Relating human productivity and annoyance to indoor noise criteria systems

TLDR: To support the use of any individual criterion, subjective testing was performed under a range of background noise situations and statistically related to the various noise criteria predictors listed above.

Abstract: The goal of this research is to determine a noise criteria system which best relates the effects of background noise to human productivity and annoyance. A number of indoor noise criteria systems are currently used to rate the background noise in built environments, including noise criteria (NC), balanced noise criteria (NCB), room criteria (RC), room criteria Mark II (RC‐Mark II), and others. Many questions still remain about the accuracy of these predictors in assessing human response to background noise under the variety of ambient noise situations encountered. To support the use of any individual criterion, subjective testing was performed under a range of background noise situations and statistically related to the various noise criteria predictors listed above. Subjects completed an annoyance survey and performed typing and proofreading tasks in an acoustically controlled environment under 12 simulated background noise settings. These settings varied across three sound levels and four spectral qualities. Subjective testing methodology and results are presented. [Work supported by INCE and ASHRAE.]