Statistical analysis from a sound level meter

✍ Scribed by W.E. Scholes; A.C. Salvidge

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1973
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 316 KB
• Volume: 6
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0003-682X
• DOI: 10.1016/0003-682x(73)90020-0

✦ Synopsis

Increasingly, and particularly for motorway noise, sotuld level meters are behlg used to estimate L~o, the noise level just exceeded for 10 per cent of the time, by noth~g the meter readings at regular intervals and manually analysing the array of data so obtained. In this paper we describe a simple attachment to a sound level meter, which is intended to ease the operator's task in making such measurements and to minimise operator bias. Comparisons are made between the results of sound level meter measurements of three types of noise and the results obtained using the more conventional technique which employs a level recorder and statistical analyser.

It is concluded that, at least for motorway noise, the sound level meter technique gives values of L lo and of L 9 o within 1 dB(A) of the vahtes obtained by the normal method. Furthermore, it is probable that the technique will be usefid for the measurement of other types of noise h7 statistical terms, but further investigations of accttrac), are required.