiicnt to fI'Ltic-
tlion ill thle noise levels foii id abo1`1ard CVA's is t lie speech-in teric rencc lecvs
(SI L)* of such noises. E~iiure 21 plIots thle e cola ~ted SI L of t ypical i rcralft
noises nilaso red onl a (,VA I'iuili t deck. Al thoLugh a conlI pr1ellensive Si od v at
N I- LC 7 shlowed that the S IL aid/~or ])SitL provides t he best Im'm.iso
plw-c
dictinig thle speechl-iliterteri tigy aspCcts o no1ise,C anIlA-eihtd idM o1' tilie
son nd1.-kCve2 IMeter was shownVl to be adeq LIite. It 0'IfC- etilte adJVail tUc 0 eas\'C
mleasuremlenit anIld in terpreta1tioti and( is probably, the best single meaclsure of'
i1oisC. as it involves hum11anl perception. Therefore. the rit'li t-lian1d ord itiaIc
of' figiure 2 1 is a scale of' colmparaltive A-levels for the saimec aneie s
To aidl ill interpreting thle SI L and( A-weighted aircraflt nokes, ini
termis of limitations oil speech con~imnonIieatioilS. 5011W perItiliCilt tables anld
figuires (levcloped at NEl:[(' and thle Western Elect ro-A coust i L aboriwtories ill
Los Angeles will be presented here.
Consider f'irst figo re 22 whiclh shows the genlerall ran ce ltoise
levels inl which fa.ce-to-face. SlPI). and amnp1-lit'ied speech cotil)illill eat ionls
aire possible. This f'igure was ada pted f'roini in earlier study ( rel'. 20) by
relabeling (recalibrating) the ~abscissat. The origin a! abscissa was based onl a
particular jet-aircra ft noise 1.lia1 I~ had iiStine~t tona~l coin1111~l, its
a rond 3000
doe
l-lz and that gave hligh octave-band noise-level readingus inl tile octaves cenl-
tered at 2000 and 4000 1l~z (see fig. 16 in ref'. 2 1). It is evident f'rom the
resu~lts of' ref'erence 2 1 that these Ii igh-level. Ii ighl-frequetie y tona~l coli pon-
en ts, adlded to 1mnesumred '-\veiglite"d. A-weighte~d. anld sec-ntefee
levels buLt cIid not cauIse a propor101tional1 an101.on1utofspeech iii ,iSK inc. The
anmbien t jet noise neiaso red onl KITTY IIAWK did nlot contalin discernlible
tonal coimponien ts because. amlong, other thinigs, it conlsisted of' meld cICL
levels of' more thani one aircraf't. I lOWeVer. iUnl ike thliejt noise ol' re f'erence
21. the ambient level onl KITTY HAWK contained neither discernible tonal
componlents nor hilgh amoun111ts of ciispersecl energy at 2000 (atd 4000)1 iz.
ConlsequenCtly, its A-weitzhtecl level is relatively lower thanl the .et noise of'
reference 2 1. In lieu of' runlning new i ntelligibili ty tests. it is assu med that
the A-weighfted level would be 15 LIB ( instead of* 21 dB3 as for the old jet
noise) above the equivalent PSI L ('or the ref'erence standard noise of' -6 cI113
per octave used in thle original f'igutre."0
Also added to hgimzre *22 are the results 01' some intelligibility tests of
the newer dynamic noise-canceling microphones (NI87 and M 101 ). '22 conl-
ducted by the Aerospace Medical Research Laboratories. Ini plotting thle AMRL
and NELC data it was assumed that the rhynic words used by NELC inl thle

'R~l presetit there is. 1)iiiwill be. Sonice coliti sioti between acronymls, 1ind Ldet11itiOns"
(if-',secclII intcrfucrncc
of, Speecli-interfCerellcc levels. T[le orliginal atid aIccepted us~e
level-~ (SIt.) %Vas based oill niverwe diB levels or1nloise ill the octaves 000(1. M)t. 200t.
2400.;and 2400-4800 :Ips (ii/.). Sec citlI(. Ili the linclintiii. intier ii''1:iI miid tI .
st aiidarnd hation orotipls hi.,ve a1ccepited oeia\es lIascd onl ceciter lreqcikicýn 'd 31t 6.
12. 25t0. 500. 1000. 20001.. .H/ i as prefcerred o)Clnics ol n'icsi&vi! k\
Alnteijeat Nationail Siatidards I1"itm i te IANSI) detilitill (Ii 01Neet-itLiI c \lVel
li pI,o Cý, At JLdf it'II.
based k)t thIIe (Iciavts cc ItIIered at1500(. 1000, :1and 20ttt0 11" is i II IIICI
'The niew SiI. is ofltenI tef'e Ied to aISI'Stl~lteterie ICIJCtJ`,cL` Sit. Ill 1i ! pi(1I 1lic
mea~isures f~rom NATC were madeLI inl til '00-600. 600.1200,. ...octaves and tho~se oHi
K It'lY IIAW K. in th1e 25(0. 0(0.. .. iicta\esý C(Inse(fiiCiii\K'sceiiiiiee
levels ot theNNA'l' data ilre SI!L.anIldvlIlk\CI
tJ oiieS areL4Stl Ill 2ciiciII P.SIl I Kii
3 dIt te'terLItha,11 SiI.\ (See Appciidl~i\f.
 150

10
-160

140
013
toA4SKYHAWK
VIILN E010_
} 15>-
V)

00
-J 0
c
LO L

0 110 :)
Lu BUNE 0t
Lu L

z 100 1

90 /1100 i

150 90 0UU

180 10 120 90 60 30 0 30 60 90 120 150 180

ANGLE IN DEGREES FROM NOSE OF AIRCRAFT

Fitre 2 1 Spceeli-interfcrencc levels (SI L) in thie 300-2400 I17 hz

and
VInd I aI)L''IeS fro il typico I Javt!I jet aircraft opCralI ing
at 50 fC6 alo vaiU
-it miilitary power (at right) and in afterburner (at left).

lest,s Were 10 percenlt I1NJre ilntellIigibl WIVUll1 fiXed Speeeh~l-tO-Il~iSC

)c ii lly
thle p10Il ticaI lly balanHIcd Il)
dit'ieCrenl~i 01,111Ia wvords uIsedL by A R L. Thec
reAl live speech-intIerferill p1rope It P2 01' tile two diffle renit S3111 P)]eS of jet nlOiSe
wcre ilter-preted ill terms of, tile dIata ill reference 7. 'Fhe ftact that the ANMRL
(I at a lie bet wee i tile Iio-Iloisc shijeld (left) 11nd no~ise Slid d (riuldt) bonLiVaZrieS
o01tie NIFL((') da~tlaCon firmI thait tlie %xi87 and MI I01 m icrophones are as
2000d aI, blt no01 spec tacoIa ri v etter than tilt- IN 33 nliCicrophon1 UedL~Lfor tile
NIIAC) tests.
Ill inlterpretingI ictlre 22 note tiat within anyl speech listenling. mliode
word IintelligibilIity deccreases as noise levels, inicrease. This posesi tile (I LleStiol
Ofl* E 13t \\ ort SeOreC 5s-JdaLeoltca t as a systemii criterion. In general. it hias
bee Ii l'ou lid that all aIrtcii Iat ionI illiLfeX (A,\) of' 0.4 will yijeldi sentenlce scores
ill ecY~s of, 95 perc~ent. which is eerll deqtlate for mlliitair coililnlmili-
L'A t o s\'sI ellis. A\ AlI4F0.4 cor.respOlid-s to a P13 wvordl score ol' 6.3 percent
wliicld. loc(Iorillui. to MIo~litactIc.-) is thle eq ILMIialelt 01''ia rhvI~lie-\Vor~d s-core
o)I 75 perceelit. HIliiS is thle "c i tertonl score thlat will be used inl thle remia in-
dlet tif tillis r-eport \Mhen re ern hgil to al lt or sat isfactory CO1ll Ill tIli~ltiatOlls.
over 11il it arv "vstelliN. II owever. whe Iil re ferrule- to face-to-face CO~llIllItfllica-
toll. :\1I of ).ý I4crepning! to aj11i vnie-wordl score of' 85pecn13
"will be tile en iterio 11.)4 to provide corn paltiflility\ withliin tile ex tenlsive work
do ic bw 1_.L. Beraneck oil acecp table nioise levels for workers inl o ffiee

2o' cs.-
 OVERALL (C) JET NOISE LEVEL IN dB
70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140
100
S D 1 _7
90 AFIPL DA7 A

0 70,O&Y.-

PI

FACE TO N'ELCFLIGHTDECK
FACE RADIO DATA

55 65 75 85 95 105 115 12b 135

A-WEIGHTED AMBIENT JET NOISE LEVEL, dB

Figur 22. Rlymceword hil iciihlty sumre Air face-iv N nod.

muc
powcrcd plhone. und amplified speech conditions as a I'od:oi ot'
d11Nlhint jet-aireraftl (idlingz) noise. Adapted f'roml let'. 2(1.

Fiitre 23 hreaks dow the -hiciso-anCc

port in 4f nrc 29 m
tilt: \cr\ eexai p~atIlaTCVk'I
niore de~tail. and~ ill parIt iclarIll takes into accounti
ol' the speaker's voice level. Thie speaIker who uenerated tile dat a onl face-to-
lace in tell igiility 'in t~ieire 22 spoke a11a level cotnnonitsurate with hi-' ta~k
tiattely. to get listeI1CFs sittillo! ill front of' hill to untderstanid hi,,xot Ic
raised Iiis voice at least as ii tcii as thle Wc \ cctd %oice levcl- h il in fct
23 anld ')inh:Ihl appnmachd thci "commun1~ticatingu voice-I\ i
Ashl tietirs 22 and 23 can be inicr-prcecd to shov. that wlicn tlic
Jet-airc-alti etlgitw." h~ave started aInd lo(iSe lvxcls ;ixerac aroiitiiI 10 1(111A,
L'acL-Io-f~aIk, contInttIIlicatjonk are 'e\ ct-ely litiit"'d. In t'act, 0..n 111C
im lc
is Shioutini.(g. .(6). often Willil Clipped. iad [etweeti6Ilkloti 110111 arnd tltc
listener's Cal. only rlidilitelltarv and or clllereeulc\ ttieSsagcs arc eveti
altetipccd. Dutrinig cyclic air operithimn. lexel, of' 1 101 dlB.. or highler. occ:ur
rough~lyl half of thle t imen.
T.J)le 2. adapteIId I110111 reC!'r1.licc 20. '-1inlnari/,e, tlic !iitnhtatiolo
voice C011)ItLIIlicati0tls itillýc I\ ()I* ni'C.
ltaitctii
( This i'
classil'icatioll: miore detail- atce11(t\%i inl htieires 22hlrotmlt 25. Not,.
however, that thle fligh'It-deck atnmutnucitic sysieli. tlte 5 NW. cannot IK
expected to co'Illttitniuulcat to all petl-ontineI otice thte jet emlLzilr',1e lvmc stalrte.d
anid nloise :Cev.ls average ouI! atII 11(1 IA.

27
 x 1610 COMMUNICAT.ONS ....
C0MO
4AA NOISE-DISTANCE AREA WHERE
< ~ L, IC.4r,N ____ FACE-TO-FACE AREUICTIN
- .. : 1 ~~~DIFFICULT_ IJ:
.MPC3ZI3LE ......
.................
*xC .........
4.
zu 2.0 AREA.................ERE.......
1.0~~.... IS.OSSBLE IN.......~

NOIS LEVLONIBSSE

NOIESLVEAINCE

F-woe23Disancebetwen
cmmt~icatrs fr sais~a~&ryraceto-fce akig.asa.f...... o
...
z o~ leve measuHred inP..n.s.aae.r r oclefrtnra.ras t...a hw..
 00

0 o 0 U; ..

C . 0
)

2
>
z~~~e - - -- )

-C)-- , A- )

o~ ~~~C 0
01
>.
j U -2
0
-- 1
)4 I
-!n - .z-
12 - = ..! - .J

C- C- C-,
;;I- -

- - ; - L-1

LL.-j Cj C C)
-) - >)-

LUL -) - A L0. L.) -

 CHOICE OF COMMUNICATIONS TRANSDUCERS
( OilpI.IIVCcl~ijrt like tahle 2. and tieties .24 amld 25 C:IdIa)ted
tro-iiitt 20). INernht tile~ dCSTierer (11lcml lilt]i icat ioli eIqlLipliiClet to Coiisidvi-
t othe C-in IIIchm'~iii :Icotilstc cliCieItsII for tl'Lc svstvli
W~III\ tha:11 noiselevel
Ihe k' dce~ g N~tl ()ill\ mINLIt thle Ii01i\C Ie\'Cl5 INe Cliecied111L 111.0 OneiC
tHe "i\ dIiý'iMIIll N~liowvII in tahle 2. I)(lt lthe ljime patl.ICl 01
of.. IIloise level
miIIIl he knowni. in aliciar 1 esiC e IluiLst know hiow likely it is that
s'pecch iie1ae wileied to be I rarISni 1tted Or re cill in I iclIICIes
le\(A' [Im~sc. lot. eoic : IIC\\ I'lielt-deek raldo is decveloped.
hcfitl.
t1.2ie l'l~h o -(LlrqtirilIg COII~lnIIiL:I at iflIi\ dlIIii~lg_ tile v-ilg
Of rrliIl
Shoul d behc ri: e
Rel'Cr to filhUrcs _24 and 25 and note that in noise levels below 90 (113a,
Call riscrt miic~ophioneCs Won blill- :Ig S erhn or boric-con tact transducers
or r ras~litill-Ilil~rd reCC~iVilii) Canl beC
1(I' his Would allowv a sinufle
Tsd
tranIsduIcer (With Iia InlItiplex~irIg' SLIchctuc 1*r1 duple)IX o)crai')Ii) to he Worn1
a'Ind this is riot inl1front W, the Imouthl.
\It ea ritii II or hlel net ovwer Such a tira nsdurcer woulItcx tenid its use
(11)10 1 10) LIBA. Otherf tranlSdLnccIS adequateII inlevls V Ip1)to I 10 d11A iricluoc
deviccs that pick upI SpceCcI I'oli01 the teeth, thle throat any 1onystruLcture
of tile head. a'id11d11 arll-.1 CalpholoiC over. or inl, the e ar.
It allways.slloLld be kepIt it) nuliid thadt to LLuarantee aI SatIisIaCtor\'
SpeeCCh1-lo-fnoisc cditIlCrCit jal at t1w auldio inlput to anl speecli-cotiuii iIinc:at onl

M-34ýAIC IN MX: 1334/U NOISE/SHIELD

TOOTH IN MA~l HELMET

PROBE PRESSURE IN MA-i HELMET

PROBE GRADIENT IN NOISE SHIELD

M-32'AIC IN A-13A OXYGEN MASK
PROBE GRADIENT IN MA-i HELMET

EXPOSED M-33 AIC (SIMILAR TO MIKE ON SRC-221V))

EXOED TOOTH_

PROBE PRESSURE IN NOISE SHIELD

EXPOSED PROBE GRADIENTr

MAGNETIC FOREHEAD UNDER M.A-i HELMET

DYNAMIC EAR. HARVINTIP & CLARK MUFF

LEXPOSED
EXPOSED PROBE PRESSURE
GOODQUALITY STANDARD MIKE
MAGNETIC FOREHEAD

EAR___________________________________
I.__________ _____________________________

0 90 100 110 120 130 140

OVE RA LL JE r NO ISE (dBA)

Fivure 24. Ca~pabilities of vWi. ions miicrophone~s 1o operate (transmnit speech) inl given steady-
state nloises melll~sLITe in A-wcighlcd levels. (Adapted from ref. 216.)

30
 I cc

Ii4u

[ In
I <

VT I

N l '

1111111

I i 1 i
<

-i w u -'
u

> zu- U
z -- 0 - . Li
m- - j- LUj <U

0 ; - -

I Li
>nZ Uý > C , I<
0 cc < < 7

oj W
-l LU<
<
LU~L <U C- u L

7I <<
T 7t <
U LiU lu LU

L)L z z z
LOU
W1 LU

_ < c QU

-LU CL
cr0<Iz zu
r -
wj wcno OO<

z~~~~- <><C (n<>

 .~'4011 1i 'icc
I lk, %~ ii
'ic ii
U~ behI icked rIVIliVClV free of fich surroundinug
k.hin
IIII Io IC. spcci: i\ ()I VI\iit IIVy
I no"I intIellse dIire ctlIy inl front o I and
;,ili1NiI loiichiiic thec Ill", I licrlk-ore. in noise levels abov.e 110 dIBA. a
M'INC-CdIili--1 it, l~incrpi t m iCjnst I ouch ilu the lipS SholOld he uIsed. Ill noise
Ic lh
;lý c 1."0 (M I~:d oise Shield 111111 surrounld the n1oise-can!celng

Ilk c_%iIýplitlhccr1IL--. For C.\AMlplC, niil wai-lr aShield Onl their

I Juc
r~i'~"Inld kal k1 1CilOver 111e Ilikicroplioiie \V~lhn talking. A niore elaborate
*rrn~heiienIlnitith cvcn have\ al press-to-talk- pressure switch onl the shield
thimi \'wuld a1ctivate ()Ill\ when fihe shield wsinl tirni contact widi the chin.
CONCLUSIONS
I. Exposure times of many flight-deck personnel to high-level noise are
-it or near the damage-risk level. Continuing efforts inuLst he made to melain-
lain and supply hearing protectors as good as or better than those presently
ill use.

2. The speech-interference level of' flight-deck noises drast icallv

reduces effective facC-to-face common ical ions for roughily h1alfI, tlh time
(uring the I 2-hour air operations cycle.

3. Voice announcements over the 5 MC will not he heard by all 11fli1t

deck personnel when noise !evels exceed 110 d1B (ahout 8 percenl of' Ilhe
time).

4. Talking and listening on the flight deck over the flight-dcck radio
during military-power (two-finger) run-ups is severely limited hy personnel
within 50 feet of the offending aircraft. i.e.. when the noise levels exceed
about 125 dBA.

5. Data are summarized in charts and figures which show communic:i-

lion designers tile capabilities of various acoustic transducCrs inliie.

AREAS FOR FURTHER INVESTIGATION

The study reported here indicated certain areas where additional
work is required, as follows.

1. Tile effects of wind (knots across tile deck) oil sound-level meter
microphones.

2. The effects of wind-generated noise at the cars and at

communication-cquipmlent transducers.(affecting the speech intelligibility
as transmitted and received).

3. The effects of the jet-blast deflector on the generation, distribution.

and directional characteristics of noise on the flight deck.
4. The attenuation actually achieved by the hearing, protectors as
they are used (or misused) aboard CVA's.

5. Similar noise measurements on A3, F8. E2. and A7 aircraft.

6. More details on noise levels at Waist-catapult launching posit ions

(in addition to the bow-catapult positions measured in the work reported
here).

RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Insure that scaling rings for the sonnd-attentuating carmu ffs are on
board in adequate number to allow prompt replaceinit of damaged seal\
and rou tine replacement at least once a year (or- at the start of each
deployinl lt).

33
 I. Add. or Conlt inlI Uisinig. a Warning ph rasc to lie announrced over file
systemiiht'ore
NIMC Jet engine,; st art, to tile cffect. . . don earinuf
u allr
persomilei not \vearing car protectors leave thle fhigh deck ..

3.Assign to somle DOD1 act ivi ty tihe pe rinancn I task of' continua i ly
NCa rcllirng: for1 anrd evatiuathing, better hica ring protectors.

4. Inlstitute
I or con t11in
i annUal and iomcetric tests of' all1Iflight deck
personnelc (and pilot%).

5. Up~date tihe data Onl the capabili tics ot' cu rrentI airborne acoustic
transducers ( nmicrophones and earphones) to give adequate speech-
inti ibiity scores (75 percent rhyme words correct) in levels of 90. 11I0,
and 130 dBa of jet aircraft noise.
6. Provide a microphone shieild for anyone who must talk on t wihen
surrounded by noise levels in excess of' 125 dB1A.

7. Consider issuing, "receive only" radios to a large number of' flight

deck personnel whlo cannot now hiear announcements over tiie 5 MNC 'flight
deck aiinouncing system and who are hot equipped with SRC-2"(V ) flighlt-
deck radios.

S. Either insure that new naval aircraft do not generate noise levels
gzreater than tho0se currently in use. or provide better hearing protection
and/or less exposure timle tor f'light-deck personnel.

9). Encourage anyV study or engzineering effort that wilt reduce the
nu~mber of personnel required on thle flight (leek after engines have started.

10. Provide "quiet" crewv shielters for flight deck personnel to use
between tours of duty on the flight deck and insure that the shelters
remain quiet (no high levels of rock and roll music).

11. Conduct programs to pUrsueC the probiems listed uinder "Areas f7or
Further 1nlvestigation." in the preceding section.

2.Acqu~aint designers, administrators, and medical personnel with thle

hiazards inherent in high1 noise levels during carrier aircraft operations.

.34
REFE RENCES
1. NavalIE-lectronics Laboratory ('enter TN 1789. A cousticalI Noise Survey
Aboard USS KiTyr HAWK (('VA 63). by J. B. Rosenfeld and F. R.
Rubin, 17 December 1970 (An in formal meniorand urn11 intendedIC
primarily f'or use within the ('enter)

2. Naval Air Test ('enter. Patuxent River. Marvland. Report ST35-375.

Aircraft Noise Iz1iSnisson. Survey -of -A-3J- I Airplane: Report 0.
Interim Report, by R. 11. Seitz, 3 1 A ugust 196 1

3. Naval Air Test C'enter. Patuxent River, Maryland, Report S'T35-5011

Aircraft Noisc Fmission. Surveyv of F41 1-1 F Airplane: Report 9
Int erim 1 R. 11. Seitz. 212 Novembher 1961
byot
4. Naval Air 'rest C'enter, Patuxent River. Maryland. Rcport ST35- 107.
Aircraft Noise Emission. Survey of'A-6A Airplane: Report 14.
Interim Report, by U'. F". Abell. 15 April 1963
5. Naval Air 'rest Center. Patuxent River. Maryland. Report ST35-h 66.
Aircral't Noise E~mission. Survey of A-4E Airplane; Report 13.
I nterim Report, by C'. F. Abell, 15 April 1963
6. Ynoig R. WV. and Peterson. A.. "Onl [stinmatinii Noisiness of A ireraf't
Sotinds,.' Acoustical Society' of' America. Journal. v.45. p). 834-838.
A pril 10969
7. Navy Li.eviionics L aboratory Report 1314. Speech Interference Aspects
olI' Navy Noises. by J. C'. Webster and R. Gi. Klunipp. 2 September

X. Webster, J. (C.. l' Ifects of' Noise onl Speech In tell igib ility. 1v.'4Q-71 in
Natijonal (Confterence onl Noise as atPublic IHeal th Haz'ard.
Proceed ings. 13-1I4 Jtine 1968. The A merican Speech and HIearing!
Associat(ion. 1960 (AS! IA Report 4)
9.Weblster.J. C. and Gailes. R. S.. "Noise Rating Methods For Predictineu
SpchCI (oni muii11icat ion tl'e~C~t iVeneSS. p. 85-I102 in SyM pOSiu1 Oilo
[valuating the Noises of'Transport ation. 1969. 1'ra nsport: lion
Noises: A Sym posiumi onl Acce ptability Criteria. Edited by J. I.).
('hapulnik. University of Washlington P~ress. 1970
10, lBni'iel, P. V.. "Aerod ynamically Induced Noise o," Miicrophioncs and
Windscreens."' Brilel & Kiaer Technical Review. No. 2. p. 3-26. 1900
11. IHayes. J. R. MI. and Cu~dworth. A. L.. "A Windscreen For the Er'
AcouIstical _Society of' America. Journal. v. 26. p).254-25,5. Mar1ch
1954
I12. IHarvard Universitv. P1svcho Acoustical Laboratory Report PNIR- I 33.
Problems of II ieh1-Itntensity N oise: A Suirvev a nild Reconin inendat ions.
by W. A. Rosenblith and otheris. 30 IDecmher 1952
13. K rvter. K. 1). and1L
others. "IIZa/a rdOuIS Exposure to I nteriit tent ani
Steady-State Noise."' Acoustical Society of Atmerica .J ourn al. v.30
1). 451-464. March 1906
 14. BI~Is'Oid. .1.1IL. '*Siplel)I Method 1-o1 ILIentilyving Acceptable Noise
I \ po)14i meS.' A cot1isica1l SOCie tv ot Amnerica. Jo1r01.11,, v. 42.
pS 10- 81 CI 01()coeI~ 067

15.l1jl-ML\OietV ('011111ittee. "Guiidelinies For Noise Exposure (Control.''

SoundI and \'ibrAtiou. V.4. p). _21-24, November 1970
106. Webhster. .1.C'. anld L.epor, MI.. -'4oiSe. YOU ('all Get Used to It."
.\COu11tical Soc:ietV of Amlerica. Jounl,1. v. 4-5, p).75 1-757,
M'larch 1()0(
17. Naval] Ilcctronlics Laboratory ('cuter 'I'D 07, Objective Mnd Sulbjective
Noise I xvel Survey onl U.S.S. MARS (AFS I ). by J. C. Webster.
F. G. I Icnrv. and W.~ Kreysler. I I October ]1969
IS8. Wchst er. J . C. -,n1d Rutb in. E. R ., "Noise At tenuat ion of Far-Protective
1)eViCCeS. SoundI. V, 1, no. 5). 1902. p. 34-46, figs. 2. 1, 14. and 15

11. ticra nck. L. L. .Acoustics. IcC raw -li Iil 1954

20. Webster,.1i. C.. ''pehCorn inu niCa tionS as Limiited by Ambienit Noise."
Allmerica. Journ1al. v. 37. p).69 2-699,
Acousticall Socict Otv1'
April 1905
2I.K11111in1pp. R. G. anld Webster. J1. C.. "1'hySiCall MeaC.suremlents of EqAI~~lly
Speechl-I nterfecring Navy Noises."' Acou[stical Society of' America.
Journal. v. 35. p). 13128-1338. September 1963
22.
Aeopc edical Research Laboratories TI)R 64-67. Speech
Iii tell igibil itv EvaIluationl ot Four Noise-Canceling, Microphones.
1wC. W. INixon andII1. C'. Somimer, December 1964
3.Nav y E:lectronlics Laboratory Report 977. A Comparison of Five
I ntelli-ibilitv Tests for Voice Commun1.1`ication1 Systems, by
W. F. Montague. 27 J tne 19600
('1111ii cationl,' (Chapter 4 inl
24. Kirv ter. K. 1). anild other-s. 'SpeechConm
IIlunman Enugineering, Guide to Equipment Design, C. T. Morgan.
edI.. McGraw-Hill. 1963

25. 13ei'ank. L. L.,."Revised Criteria For Noise in Buildings.'' Noise

(Control. v. 3. p). 19-27, Janu1,ary 19-57

26i. Wcsicrn Elect ro-Acoustic Laboratory. Incorporated. Contract

,,]:'330 106)-317 10: Ph ase 2. Final Report. StUdy an1d 1I vStigat ion Of'
.Spe Fltd1lect ro-A coust ic 1'ra nSd uLCi'S for Voice Cornmuniiica tion
inl AircrJf't. .MLanary 196(0

-TWebster. .1.C . . -Speech In tell igilhii tv in Noisy E'nvironments." Paper 4

in North Atlantic Treaty Organization Advisory Group for
'\erospace Research anid D)evelopmient AdIvisory Report 19.
.\eroniedikcal Aspects of. Radio C'oimmunnication and Flih iSafety.
lCeceniber 1969)

0
 NITCI( PLi) I O( RI PlIS

Illiuirilion No. N LC.

-ItI. t-h-U-1-r
-No.

IA N2848
2,A I.SI. 3468s-12.09

211 ISI 3492-12-69

3 INS 347(0- 1-69

4A I SI 349 .1 2-6

411 I.1 34 73-1 2-69

SILSl" 3477-12-69

6 1I .1 3493-1 2-69

RIVIRSI. SII)I IDI ANK 37

APPENDIX: SIL - PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE
I c,'pril
d Irotm Stuiind ý•i;d \"itbrtioi, Vol. 1. No. s. 22-26, 1969)

IIVi RSII SII)IF BILANK 39

 NAVAL ELECTRONICS LABORATORY CENTER
San Diego, California 92152

30 April 1971

Naval Electronics Laboratory Center Technical Report 1762. Noise Levels on

Aircraft-Carrier Flight Decks, and Their Effects. by J. C. Webster. 30 April
1971

Note regarding APPENDIX: SIL - PAST. PRE-Sf-NT. AND FUTURE

(reprinted from Sound and Vibration. Vol. 3. No. 8, 22-26. 1969)

The Appendix has been included in copies of TR 1762 addressed to

recipients who have a special interest in the measurement of speech-in terfer-
ence levels and who may not have read the article previously. For the general
reader, SIL measurements are treated in sufficient detail in the main text to
describe the methods involved in gathering the data reported.
Recipients wishing a copy of the reprint may address a request for it
to the Naval Electronics Laboratory Center.

REVERSE SIDE BLANK 41

 SIL-PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE
John C. Webster, Naval Electronics Laboratory Center, San Diego, California

The sPeech-interfering aspects oif noise can be speci- Tle Si1! llutst liit'C leeii ai got)d eiigitllcei'iiig too]
ficd in terms of the level and spectrum of Speech thug .-ll('ei
frititt tile Itohlllng SI' Ii'iii' ( as origiiaiall
and noise at the listener's car. A recommended proi- 1)121lljslll' by B'vrauc'k r/I 0." Stolil devise5(d wayst\ of
ceditre is based on the PSIL (average of tile octave- est imat iiii it from liisit s ofr'
i iiC'-(g dSpeech
band levels centered at 500, 1000, and 2000 11z) or ('lit imii
ii 't iiii (S(: ) cliiiti its. Theose ciii toinirs wvere
A-wcighted sound level and the distance beCtweenl sustif
it ('iily modiiifiedto l iit 11 iloni fail iliat' nloise
communicators. A nomograph simplifies thc appli. criteria (V an d alttCriiat C NC (N( A) contotuIrs. 1
cation of the technique. terit ak- ti e.l \aidali('d( thle S1,I meastilre, Stupple-
Inetited Iby looidlic" level (11,L) iiicasiirecs (originI all y
Till
I 'tE.ASC212 OFI NOIiSE knownl 15 tile speeeli-inte teveli Pt'l 1h y SteCvens and mlod11(11fiedl by him
dt(' i at thle
ferenee levecl (SI L) has l)CetI,and1(still is, a useful2 jit'is('it tiliiit thirouighi six i'evisiiltis!''), to establish
enIigineering tool(1 fotr 2n2oise' conttrol. As or2iginally ("'ntei ia for iriatill g acel p aI le niiiise levels for offices.
coceitCived by Be'raneik' IIIi2(1 applied tot soit con1Llt1troil At allbou1t t Iiis samei tlinie Yi hil g .st arted pro-
ilairplanes byv B eranek and RtidinoscA2 the ilicasutre lounlit iiiigtlit vir~tue iloSfl lie( A-we igilt in scalec of tile
was 1based onl thle LIonclept s developed by Fret tel and Siudlvlt1( ('II ii tcl its I1111' IC r of'i iii1111 relatitng to
Steitthergi' foi' the ar2ticuilation1 index (Al). As statc(I thle sliihectixe respoltises oif people to Iluse. III Ilis
liv Beraniek,' ". .. if we desire to divide the ftc- first bIi' 1 . Yult
'.I\
i og ited that the A-weighted levcl
ottnclic Scale inito threve hands oifeiitial Cotrttibutiont lit\'e goodli appriixiiiiatiiiits to loiiidtiess level. ats well
to Speech in tell igibidlity, tusitiig availahble an aIvlting it ShoulId. slit ce tile A -we gl itin g iietwi rk was
*equipmlent, we sholitld divide it ilito tile frefiivitlet modelled(t ol tile' -lt-ph)ll ltl lidliilss lcvcl colitllir
*ranges .300( toi 1200( cps, 1200( to 240(0 eps, and1( Younig' later pointted huit that tile average decibel'
210(1ttio~( p~ ~s''eleauetl'a~ciaili reoilftlg at rctai\(s ('entered ait500t, 1000. anid 200(0
inldex ii'eyitiecy Stale is tilore tiearl\ liniear (lwllIw 1z/ is well estimtated liy the A-weiglttcd leve'l [mitiiss
1000 cps than logarithmic . . ., an intensity average thlerie is it prepol01 h' uc ce I ouse et lergv illtltt
in the .300- to I 200-eps band] is n1ot correct..Noic- octilvcys aboave 200 ftlz. 1( itd th1is is tillt ehrci t~ier 1st iL
over, usuial available atlialv'ziiig equtipmnent iti'liudes of1' must office II' ll.indstiail lnoises]. Obviously to tile
the bands 30(0 to 600, 600 to 120(0, 1200 to 2400 extent that thle A-weighted level aipproacesle ail
and 2400 to 4800 cps. averagei~ readinig' for thlree o~ctalves of illilse ceniter'ed
"To ~Isuf fitientl ctlose
LI Sappr-oxinlatioIti. we Cllt if aruuutod 100fI liz. it wiould estimate SIL.
tlie level ill the 300(- to1163 1 -cps hal21( is not tn ore Oil antoithetr tack, Krvter,12 iiSi og ni altel iil[ t(eeli-
thani 10(11 abovl le that illti ec 600- to I20(1-cps b anid, tidqies. deve litped aI 'pCrcvi'i d- noise lev el th1at
listtet1(W 6U tol I 2tt-cps hanid ais tile fir-st hanid and c')l-relhitel 'with thlt alilloyilg prllperti('s if. illpar'-
tlietil dclitle tile sp''liiiereltt( evl as tile tieuilar. jet titetralt Ol~los. Like loii~ildo'55 le~el ( L'),
a ri t 1121etit' avera ge Iof thet Sound i( press itte levels ill to wv l1(11 pe'rce'ivSed ooiis' le(vt' 1 ( PN I ) cl st'l y Cooi
the tittee handcs 6001( to 1200,1
1200( tol 2400,. and1( i'I'spollll. iniiyl pi'liL'
rt'visionis ill cailciflatioti rehii(s
240tIt to 4800 ct
tps. Hoi wever,. if' ti e ltevels ittthle 300.- aiui a ppli catliiois ftolloiwed. TI t'se 11avtres u.-lt (NI ill
to 600(-cps bandc are'( molre thani 1(0 (MI aboive tituse ill, ii 1 (liite'( soliiiatiti piaper oit P.NL Ib' Krvterli
2
iiithe 60(X- tol I (0-cps band, the itx'(t'igt' of the whlich r'elate's 511. (ias e'sttimaited liy NC: conitouris)
levels ill thle foiutr hainds bietweeni :30(1an -18001t'i cps the A-wvgl'iilted leve], l.intl effective' lNI, ais limoitinig
Shoutld lie tised hinsteadi.- noise~ levels for \ariilis types ,' n;1I
Het (::!ihititts: ''If theI levels iif' speech are alsoi Ali\, oni if thll maii'INil' Af Iliisc (lisuSeiiSSll:iie,

If tin' ('Nat levels of sp'ec'l all' ttit kiiuwn * bitt examplel'I. kl'rt(I'r alull \illaluiis" iiitt'ii-
t'lIrru(lite'l
. . twoi ile'l It.(' . . .faL'iig each olther' ill [thit giliililv sewcs ol iiinu(lifii'd 11ii1ii' xxolrds ulx'llupedi
dc

x'ar'lills voitce levels and (Iisthtic('s itl'~ sliuwit (raft, Smlile' jw'ifiiili.ý ;is iiiiiu ýIs de1e evollitinius:
ill a] T'able Ill Mnakitig ilp this ta1ble(. htveiag(' rii-11liips. laildiiils, all'! t'lkl'~isfls All blii tx5Ii if tllest'

its ltti'\1p'(tc'l wordt~ If tile vocbl(ulilury is

mterhtli'al. raillLI(' (31110f( I*S00( It/,. oIid ()uly\ five lad ;[Iv\
hulit ted or if seitciti'ius olilv. atre iii
sp(,-(I lit(' p - gr':t('i
1'r niiilii it s ( 'l 'r 'v )
in' low i If/. '(lax

liy uifiiuit 5 d1h. 11ifa xiiiitu is s1i('ukiilg. fll tilerlissi- SILI. aiill( Nutlh l pilhllul\ xI)o s'.-uulicalit"
3
Nol' levelS Slliltil dTIaSd lix liiiit 5 i11
I)\'reil( ." \\illialtils
it 1-,;' alsol llixitig ijo~ifid 111ix1f.io rdvu~s,

Rcprinicit fromn SOUND AND VIBRATION, Vol. 3, No. 8, 22-26 1969)

 (tlr St.\[ - 1'MB Sill B~ill Al

N .k21 . L., 26.51 7.1) 21t(5.2)*.f (600-1200. 16.6(4.8)~

1200-2400,
2-100-4800

i".()10 '~l, 1(. ~ Is'.5v1.7r*.'"* (301t-ox). 9.-7(2.5)

60(I) I1200.
1200-2-100
1 I, wt~aves)
Si I I1N17( 1: 10b .1)10l (500,) 10(M, 10.5(2.8)1

Al 8.1(2.4)

Kt.%tqr a111 W~ilij.otIi~ TI \,iiIl'i t diltl, iot. Si I. ( .(Xt.(6DO, (00-12010. 12010-2-10(0 lII. Oldaves) no0t nwIaSlTred.

Wilhalls~n. I't al."! \mi Iit,' ! difItoirivi. SlIT ( I30l.6i:1. ((00-121)0. 1200-2-1001 iz octalve's) not nicastird.
Y, 11111t,"' UIl'lIl. jill 0l.' 1.11, 8k i NWh. 1200, 1 2001.2.100, 2.100-480( 1 Ilz octaves),
,(i

IIS11(Irll
I .i'if ill/Niid
Spolo ll III mam ill ofl rd dr'i n il 13

airtll wiiiiqi I (i 1% 'ri.lu11"It',iv ' st~illi), itiilivi-

an a1111 avcldgilig mlethod)(s, SI!. (basetd onl the different

Iliiiiahii1 11,111~gi~lli. Kryter and W\illiamis," Williams ct al. "i and

Y11I: 14111111l 1.0 A'lint ii os of (1.9!l or LWevltr Young" alc marked. Thc sulggestedl itew mneasuires in-
beklitri't d I1., PN I, S11. (3010 tol 2.100 Ilz). mid clude a Ilewv set of speech initerference (SI) Contours
T
dw~ wiif,k raliliigý -wiliubiaiv arrived at by IBeranek' for ( Webster' 1I .1) new speech-interference (SI)
hieili-ilivl '1lik l,-i' iq'j4', Till' iou atiloit w:I': Ilo? weighting nevtwork,-'' -' and i al SIL based onl
kodI-1litci Vl fill ,pt'echii jt erff-rn it. hot (Ifficc( (i 't
i'(tav('s c'l'tered 5(00. 1(000, anld 2000 lIN (dhe
twisf I((v
tpta ii il\Iv ii'taildyi iv lld' t11115hit
ability tio 51-cal led prefe rred frer Ii(lictic Sil!. ill PS IL).
('(I]i\' Ill, '0. TIill resu5iits5 5111(111rized: ill Taible I sillow th at, for
Thiii'lwiot c(I ili-hl'lske~l stillily il teulls iff Ihiverse aircra~ft Illiscs. Si L. i'NI. (lilY I atid Al Il give

h,
S.1 KI'II0p fill] \Vv6Ai.lt' ilo %
Th. 10 i,,Ibt ["or- ofuivi' noisesl SH .' L iA. NC, ;lud LI, g;\,
lixýtinis oijilst tll-i ievt'ls ilf Si\tel'l' (laSi-stV('ad- LW;[-rajlv ,-lvi-~ evaillltioul:; (If ac eptabiiity.'11
\talti ll)it',is lot llilsk lilt 511'"; (if Fairbanks' rhyllet For diver-se spectra no~ises, ltile preferre.1 frequency
wvrds phiin
c toI i'! via :IL1'u ! .lAer ft.,- 811._ (PSIJ ! is p11 Tabi)v tile b es t ('nunp roi 1ie.w SuniplT
Ti lli
IIl (,ll'
) ,av
011 ''eec i'lIi-.t 'I.Iteroruic wil,:aA Si L C(OO)

t1i111it-il-l
till'ýL1
'1 ii'yI' (It vac iifliris(, hy tilirtcell (I N(.A, andl PNLI.bing geuierallv ejliliv-
-o4S101)lz),
(1i1li-1ritit Illctlilils (Till[ i.:litliltcl. till. St:Ilidall devil- a1(111 but1 showing, greater variabiliity w~ithi spectra.

lii i -,~l-l'i
Il~lb si'-(-i-ilt'r~'rlg 1(01se, Ollvi- till' ablov(e Illeaslules give.s a fair- apprxl-li.\natinll to tuev
till' mri1,i11c ill vti till( sma1llelst stalidiaid delvjO- S)'(-iltlrlilg pro~perties oIf noise, tile actual
t,t \\ Lx lit, lwx) lmti I~i.llI )I til, Npiclil-il(itilrb iniL¶ \ allies for! 1:1(11 tlc'silrt ll\('i'gtl iover many noise
, "It,
flil xi i 'im0051. ~Taldc I SIIOW'v a Si1111- spcit-Ira ;rc cliisi(vial'rly (hitterent. TIable ii shows

Itf tOl Il-ttfir X1101 IlTlII)Il' ()T~lTTI(liii 011151' llIC~l'lilrl- lillisi' llll'iil~lc's over1 fourol. itterelit salulplilligS oIf noise.
til-it111,1Ipidtlll. F,11,1 cL",i('si Al IniIlsillcilicilt T111vtIiiis \ ti1110ha ilNi, ilwa;i 1has till' greatest n1 umerical

"(l01b1 111-114
iIl iT s I~iSC
1(l~i.t11 ill ii) IiNi zlicx, at pries(-t filr hmvi to estimlate whlat all other21
me(asurIes are if vou kn ow jitist one. Tim last colt im n "ci titiotivi icat iog" talkers ra isv ( t 1len voii ccev 5
(S.D.),) is tile val tie (If the st andlard dieviat ioni, taken (11 fo r everx 10 dBU~illri i ll(dS
ll i Is('.
fronm Table 1. It shiows the vuriat ion oif the part icihular ~ 'it :U1il;L\\i Strl ElI.ectro -Acoils tic I .iiiit-
ni('astire over sixteeni noises -with very diverse spectra, tory Rieport" show that tile totalI vocal i-f hrt railt~l
Oil alliy Sample of simlilar noises-iiffice. indultstrial, is .1- dli (W\EAL1) tol 50 (111(Picket t), but th e utseful
traffic, or aircraft-the variation woulld be less. railige is cloier to 35 (111. IThM is, the List. 10 (IB of
effort (1I'(.s not teslijt ill jinicri'dS(' ilttelli'-ihilitv.
A New Procedure 'I'iest' are the data tisied toi dividle the ''dlffieiilt'' fromn
Since PSIL shtows the smallest expected variability" the otinpossible- regjoli oil the riglit of the( fii4i ire.
oiver diverse spectra noise and the A-weighted level To interpret the figtire, iio) t thait to) ceitierse iii .1
is thle Simplest to mleasiure, these are the r1co11n- normal voice at 6 feet a PSIL of about 53 dBi or
mIIended mfleasures foir assessiniig tilie speech-in terfcr- ail A -wei ghI it CVIeeOf 60i (11A ci ldd lIe tOI l('itlt I.
ilitg aspects itf no ise. Iigiiite 1 shows hlow to interpret (Thiiis cii resp tia Is to alt old SI L of 50) Mhi.) Abo ve
these levelIs of noise illi t erms of voice l evel and thi%isise level aito 10Mi l Voii-ic lev C llld 111( i V0'
distantce 1betw~een a talker and1(a listener. Thi s fi gil re bei( expecteci if liiiriita -I iia rii lii1-Plvi'tIi y ould
is mlerely a1graph iicalelaborat io n (If thei t ab le first raIi.Se their* V~iii 1ccV l ac;rd iiig toi thc e''xpnc ted
lev
intriodtlced by Bieraitek tol interpret distance and voice level" line'.
re(fttiired voice level for given lcveils of SIL. See As another e'xample'. jetius say% \we( xish tio ki tow
tilelimitations listed aboive in tile (fIlItalti(Ill from ]litw fl it%. space 'Call he total pople to Colt-
1W
Bieranek,` soi tIiley apply heire as well. There are verise at :3feet .' Ai ('Nt 'tsiisio it' f1ill 3.fi iiti dt ai~hce
twio innolvat io ns w S.ih make this grapili moire
sould linie toi thli'exp('t'ted v.i(- ievh'el'" liii e diet ti's atl
useful than tim ol1(lleraliek table-tue "e~xpected uipper noise level liin it of' alitlit 65 ilIBPS IL or
voice level" and the "conmmunicating, voice level" 7o2 (lBA.
lines. These linies result from the fact that inl noise Iin geitt'ral. tltis ''ltiioiaii ciigiiteetiig ttoii~lni.rapht'
peoiple tenl to hinicrease their voIcal effort or raise c'al ie 1tn sei only if thetisami' iii itok slSI i1i liiitds Ix ill
1tleirvo ice level (called tOe Liombard voice ieflex ). tlit talIkeri andii tle list et iir. Iii wever letli't5Sd st\ iitha
Krvter,'?: Korn,-" and Pickett 2-,agree that male a.n sft-dl PS11, noise sorroioiis oiily the talker. At
talkers, at least, raise their voices .3dl for eacli this lev'el his viical ('ffirt would b(cli expecteil tii lhe
I0-dBI increase in the Surrioinndin g noise level at b etweeni"ra ised" 1t ii(I "very lii l I''a iild ils Sitcli ho
levels starting aitaihtnt 50 (111 PSI L. Thius is the couli eard lby a listcneric
e hiII ill t li sa inc ilii se.
amiliiiiitof fincrease inlvocal effort when there isto; "S." dIB P-SILl. a-t1:t ;m O'. a listettir itl 70) (Ili
feedback to the talker of hlow effective his Comn- PSI L at over 2 feet,. tirat S feet if the listelter w('i('
uititicatiiils are. It is his 'expecte(1 voice level" inl 60 IliPSI L Of loii e1.
tincrease innoi se.
Webster andi Kmnmpp*" made their talkers really Summary
t'inninhimilicate (95"a' word scores with piositive and To suminnarize the past and( )rt'settt iif specifyitig
instantaneous feedback iof success or failtire) . Their tile spect'l-iltterferilig aspects iif lloist': Speechl C01110-

1 2 3 4 Av SI.D

0 0 0 0 0 2.S
SIL -4 ---2. -2 -3 4.S
LA 6 9 10 -1 4.7,
PNL 19 221 16 -12 20 5.2
L1 . 17 16 S 13 14 7.4

I . Beranck-.' si'vi'litceiii iifi ci' litiscs.

2. Kr%te r and 'iVill iatis. 1I fiiirttel aircra ft ioiscs.

3. Williamis e't al,11 'iiii'e'tt,, flyover noises.
.1. Kluiopp toil( Wc'.s-r''r. si.xtecol euIlally divc~ersi' 51n''-ilitlt
c I,.!i'ill'-i''
 20---
~'16-- -_ _ ~-I
A 3.
LU 10.
-j -
z ct/oe

LU C.<.

le3 2--
<o

cn2L J. . -IC

U_
40 51

LLL
6101
I alZL(BPI2015 81 9 0

40 5 6 70 80 90 100 110 120 120

NOISE LEVEL (dBA)

' w' i :' I"It vri,

talke r and list,
1i i ',for watisfairtry facr-fPr'favr %prc i mi,
cum~~i
n' tri
rctorls
.V
i, -It fit, (I
,iPsli , *i
It tivr t p -i ash rr W (I
-(In 'r~ql -?i eri/ni (tfil' titr f flns,'
I~' h i v ,it i iti (100. 100Nt airid 200() If,- cal' ! the'v( tlr,,-
hir
t(Ii'
41lie
bqI AI -ri
-ri.idt,i ,friieil 1c-,Iii~i(t,'r (IdI/?-k). Other
Ie'atilr_-1
ooohlurt icirro-, tr'i l .I/ iinl'.h! 7*1Tinrlai-r1i'- rilhifirlitl
of 1111 4-ti nwiti~i
1 X T :T,), f,-r irit, rprfiritirIth, i hart: .,1(itair rlift rellhlit ?iii.S iv rIor-dihI So 1- 2
.4v~~ (roir,-rs
,, ait 2 hict and( /Itqmrin--r, a little.
I I tItIII
'I ,rit t
i' in. ~i, I,'ak i.it
it. il sI ,.Ifie s for
1 :11
.4,
,r
it j I~!Ii

I\ :IBespctt Ava11
c\I (SlabII vS' leCopy 1 o-IO IIZ
 it is prlJoposed tha~t 11S11. (aird 4jNtiIlktf.% ,f it 1 ,%. NI,fr 1'iv r (', frr( .1. \. ,I ;2 1 1 ý1

Ijx J i lt., s l., !.\ 1til!

11t-1 I ,f'g
1.'.K
(if ustjiliat irrt. by Itmcals (if Fi~il4.'r I, ill. sicech(1 12. K. I ). K I xt, -r. ', lilt,: it,
Irr, h,.~ - .n tw,N,
itltvi-felill.! ISI)(.ts of iroksc. Other e-stinlates of, .151. Swujrlr f!ralu A ir, rif11t. j Ar t~ S.. I I,.I., I 1 12'1
ill logiiiiit Sit., PN!.. ;tit( C--weig.litiuii are' listcd iii (1
Table1)14. withl all et imate of expected enror
, alhrrrrt .) K 1) K!, C
(...r. >r '.I .

The Iiltilf(' iof P511. will dlependil( l1 11m... well it 1 1. K. 1). kl.t:tTýI"! 1: 1, ;1 i, : .
aids1 ellillciers. ardluiterts, and1(designrers ill perL ,v .iruroftf M .. '( ' .A 391. V.i'i 150
j

jilt.! hitilitiii¶. 110151. 1('l(Is forr varilis sp1C4'5. 1The 1.A .Ir~.C V~i~ii.'1 f . I kr.n
old(er spv4.'ifltatiO~ls develorped! bv je.Ierair7k ;Ir1 . I:),AS. Mm--.iCrir:ir.rIs~u
I I . ,r44.rt.i -
flit i~livhtidated(Im1 tit(. liewVer PSIL T..o crnlvc.t froir I)iftler.jjijti.wrt 144 iflr a CbI.'.d I.j n.~ I
SIL toIc PSIL il.. A addt :rI3(Ill to tile old SILS .111d Soe. Am,. 37. 11'-S-6 titl'fi
vall threml PSI [s. T[IIns co~rrectio~n wvill be ma(14oo~tl' If6. C, . \X'iai,,rsW K. N. If. L..
MI''rN. 'kr
n
ifofic noiser415s oIi tire. fritirre are like thne Seve rter arid K. S 'A.r'.II pI rii ,,IFI 1

Itself bv IBerarrrrk , tit'stablishj tile- v'Ni tug U11:e1 .Xirur;tft Ni.Ii'~f.~jti..~rrl'iri, iI.r

Oul~t is. if ti'h*ei .. l illnise ill the( !o~ 600l-I Z ~300- 17. It. G. Klirrni,i .ri,, 1. CXXltr. 11i%,w~i..l t.,i
rietaivi is .1 or. .5 (iB .!re~tte thall tile level ill tire mnrl ' (rdt .it ru1 t
si'1 11-* Ii~r'r-
11 , \1 ., % N.I\ S . Jow
(6001 to 12(t(-liz octave. Acoluigt. sri .-%fit. :;3. 13SIi 1116".
Btased (m th
d LIolilrp FgreI ld I s. C . Fluirklarks Tv! 'd f'ill,r IV!,Irf r.:ai.trem 1*1i..
1gire
I~SIlnemlgtaln( ar~l Il~ i,.I't. J.A,.i. .n.
Am. 30. 5f.11,4010 P15
tile kss illlit;,),14 I thlat ctnuuiiullrin.;ntril I! b
fro it 1 1.) ". C. XX Istqr (, Sp.i,.. 11 liiftf,ii,
5 C .
accep''Itabl)e forr conlllulliciatirlg area, ill shlips, a qso.'v- t,,ir.. J. Siw,,h &n ig.I.'
RI.a 7. 11H. o 161f~ij1.
P.1
ilicatiint of' 6-1 tum65 dlM PSIL or -, I il 72 dflA lias 2". I.1 C. W-1-t-fT. B, 1-1112i." 1%. iti N,,.fItier
1)(411 pl44Pr45('. WO.'l~el. a1(1 iAxpolr- have
il*( shown I Cmiruf,,ris. 'N 1
..... o i,.'l i .0, lru!\(rr
Xii.-urit
thti '-,W; (d1 tIt( peoiple oni USN sini1s (1,, A1edf'(l IA,
J.. wof St.,. .%ill. 36,f.22,,' (tI
thlat levels11rilkt :1 (litLg~than frn the 61. to 6 21. .1. C. midturIt. (;. KI'imrpp.Nl si-tl
11, I nil'-r
tr
.61a to 651 liP. fc~j,im A.Xsp.lI iuf \.i \ Nutis, ',' . S. N.. I 1 .1 ii..:,I:
PSIL 1.. p5Thifil.;Itifli is "acceptarble" alld thrlrt illlr I 4l'iRv impurl 13 ' l 11;67)~ . .p4 iii~~ i

spevedl is noilt a lk'cted. VI II

'Ill(- slo~pe (ifi till' 1( 'orw lirrrjr. IX.-hoer. I '
C.14((l ini-tnit* C. rutuiris for

runI "imipossible"& (minuri iatn s (Inlow (leteier]ed 44.i 1 li Iri.itr,'. 1 fiJ

i , \t..1t 1..rf urd'r

ti1:ill ilabgrartomr stiudies Ilm hras'ien(to be mod4(ified 23 Is 1) rI. r I,'~ 1, 1; fri,k t1%. I ). \itk olr
r-1111
iji f Iitir l( aptpr1lied( or fhied IASr it5h. As5 'ml Ol* hIt.' rt igt', i,f 1p1 it, VN... . A,".4
tilki dat,it~ 1r14\v',4 Fitzi1114' I is PuIMl)SC(I ;as a1 sirIph~l Am. Is . Kur I, vf. ',,tf.. .I
41141~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
114 l44(rif rlrrr.oi14tS ~T.1r~tS.Lliriltrit.n
C1.1( V' 1,..i di. Vi,%, i h.is I~ nf

t2u1. 1. NM.,P i t-t .h li, ot

N,.. XIt
,, 3 . 1 . C,"It li'vi'.
References 26. I1. \\.f,ti
W. 1. IId. (:, M11rripp) I H.,rIi .\'-!I

At1 ,l-pt.iI I'll N ,os,( I.'m. Innsl .XN.'II. 69. 9ff-lt) tIO 1n'' A( ... >. \ ý
.10-il
NIT7'. 1IV",'

Vi It ITl~illj andi .1. Ci'. st, Nirif- Vjttm,.nf "4 45I 4 44 , 4,'f Ii,

I, I ! B. 1i.,r1,, V I1i, \1, Iit. P I, V i t.,, ~ ' ~ ~ N

V ).2
.AISi. 4' I

Sest Avaiabl Cop