Exploiting data from the NoiseCapture application for environmental noise measurements with a smartphone

2021 ◽  
Vol 263 (3) ◽  
pp. 3149-3159
Author(s):  
Judicaël Picaut ◽  
Erwan Bocher ◽  
Pierre Aumond ◽  
Gwendall Petit ◽  
Nicolas Fortin
Keyword(s):  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Smartphone Application ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Noise Mapping ◽  
Gis Tools ◽  
Noise Measurements ◽  
Participative Approach ◽  
The Subject ◽  
New Applications ◽  
Initial Objective

NoiseCapture is a smartphone application initially developed as part of a participative approach for environmental noise mapping. After more than 3 years, the database produced from all over the world contributions is considerable (more than 77k contributors, nearly 300k tracks representing about 72 million 1-second measurements, in nearly 200 countries). Beyond the initial objective, other uses of the application have emerged: individually by users for their own needs, by associations of people in charge of the fight against noise pollution, within the framework of educational activities, by researchers for the realization of their own research, by communities to address the subject of noise pollution. As these new applications emerged, the development team of NoiseCapture was led to extend the possibilities of exploitation of these data. Thus, in this paper, we present different possibilities for a user to perform his own data analysis, namely: a local export of data from the smartphone, access to raw data and pre-processed data from the NoiseCapture server, access to formatted GIS layers from OGC standard service. All these methods are enabled thanks to the open source ecosystem, such as Python libraries, R software suite and GIS tools.

Characterization of environmental noise based on noise measurements, noise mapping and interviews: A case study at a university campus in Brazil

Cities ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 317-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo Henrique Trombetta Zannin ◽  
Margret Sibylle Engel ◽  
Paulo Eduardo Kirrian Fiedler ◽  
Fernando Bunn
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Noise ◽  
University Campus ◽  
Noise Mapping ◽  
Noise Measurements

Identification, Prioritization, and Assessment of Urban Quiet Areas

2018 ◽  
pp. 150-180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aggelos Tsaligopoulos ◽  
Chris Economou ◽  
Yiannis G. Matsinos
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Urban Growth ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Urban Setting ◽  
Noise Prediction ◽  
Noise Mapping ◽  
Noise Measurements ◽  
North Aegean

Urban growth retains a bipolar dissension regarding quality of life as it is both deleterious and beneficial for urban dwellers. Environmental noise could be considered a byproduct of growth, and according to numerus studies, it should not be ignored. The small urban setting of Mytilene located in the island of Lesvos (North Aegean, Greece) was the case study of this research. By implementing a novel protocol, the potential Quiet Areas of Mytilene were highlighted. The methodology consisted of noise measurements, soundscape recordings, and strategic noise mapping using the CadnaA noise prediction software. Furthermore, several soundwalks were conducted with the scope to obtain the citizen perspective regarding Quiet Area management. The way that city inhabitants perceive their acoustic surroundings could determine the character of the landscape along with the quality of the soundscape and define the meaning of quietness, which still remains vague.

RESEARCH AND MAPPING OF LOW FREQUENCY NOISE GENERATED BY POWER PLANTS OF INDUSTRIAL ENTREPRISES

Akustika ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 103
Author(s):  
Andrey Vasilyev
Keyword(s):  
Power Plants ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Frequency Noise ◽  
Low Frequency Noise ◽  
Frequency Range ◽  
Noise Mapping ◽  
Industrial Enterprises ◽  
Noise Measurements ◽  
Urban Territory

Environmental noise level from industrial enterprises is constantly increasing, especially in low frequency range. This paper presents the results of research and mapping of low frequency noise generated by power plants of industrial enterprises. Environmental noise mapping results of urban territory of Samara region of Russia are also presented. Results of noise measurements during industrial enterprises operation (on the example of “KuibyshevAzot” company) are showing that in some measuring points there were exceeding values compared with Russian sanitary norms requirements. The most serious problem is low frequency noise impact.

Participatory Noise Mapping: Harnessing the Potential of Smartphones Through the Development of a Dedicated Citizen-Science Platform

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eoin A. King ◽  
Akin Tatoglu ◽  
Robert D. Celmer
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Mobile Apps ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Sound Level ◽  
Noise Mapping ◽  
Measurement Variability ◽  
Noise Measurements ◽  
Noise Assessment ◽  
The Impact

This paper presents results of an ongoing project which aims to develop a purpose-built platform for using smart phones as alternative to sound level meters for citizen-science based environment noise assessment. In order to manage and control environmental noise effectively, the extent of the problem must first be quantified. Across the world, strategic noise maps are used to assess the impact of environmental noise in cities. Traditionally, these maps are developed using predictive techniques, but some authors have advocated the use of noise measurements to develop more reliable and robust noise maps. If adopted correctly, smartphones have the capability to revolutionize the manner in which environmental noise assessments are performed. The development of smartphone technology, and its impact on environmental noise studies, has recently begun to receive attention in the academic literature. Recent research has assessed the capability of existing smartphone applications (apps) to be utilized as an alternative low-cost solution to traditional noise monitoring. Results show that the accuracy of current noise measurement apps varies widely relative to pre-specified reference levels. The high degree of measurement variability associated with such apps renders their robustness questionable in their current state. Further work is required to assess how smartphones with mobile apps may be used in the field and what limitations may be associated with their use. To over come the above issues, this project is developing a platform specifically for citizen science noise assessment. The platform consists of a smartphone app that acquires a sound signal and transfers the data to a server via a web based API for post processing purposes. This then returns key information to the user, as well as logging the data for use in a massive noise mapping study. The structure of the proposed platform maintains a clear separation between client (phone) and server. This approach will allow implementation of future open source client side apps for both Android and iOS operating systems.

scholarly journals Detection of Anomalous Noise Events for Real-Time Road-Traffic Noise Mapping: The Dynamap’s project case study

Noise Mapping ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesc Alías ◽  
Rosa Ma Alsina-Pagès ◽  
Ferran Orga ◽  
Joan Claudi Socoró
Keyword(s):  
Real Time ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Traffic Noise ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Road Traffic Noise ◽  
Noise Mapping

Abstract Environmental noise is increasing year after year, especially in urban and suburban areas. Besides annoyance, environmental noise also causes harmful health effects on people. The Environmental Noise Directive 2002/49/EC (END) is the main instrument of the European Union to identify and combat noise pollution, followed by the CNOSSOS-EU methodological framework. In compliance with the END legislation, the European Member States are required to publish noise maps and action plans every five years. The emergence of Wireless Acoustic Sensor Networks (WASNs) have changed the paradigm to address the END regulatory requirements, allowing the dynamic ubiquitous measurement of environmental noise pollution. Following the END, the LIFE DYNAMAP project aims to develop a WASN-based low-cost noise mapping system to monitor the acoustic impact of road infrastructures in real time. Those acoustic events unrelated to regular traffic noise should be removed from the equivalent noise level calculations to avoid biasing the noise map generation. This work describes the different approaches developed within the DYNAMAP project to implement an Anomalous Noise Event Detector on the low-cost sensors of the network, considering both synthetic and real-life acoustic data.Moreover, the paper reflects on several open challenges, discussing how to tackle them for the future deployment of WASN-based noise monitoring systems in real-life operating conditions.

SMARTPHONE APPLICATION EFFECTIVENESS ANALYSIS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL NOISE MEASUREMENTS

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Marques dos Santos ◽  
gerardo alves nogueira braga neto ◽  
Gabriel quixaba ◽  
Jeferson de Oliveira Bezerra ◽  
Gustavo da Silva Vieira de Melo
Keyword(s):  
Smartphone Application ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Effectiveness Analysis ◽  
Noise Measurements

scholarly journals Aggregate Impact of Anomalous Noise Events on the WASN-Based Computation of Road Traffic Noise Levels in Urban and Suburban Environments

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 609 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesc Alías ◽  
Ferran Orga ◽  
Rosa Ma Alsina-Pagès ◽  
Joan Claudi Socoró
Keyword(s):  
Sensor Networks ◽  
Road Traffic ◽  
Traffic Noise ◽  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Integration Time ◽  
Road Traffic Noise ◽  
Noise Levels ◽  
Noise Mapping ◽  
Acoustic Data

Environmental noise can be defined as the accumulation of noise pollution caused by sounds generated by outdoor human activities, Road Traffic Noise (RTN) being the main source in urban and suburban areas. To address the negative effects of environmental noise on public health, the European Environmental Noise Directive requires EU member states to tailor noise maps and define the corresponding action plans every five years for major agglomerations and key infrastructures. Noise maps have been hitherto created from expert-based measurements, after cleaning the recorded acoustic data of undesired acoustic events, or Anomalous Noise Events (ANEs). In recent years, Wireless Acoustic Sensor Networks (WASNs) have become an alternative. However, most of the proposals focus on measuring global noise levels without taking into account the presence of ANEs. The LIFE DYNAMAP project has developed a WASN-based dynamic noise mapping system to analyze the acoustic impact of road infrastructures in real time based solely on RTN levels. After studying the bias caused by individual ANEs on the computation of the A-weighted equivalent noise levels through an expert-based dataset obtained before installing the sensor networks, this work evaluates the aggregate impact of the ANEs on the RTN measurements in a real-operation environment. To that effect, 304 h and 20 min of labeled acoustic data collected through the two WASNs deployed in both pilot areas have been analyzed, computing the individual and aggregate impacts of ANEs for each sensor location and impact range (low, medium and high) for a 5 min integration time. The study shows the regular occurrence of ANEs when monitoring RTN levels in both acoustic environments, which are especially common in the urban area. Moreover, the results reveal that the aggregate contribution of low- and medium-impact ANEs can become as critical as the presence of high-impact individual ANEs, thus highlighting the importance of their automatic removal to obtain reliable WASN-based RTN maps in real-operation environments.

Integrating environmental noise considerations into public policy: the case of Ireland

2021 ◽  
Vol 263 (3) ◽  
pp. 3218-3222
Author(s):  
Jon Paul Faulkner ◽  
Enda Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Noise Exposure ◽  
Environmental Noise ◽  
Management Policy ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Noise Mapping ◽  
Current Application ◽  
Eu Member States ◽  
Mapping Process ◽  
Irish Case ◽  
Harmful Effects

European Commission Directive (EU) 2020/367 describes how harmful effects from environmental noise exposure are to be calculated for ischemic heart disease (IHD), high annoyance (HA), and high sleep disturbance (HSD) for road, rail, and aircraft noise under the Environmental Noise Directive's (END) strategic noise mapping process. It represents a major development in understanding the extent of exposure from transport-based environmental noise given it is a legal requirement for all EU member states from the 2022 reporting round. It also has the potential to accelerate the development of stronger noise-health policies across the EU. While this development is to be welcomed, there are a number of basic noise-health policy applications that first need to be implemented in the Irish case if the noise-health situation is be accurately assessed and if public health is to be adequately protected. In order to address this requirement the following paper presents concrete policy and practice recommendations as well as an evaluation of the current application of noise management policy in Ireland which is administered to protect the public from the harmful effects of environmental noise. This paper provides guidance on how noise-health considerations can be integrated into key relevant areas of Irish policy including healthcare, the environment, transportation, and planning.

114 Tackling Noise Pollution in Hospitals: A Pre-Feasibility Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 50 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. i12-i42
Author(s):  
N Paul ◽  
A Xyrichis
Keyword(s):  
Noise Pollution ◽  
Poor Sleep ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Patient Interviews ◽  
Feasibility Evaluation ◽  
Noise Measurements ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Sound Masking ◽  
Light Sleep

Abstract   This study aimed to better understand appropriate interventions aimed at reducing hospital ward noise and the subsequent impact this would have on inpatient experience. Service users consistently reported that noise pollution was the most detrimental factor in their recovery in hospital, principally due to its effects on sleep. Methods To aid usability and data collection the Richards- Campbell Sleep Questionnaire (RCSQ) was adapted into an electronic format with a sliding Likert scale using QuestionPro Software3. Qualitative patient interviews, the RCSQ and ward decibel measurements were recorded on Henry and Anne wards at St. Thomas’ Hospital, London. 20 patients were interviewed (12F, 8 M), with 3 being ultimately discounted due to severe cognitive impairment. Results were collated and will be presented as part of a pre-feasibility evaluation of the tools to measure patient sleep and experience of ward noise. Results: The mean of the responses from the 17 patients interviewed were calculated and graphically displayed. Of interest, 87.5% found the questionnaire straightforward to understand, but only 18.75% found it easy to complete (due to technological unfamiliarity). Conclusion and discussion Patients reported a consistently reported a less than optimal night’s sleep on the ward, with light sleep and increased time to fall asleep being key factors. Although visits were restricted to the “quietest” times on the ward, noise measurements consistently exceeded WHO recommendations of 40 dB. Subsequently excessive night-time noise created by other patients as well as staff was cited as the principal causes of poor sleep, with ward lighting being another cause. Results from this study have provided the justification for sound-masking technology to be trialled on inpatient wards, with the view of decreasing unpleasant ward noise and improving patient rest and recovery.

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