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Designing earplugs adapted for the widest number of earcanals requires acoustical test fixtures (ATFs) geometrically representative of the population. Most existing ATFs are equipped with unique sized straight cylindrical earcanals, considered representative of average human morphology, and are therefore unable to assess how earplugs can fit different earcanal morphologies. In this study, a methodology to cluster earcanals as a function of their morphologies with the objective of designing artificial ears dedicated to sound attenuation measurement is developed and applied to a sample of Canadian workers’ earcanals. The earcanal morphologic indicators that correlate with the attenuations of six models of commercial earplugs are first identified. Three clusters of earcanals are then produced using statistical analysis and an artificial intelligence-based algorithm. In the sample of earcanals considered in this study, the identified clusters differ by the earcanal length and by the surface and ovality of the first bend cross section. The cluster that comprises earcanals with small girth and round first bend cross section shows that earplugs induced attenuation significantly higher than the cluster that includes earcanals with a bigger and more oval first bend cross section.

Passive earplugs are used to prevent workers from noise-induced hearing loss. However, earplugs often induce an acoustic discomfort known as the occlusion effect. This phenomenon corresponds to an increased auditory perception of the bone-conducted part of physiological noises at low-frequency and is associated with the augmentation of the acoustic pressure in the occluded earcanal. In this work, we report a new concept of passive earplugs for mitigating the occlusion effect between 100 Hz and 1 kHz. The strategy consists in reducing the input impedance of the earplug seen from the earcanal by using quasi-perfect broadband absorbers derived from the field of meta-materials. The proposed “meta-earplug” is made of 4 critically coupled Helmholtz resonators arranged in parallel. Their geometry is optimized using an evolutionary algorithm associated with a theoretical model of the meta-earplug input impedance. The latter is validated against a finite-element approach and impedance sensor measurements. The meta-earplug is manufactured by 3D printing. Artificial test fixtures are used to assess the occlusion effect and the insertion loss. Results show that the meta-earplug induces an occlusion effect approximately 10 dB lower than foam and silicone earplugs while it provides an insertion loss similar to the silicone earplug up to 5 kHz.

The occlusion effect (OE) occurs when the earcanal becomes occluded by an in-ear device, sometimes leading to discomforts experienced by the users due to the augmented perception of physiological noises, or to a distorted perception of one's own voice. The OE can be assessed objectively by measuring the amplification of the low-frequency sound pressure level (SPL) in the earcanal using in-ear microphones. However, as revealed by methodological discrepancies found in past studies, the measurement of this objective occlusion effect (OEobj) is not standardized. With the goal of proposing a robust yet simple methodology adapted for field assessment, three experimental aspects are investigated: (i) stimulation source and the stimulus's characteristics to induce the phenomenon, (ii) measurement method of the SPL in earcanal, (iii) indicator to quantify the OEobj. To do so, OEobj is measured on human participants in laboratory conditions. Results obtained with a specific insert device suggest using the participant's own voice combined with simultaneous measurements of the SPLs based on the noise reduction method and using a single value indicator leads to a simple yet robust methodology to assess OEobj. Further research is necessary to validate the results with other devices and to generalize the methodology for field assessment.

Acoustic imaging can be performed using a spherical microphone array (SMA) and conventional beamforming (CBF) or spherical harmonic beamforming (SHB). At low frequencies, the mainlobe width depends on the SMA radius for CBF and on the order of the spherical harmonics expansion for SHB, which is related to the number of microphones. In this letter, Kriging is used to virtually increase the SMA radius and/or the number of microphones. Numerical and experimental investigations show the effectiveness of Kriging to reduce the mainlobe width and thus improve the acoustic images obtained with a SMA and CBF or SHB.

The sound attenuation of double hearing protectors (DHPs), earplugs combined with earmuffs, generally falls short of the sum of each single protector's attenuation when used independently. This phenomenon, referred to as the DHP effect, is found to be related to structure-borne sound transmission involving the outer ear and can also be observed on acoustic test fixtures (ATFs). At present, it still remains not fully understood, and no available model can help demonstrate the associated sound transmission mechanisms. In this work, a finite element model is proposed to study the DHP effect on an ATF between 100 Hz and 5 kHz. Power balances are calculated with selected configurations of the ATF in order to (i) quantify the contribution of each sound path, and study the effects of (ii) the artificial skin and (iii) acoustic excitation on the ATF exterior boundaries. The DHP effect is shown to originate from the structure-borne sound power injected from the ATF boundaries and/or earmuff cushion. The important influence of earcanal wall vibration is highlighted when the skin is accounted for. The simulation results allow for gaining more insight into the sound transmission through a DHP/ATF system.

Objective. This article proposes a comprehensive literature review of past works addressing hearing protection device (HPD) comfort with the aim of identifying the main sources of variability in comfort evaluation. Methods. A literature review of study samples was performed: documents were hand searched and Internet searched using PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Professional, Scopus or Google search engines. While comfort constructs and measurement methods are reviewed for both earplugs and earmuff HPD types, results and analyses are provided for earplugs only. Results. The literature shows that the multiple sources of the perceived comfort measurement variability are related to the complexity of the concept of comfort and to the various physical and psychosocial characteristics of the triad 'environment/person/earplug', which differ from one study to the other. Conclusions. Considering the current state of knowledge and in order to decrease comfort measurements variability, it is advised to: (a) use a multidimensional construct of comfort and derive a comfort index for each comfort dimension;, (b) use exhaustive and valid questionnaires; (c) quantify as many triad characteristics as possible and use them as independent or control variables; (d) assess the quality of the earplug fitting and the attenuation efficiency.

The occlusion effect is an acoustic discomfort commonly encountered by earplugs’ users, which corresponds to the increased auditory perception of the bone-conducted sound mainly at low frequencies. This perception is accompanied by the augmentation of the sound pressure level in the earcanal when occluded by the earplug compared to the open case. While the source of the SPL generated in the earcanal in both open and occluded cases is mainly attributed to the vibration of the earcanal wall, the sound radiation of the tympanic membrane that stems from the middle ear vibration is commonly considered as not significant. To investigate this phenomenon, a finite element model that incorporates the middle ear components into a realistic human outer ear is developed. First, the finite element model is evaluated by comparing the acoustic impedance computed at the eardrum surface to literature data obtained on human subjects. Second, the finite element model is used to quantify the contribution of the sound radiation that originates from the middle ear on the sound pressure level generated in both open and occluded earcanals under a bone-conducted stimulation.

Blocking the earcanal’s entrance with an earplug can lead users to experience discomforts, one being the occlusion effect (OE), typically described as a distorted perception of one’s own voice. This discomfort sometimes causes users to misuse or remove their earplugs which significantly lower their efficiency. Reducing the OE generated by earplugs is therefore critical to make them more comfortable. However, assessing the OE is cumbersome and time-consuming as participants’ feedback is required. Moreover, the influence of factors on the OE, namely, the type or earplug, the insertion depth, and the background noise level, remains to be understood. Hence, this ongoing research aims at objectivizing the OE induced by earplugs during speech. To do so, the OE is assessed in laboratory conditions with 30 normal hearing participants using a questionnaire and by using surrogate earplugs for in-ear microphonic measurements. Various sound pressure level-based indicators are proposed and correlated to the (dis)comfort during the objectivization step. Multiple combinations of earplugs, insertion depths and background noise levels are tested to obtain a ranking of the conditions generating more or less OE. The objectivization of the OE will be a useful tool for manufacturers developing new earplugs without requiring participants’ feedback.

The occlusion effect (OE) refers to the phenomenon that more bone-conducted physiological sounds are transmitted into the earcanal when it is blocked and may cause discomfort on users of hearing protection devices. Models have been proposed to study the OE as they can help understand the physical mechanisms and can be used to evaluate the individual contribution on the OE of the factors that may affect it (i.e., occlusion device, ear anatomy, and stimulation). The existing finite element models developed to study the OE are limited by their truncated ear geometries. In order to progress in the understanding of the OE, the goal of this paper is to develop a finite element model of an entire head to predict the sound pressure field in its earcanals, open or occluded by earplugs. The model is evaluated by comparing the computed input mechanical impedances and OEs in various configurations with literature data. It is able to reproduce common behavior of the OE reported in the literature. In addition, the model is used to assess the effects on the simulated OEs of several parameters, including the modeling of the external air, the boundary condition at the head base and the material properties.

The IEC 60318-4 ear simulator is used to measure the insertion loss (IL) of earplugs in the ear canal of an acoustical test fixture (ATF) and is designed to represent an average acoustic impedance (in a reference plane) of the human ear. The ear simulator is usually modeled using a lumped parameter model (LPM) which has frequency limitations and inadequately accounts for the thermo-viscous effects in the simulator. The simulator numerical models that can better deal with the thermo-viscous phenomena often lack essential geometric details. Most related studies also suffer from the lack of experimental validation of the models. Therefore, a transfer matrix (TM) model of the IEC 60318-4 simulator is proposed based on a direct assessment of its geometric dimensions. Such a model is of particular interest for designing artificial ear simulators. The variability in the simulator impedance due to the geometric uncertainties is quantified using the Monte Carlo method. The TM model is validated using i) a finite element (FE) model of the simulator and ii) impedance measurements with a sound intensity probe. It is found to better describe the simulator impedance above 3 kHz compared to the LPM. The TM model is then coupled to a FE model of an occluded ATF ear canal to simulate the IL of an earplug in the frequency range [100 Hz, 10 kHz]. In the model, the simulator is considered as a cylindrical cavity terminated by an equivalent tympanic impedance which is determined from the TM model to simulate the sound pressure measured at the real microphone position (not at the reference plane) in the ATF ear canal. The simulated IL is validated against i) that obtained with a complete FE model of the corresponding system and ii) measurements using an ATF. The TM model is shown to better agree with the simulator FE model than the LPM above 6 kHz regarding the earplug IL simulated using this method.

Many workers are exposed daily to excessive noise levels. In order to reduce the noise exposure at the workstation, the main noise sources have to be detected. This task can be done with a microphone array and a source localization technique. Previous studies have shown promising results with time domain beamforming based on the generalized cross-correlation technique. The objective of this work is to propose an optimal spherical microphone array geometry dedicated to this technique. A cost function based on the symmetry of the aperture angle maps is proposed and is maximized using a Nonlinear Optimization by Mesh Adaptive Direct Search. Numerical results show that the optimized geometry improves the noise source map by reducing the side lobe amplitude without increasing the main lobe surface. Experimental measurements are carried out in a semi-anechoic chamber with prototyped spherical microphone arrays confirming that the optimized microphone array improves the quality of the noise source map.

Objective: This article presents a comprehensive literature review of past works addressing Hearing Protection Devices (HPD) comfort and to put them into perspective regarding a proposed holistic multidimensional construct of HPD comfort.Design: Literature review.Study samples: Documents were hand searched and Internet searched using "PubMed", "Web of Science", "Google Scholar", "ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Professional", "Scopus" or "Google" search engines. While comfort constructs and measurement methods are reviewed for both earplugs and earmuff types, results and analyses are provided for the earplug type only.Results: This article proposed a multidimensional construct of HPD comfort based on four dimensions: physical, functional, acoustical and psychological. Seen through the prism of the proposed holistic construct of HPD comfort, the main comfort attributes of earplugs have been identified for each comfort dimension.Conclusions: The observed lack of consensus on the definition of HPD comfort in the scientific community makes it difficult to prioritise the importance of comfort attributes yet necessary for future design of comfortable earplugs.

The generalized cross correlation (GCC) is an efficient technique for performing acoustic imaging. However, it suffers from important limitations such as a large main lobe width for noise sources with low frequency content or a high amplitude of side lobes for noise sources with high frequencies. Prefiltering operation of the microphone signals by a weighting function can be used to improve the acoustic image. In this work, two weighting functions based on PHAse Transform (PHAT) improvements are used. The first adds an exponent to the PHAT expression (ρ-PHAT), while the second adds the minimum value of the coherence function to the denominator (ρ-PHAT-C). Numerical acoustic images obtained with the GCC and those weighting functions are compared and quantitatively assessed thanks to a metric based on a covariance ellipse, which surrounds either the main lobe or the side lobes. The weighting function ρ-PHAT-C provides the smallest surface ellipses especially when the arithmetic of the GCC is replaced by the geometric mean (GEO). Experimental measurements are carried out in a hemi-anechoic room and a reverberant chamber where two loudspeakers were set in front of microphone array. The acoustic images obtained confirm that the ρ-PHAT-C with the GEO outperforms the GCC, GCC-PHAT, and GCC ρ-PHAT.

The objective occlusion effect induced by bone-conducted stimulation refers to the low frequency acoustic pressure increase that results from occluding the ear canal opening. This phenomenon is commonly interpreted as follows: the bone-conducted sound “leaks” through the earcanal opening and is “trapped” by the occlusion device. This instinctive interpretation misrepresents the fundamental mechanism of the occlusion effect related to the earcanal impedance increase and already highlighted by existing electro-acoustic models. However, these models simplify the earcanal wall vibration (i.e., the origin of the phenomenon) to a volume velocity source which, in the authors' opinion, (i) hinders an exhaustive comprehension of the vibro-acoustic behavior of the system, (ii) hides the influence of the earcanal wall vibration distribution, and (iii) could blur the interpretation of the occlusion effect. This paper analyzes, illustrates, and interprets the vibro-acoustic behavior of the open and occluded earcanal using an improved finite element model of an outer ear in conjunction with an associated electro-acoustic model developed in this work. The two models are very complementary to dissect physical phenomena and to highlight the influence of the earcanal wall vibration distribution, characterized here by its curvilinear centroid position, on the occlusion effect.

In this paper, the vibro-acoustic response of a passive earmuff in a broadband frequency range (100 Hz to 5 kHz) is investigated using a finite element analysis. Firstly, the study focuses on the vibro-acoustic response of the cup and the back-plate regardless of the comfort cushion contribution. Secondly, emphasis is put on the foam-filled comfort cushion which is the trickiest component to model because of its physical complexity. This multiphasic cushion is modeled in a simplified way as an equivalent solid, either isotropic or transverse isotropic in order to take into account the added transverse stiffness due to the bulging of the cushion polymeric sheath. The accuracy of these models is investigated by comparing the simulated insertion loss (IL) to measurement data. The IL predicted with the isotropic cushion model is highly underestimated between 500 Hz and 2.5 kHz due to the presence of an unrealistic mode of transverse deformation. It is found that (i) neglecting the acoustic excitation on the cushion’ external flanks of the isotropic model or (ii) using the transverse isotropic cushion model significantly improves the simulated IL.

The occlusion effect is commonly experienced as the altered perception of one’s own physiological noise when the earcanal entrance is blocked. Objectively, this phenomenon corresponds to an acoustic pressure increase in the occluded earcanal. The occlusion effect originates from the earcanal wall normal vibration and depends on the spatial distribution of the latter. At low frequencies, this spatial distribution can be characterized by the position of its centroid along the earcanal middle axis. This paper describes the principle of an acoustical method for estimating this centroid position at low frequencies. The proposed method consists in measuring the eardrum acoustic pressure transfer function between the earcanal open and occluded by an external capped duct coupled to the earcanal entrance of a subject submitted to a bone-conducted stimulation. The centroid position is then estimated at the antiresonance frequency of the coupled system using an associated electro-acoustic model. The proposed method is evaluated and investigated numerically using a 3D finite element model of an outer ear. The sensitivity of the method is shown to increase with frequency. To maximize the method accuracy, the radius of the coupling duct must be as large as possible (in the limits of the earcanal entrance dimension) and any incomplete seal between the duct and the earcanal entrance must be avoided. Also, the coupling position of the duct and its temperature must be known as precisely as possible. On the contrary, the proposed method does not require the knowledge of the eardrum acoustic impedance.

This paper addresses source localization technique in time domain for broadband acoustic sources. The objective is to accurately and quickly detect the position and amplitude of noise sources in workplaces in order to propose adequate noise control options and prevent workers hearing loss or safety risk. First, the generalized cross correlation associated with a spherical microphone array is used to generate an initial noise source map. Then a linear inverse problem is defined to improve this initial map. Commonly, the linear inverse problem is solved with an l 2 -regularization. In this study, two sparsity constraints are used to solve the inverse problem, the orthogonal matching pursuit and the truncated Newton interior-point method. Synthetic data are used to highlight the performances of the technique. High resolution imaging is achieved for various acoustic sources configurations. Moreover, the amplitudes of the acoustic sources are correctly estimated. A comparison of computation times shows that the technique is compatible with quasi real-time generation of noise source maps. Finally, the technique is tested with real data.

The real attenuation of hearing protection devices (HPD) can be assessed in the field using a method based on continuous field microphone-in-real-ear (F-MIRE) measurements. The two-microphone method provides an indicator called the measured noise reduction (NR∗), defined as the difference between the measured exterior (outside the protector) and interior (under the protector) sound pressure levels (SPL). The HPD’s attenuation expressed in terms of the more common insertion loss (IL) can then be obtained from NR∗ using compensation factors. For earmuffs, NR∗ has been shown to vary of up to 20 dB depending on the angle of incidence of the sound source. Therefore, there is a need to use sound incidence dependent compensation factors to relate NR∗ and IL. To evaluate these factors and more generally to improve the continuous F-MIRE method, a finite-element (FE) model of an earmuff on an ATF (acoustic test fixture) exposed to a directional sound field has been developed and its predictions compared with lab measurements for several incidence angles. Regarding the external microphone SPL and the NR∗, in one-third of octave bands, the model correlates very well with measurements for frequencies below 1250 Hz whatever the sound incidence. Above 1250 Hz, the FE model captures the trends, as a function of the incidence angle, but the agreement generally decreases with increasing frequency. A better correlation between the FE model and the experimental data is achieved for the variation of NR∗ (ΔNR∗) as a function of the sound incidence. Actions, such as (i) accounting for the headband in the model, (ii) refining the modeling of the sound source, (iii) improving the cushion modeling and (iv) better describing the backplate/cushion coupling conditions, are suggested to improve the model accuracy. To illustrate the potential of the modeling to improve the continuous F-MIRE measurement method, the FE model is used to determine an optimal position of the external microphone and to obtain estimates of exposure levels using the left and right ear exterior microphones.

International audience; In-ear devices are used in a wide range of applications for which the device's usability and/or efficiency is strongly related to comfort aspects that are influenced by the mechanical interaction between the device and the walls of the earcanal. Although the displacement of the earcanal walls due to the insertion of the device is an important characteristic of this interaction, existing studies on this subject are very limited. This paper proposes a method to estimate this displacement in vivo using a registration technique on magnetic resonance images. The amplitude, the location and the direction of the earcanal wall displacement are computed for four types of earplugs used by one participant. These displacements give indications on how each earplug deforms the earcanal for one specific earcanal geometry and one specific earplug insertion. Although the displacement due to a specific earplug family cannot be generalized using the results of this paper, the latter help to understand where, how much, and how each studied earplug deforms the earcanal of the participant. This method is revealed as a promising tool to investigate further acoustical and physical comfort aspects of in-ear devices.

Double hearing protectors (DHPs), earplugs and earmuffs worn in combination, may be needed in high level noise environments. The DHP sound attenuation is known to be less than the sum of each single protector attenuation. This effect, referred to as the DHP effect, is still not fully understood. A recent study has shown that it can be observed on an acoustic test fixture (ATF) and characterized by the decrease of the earplug noise reduction (NR) when the earmuff is added. In this paper, a measurement methodology is proposed to (i) identify the main sound paths related to the DHP effect on an ATF and (ii) explain the latter by the relative contributions of the air-borne and structure-borne transmissions in the system. The focus is put on the NR values of the earplug alone and in the DHP. Measurement results suggest that the DHP effect is related to the energy transmitted from the earcup, through the earmuff cushion and finally into the earcanal via the sound radiation of the earplug and/or earcanal lateral walls. This flanking structure-borne path is found to dominate over the “direct” air-borne path through the hearing protectors at frequencies above 300 Hz.

The occlusion effect is commonly experienced by in-ear device wearers as an increased loudness sensation of bone-conducted low frequency sounds. A widespread theory proposed by Tonndorf and based on a simplified electro-acoustic model describes the phenomenon as the removal of the open earcanal high-pass filter effect due to a perfect or partial occlusion. However, this filter has not been clearly defined and several ambiguities remain. Revisiting the model, a second order high-pass filter effect for the volume velocity transferred between the earcanal wall and the eardrum is highlighted. This filter remains for partial occlusion but vanishes for perfect occlusion. In the latter case, the volume velocity transferred from the earcanal cavity to the middle ear through the eardrum drastically increases, which explains the predominance of the occluded outer ear pathway on the hearing by bone-conduction at low frequencies.

For people working in high noise level environments, typically above 105 dBA, double hearing protection (DHP) systems (earplugs worn in combination with earmuffs) are always recommended. However, it is very difficult to predict the DHP overall sound attenuation due to the complexity of the system. A recent experimental study has shown on human subjects and an acoustic test fixture (ATF) that the noise reduction (NR) of the earplug decreases considerably when an earmuff is worn over it but the reason is still not fully understood. In this work, specially designed experiments using an ATF are proposed in order to explain this observation. The focus is put on the NR of the single earplug and that of the earplug in the DHP system. The respective effects on the DHP attenuation of various sound transmission paths involved in the system (both air-borne and structure-borne) are analyzed by modifying the system coupling conditions or controlling the sound pressure level under the earmuff. This work will help better understand the interactions between the system components and will provide the grounds for developing a prospective numerical model to predict the sound attenuation of a DHP system.

In a noisy environment, wearing a correctly fitted earplug is the sine qua non condition to prevent noise-induced hearing loss. However, this condition is often unfulfilled due to the discomforts induced by the wearing of the earplug, among which the acoustical discomfort is influenced by the occlusion effect. Objectively, this phenomenon is quantified by a low frequency amplification of the sound pressure in the earcanal, induced by bone-conduction when the earcanal is occluded. Numerical models can go beyond the practical and ethical limits of experiments on living humans. Thus they can be an efficient and helpful tool to evaluate the occlusion effect. They also make it possible to better understand its underlying physical mechanisms associated with different factors concerning the anatomy, earplug and stimulation and ultimately how to reduce it. Thereby, a three-dimensional finite-element model of a human head is developed to compute the occlusion effect induced by earplug under a bone-conducted stimulation. Good agreement is obtained between the simulation results and the experimental data available in the literature giving confidence in the model to predict the occlusion effect. The model is exploited to investigate the individual effects of various factors (e.g., earplug and tissue properties) on the occlusion effect.

This paper compares different approaches to model the vibroacoustic behavior of earmuffs at low frequency and investigates their accuracy by comparison with objective insertion loss measurements recently carried out by Boyer et al. [(2014). Appl. Acoust. 83, 76-85]. Two models based on the finite element (FE) method where the cushion is either modeled as a spring foundation (SF) or as an equivalent solid (ES), and the well-known lumped parameters model (LPM) are investigated. Modeling results show that: (i) all modeling strategies are in good agreement with measurements, providing that the characterization of the cushion equivalent mechanical properties are performed with great care and as close as possible to in situ loading, boundary, and environmental conditions and that the frequency dependence of the mechanical properties is taken into account, (ii) the LPM is the most simple modeling strategy, but the air volume enclosed by the earmuff must be correctly estimated, which is not as straightforward as it may seem, (iii) similar results are obtained with the SF and the ES FE-models of the cushion, but the SF should be preferred to predict the earmuff acoustic response at low frequency since it requires less parameters and a less complex characterization procedure.

Several studies report that an important range of attenuation can be observed in the measurement of earplugs (EP) sound attenuation. This important range of attenuation can be attributed to several intricate factors; the most commonly cited being the earplug insertion depth, the presence of leakages, the inter-subject ear canal (EC) geometrical variations, and the dynamical properties of the human EC tissues. The purpose of this work is to investigate the effect of these individual factors on the insertion loss (IL). Firstly, a finite element model of the EC surrounded by human external tissues and occluded by two types of EPs (foam and custom molded) is developed to predict the IL. Secondly, comparisons between attenuation measurement on human subjects and IL predicted by the model are carried out to validate the model. Thirdly, the effect of the aforementioned factors is quantified using the proposed model in order to explain the variability observed in the attenuation measurement on human subjects. It is found that the presence of leakages and the EP insertion depth are mainly responsible for the variability of the predicted EPs IL at frequencies

Practical vibroacoustic systems involve passive acoustic treatments consisting of highly dissipative media such as poroelastic materials. The numerical modeling of such systems at low to mid frequencies typically relies on substructuring methodologies based on finite element models. Namely, the master subsystems (i.e., structural and acoustic domains) are described by a finite set of uncoupled modes, whereas condensation procedures are typically preferred for the acoustic treatments. However, although accurate, such methodology is computationally expensive when real life applications are considered. A potential reduction of the computational burden could be obtained by approximating the effect of the acoustic treatment on the master subsystems without introducing physical degrees of freedom. To do that, the treatment has to be assumed homogeneous, flat, and of infinite lateral extent. Under these hypotheses, simple analytical tools like the transfer matrix method can be employed. In this paper, a hybrid finite element-transfer matrix methodology is proposed. The impact of the limiting assumptions inherent within the analytical framework are assessed for the case of plate-cavity systems involving flat and homogeneous acoustic treatments. The results prove that the hybrid model can capture the qualitative behavior of the vibroacoustic system while reducing the computational effort.

The sound transmission loss (STL) of a test sample measured in sound transmission facilities is affected by the opening in which it is located. This is called the niche effect. This paper uses a modal approach to study the STL of a rectangular plate with or without an attached porous material located inside a box-shaped niche. The porous material is modeled as a limp equivalent fluid. The proposed model is validated by comparison with finite element/boundary element computations. Using a condensation of the pressure fields in the niche, the niche effect is interpreted in terms of a modification of the modal blocked pressure fields acting on the panel induced by the front cavity and by a modification of the radiation efficiency of the panel modes due to the presence of the back cavity. The modal approach is then used to investigate the impact of (1) the presence of a porous material attached to the panel on the niche effect and (2) the niche effect on the assessment of the porous material insertion loss. A simplified model for the porous material based on a transfer matrix approach is also proposed to predict the STL of the system and its validity is discussed.

Passive and active in-ear devices (IED) occluding the ear canal are commonly used to (i) protect people from high noise levels (earplugs), (ii) assist people suffering from hearing impairment (hearing aids) or (iii) help people in listening from their sound systems (earbuds). However, the usability and/or efficiency of IEDs can be greatly affected by several discomfort components (physical, acoustical and functional). The mechanical pressure exerted by the IED onto the ear canal walls is greatly suspected to affect the aforementioned comfort components. This physical characteristic is closely related to the displacement field induced by the IED insertion, which has to be known for a better understanding of perceived discomfort. Thus, this paper proposes to validate a method based on medical images to estimate the displacement field of the ear canal walls due to the insertion of an IED. The approach is validated on a human-like artificial ear with canal geometry deformed using two custom molded IEDs with controlled shapes. These geometries are obtained using computed tomography imaging and the displacement field is computed using a registration method. The errors due to the ear canal segmentation and to the registration steps are small enough to compute a relevant estimation of the expected displacement field. Results show that the amplitude of the displacement and its location into the ear canal can be evaluated with an accuracy of ± 0.2 mm and ± 0.4 mm respectively. Preliminary results on images with a degraded resolution indicate that the proposed approach used to assess the displacement field of the ear canal walls using computed tomography images could be applied on magnetic resonance images, which is a preferred method to image human subject ear canals for future investigations.

There is a considerable number of research publications on the characterization of porous media that is carried out in accordance with ISO 10534-2 (International Standards Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 2001) and/or ISO 9053 (International Standards Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 1991). According to the Web of Science(TM) (last accessed 22 September 2016) there were 339 publications in the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America alone which deal with the acoustics of porous media. However, the reproducibility of these characterization procedures is not well understood. This paper deals with the reproducibility of some standard characterization procedures for acoustic porous materials. The paper is an extension of the work published by Horoshenkov, Khan, Bécot, Jaouen, Sgard, Renault, Amirouche, Pompoli, Prodi, Bonfiglio, Pispola, Asdrubali, Hübelt, Atalla, Amédin, Lauriks, and Boeckx [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 122(1), 345-353 (2007)]. In this paper, independent laboratory measurements were performed on the same material specimens so that the naturally occurring inhomogeneity in materials was controlled. It also presented the reproducibility data for the characteristic impedance, complex wavenumber, and for some related pore structure properties. This work can be helpful to better understand the tolerances of these material characterization procedures so improvements can be developed to reduce experimental errors and improve the reproducibility between laboratories.

This paper proposes an objective measurement methodology to assess the sound transmission paths through various earmuff components (cup, cushion, back-plate, foam insert, silicone flesh) and estimate the vibroacoustic couplings between them. The measurement methodology is applied to two different commercial earmuffs. For each Hearing Protection Device (HPD), the different sound paths are assessed, by analyzing separately the vibroacoustic behavior of each HPD component. In particular, the Insertion Loss (IL) of the lateral walls of the cushion is assessed, with and without pumping motion. The effect of the coupling between the different parts is also investigated from the comparison of the separate components with the complete earmuff. As shown in past studies, results confirm that the acoustical behavior of an earmuff is governed by the pumping motion and air leaks at low frequency and by the sound path through the cup and the cavity resonances at high frequency. However, at mid frequency, new counter-intuitive results are revealed. It is found that earmuffs do not behave as their weakest element, but rather as the one which has the highest attenuation. It is also observed that the foam insert can also decrease the IL. Complementary tests using other absorbing materials show that this effect could mainly be attributed to the absorption behaviors of each material at medium frequencies.

A linear three-dimensional (3D) elasto-acoustic finite element model was used to simulate the occlusion effect following mechanical vibration at the mastoid process. The ear canal and the surrounding soft and bony tissues were reconstructed using images of a female cadaver head (Visible Human Project(®)). The geometrical model was coupled to a 3D earplug model and imported into comsol Multiphysics (COMSOL(®), Sweden). The software was used to solve for the sound pressure at the eardrum. Finite element modeling of the human external ear and of the occlusion effect has several qualities that can complement existing measuring and modeling techniques. First, geometrically complex structures such as the external ear can be reconstructed. Second, various material behavioral laws and complex loading can be accounted for. Last, 3D analyses of external ear substructures are possible allowing for the computation of a broad range of acoustic indicators. The model simulates consistent occlusion effects (e.g., insertion depth variability). Comparison with an experimental dataset, kindly provided by Stenfelt and Reinfeldt [Int. J. Audiol. 46, 595-608 (2007)], further demonstrates the model's accuracy. Power balances were used to analyze occlusion effect differences obtained for a silicone earplug and to examine the increase in sound energy when the ear canal is occluded (e.g., high-pass filter removal).

Microphone array techniques are an efficient tool to detect acoustic source positions. The delay and sum beamforming is the standard method. In the time domain, the generalized cross-correlation can be used to compute the noise source map. This technique is based on the arithmetic mean of the spatial likelihood functions. In this study, the classical arithmetic mean is replaced by the more standard generalized mean. The noise source maps provide by the arithmetic, geometric and harmonic means are compared in the case of numerical and experimental data obtained in a reverberant room. The geometric and harmonic means provide the best noise source maps with no side lobes and a better source level estimation.

Dynamic visco-elastic characterization of porous material parameters shows a revival of interest since a few years. In this article, a methodology for the assessment of the visco-elastic parameters of soft, highly damped porous materials is presented. This method uses a frequency response function of a free–free bending beam. The global method is based on an inversion procedure. It consists of fitting the experimental data to the GLM computation model. In the experimental part of this work, it is explained how to take the attachment system and sensor mass into account and how to measure it. The assessment of the visco-elastic parameters needs a discrete laminae analytic model. The GLM model is described and used for a sensitivity study in relation to the visco-elastic parameters. This study gives indications for the beam dimensions design. The results, bending modulus and loss factor in the beam's main direction for various frequencies, obtained for two polymeric foams are shown and compared to results obtained with other techniques. The originality can be found in the experimental developments but also on technical developments of parameters assessment.

The paper discusses the sound absorptive performance of a porous material with meso-perforations inserted in a rectangular waveguide using a numerical hybrid adaptive finite element-modal method. Two specific applications are investigated: (i) the improvement of porous materials noise reduction coefficient using meso-perforations (ii) the effects of lateral air gaps on the normal incidence sound absorption of mono-layer and two-layer porous materials. For the first application, a numerical design of experiments is used to optimize the sound performance of a porous material with meso-perforations with a reduced number of numerical simulation. An example in which the optimization process is carried out on the thickness and size of the perforation is presented to illustrate the relevance of the approach. For the second application, a set of twenty fibrous materials spanning a large flow resistivity range is used. Practical charts are proposed to evaluate the influence of air gaps on the average sound absorption performance of porous materials. This is helpful to both the experimenter regarding characterization of porous material based on Standing Wave Tube measurements and for the engineer to quantifying the impact of air gaps and for designing efficient absorbers.

Earplugs are a usual way to protect workers subjected to noise exposure. However, the efficiency of these hearing protection devices is often affected by induced discomforts. A factor suspected to impact both acoustical and physiological comfort attributes of earplugs is the deformation they apply on the ear canal walls. As the geometry of both open and occluded ear canal is difficult to obtain, the ear canal deformation due to earplug insertion is not trivial to evaluate. Current medical imaging techniques and image post-processing methods are promising tools to investigate this deformation. In a previous study of the authors, an approach using registration methods on medical images had been proposed to estimate the ear canal displacement field induced by earplug insertion. This approach had been validated in the case of computed tomography scans of a human-like artificial ear occluded by a controlled-shape custom molded earplug. In the present study, this approach is used to evaluate the ear canal displ...

For several years, lack of comfort has been pointed out as a major reason of earplug poor efficiency as noise control solution. The great complexity of comfort makes it difficult to predict it in the earplugs design phase. It is rather considered in an empirical way by the manufacturers using trial-and-errors approaches based on subjective assessment over a panel of subjects. Furthermore, because comfort is not quantified, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) practitioners cannot select earplugs ensuring wearer comfort. To address these issues, a major international research project funded by two OHS institutes (IRSST in Canada and INRS in France) and involving several Universities (in Canada and England) started in 2017. The main objectives are to: (1) improve the understanding of earplugs comfort as perceived by field workers with consideration of all comfort components, (2) develop laboratory tools (augmented experimental and virtual artificial heads) to measure physical design variables related to the auditory, physiological, and functional components of comfort and (3) design a battery of hybrid objective/subjective comfort indices to quantify / measure / predict the different components of comfort. The aim of this presentation will be to present the project and first results.For several years, lack of comfort has been pointed out as a major reason of earplug poor efficiency as noise control solution. The great complexity of comfort makes it difficult to predict it in the earplugs design phase. It is rather considered in an empirical way by the manufacturers using trial-and-errors approaches based on subjective assessment over a panel of subjects. Furthermore, because comfort is not quantified, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) practitioners cannot select earplugs ensuring wearer comfort. To address these issues, a major international research project funded by two OHS institutes (IRSST in Canada and INRS in France) and involving several Universities (in Canada and England) started in 2017. The main objectives are to: (1) improve the understanding of earplugs comfort as perceived by field workers with consideration of all comfort components, (2) develop laboratory tools (augmented experimental and virtual artificial heads) to measure physical design variables related to the...

There are several models and approaches for predicting the acoustic response of perforated plates and screens. Classical models are devoted to specific configurations: particular geometrical parameters including the size and shape of the perforations, excitations type, mounting of the screen (bonded vs. free), and interfacing media involved in multilayers sound packages. This paper reviews these models and presents a simple and general model that can handle easily and automatically the miscellaneous configurations in the context of the transfer matrix method. In particular, it is shown that a perforated plate or screen can be modeled as an equivalent fluid following the Johnson–Allard approach with an equivalent tortuosity. This equivalent tortuosity is shown to depend on the media interfacing with the perforated system. Experimental results depicting various practical configurations are shown to corroborate the validity of the proposed model and to evaluate its performance compared to classical ones.

The axisymmetric hypothesis of the earplug-ear canal system geometry is commonly used. The validity of this hypothesis is investigated numerically in the case of a simplified configuration where the system is embedded in a rigid baffle and for fixed boundary conditions on the earplug lateral walls. This investigation is discussed for both individual and averaged insertion loss predictions of molded silicon earplugs. The insertion losses of 15 earplug-ear canal systems with realistic geometries are calculated using three-dimensional (3D) finite element models and compared with the insertion losses provided by two-dimensional equivalent axisymmetric finite element models using 6 different geometry reconstruction methods [all the models are solved using COMSOL Multiphysics (COMSOL®, Sweden)]. These methods are then compared in order to find the most reliable ones in terms of insertion loss predictions in this simplified configuration. Two methods have emerged: The usage of a variable cross section (with the same area values as the 3D case) or the usage of a constant cross section (with the same length and volume as the 3D case).

Numerical approaches based on finite element discretizations of Biot’s poroelasticity equations provide efficient tools to solve problems where the porous material is coupled to elastic structures and finite extent acoustic cavities. Sometimes, it may be relevant to evaluate the radiation of a poroelastic material into an infinite fluid medium. Examples include (i) the evaluation of the diffuse field sound absorption coefficient of a porous material and/or the sound transmission loss of an elastic plate coupled to a porous sheet, (ii) the assessment of the acoustic radiation damping of a porous material coupled to a vibrating structure. The latter is particularly important for the correct experimental characterization of the intrinsic damping of the material’s frame. Up to now, the acoustic radiation of a porous medium into an unbounded fluid medium has usually been neglected. The classical approaches for modeling free field radiation of porous materials (i) assumes the interstitial pressure at the radiation surface to be zero or (ii) fixes the radiation impedance to an approximate value. This paper discusses the limitations of these assumptions and presents a numerical formulation for evaluating the sound radiation of baffled poroelastic media including fluid loading effects. The problem is solved using a mixed FEM-BEM approach where the fluid loading is accounted for using an admittance matrix. Both numerical examples and a transmission loss test are presented to illustrate the performance of the technique and its applications.

The concept of meso-perforations in appropriately chosen porous media can help enhance their sound absorption performance. The meso-perforated materials are also referred to as “double porosity materials” since they are made up of two interconnected networks of pores of different characteristic size. Several theoretical, numerical and experimental works have been accomplished on the subject by the authors. The purpose of this paper is to give a synthetic review of these works and establish practical design rules to develop optimized noise control solutions based on this concept. The paper presents two complementary models to deal with this kind of materials: an analytical model based on homogenization techniques and a numerical model relying on a finite element discretization of the domains. The limits of these models are discussed. The choice of the design parameters is then been investigated in order to provide practical design rules. This choice relies on a criterion which is evaluated from the knowledge of the resistivity, porosity and tortuosity of the micropous medium, and the calculation of a geometrical parameter defined from the chosen mesoscopic structure. Experimental and numerical results regarding the influence of the mesopore profile along the thickness performed in a appropriately chosen substrate microporous medium are presented. The agreement between the models and the experiments is satisfactory. Results show that significant enhancements of the absorption properties can be obtained over a selected frequency band by adjusting the mesopore profile. It is also shown that interesting absorbing properties can be obtained when coating a double porosity medium with an impervious screen.

The prediction of the acoustic performance of multi-layered structures involving porous materials now classically relies on the use of Biot's theory for the modelling of the porous medium. In particular, it is of prime importance to correctly assess the mechanical parameters of the porous skeleton “in vacuum”. However, measurements of these parameters “in vacuum” conditions comprises some problems so that they are commonly carried out in ambient conditions assuming that the response of the porous material is not influenced by its fluid phase and solely determined by the parameters of its solid phase. The purpose of this work is to investigate the conditions when a mechanically excited porous material exhibits indeed an “in vacuum” behaviour. The comparison between the air-saturated and the “in vacuum” models is carried out both in the case of impedance infinite models and taking into account finite lateral dimensions of the porous sample. It is shown that a model accounting for finite dimensions of the porous samples must be considered in order that Biot's and “in vacuum” models yield identical mechanical responses. More precisely, a “poroelastic” shape factor defined as the ratio of the volume of the porous sample to the area of its free lateral sides is introduced to quantify the mismatch between the two models. For small values of this parameter, the mechanical response of the porous material calculated using Biot's model is similar to the one predicted using the “in vacuum” model. For higher values, the responses calculated by the two models exhibit noticeable differences. The corresponding limiting value of the poroelastic shape factor is shown to depend on the flow resistivity together with the thickness of the porous sample.