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Open AccessArticle
Experimental Study of the Influence of Occupants on Speech Intelligibility in an Automotive Cabin
by
Linda Liang
Linda Liang
Linda Liang is an Assistant Professor at College of Civil Engineering and Architecture in Guangxi In [...]
Linda Liang is an Assistant Professor at College of Civil Engineering and Architecture in Guangxi University, Nanning, China. In 2017, he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics at China University of Petroleum (East China). In 2022, he received a Doctorate in Engineering in Building Technology Science at South China University of Technology. His research interests include small-room acoustics, automotive acoustics, numerical simulation, speech intelligibility, psychoacoustics, and architectural acoustics.
1,*,
Miao Ren
Miao Ren
Miao Ren is a master student at the College of Civil Engineering and Architecture in Guangxi China. [...]
Miao Ren is a master student at the College of Civil Engineering and Architecture in Guangxi University, Nanning, China. In 2021, he received a Bachelor of Architecture from Yantai University. His research interests include speech intelligibility, classroom acoustics, small-room acoustics, and automotive acoustics.
1,
Linghui Liao
Linghui Liao 1,
Ye Zhao
Ye Zhao 1,
Wei Xiong
Wei Xiong 1,* and
Liuying Ou
Liuying Ou 2
1
College of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China
2
Headmaster’s Office, Guangxi Vocational University of Agriculture, Nanning 530004, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(17), 7942; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14177942 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 25 July 2024
/
Revised: 26 August 2024
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Accepted: 4 September 2024
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Published: 5 September 2024
Abstract
Adding occupants to an enclosed space often leads to perceptible changes in the sound field and, therefore, speech intelligibility; however, this issue has not yet been examined in automotive cabins. This study investigated the effect of occupants in an automotive cabin on SI. Binaural room impulse responses (BRIRs) were measured in an automotive cabin with an artificial mouth and dummy head under different speaker–listener position configurations and occupancy modes. Based on the measured BRIRs, the speech transmission index (STI) was determined, and subjective speech–reception thresholds (SRTs) in Mandarin Chinese were assessed. The results indicate that speech intelligibility mostly decreased slightly after adding additional occupants. In most cases, the occupants did not significantly affect speech intelligibility, with STI variations of no more than the just-noticeable difference and SRT variation within 1 dB. When the listener was in the back-right seat, the effect of the occupants on speech intelligibility could not be ignored, with STI variations of up to 0.07 and an SRT variation of 2 dB under different occupancy modes. In addition, the influence of front-row passengers on the speech intelligibility of rear-row listeners was extremely small, and vice versa. Furthermore, altering the distribution of occupants had an effect comparable to changing the number of occupants.
Share and Cite
MDPI and ACS Style
Liang, L.; Ren, M.; Liao, L.; Zhao, Y.; Xiong, W.; Ou, L.
Experimental Study of the Influence of Occupants on Speech Intelligibility in an Automotive Cabin. Appl. Sci. 2024, 14, 7942.
https://doi.org/10.3390/app14177942
AMA Style
Liang L, Ren M, Liao L, Zhao Y, Xiong W, Ou L.
Experimental Study of the Influence of Occupants on Speech Intelligibility in an Automotive Cabin. Applied Sciences. 2024; 14(17):7942.
https://doi.org/10.3390/app14177942
Chicago/Turabian Style
Liang, Linda, Miao Ren, Linghui Liao, Ye Zhao, Wei Xiong, and Liuying Ou.
2024. "Experimental Study of the Influence of Occupants on Speech Intelligibility in an Automotive Cabin" Applied Sciences 14, no. 17: 7942.
https://doi.org/10.3390/app14177942
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