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The present work analyses the accuracy of short-term noise monitoring strategies for estimating day equivalent sound levels (Lday or LAeq,6 am–10 pm) in Delhi city, India. The ambient noise monitoring data collected from 26 real-time noise monitoring stations, installed by Delhi Pollution Control Committee at distinct locations in Delhi city was utilized for the study. It was observed that average of randomly selected 1-h equivalent noise levels monitored in three sampling intervals in a day—06 am to 12 pm; 12 pm to 4 pm; and 4 pm to 10 pm, estimated Lday with an accuracy of ± 3.5 dBA with 95% probability. A dditionally, a stratified temporal sampling strategy for monitoring environment noise levels to estimate the day equivalent level for different zones was proposed with three stratified temporal intervals—9 am to 11 am; 2 pm to 3 pm; and 5 pm to 8 pm for commercial and industrial zones, and 9 am to 11 am; 12 pm to 2 pm; and 5 pm to 8 pm for residential and silence zones. It was observed that the day equivalent noise level can be estimated with an accuracy of ± 2.0 dBA for all the four zones with 95% probability if the noise levels are monitored for 1 h in each of three stratified temporal intervals. The present study may be helpful in conducting noise monitoring and mapping for a larger part of metropolitan cities of India, as continuous long-term (16-h) noise monitoring can be a quite cumbersome, time-consuming, and expensive process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Noise pollution in the mining industry has become a serious concern in recent years and has aroused extensive health complaints for the mine workers. Despite the increasing knowledge of the association between noise exposure and health effects, only a few studies have investigated the adverse health effects due to noise pollution in the mining industry. The present study aims to determine the interrelationship of mining noise (MN), demographic characteristics (DC), noise sensitivity and noise annoyance (NA) with subjective health complaints (SHC). A PLS-SEM approach has been used to assess the direct and indirect relationship between the influencing factors on the SHC of 272 people in the mines. Field measurements were made using a sound level meter to evaluate the ambient noise levels for 1 h duration during day and night hour shifts in Dhansar and Bastacolla mining areas of the Jharia coalfield. The noise maps revealed that most of the locations have noise levels higher than 70 dB(A). The statistical model suggests that NA is the most important predictor of SHC. Besides, DC and MN induce only indirect effect on SHC. The study shall facilitate in developing a decision support tool for the assessment of noise levels, induced annoyance, SHC, and suitable policy interventions for controlling noise exposure among mine workers in the coalfield.

Traffic noise is a detrimental consequence of heavy urbanisation that has a negative effect on the people. The present study focuses on the measurement and mapping of noise levels at various bus stands of Haryana state. The monitored result of the study, including hourly equivalent A-weighted noise levels (LAeq), peak noise level (L90), and background noise level (L10) vary due to traffic characteristics; including traffic volume, vehicle mounted speakers and vehicle horns at bus stand area. The results indicates that the hourly equivalent Noise levels at the various Bus stands were observed to be ranging from 57.6 to 85.0 dB(A). Noise maps were generated independently for varying intervals. The measurement uncertainty of noise data reported in the noise maps generated in the paper is ± 1.5 dB. The study analyses that most of the bus stands witnessed noise level more than 65 dB(A) and recommends taking preventive measures for controlling the Noise levels at various Bus stands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research concerning the future of sound in towns and cities is focused on two main issues: studies are conducted separately on the comfort, i.e., assessment of visual scenery and sound levels in a cityscape and separately, on the health protection issues. The policy of the acoustic environment control with regard to the health of its inhabitants is traditionally connected with measurements of noise levels presented with the help of the coefficients Lden and Lnight noise indicators, while the models based on tranquillity rating (TR) with the help of the coefficients LAmax, LAmin, LAeq, LA10. None of these coefficients refers to the soundscape. In this paper, we present a justification of the necessity to enter into discussion on the need to combine these research areas. The authorities managing towns and cities of the future should be provided with tools enabling them to assess modernisation projects from the point of view of both health and comfort of inhabitants. We present our ideas treating them as an invitation to a scientific discourse, in the form of analysis of actual projects concerning modification of existing cityscapes. The modifications are aimed at returning some unfavourably developed spaces to the inhabitants. When analysing the changes proposed in the projects, we take into account two models of the revitalised area quality assessment. The first model is used to assess the effect of noise on health. The second model, based on the indicator known as the TR, serves simultaneous assessment of an area from both visual and acoustical aspects. The models used contemporarily by scientists show multiple flaws, therefore, for the TR indicator we propose a modification taking the sound structure into account. The modification embodies the idea of masking unpleasant sounds with friendly ones. The changes to the model are presented, in this paper, in the context of two projects which were worked out in the framework of 12th edition of the intercollegiate workshop cycle The New Cityscapes. In the course of each workshop of the cycle, we combined art, science, and technology in order to seek solutions creating a better future. In view of the importance of this issue and the need to introduce a certain level of universalism, the authors offer an invitation to join a discussion on the future of sound in urban agglomerations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid urbanization and population growth in Chandigarh, India, have resulted in increased noise pollution levels, affecting the quality of life for its residents. This research paper aims to conduct a comprehensive analysis and noise mapping of Chandigarh City. In this study 25 monitoring sites throughout Chandigarh township were utilised to analyse traffic noise using noise descriptors (L10, L50, L90, NC, TNI and NPL). The hourly equivalent noise levels of 25 sites were monitored at peak morning hours (9AM-11AM) and peak evening hours (5PM-7PM) to analyse the environmental noise pollution scenario in the city. The study utilizes geographic information systems (GIS) to create a detailed noise map, identifying critical noise sources and providing insights for effective noise control strategies. A socio-acoustic survey conducted to analyse the public perception towards noise pollution and associated health hazards. The findings of this research can assist policymakers, urban planners, and environmentalists in developing sustainable urban development plans and mitigating the adverse effects of noise pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise annoyance is recognized as an expression of physiological and psychological strain in acoustical environment. The studies on prediction of noise annoyance and parametric sensitivity analysis of factors affecting it have been rarely reported in India. A hybrid ConvLSTM technique was developed in the study to predict traffic-induced noise annoyance in 484 people based on ambient noise levels, as well as survey information. Ambient noise levels were obtained at different locations of Dhanbad city using sound level meter at varying intervals, viz. 09AM–12PM, 03PM–06PM, and 08PM–11PM. The proposed method was compared with some well-known neural network techniques such as K-nearest neighbors (KNN), artificial neural network (ANN), recurrent neural network (RNN), and long-short-term memory (LSTM). The experimental results indicate that the proposed method outperforms other techniques and can be a reliable approach for prediction of noise annoyance with an accuracy of 93.8%. It can be concluded from noise maps that the noise levels in all locations of the Dhanbad city were higher than 70 dB(A) and noise sensitivity is the most important input variable of traffic-induced noise annoyance, followed by honking noise, education, exposure hours, LAeq, sleeping disorder, and chronic disease. The study shall facilitate in developing a decision support tool for prediction of noise annoyance and promoting implementation of suitable public policy in urban cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapidly increasing environmental noise causes the formation of urban street canyons by increasing its level through multiple façade reflections, especially in streets and streets surrounded by high-rise buildings on both sides. In the studies on street canyons that have been identified in the literature and are few in number, the combined effect of different façade features and road widths on urban noise reduction is not analyzed and the propagation of noise in urban areas is analyzed only on the facade plane It was observed that it was not examined over the whole street section. The aim of this study, which is prepared based on this determination, is to examine the propagation of noise in urban areas, which is one of the most important problems of today's cities, through simulations depending on the changes in parameters that affect the propagation of sound. For this purpose; Turkey Eskişehir having an average population, a busy two-lane transportation arteries around the adjacent 7-8 storey Atatürk Avenue is a street where the building was chosen as the case study. The results of the study showed that the facade characteristics and different road widths have a significant effect on the propagation of environmental noise in the facade plane and in the entire road section. The outputs presented in this study are considered to be a guide for urban planners and architects in determining the relevant parameters affecting the propagation of sound in existing settled cities and in design decisions to be taken at urban scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise barriers are path interventions between noise sources and human receivers used mainly along road corridors to improve the acoustic environment for affected residents. Despite their widespread use, the impact of these interventions on community perception is still insufficiently investigated. This paper presents findings from a longitudinal study evaluating the efficacy of noise barriers in three residential areas alongside highways, compared to a reference case in a relatively quiet area. Noise exposure was objectively quantified via acoustic measurements and noise modelling, while socio-acoustic surveys measured the residents' subjective response in terms of noise annoyance as well as other aspects of quality of life. While noise exposure (L day) decreased on average by 4.4–11.7 dBA at near-barrier points, direct reductions in pre to post-intervention noise annoyance were observed only in one case. Additionally, only in this particular case were the appraisals of the acoustic environment restored to a condition similar to low-level noise emissions (reference case). Contextual factors potentially downgrading the interventions' effectiveness are discussed, such as the history of complaints and coping, mistrust towards road authorities, high expectations, and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. While noise exposure reductions did not directly lead to noise annoyance decreases, an ordinal regression pooling all cases revealed that larger reductions in noise exposure were associated with a higher likelihood of residents reporting decreased traffic noise annoyance in the post-survey. No evidence was found regarding noise barriers' impact on the subjective assessment of other aspects of quality of life, such as health complaints, concentration disturbance, and sleep quality. • Contextual factors play a key role in the acceptance of noise barriers. • The larger the noise exposure reduction, the more likely residents report decreases in noise annoyance. • Noise barriers do not affect the frequency of health complaints, concentration disturbance, and sleep quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Estudios Demográficos y Urbanos is the property of El Colegio de Mexico AC and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The present cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the risk factors for traffic noise–induced annoyance and also assess the awareness levels among the exposed population concerning the health impacts caused by traffic noise. Field measurements were made to validate the application of the standard noise models, which were later used to present the acoustical environment and assess the exposure level around a super-speciality hospital surrounded by a residential zone. Results from the noise maps and façade maps revealed that the area was exposed to noise levels exceeding the upper safe limits by more than 10 dB(A). The effect of exposure in the form of annoyance and the awareness level were evaluated using a questionnaire survey in a sample of 565 residents. Attention questions were incorporated in the questionnaire, and the awareness level was evaluated using the mean awareness index score. Respondents living in noisy areas were having a higher risk for annoyance as compared to those living in quiet areas (OR = 4.06; 95% CI = 2.79–5.88). Reporting poor sleep quality, being sensitive to noise, and noise perception at home were the significant risk factors for annoyance. Most of the respondents were classified as having no/little awareness about serious health ailments caused by traffic noise. Lower awareness levels, despite a higher literacy rate and a higher percentage of the young population, imply that there is a need for undertaking mass awareness programmes so that the impacts can be reduced to a minimum, if not eliminated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise maps and action plans represent the main tools in the fight against citizens’ exposure to noise, especially that produced by road traffic. The present and the future in smart traffic control is represented by Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), which however have not yet been sufficiently studied as possible noise-mitigation tools. However, ITS dedicated to traffic control rely on models and input data that are like those required for road traffic noise mapping. The present work developed an instrumentation based on low-cost cameras and a vehicle recognition and counting methodology using modern machine learning techniques, compliant with the requirements of the CNOSSOS-EU noise assessment model. The instrumentation and methodology could be integrated with existing ITS for traffic control in order to design an integrated method, which could also provide updated data over time for noise maps and action plans. The test was carried out as a follow up of the L.I.S.T. Port project, where an ITS was installed for road traffic management in the Italian port city of Piombino. The acoustic efficacy of the installation is evaluated by looking at the difference in the acoustic impact on the population before and after the ITS installation by means of the distribution of noise exposure, the evaluation of Gden and Gnight, and the calculation of the number of highly annoyed and sleep-disturbed citizens. Finally, it is shown how the ITS system represents a valid solution to be integrated with targeted and more specific sound mitigation, such as the laying of low-emission asphalts.

Acoustic pollution is a type of negative impact on the environment. According to the World Health Organization, the increased noise level is the second largest after pollution of the atmospheric air by the environmental cause of health problems in the population of industrial and transport cities. The increase in the number of road transport in the cities of the Irkutsk region leads to an increase in noise levels, its penetration into residential, public and office buildings. The increase in noise is also associated with the construction of new highways, bridges and roundabouts in cities. The article assesses noise pollution in large cities of the Irkutsk region. Observations on the composition and intensity of traffic at major intersections, highways and residential areas were carried out. With help of the sound level meter, noise level measurements were made in the daytime and at night and noise maps of the levels of the urban road network were constructed. The legislative basis for noise regulation in the Russian Federation and the countries of the European Union has been studied. A set of measures is suggested that contributes to reducing the acoustic impact on residents of the cities of the Irkutsk region.

Construction site noise significantly contributes to urban noise pollution. To accurately assess the noise exposure from urban construction sites, it is essential to consider the variability and dynamic nature of the urban context. This paper proposes an innovative approach using individual-level activity-based modeling to tackle the given challenge. The methodology introduced encompasses: the modeling of construction site noise emission sources, individual-level activity-based modeling of zone of influences, a modeling chain for assessing individual noise exposure levels, and a novel dedicated exposure indicator. To illustrate the relevance of our methodology, a case study is conducted in Champigny-sur-Marne, France; this study involves the generation of a synthetic population of 1,344,394 individuals distributed among 591,153 households, with 4,854,597 associated activities, using the Eqasim simulation framework. A traffic model is then established using the multi-agent transport simulation software MATSim. NoiseModelling software is employed to compute noise maps both with and without the construction site. Subsequently, the noise exposure for each individual is assessed throughout the day for both configurations. Thanks to this complete modeling chain, the proposed indicator quantifying the cumulative amount of time of exposure above a given threshold can be compute, with the case study result being estimated at more than 3,300 person.quarter-hours above 65 dB(A). • Original methodology for accurate and detailed assessment of exposure to urban construction site noise. • Disaggregated activity-based modeling of the urban environment. • Comprehensive modeling chain for computing individual noise exposure. • Introduction of a novel indicator for evaluating exposure to urban construction site noise. • Illustration of the methodology with a case study in France. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents experimental research carried out to determine the possible actions to reduce the noise generated by trams in a highly urbanised area. A few design strategies affecting tram ride quality have been presented - especially in the aspect of the acoustic phenomena. Main sources of the noise in trams were characterised. The paper includes selected results of comprehensive studies of tram noise in the pass-by test based on the authors' research methodology. The tests were carried out on various types of trams to recognise the acoustic phenomena characteristic for the rolling stock in a selected tram system. The results of the measurements were analysed both in the field of amplitudes based on noise maps and in respect to frequencies based on noise spectra. The results indicated the rolling noise as important issue demanding taking some actions in order to reduce its level. In this area, elements for the application of individual attenuation solutions, i.e. at the source and during propagation, were presented. The results of the measurements were used as input data to the assumptions of the noise attenuation passive system, which was the final outcome of the study. Dedicated external dampers were used in the case of wheel and rail pairs, where the dominant power of the noise is emitted. The acoustic properties of the bogie area and the bogie side covers were redeveloped to hamper the noise propagation, which is a novel application. The presented results indicate measurable benefits from the applied solutions on the tram noise reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Road Traffic Noise (RTN) is one of the biggest pollutants in modern cities, which is known to affect public health to be the direct cause of many illnesses for their inhabitants. Until recently, RTN maps have been generated using representative static measurements collected by experts, after manually discarding all non-traffic related noise events, or Anomalous Noise Events (ANEs). However, the automation of noise measurements using Wireless Acoustic Sensor Networks (WASNs) is allowing the development of dynamic maps, which require the detection of non-traffic noise sources in real-time in order to provide accurate noise level measurements. In this work, the manual an automatic removal of ANEs are compared. The latter is based on two versions of the Anomalous Noise Event Detector (ANED) designed to detect ANEs within a WASN in real-time as a two-class classifier. The experiments on 4 h and 44 min of real-life audio data show similar error rates among all the considered annotation methods. However, the detailed analysis of the experiments reveal, on the one hand, inconsistent manual annotations in certain non-ANE labelling situations, where non-coincident expert-based decisions are observed; and, on the other hand, the decrease of the overall accuracy of the ANED-based approaches due to the large number of false alarms in the case of RTN class. Thus, although the results demonstrate the viability of the automated removal of ANEs, further research should be conducted to keep improving the automation of ANEs annotation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Polytechnic is the property of Journal of Polytechnic and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Cuaderno Activa is the property of Tecnologico de Antioquia, Institucion Universitari and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Traffic noise is presently considered one of the main pollutants in urban and suburban areas. Several recent technological advances have allowed a step forward in the dynamic computation of road-traffic noise levels by means of a Wireless Acoustic Sensor Network (WASN) through the collection of measurements in real-operation environments. In the framework of the LIFE DYNAMAP project, two WASNs have been deployed in two pilot areas: one in the city of Milan, as an urban environment, and another around the city of Rome in a suburban location. For a correct evaluation of the noise level generated by road infrastructures, all Anomalous Noise Events (ANE) unrelated to regular road-traffic noise (e.g., sirens, horns, speech, etc.) should be removed before updating corresponding noise maps. This work presents the production and analysis of a real-operation environmental audio database collected through the 19-node WASN of a suburban area. A total of 156 h and 20 min of labeled audio data has been obtained differentiating among road-traffic noise and ANEs (classified in 16 subcategories). After delimiting their boundaries manually, the acoustic salience of the ANE samples is automatically computed as a contextual Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) together with its impact on the A-weighted equivalent level ( Δ L A e q ). The analysis of the real-operation WASN-based environmental database is evaluated with these metrics, and we conclude that the 19 locations of the network present substantial differences in the occurrences of the subcategories of ANE, with a clear predominance of the noise of sirens, trains, and thunder.

Noise and artifacts are inherent contaminating components and are particularly present in Holter electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring. The presence of noise is even more significant in long-term monitoring (LTM) recordings, as these are collected for several days in patients following their daily activities; hence, strong artifact components can temporarily impair the clinical measurements from the LTM recordings. Traditionally, the noise presence has been dealt with as a problem of non-desirable component removal by means of several quantitative signal metrics such as the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), but current systems do not provide any information about the true impact of noise on the ECG clinical evaluation. As a first step towards an alternative to classical approaches, this work assesses the ECG quality under the assumption that an ECG has good quality when it is clinically interpretable. Therefore, our hypotheses are that it is possible (a) to create a clinical severity score for the effect of the noise on the ECG, (b) to characterize its consistency in terms of its temporal and statistical distribution, and (c) to use it for signal quality evaluation in LTM scenarios. For this purpose, a database of external event recorder (EER) signals is assembled and labeled from a clinical point of view for its use as the gold standard of noise severity categorization. These devices are assumed to capture those signal segments more prone to be corrupted with noise during long-term periods. Then, the ECG noise is characterized through the comparison of these clinical severity criteria with conventional quantitative metrics taken from traditional noise-removal approaches, and noise maps are proposed as a novel representation tool to achieve this comparison. Our results showed that neither of the benchmarked quantitative noise measurement criteria represent an accurate enough estimation of the clinical severity of the noise. A case study of long-term ECG is reported, showing the statistical and temporal correspondences and properties with respect to EER signals used to create the gold standard for clinical noise. The proposed noise maps, together with the statistical consistency of the characterization of the noise clinical severity, paves the way towards forthcoming systems providing us with noise maps of the noise clinical severity, allowing the user to process different ECG segments with different techniques and in terms of different measured clinical parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditionally, road traffic has been considered the main noise source in urban and interurban areas. As a consequence, governments have developed some new regulations to assess and control these constantly growing noise sources [1] . At the same time, numerous research groups have analysed and studied the main characteristics of new models of vehicles as a noise source and how technological improvements can reduce the overall levels emitted by road traffic, considered as a linear source. However, the sound effect of mechanical wear of vehicles has not been deeply studied, neither analysed. This paper aims to analyse the evolution of noise emissions of different vehicle types over time, based on the results of real technical inspections of vehicles. Since August 2004, the Technical Inspection of Vehicles Centres (ITVs) located in the Valencian Region have been recording the noise emissions levels of millions of vehicles in static tests, in accordance with Decree 19/2004 [2] passed by the Consell de la Generalitat (Regional Council). This extensive data logging provides a great opportunity to evaluate sound characteristics of the vehicles of this region over the last 7 years. Therefore, in this paper, sound trend of different types of vehicles depending on the passing of the years is analysed. The purpose of this study is to determine the evolution of the sound level of vehicles over time and the influence on traffic noise prediction models used to develop noise maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Road traffic and industrial noise has become a major source of discomfort and annoyance among the residents in urban areas. More than 44% of the EU population is regularly exposed to road traffic noise levels over 55 dB, which is currently the maximum accepted value prescribed by the Environmental Noise Directive for road traffic noise. With continuously increasing population and number of motor vehicles and industries, it is very unlikely to hope for noise levels to diminish in the near future. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor urban noise, so as to make mitigation plans and to deal with its adverse effects. The 2002/49/EC Environmental Noise Directive aims to determine the exposure of an individual to environmental noise through noise mapping. One of the most important steps in noise mapping is the creation of input data for simulation. At present, it is done semi-automatically (and sometimes even manually) by different companies in different ways and is very time consuming and can lead to errors in the data. In this paper, we present our approach for automatically creating input data for noise simulations. Secondly, we focus on using 3D city models for presenting the results of simulation for the noise arising from road traffic and industrial activities in urban areas. We implemented a few noise modelling standards for industrial and road traffic noise in CityGML by extending the existing Noise ADE with new objects and attributes. This research is a steping stone in the direction of standardising the input and output data for noise studies and for reconstructing the 3D data accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, an activity-based and dynamic approach is presented to analyze population exposures to road traffic noise. The contribution of this innovative approach is that (1) affected people at the workplace and places of education are incorporated and (2) the within day dynamics of varying population densities in different areas of the city is explicitly taken into account. The proposed methodology is applied to a real-world case study of the Greater Berlin area. The results demonstrate the need to account for the spatial and temporal variation in the population since the use of static resident numbers would result in an overestimation of residential noise damages. Going beyond residential exposures, the inclusion of further activity types is found to have a substantial effect on the results. Assuming individuals at work or education to be additionally affected by noise, population exposures in the central business districts are much larger than in residential areas. The proposed approach may be seen as a first step towards improved noise mapping standards to provide better recommendations for policy makers and ensure a more efficient use of noise control strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study presents an investigation into traffic based noise pollution in the city of Kırıkkale, Turkey. For this purpose, traffic noise levels were measured at 15 intersections across the city during three peak times – morning (08:00–09:00), noon (12:30–13:30) and evening (17:00–18:00) hours. The comparison of Leq values against the limit values of the Turkish Noise and Control Regulations for Settlement Zones showed that Leq values exceeded the limits at all stations. A linear regression analysis performed between the Leq and logarithm of total traffic volume (log Q) produced a coefficient of determination of 0.52. A multi regression analysis carried out between the Leq and four different vehicle types resulted in a correlation coefficient of 0.74. The correlation matrix indicated that the highest correlation was found for trucks/buses with r = 0.92. The spatial maps of traffic noise created by the Kriging method under ArcView GIS displayed that there seemed to be significant differences in the spatial variation of traffic noise across the city. In order to reduce traffic based noise levels within the city some useful suggestions were presented.

In the paper, a noise map service designated for the user interested in environmental noise is presented. Noise prediction algorithm and source model, developed for creating acoustic maps, are working in the cloud computing environment. In the study, issues related to the noise modelling of sound propagation in urban spaces are discussed with a particular focus on traffic noise. Examples of results obtained through a web application created for that purpose are shown. In addition, these are compared to results obtained from the commercial software simulations based on two road noise prediction models. Moreover, the computing performance of the developed application is investigated and analyzed. In the paper, a flowchart simulating the operation of the noise web-based service is presented showing that the created application is easy to use even for people with little experience in computer technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise and artifacts are inherent contaminating components and are particularly present in Holter electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring. The presence of noise is even more significant in long-term monitoring (LTM) recordings, as these are collected for several days in patients following their daily activities; hence, strong artifact components can temporarily impair the clinical measurements from the LTM recordings. Traditionally, the noise presence has been dealt with as a problem of non-desirable component removal by means of several quantitative signal metrics such as the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), but current systems do not provide any information about the true impact of noise on the ECG clinical evaluation. As a first step towards an alternative to classical approaches, this work assesses the ECG quality under the assumption that an ECG has good quality when it is clinically interpretable. Therefore, our hypotheses are that it is possible (a) to create a clinical severity score for the effect of the noise on the ECG, (b) to characterize its consistency in terms of its temporal and statistical distribution, and (c) to use it for signal quality evaluation in LTM scenarios. For this purpose, a database of external event recorder (EER) signals is assembled and labeled from a clinical point of view for its use as the gold standard of noise severity categorization. These devices are assumed to capture those signal segments more prone to be corrupted with noise during long-term periods. Then, the ECG noise is characterized through the comparison of these clinical severity criteria with conventional quantitative metrics taken from traditional noise-removal approaches, and noise maps are proposed as a novel representation tool to achieve this comparison. Our results showed that neither of the benchmarked quantitative noise measurement criteria represent an accurate enough estimation of the clinical severity of the noise. A case study of long-term ECG is reported, showing the statistical and temporal correspondences and properties with respect to EER signals used to create the gold standard for clinical noise. The proposed noise maps, together with the statistical consistency of the characterization of the noise clinical severity, paves the way towards forthcoming systems providing us with noise maps of the noise clinical severity, allowing the user to process different ECG segments with different techniques and in terms of different measured clinical parameters.

Copyright of e-GFOS is the property of Electronic Journal of the Faculty of Civil Engineering Osijek-e-GFOS and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: Aircraft noise contours are estimated with model calculations. Due to their impact, e.g., on land use planning, calculations need to be highly accurate, but their uncertainty usually remains unaccounted for. The objective of this study was therefore to quantify the uncertainty of calculated average equivalent continuous sound levels (L Aeq) of complex scenarios such as yearly air operations, and to establish uncertainty maps. The methodology was developed for the simulation program FLULA2. In a first step, the partial uncertainties of modelling the aircraft as a sound source and of modelling sound propagation were quantified as a function of aircraft type and distance between aircraft and receiver. Then, these uncertainties were combined for individual flights to obtain the uncertainty of the single event level (L AE) at a specified receiver grid. The average L Aeq of a scenario results from the combination of the L AE of many single flights, each of which has its individual uncertainties. In a last step, the uncertainties of all L AE were therefore combined to the uncertainty of the L Aeq, accounting also for uncertainties of the number of movements and of prognoses. Uncertainty estimations of FLULA2 calculations for Zurich and Geneva airports revealed that the standard uncertainty of the L Aeq ranges from 0.5dB (day) to 1.0dB (night) for past-time scenarios when using radar data as input, and from 1.0dB (day) to 1.3dB (night) for future scenarios, in areas where L Aeq ⩾53dB (day) and L Aeq ⩾43dB (night), respectively. Different uncertainty values may result for other models and/or airports, depending on the model sophistication, traffic input data, available sound source data, and airport peculiarities such as the specific aircraft fleet or prevailing departure and arrival procedures. The methodology, while established for FLULA2 on Zurich and Geneva airports, may be applied to other models and/or airports, but the partial uncertainties have to be specifically re-established to account for individual models and underlying sound source data. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The study presents an investigation into traffic based noise pollution in the city of Kirikkale, Turkey. For this purpose, traffic noise levels were measured at 15 intersections across the city during three peak times ‐ morning (08:00–09:00), noon (12:30–13:30) and evening (17:00–18:00) hours. The comparison of Leq values against the limit values of the Turkish Noise and Control Regulations for Settlement Zones showed that Leqvalues exceeded the limits at all stations. A linear regression analysis performed between the Leq and logarithm of total traffic volume (log Q) produced a coefficient of determination of 0.52. A multi regression analysis carried out between the Leq and four different vehicle types resulted in a correlation coefficient of 0.74. The correlation matrix indicated that the highest correlation was found for trucks/buses with r = 0.92. The spatial maps of traffic noise created by the Kriging method under ArcView GIS displayed that there seemed to be significant differences in the spatial variation of traffic noise across the city. In order to reduce traffic based noise levels within the city some useful suggestions were presented. First published online: 27 Oct 2010

The equivalent noise level in large cities has been growing due to the population growth, uncontrolled production of cars, and the existence of worn out cars. On the other hand, heavy traffic has increased the amount of noise problems for residents of medical and educational centers, research institutes and residential area (or sensitive centers to noise) built in highway bounds and it has also caused and added to their stress and discomfort. This paper presents the results of measurement of equivalent noise level (Lcq) on various roads in Tehran. The noise maps and color contours resulted from modeling of the noise emission sources, and the critical zones in these area have been identified through the noise pollution aspect arid have been studied and the appropriate solutions have been suggested. ft is possible to decrease the level of noise pollution in those zones effectively, through modeling and identifying the critical zones and also by presenting noise control solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main objective of this study is to analyze the differences found in the results of noise mapping using two of the most popular software techniques for the prediction of environmental noise. The location selected to conduct the comparative study is an area encompassed by the ring road that surrounds the city of Pamplona and on a grid, with a total of 6 × 105 points, approximately. In fact, and as the Environmental Noise Directive points out, it is a major road designated by a Member State (Spain). Configuration of the calculation parameters (discretization of the sources, ground absorption, reflection order, etc.) was as equivalent as possible as far as programs allow. In spite of that, a great number of differences appear in the findings. Although in 95.5% of the points the difference in the noise level calculated from the two programs was less than 3 dB, this general statistic result concealed some great differences. These are due to the various algorithms that programs implement to evaluate noise levels. Most differences pertain to highly screened receivers or remote ones. In the former, the algorithm of visibility is the main cause of such differences. In the latter, differences are mainly brought about by a different implementation of the propagation under homogeneous and favorable atmospheric conditions from both software systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction. Noise is considered one of the high level pollutants that negatively affect life quality in urban centers and ecosystems. Objectives. To consolidate different integral environmental management strategies for noise in the Aburrá 's Valley Metropolitan Area; to manage two stations of acoustic quality and to inform about the importance noise maps have. Materials and Methods. Different strategies were used, such as: information, training and academic sessions in the Metropolitan Area municipalities. Results. More than 60% of the community identifies traffic as the main problem and 85% of the officials that attended the activities ignore the existence of noise maps. Conclusion. It is necessary to consolidate awareness about noise problems and train the municipality officials about noise maps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Noise maps and action plans represent the main tools in the fight against citizens' exposure to noise, especially that produced by road traffic. The present and the future in smart traffic control is represented by Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), which however have not yet been sufficiently studied as possible noise-mitigation tools. However, ITS dedicated to traffic control rely on models and input data that are like those required for road traffic noise mapping. The present work developed an instrumentation based on low-cost cameras and a vehicle recognition and counting methodology using modern machine learning techniques, compliant with the requirements of the CNOSSOS-EU noise assessment model. The instrumentation and methodology could be integrated with existing ITS for traffic control in order to design an integrated method, which could also provide updated data over time for noise maps and action plans. The test was carried out as a follow up of the L.I.S.T. Port project, where an ITS was installed for road traffic management in the Italian port city of Piombino. The acoustic efficacy of the installation is evaluated by looking at the difference in the acoustic impact on the population before and after the ITS installation by means of the distribution of noise exposure, the evaluation of Gden and Gnight, and the calculation of the number of highly annoyed and sleep-disturbed citizens. Finally, it is shown how the ITS system represents a valid solution to be integrated with targeted and more specific sound mitigation, such as the laying of low-emission asphalts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, concern over airport noise and its impact on surrounding communities has been spurred by the continual growth in air traffic together with urban development in close proximity to many airports around the world. This paper aims at studying the cases of Tallinn Airport and Tartu Airport, both in Estonia, with a focus on evaluating the airport noise and its impact on the neighbouring residential districts. Tallinn Airport is located within the city limits (only 4 kilometres from the city centre), and therefore the inhabited areas are also exposed to aviation noise. The main water catchment area for the city - Lake Ülemiste - and the nearest residential district are situated about 0.5 km from the airport. In 2003 stationary noise monitoring equipment was installed at Tallinn Airport to measure the noise level caused by starting and landing aircraft so that the necessary measures and sanctions can be taken. At Tartu Airport, the noise was recurrently measured in 2008, by using a TES 1352A sound level meter. The monitoring system at Tallinn Airport and the measurements at Tartu Airport enable operating noise and aircraft noise to be analyzed and predicted as a way to differentiate the landing fees for aircraft depending on noise and flight trajectory. According to the noise monitoring and measurements results, noise maps can be drawn. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study presents an investigation into traffic based noise pollution in the city of Kırıkkale, Turkey. For this purpose, traffic noise levels were measured at 15 intersections across the city during three peak times -- morning (08:00-09:00), noon (12:30-13:30) and evening (17:00-18:00) hours. The comparison of Leq values against the limit values of the Turkish Noise and Control Regulations for Settlement Zones showed that Leq values exceeded the limits at all stations. A linear regression analysis performed between the Leq and logarithm of total traffic volume (log Q) produced a coefficient of determination of 0.52. A multi regression analysis carried out between the Leq and four different vehicle types resulted in a correlation coefficient of 0.74. The correlation matrix indicated that the highest correlation was found for trucks/buses with r = 0.92. The spatial maps of traffic noise created by the Kriging method under ArcView GIS displayed that there seemed to be significant differences in the spatial variation of traffic noise across the city. In order to reduce traffic based noise levels within the city some useful suggestions were presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traffic noise results from highways where the most important source of noise in cities. This noise has the properties of linear source. Constitution of noise maps has become compulsory to see the regions that are influenced from the noise, and to put forward the future environmental approaches. During the mapping of the noise, generally two fundamental problems are encountered, excessive time requirement for the measurement of noise and determining the method for the constitution of maps. This study was conducted in Sanliurfa city of Turkey, in 3×4 km area. Continuous weekly data were obtained in 11 measurement points. By using these data in (GIS) environment, preparation of the most reliable map in the shortest time is achieved by the interpolation method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]