FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute

Report No: DOT/FAA/AM-71/01

Title and Subtitle: Noise Audiometry

Report Date: January 1971

Authors: Tobias JV

Abstract: The displacement of a threshold from its measured-in-the-quiet value to the value it takes in the presence of another sound is masking. Measurement of that displacement is masking audiometry. And the measurement of displacements at a large number of frequencies produces masking patterns.

This paper concerns itself with a procedure that produces masking patterns with good precision, sensitivity, and rapidity without the problems of tonal interference and beats that normally interfere with the determination of masking patterns. Several applications of the techniques are suggested, including one for determining the auditory effects produced by aircraft noises, and one for testing hearing protectors.

Key Words: Audiometry, Auditory Acuity, Hearing, Instrumentation Masking, Noise, Otorhinolaryngology

No. of Pages: 8