People increase their vocal output in noisy environments. This is known as the Lombard effect. The aim of the present study was to measure the effect as a function of the absorption coefficient. The noise source was generated by using other talkers in the room. A-weighted sound levels were measured in a test room. The number of talkers varied from one to four and the absorption coefficients from 0.12 to 0.64. A model was introduced based on the logarithmic sum of the level found in an anechoic room plus the increasing portion of noise levels up to . Results show that the model fits the measurements when a maximum slope of per increase in background level is used. Hence Lombard slopes vary from at background level to at . In addition, both measurements and the model predict a decrease of per doubling of absorbing area in a room when the number of talkers is constant. Sound pressure levels increase for a doubling of talkers from for low densities to for dense crowds. Finally, there was correspondence between the model estimation and previous measurements reported in the literature.
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February 2008
February 01 2008
Effect of room absorption on human vocal output in multitalker situations
Lau Nijs;
Lau Nijs
a)
Faculty of Architecture,
Delft University of Technology
, Berlageweg 1, 2628 CR Delft, The Netherlands
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Konca Saher;
Konca Saher
b)
Faculty of Architecture,
Delft University of Technology
, Berlageweg 1, 2628 CR Delft, The Netherlands
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Daniël den Ouden
Daniël den Ouden
c)
Faculty of Architecture,
Delft University of Technology
, Berlageweg 1, 2628 CR Delft, The Netherlands
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a)
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Electronic mail: [email protected].
b)
Electronic mail: [email protected].
c)
Electronic mail: [email protected].
J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 123, 803–813 (2008)
Article history
Received:
December 05 2006
Accepted:
November 06 2007
Citation
Lau Nijs, Konca Saher, Daniël den Ouden; Effect of room absorption on human vocal output in multitalker situations. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 1 February 2008; 123 (2): 803–813. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.2821410
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