August Schick

A cross-cultural study of the factors of sound quality of environmental noise

The sound quality of various environmental noises was judged using semantic differential in Japan, Germany, the U.S.A., and China. The sounds used were aircraft noise, train noise, road traffic noise, speech, music, and construction noise. As the result of factor analysis, three factors were extracted in Japan and Germany. They were interpreted as ‘‘powerful,’’ ‘‘pleasant,’’ and ‘‘metallic’’ factors. In the U.S., and China, ‘‘powerful’’ and ‘‘metallic’’ factors were not differentiated. The impression of ‘‘powerful’’ factors were found to show high correlation with LAeq and loudness level based on ISO 532B. There seemed some difference in connotative meanings of the terms ‘‘loud,’’ ‘‘noisy,’’ and ‘‘annoying’’ among the four countries. There was little difference in the impression of high‐level aircraft noise, train noise, and road traffic noise among the four countries. They were perceived as negative impression such as ‘‘annoying,’’ ‘‘ugly,’’ ‘‘unpleasant,’’ etc. The validity of other psychophysical measu...

Effects of helicopter and aircraft interior noise and vibration on passengers’ comfort sensation and subjective well‐being

Apparently passengers’ sensation of comfort and subjective well‐being are key concepts in the research on user acceptance of helicopter and aircraft systems. The design and development of advanced air transportation technologies require a fundamental, theory‐based understanding of these concepts. From the passengers point of view, helicopter and aircraft interior noise and vibration are primary physical factors underlying the perception of comfort and well‐being. In various judgmental contexts the influence of exposure to combined interior noise and vibration in helicopters and aircrafts will be analyzed by means of combined psychoacoustical, socioacoustical, and psychological research methods: Field experiments in a flight simulator and during real flight situations as well as laboratory experiments using a sound and vibration reproduction system will be carried out in order to examine the interactive effects of noise and vibration. The aim is to develop a passenger comfort or well‐being index for helico...

Assessment of rough sounds by Japanese listeners using a combined psychoacoustical and socioacoustical approach

Sufficiently fast periodic amplitude or frequency variations of sounds may lead to roughness sensations with a negative effect on the perceived acoustic quality. That is a reason why roughness investigations gain much attention in sound quality research. Roughnesses of modulated synthesized sounds and technical noises are assessed by Japanese listeners in a classroom and in a laboratory experiment with a combined method of scaling and intermittent thinking aloud (ITA). Seventy‐five short noises are presented in three consecutive blocks of 25 each, with long pauses between the blocks. The test subjects are asked to categorically assess the roughness of the sounds presented after they have been introduced to the concept of roughness by examples of typical rough sounds. After 25 noises are presented, the subjects are asked to write down what is going through their minds at that moment (ITA). At the end of the noise presentations the subjects answer an additional questionnaire concerning the sounds and the ex...

Cross‐cultural study on noise problems in apartment houses in Japan, West Germany, the U.S. A., and China

Neighborhood noise has become a serious problem in many countries, and it is difficult to regulate it by physical means alone. A cross‐cultural survey was conducted in four countries, Japan, Germany, the United States, and China on the residents of apartment houses in order to examine the cultural differences involved. Interesting differences were found in preferred countermeasures, highly annoying sounds, attitudes against noise, expectations for laws, etc. The use of loudspeakers in public places was accepted in the four countries when they were used for conveying necessary information. The results suggest that it is important to take cultural or social backgrounds into consideration in order to find suitable countermeasures.