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1

Study on Chinese Speech Intelligibility Under Different Low-Frequency Characteristics of Reverberation Time Using a Hybrid Method

Huang Wuqiong, Peng Jianxin, Xie Tinghui

Archives of Acoustics

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2023

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Vol. 48, No. 2

151--157

EN

Reverberation time (RT) is an important indicator of room acoustics, however, most studies focus on the mid-high frequency RT, and less on the low-frequency RT. In this paper, a hybrid approach based on geometric and wave methods was proposed to build a more accurate and wide frequency-band room acoustic impulse response. This hybrid method utilized the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method modeling at low frequencies and the Odeon simulation at mid-high frequencies, which was investigated in a university classroom. The influence of the low-frequency RT on speech intelligibility was explored. For the low-frequency part, different impedance boundary conditions were employed and the effectiveness of the hybrid method has also been verified. From the results of objective acoustical parameters and subjective listening experiments, the smaller the low-frequency RT was, the higher the Chinese speech intelligibility score was. The syllables, consonants, vowels, and the syllable order also had significant effects on the intelligibility score.

2

Relationship Between Chinese Speech Intelligibility of Elderly and Speech Transmission Index

Peng Jianxin, Zeng Jiazhong, Zhao Yuezhe

Archives of Acoustics

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2021

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Vol. 46, No. 2

229--235

EN

In this paper, the relationship between Chinese speech intelligibility (CSI) scores of the elderly aged 60-69 and over 70 years old, and speech transmission index (STI) were investigated through the auralization method under different reverberation time and background noise levels (BNL, 40 dBA and 55 dBA). The results show that the CSI scores of the elderly are significantly worse than those of young adults. For the elderly over 70, the CSI scores become much lower than those of young adults. To be able to achieve the same CSI, the elderly, especially those over 70, need much higher STI and greater SNR than the young. The elderly aged 60-69 and over 70 need to improve their STI by 0.419 and 0.058 respectively under BNL 40 dBA, as well as 0.282 and 0.072 respectively under BNL 55 dBA, so as to obtain the same CSI scores as the young adults.

3

Mosque as a Bilingual Space – an Investigation on Speech Intelligibility in Mosque Acoustics Using Simulation Techniques

Alic Elma, Ozcevik Bilen Asli

Archives of Acoustics

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2021

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Vol. 46, No. 3

443--457

EN

Mosques are Islamic places of worship where speech and music rituals are performed. Since two different languages are spoken there, mosques are described as bilingual spaces. Among studies on the complex acoustic structure of mosques there are only few studies on speech intelligibility and none on the bilingual characteristics of the mosque. Therefore, a comprehensive study has been carried out to evaluate the acoustic comfort of the contemporary Turkish mosques (CTM) over speech intelligibility of Turkish and Arabic languages. In the study the CTM model providing optimum acoustic conditions recommended in the literature is examined on speech intelligibility by applying acoustic simulation and auralisation techniques, as well as word recognition tests. As a result, the acoustic condition in the model is found insufficient in terms of speech intelligibility of both languages. Also, with the decrease of Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), the Turkish intelligibility ratio is observed to decrease at least two times faster than the Arabic ones. This study is viewed as an outline for researchers to further study mosque acoustics in terms of speech intelligibility, and thus support the standardisation process of the acoustic comfort criteria for the mosques.

4

The Influence of a Single Therapeutic Dose of Methadone on Selected Auditory Functions in Patients Addicted to Opioids and Undergoing Substitution Therapy – a Preliminary Study

Tarnowska E., Wicher A., Sęk A., Gorzelańczyk E. J.

Archives of Acoustics

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2018

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Vol. 43, No. 1

137--146

EN

The main purpose of this research was to determine the influence of a therapeutic dose of an opioid drug (methadone) on selected auditory functions in patients addicted to opioids (recognition ICD-10; F11) and undergoing substitution therapy. Various hearing tests were used in this research – pure tone audiometry, impedance audiometry, otoacoustic emission measurement, and a speech in noise test – in two sessions, before and after methadone intake. It was found that methadone causes an improvement in speech intelligibility when speech is presented in speech-like noise, and slightly decreases hearing thresholds [dB HL]. Methadone consumption has no significant impact on distortion product otoacoustic emissions levels (DPOAE). In summary, a prescribed methadone dose does not worsen the hearing of opioid-dependent subjects.

5

Speech Intelligibility Test for Polish Language – Relation to the Acoustic Properties of Classrooms and Comparison to Other Languages

Radosz J.

Archives of Acoustics

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2018

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Vol. 43, No. 1

129--135

EN

Numerous studies have shown that teachers often speak louder in classrooms because of the acoustic properties of the spaces. To improve the acoustics in classrooms, it is necessary to develop relevant acoustic criteria. Existing evaluation scales for parameters of room acoustics have been developed on the basis of studies of adults for a variety of languages (e.g. Dutch and English). One of the issues still not fully recognized is the effect of the respondents’ language and age on the results of speech intelligibility tests. The aim of the study was to recognize the possibility of applying some international guidelines for room acoustics developed on the basis of adult studies to classrooms in Polish schools. This paper presents a study of the speech intelligibility of Polish-speaking children (10–13 years old) in conjunction with parameters of room acoustics. It also compares studies of speech intelligibility for other languages. The study confirmed a relationship between the results of speech intelligibility tests and speech transmission index STI for classrooms with varied acoustics. It also showed that the results of Polish word test are similar to results of English tests (Anderson, Kalb, 1987; Jacob et al., 1990).

6

Logatome and Sentence Recognition Related to Acoustic Parameters of Enclosures

Kociński J., Ozimek E.

Archives of Acoustics

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2017

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Vol. 42, No. 3

385--394

EN

The paper deals with relationship between speech recognition and objective parameters of enclosures. Six enclosures were chosen: a church, an assembly hall of a music school, two courtrooms of different volumes, a typical auditorium and a university concert hall. Dirac 4.1 software was used to record impulse responses (IRs) in the chosen measurement points of each enclosure. On this base, the following objective parameters of the enclosure were determined: Reverberation Time (RT), Early Decay Time (EDT), Weighted Clarity (C50) and Speech Transmission Index (STI). A convolution of the IRs with logatome tests and the Polish Sentence Test (PST) was made. Logatome recognition and speech reception threshold (SRT – i.e., SNR yielding 50% speech recognition) were evaluated and their dependence on the objective parameters were determined. Generally a linear relationship between logatome or SRT and RT or EDT was found. However, speech recognition was nonlinearly related (according to psychometric function) to STI values. The most sensitive range of the logatome and sentence recognition relative to STI changes corresponded to the middle range of STI values. Below and above this range, logatome and sentence recognition were much less dependent of STI changes.

7

Comparison of Two Types of Combined Measures, STI and U50, for Predicting Speech Intelligibility in Classrooms

Choi Y.-J.

Archives of Acoustics

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2017

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Vol. 42, No. 3

527--532

EN

The present study reports on the speech intelligibility as measured by speech transmission index (STI) and useful-to-detrimental sound ratios (U50) in university classrooms. Acoustic measurements were made in 12 quietly occupied university classrooms. The measured impulse responses of the classrooms were used to determine the modulation transfer function, m(F), for the STI calculation according to IEC 60268-16. U50 values were determined from both signal-to-noise ratios (SNR) and C50 values. The mean STI and frequency-weighted U50 values for the 12 occupied classrooms were strongly linearly related. The results showed that classrooms with U50 values of about +0.5 dB correspond to STI values of 0.60, indicating ‘good’ acoustical conditions for speech intelligibility. The results illustrate that the U50 measure can be a more practically useful means of assessing and understanding room acoustics conditions for real speech communication in active classrooms.

8

An Experimental Study of Acoustic Comfort in Open Space Banks Based on Speech Intelligibility and Noise Annoyance Measures

Golmohammadi R., Aliabadi M., Nezami T.

Archives of Acoustics

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2017

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Vol. 42, No. 2

333--347

EN

Tasks requiring intensive concentration are more vulnerable to noise than routine tasks. Due to the high mental workload of bank employees, this study aimed to evaluate acoustic comfort in open-space banks based on speech intelligibility and noise annoyance metrics. Acoustic metrics including preferred noise criterion (PNC), speech transmission index (STI), and signal to noise ratio (SNR) were measured in seventeen banks (located in Hamadan, a western province of Iran). For subjective noise annoyance assessments, 100-point noise annoyance scales were completed by bank employees during activities. Based on STI (0.56±0.09) and SNR (20.5±8.2 dB) values, it was found that speech intelligibilities in the workstations of banks were higher than the satisfactory level. However, PNC values in bank spaces were 48.2±5.5 dB, which is higher than the recommended limit value for public spaces. In this regard, 95% of the employees are annoyed by background noise levels. The results show irrelevant speech is the main source of subjective noise annoyance among employees. Loss of concentration is the main consequence of background noise levels for employees. The results confirmed that acoustic properties of bank spaces provide enough speech intelligibility, while staff’s noise annoyance is not acceptable. It can be concluded that due to proximity of workstations in open-space banks, access to very short distraction distance is necessary. Therefore, increasing speech privacy can be prioritised to speech intelligibility. It is recommended that current desk screens are redesigned in order to reduce irrelevant speech between nearby workstations. Staff’s training about acoustic comfort can also manage irrelevant speech characteristics during work time.

9

Praktyczne aspekty stosowania PN-B-02151-4:2015 w projektowaniu pomieszczeń do komunikacji słownej

Kłosak A. K.

Materiały Budowlane

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2016

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nr 8

37--40

PL

Artykuł omawia główne wymagania normy PN-B-02151-4:2015 w kontekście projektowania pomieszczeń do komunikacji słownej. Opisano zależności pomiędzy kubaturą pomieszczenia, czasem pogłosu, poziomem tła akustycznego i wartością wskaźnika transmisji mowy STI. W artykule opisano wyniki pomiarów w dwóch krakowskich klasach szkolnych.

EN

This paper discusses main requirements of PN-B-02151-4:2015 standard in relation to designing of rooms for speech. Main relations between room volume, reverberation time, background noise level and speech transmission index STI were described. Examples of measurements from two Cracow primary schools were also included.

10

Akustyka wnętrz budynków oświatowych

Jarosz M.

Izolacje

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2016

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R. 21, nr 11-12

32--36

PL

W artykule przedstawiono w zarysie główne problemy związane z akustyką wnętrz budynków oświatowych: negatywny wpływ hałasu i nadmiernej pogłosowości pomieszczeń na użytkowników tych pomieszczeń, wymagania polskiej normy oraz wskazówki dotyczące możliwych rozwiązań technicznych.

EN

The article outlines the key issues related to sound properties inside school buildings: the negative effect that noise and excessive reverberation has on the users of these premises, the requirements of the Polish Standards, and indications of available engineering solutions.

11

Akustyka architektoniczna – warunki pogłosowe i zrozumiałość mowy

Dulak L., Nowoświat A.

Izolacje

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2016

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R. 21, nr 3

18--23

PL

W artykule omówiono zagadnienia związane z takimi pojęciami akustycznymi, jak czas pogłosu T, chłonność akustyczna i wskaźnik transmisji mowy STI. Omówiono procedury wyznaczania czasu pogłosu na podstawie normy PN-EN 12354-6:2005 oraz definicję wskaźnika transmisji mowy, który jest jednym z wymagań podczas projektowania pomieszczeń wyszczególnionych w normie PN-B¬ 02151-4:2015-06.

EN

The article discusses the issues related to such acoustics concept as reverberation time T, sound absorption index, and speech transmission index STI. The paper presents procedures for determining reverberation time on the basis of PN-EN 12354¬ 6:2005, as well as a definition of the speech transmission index, which is one of the requirements applicable to designing such premises/spaces as specified in PN-B-02151-4:2015-06.

12

Speech Recognition in an Enclosure with a Long Reverberation Time

Kociński J., Ozimek E.

Archives of Acoustics

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2016

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Vol. 41, No. 2

255--264

EN

The aim of this work was to measure subjective speech intelligibility in an enclosure with a long reverberation time and comparison of these results with objective parameters. Impulse Responses (IRs) were first determined with a dummy head in different measurement points of the enclosure. The following objective parameters were calculated with Dirac 4.1 software: Reverberation Time (RT), Early Decay Time (EDT), weighted Clarity (C50) and Speech Transmission Index (STI). For the chosen measurement points, a convolution of the IRs with the Polish Sentence Test (PST) and logatome tests was made. PST was presented at a background of a babble noise and speech reception threshold – SRT (i.e. SNR yielding 50% speech intelligibility) for those points were evaluated. A relationship of the sentence and logatome recognition vs. STI was determined. It was found that the final SRT data are well correlated with speech transmission index (STI), and can be expressed by a psychometric function. The difference between SRT determined in condition without reverberation and in reverberation conditions appeared to be a good measure of the effect of reverberation on speech intelligibility in a room. In addition, speech intelligibility, with and without use of the sound amplification system installed in the enclosure, was compared.

13

Discriminant analysis of voice commands in a car cabin

Mięsikowska M.

Przegląd Elektrotechniczny

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2015

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R. 91, nr 10

173-175

EN

Automatic speech recognition systems are used in vehicles. With this application it is possible to control the navigation system, air conditioning system, media player, and make phone calls by using voice commands. The effectiveness of speech recognition systems depends largely on the acoustic conditions in the cabin of the vehicle. Recognition accuracy determines the ability to extend the functionality of such systems beyond the basic functions listed above. The article shows the preliminary results of research on speech recognition and evaluation of speech intelligibility in the vehicle cabin. The purpose of this article is to present the influence of the background noise levels in a car cabin on speech intelligibility, and to investigate the discriminant analysis as a robust classifier for the speech recognition process.

PL

Automatyczne systemy rozpoznawania mowy są stosowane w pojazdach. Dzięki tej aplikacji możliwe jest sterowanie systemem nawigacji, klimatyzacją, odtwarzaczem multimedialnym i wykonywanie połączeń telefonicznych za pomocą poleceń głosowych. Skuteczność systemów rozpoznawania mowy zależy w dużej mierze od warunków akustycznych w kabinie pojazdu. Dokładność rozpoznawania określa zdolność do rozszerzenia funkcjonalności takich systemów poza podstawowe funkcje wymienione powyżej. W pracy przedstawiono wstępne wyniki badań nad rozpoznawaniem mowy i oceną zrozumiałości mowy w kabinie pojazdu. Celem pracy było przedstawienie wpływu poziomu tła w kabinie samochodu na zrozumiałość mowy i zbadanie analizy dyskryminacyjnej jako klasyfikatora w procesie rozpoznawania mowy.

14

The Influence of the Semantic Material on the Assessment of Speech Reception Threshold

Krenz M., Wicher A., Sęk A.

Archives of Acoustics

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2015

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Vol. 40, No. 1

41--50

EN

To determine speech intelligibility using the test suggested by Ozimek et al. (2009), the subject composed sentences with the words presented on a computer screen. However, the number and the type of these words were chosen arbitrarily. The subject was always presented with 18, similarly sounding words. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine whether the number and the type of alternative words used by Ozimek et al. (2009), had a significant influence on the speech intelligibility. The aim was also to determine an optimal number of alternative words: i.e., the number that did not affect the speech reception threshold (SRT) and not unduly lengthened the duration of the test. The study conducted using a group of 10 subjects with normal hearing showed that an increase in the number of words to choose from 12 to 30 increased the speech intelligibility by about 0.3 dB/6 words. The use of paronyms as alternative words as opposed to random words, leads to an increase in the speech intelligibility by about 0.6 dB, which is equivalent to a decrease in intelligibility by 15 percentage points. Enlarging the number of words to choose from, and switching alternative words to paronyms, led to an increase in response time from approximately 11 to 16 s. It seems that the use of paronyms as alternative words as well as using 12 or 18 words to choose from is the best choice when using the Polish Sentence Test (PST).

15

Speech Intelligibility in Rooms with and without an Induction Loop for Hearing Aid Users

Kociński J., Ozimek E.

Archives of Acoustics

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2015

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Vol. 40, No. 1

51--58

EN

The paper presents the results of sentence and logatome speech intelligibility measured in rooms with induction loop for hearing aid users. Two rooms with different acoustic parameters were chosen. Twenty two subjects with mild, moderate and severe hearing impairment using hearing aids took part in the experiment. The intelligibility tests composed of sentences or logatomes were presented to the subjects at fixed measurement points of an enclosure. It was shown that a sentence test is more useful tool for speech intelligibility measurements in a room than logatome test. It was also shown that induction loop is very efficient system at improving speech intelligibility. Additionally, the questionnaire data showed that induction loop, apart from improving speech intelligibility, increased a subject’s general satisfaction with speech perception.

16

Automatic recognition of voice commands in a car cabin

Mięsikowska M., Ruiter de E.

Pomiary Automatyka Kontrola

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2014

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R. 60, nr 8

652--654

EN

Automatic speech recognition systems are applied in vehicles. It is possible to control a navigation system, an air conditioning system, a media player, and make phone calls using voice commands. The effectiveness of speech recognition systems depends largely on the acoustic conditions in the cabin of a vehicle. In contrast, the recognition accuracy, determines the ability to extend the functionality of the application of speech recognition systems, not only to the basic functions listed above, but also to control the systems that affect the movement of the vehicle. The work shows the preliminary results of research on speech recognition and evaluation of speech intelligibility in the cabin of the vehicle in the presence of noise barriers. These results may be helpful in assessing the speech intelligibility and the results of automatic speech recognition systems in the cabin of the vehicle.

PL

Systemy automatycznego rozpoznawania mowy są aplikowane w pojazdach. Za pomocą komend głosowych możemy sterować nawigacją, systemem klimatyzacji, odtwarzaczem multimediów, oraz wykonywać połączenia telefoniczne. Skuteczność systemów rozpoznawania mowy zależna jest w dużej mierze od warunków akustycznych panujących w kabinie pojazdu. Natomiast dokładność rozpoznawania, warunkuje możliwość rozszerzenia funkcjonalności stosowania systemów rozpoznawania mowy nie tylko do podstawowych funkcji wymienionych wyżej, ale także do sterowania układami mającymi wpływ na poruszanie się pojazdu. Praca pokazuje wstępne wyniki badań w zakresie rozpoznawania mowy oraz oceny zrozumiałości mowy w kabinie pojazdu w obecności ekranów akustycznych. Wyniki badań mogą okazać się pomocne w ocenie zrozumiałości mowy i rezultatów automatycznego rozpoznawania mowy w kabinie pojazdu.

17

Wpływ zastosowania adaptacji akustycznej na wskaźnik transmisji mowy i czas pogłosu pomieszczenia

Mikulski W.

Materiały Budowlane

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2014

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nr 8

25--28

18

Effects of Speech Intensity on the Callsign Acquisition Test (CAT) and Modified Rhyme Test (MRT) Presented in Noise

Blue-Terry M., McBride M., Letowski T.

Archives of Acoustics

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2012

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Vol. 37, No. 2

199-203

EN

This study sought to evaluate the effect of speech intensity on performance of the Callsign Acquisition Test (CAT) and Modified Rhyme Test (MRT) presented in noise. Fourteen normally hearing listeners performed both tests in 65 dB A white background noise. Speech intensity varied while background noise remained constant to form speech-to-noise ratios (SNRs) of -18, -15, -12, -9, and -6 dB. Results showed that CAT recognition scores were significantly higher than MRT scores at the same SNRs; how- ever, the scores from both tests were highly correlated and their relationship for the SNRs tested can be expressed by a simple linear function. The concept of CAT can be easily ported to other languages for testing speech communication under adverse listening conditions

19

German Criteria for Selection of Hearing Protectors in the Interest of Good Signal Audibility

Liedtke M.

International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics

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2009

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Vol. 15, No. 2

163--174

EN

The German transport and personal protective equipment (PPE) technical committees of the German Social Accident Insurance have laid down criteria, which have since become established, for hearing protectors to be used in railway systems and road traffic in Germany: only hearing protectors which do not significantly impair the audibility of auditory warning signals may be used. In addition, the Institute for Occupational Safety and Health of the German Social Accident Insurance (BGIA) has proposed a simple criterion for the selection of hearing protectors for workplaces outside railway systems and road traffic which perform well with regard to signal audibility (general), speech intelligibility, and perception of informative operating sound (AIP). This criterion is based upon the research carried out in the field of signal audibility in railway systems and road traffic and upon an additional study. It has been established by the German PPE technical committee and is presented here.

20

Modelowanie i pomiary nagłośnienia audytorium

Lasota H., Mazurek R.

Pomiary Automatyka Kontrola

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2008

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R. 54, nr 3

148-152

PL

Uwaga projektantów systemów nagłośnieniowych zogniskowana jest na tzw. akustyce pomieszczenia, w którym realizowany jest przekaz słowny. Zjawiska pogłosowe związane z geometrią sali audytoryjnej, wynikające z wielokrotnych odbić fali dźwiękowej uznawane są za dominujące. Artykuł podejmuje niedoceniany problem wpływu liczby i rozmieszczenia głośników w sali na jakość przekazu. Superpozycji sygnałów dochodzących do słuchacza z wielu źródeł towarzyszy zjawisko interferencji, które prowadzi do istotnej modyfikacji odbieranych sygnałów. Zniekształcenia wprowadzane przez system nagłaśniający zbadano przyjmując model systemowo-liniowy, w którym właściwości transmisyjne systemów komunikacji są określane funkcjami odpowiedzi impulsowych i funkcjami przenoszenia. Zaprezentowano wyniki symulacji i pomiarów, zwracając uwagę na wpływ, jaki zwielokrotnianie źródeł dźwięku ma na formanty - parametry fonemów istotne dla zrozumiałości mowy.

EN

Public address systems are designed with attention focused on acoustic features of the auditory hall. Reverberation phenomena related to the hall geometry, coming from multiple reflections of the sound wave are taken for dominating ones. The paper undertakes the underestimated problem of the influence of the number and distribution of loudspeakers on the communication quality. Linear superposition of signals reaching the listener from numerous sources is accompanied by interference effects that lead to deep modification of received signals. Deformations introduced by public address system has been analyzed with the use of linear systems model in which transmission features of communication systems are characterized by impulse response functions and transfer functions. Some results of simulation and measurements has been presented, showing the influence of the use of multiple sound sources on formants - phoneme parameters important for speech intelligibility.