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ARS Home » Plains Area » Lubbock, Texas » Cropping Systems Research Laboratory » Cotton Production and Processing Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #331504
Research Project: Enhancing the Profitability and Sustainability of Upland Cotton, Cottonseed, and Agricultural Byproducts through Improvements in Pre- and Post-Harvest Processing

Location: Cotton Production and Processing Research

Title: Simplified three microphone acoustic test method

Author
item Pelletier, Mathew
item Holt, Gregory
item Wanjura, John

Submitted to: Instruments
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/13/2017
Publication Date: 7/28/2017
Citation: Pelletier, M.G., Holt, G.A., Wanjura, J.D. Simplified three microphone acoustic test method. Instruments. 1(1):4-24. 2017.

Interpretive Summary: Accepted acoustic testing standards are available; however, they require specialized hardware and software that are typically out of reach economically to the occasional practitioner. This paper reports on the development of a simple and inexpensive screening method that could provide a quick comparison for rapid identification of the top acoustical absorbing candidates. The study compares the proposed simplified method to a well-known and accepted method. The results of the correlation analysis between the new method to the original method produced a coefficient of determination of r2=0.994. The proposed new method represents an easy to use technique that requires little in the way of equipment and can be setup with minimal training and expense.

Technical Abstract: Accepted acoustic testing standards are available; however, they require specialized hardware and software that are typically out of reach economically to the occasional practitioner. What is needed is a simple and inexpensive screening method that could provide a quick comparison for rapid identification of the top candidates. This research reports on one potential acoustical rapid-test method that achieves these objectives. The method is based upon a reformulation of the well regarded three-microphone method. The new formulation reduces the number of required microphones to a single microphone and removes the need for simultaneous capture and extensive signal-processing analysis. The study compares the proposed simplified method to the full three microphone method. The results of the correlation analysis between the new method to the original method produced a coefficient of determination of r2=0.994. The proposed new method represents an easy to use technique that requires little in the way of equipment and can be setup with minimal training and expense.