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US-20260128025-A1 - VOCAL ACOUSTIC ATTENUATION

US20260128025A1US 20260128025 A1US20260128025 A1US 20260128025A1US-20260128025-A1

Abstract

Systems and methods to provide vocal acoustic attenuation for an acoustic sensor are disclosed, comprising attenuating an acoustic signal using an attenuation material covering at least a portion of a first surface of the acoustic sensor.

Inventors

  • Angela D'Orazio
  • David A. Borkholder
  • Scott J. Featherman

Assignees

  • BlackBox Biometrics, Inc.

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20250908

Claims (20)

  1. 1 . A vocal acoustic attenuation system configured to provide data privacy and data security by monitoring exposure to acoustic or impulse events without recording audible human speech, the system comprising: an acoustic sensor; a dosimeter circuit configured to monitor exposure to acoustic or impulse events using an output of the acoustic sensor; and an attenuation material, configured to physically attenuate an acoustic signal prior to reaching the acoustic sensor such that the acoustic sensor does not record audible human speech.
  2. 2 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 1 , wherein the attenuation material is configured to cover at least a portion of the acoustic sensor, wherein to physically attenuate the acoustic signal, the attenuation material is configured to attenuate a vocal audible decibel range from the acoustic signal to a range below a noise floor of the acoustic sensor prior to reaching the acoustic sensor.
  3. 3 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 2 , wherein the acoustic sensor is configured to receive the attenuated acoustic signal through the attenuation material and to provide an attenuated output signal without audible human speech information to provide data privacy and data security without recording audible human speech.
  4. 4 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 3 , wherein the dosimeter circuit is configured to: receive the attenuated output signal without audible human speech information; measure exposure to acoustic or impulse events having unattenuated sound pressure levels greater than 80 dB using the attenuated output signal; and store exposure data without recording or storing audible human speech.
  5. 5 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 3 , wherein the dosimeter circuit is configured to distinguish between impulse events and continuous acoustic events while maintaining data privacy for audible human speech, wherein the impulse events comprise blast overpressure events, and wherein the dosimeter circuit is configured to separately track exposure to impulse events and continuous acoustic events.
  6. 6 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 3 , comprising a wearable housing configured to be worn by a user, the wearable housing comprising the acoustic sensor, the attenuation material, and the dosimeter circuit.
  7. 7 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 2 , wherein the noise floor of the acoustic sensor comprises an acoustic sound pressure level at or below 35 dB.
  8. 8 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 7 , wherein the noise floor of the acoustic sensor comprises an acoustic sound pressure level below 30 dB.
  9. 9 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 8 , wherein the noise floor of the acoustic sensor comprises an acoustic sound pressure level below 27 dB.
  10. 10 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 2 , wherein the vocal audible decibel range comprises acoustic sound pressure levels below 90 dB, and wherein the noise floor of the acoustic sensor comprises an acoustic sound pressure level at or below 35 dB.
  11. 11 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 2 , wherein the attenuation material provides at least 60 dB of attenuation across a vocal audible decibel range.
  12. 12 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 11 , wherein the vocal audible decibel range comprises acoustic sound pressure levels below 90 dB.
  13. 13 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 2 , wherein to attenuate the vocal audible decibel range from the acoustic signal to the range below the noise floor of the acoustic sensor comprises to render inaudible human speech occurring at or below the noise floor of the acoustic sensor.
  14. 14 . The vocal acoustic attenuation system of claim 1 , wherein the acoustic sensor comprises a sound port, and wherein the attenuation material is secured to and covers the sound port to eliminate air communication between the sound port and an area outside the acoustic sensor.
  15. 15 . A vocal acoustic attenuation apparatus for acoustic monitoring without recording audible human speech, comprising: an acoustic sensor having a sound port in a first surface, the acoustic sensor having a noise floor below 35 dB; and an attenuation material secured to the first surface and covering the sound port; and wherein the attenuation material is configured to attenuate a vocal audible decibel range below 90 dB to a range below the noise floor prior to acoustic signals reaching the sound port, such that an attenuated vocal audible signal in the vocal audible range would be indiscernible from noise.
  16. 16 . The vocal acoustic attenuation apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the acoustic sensor comprises a MEMS microphone having an acoustic overload point under 140 dB and the noise floor at or below 35 dB, enabling detection of harmful acoustic events while preventing intelligible speech reproduction
  17. 17 . A method for monitoring exposure to acoustic or impulse events without recording audible human speech to provide data privacy and data security, the method comprising: monitoring, using a dosimeter circuit, exposure to acoustic or impulse events using information from an acoustic sensor; and physically attenuating an acoustic signal prior to reaching the acoustic sensor using an attenuation material, such that the acoustic sensor does not record audible human speech.
  18. 18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein physically attenuating the acoustic signal comprises attenuating a vocal audible decibel range from the acoustic signal to a range below a noise floor of the acoustic sensor prior to reaching the acoustic sensor, wherein the attenuation material is configured to cover at least a portion of the acoustic sensor.
  19. 19 . The method of claim 18 , comprising, using the acoustic sensor: sensing an attenuated acoustic signal through the attenuation material; and providing an attenuated output signal without audible human speech information to provide data privacy and data security without recording audible human speech.
  20. 20 . The method of claim 18 , wherein physically attenuating the acoustic signal comprises providing at least 60 dB of attenuation across the vocal audible decibel range using the attenuation material, wherein the vocal audible decibel range comprises acoustic sound pressure levels below 90 dB, wherein the noise floor of the acoustic sensor comprises an acoustic sound pressure level at or below 35 dB.

Description

CLAIM OF PRIORITY This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/798,147, filed on Aug. 8, 2022, which is a national stage filing under 35 U.S.C. § 371 from International Application No. PCT/US 2021/017673, filed on Feb. 11, 2021, which claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/975,399 , filed on Feb. 12, 2020. The contents of the aforementioned applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties, and the benefit of each is claimed hereby. BACKGROUND Unwanted or excessive sound can have deleterious effects on human health. Sounds having sound pressure levels (SPLs) above 85 decibels (dB) for extended periods of time can damage structures of the inner ear, leading to hearing loss. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) estimates that 22 million workers are exposed to potentially damaging noise at work each year in the United States alone, and requires the employers implement hearing conservation programs when noise exposure is at or above 85 decibels averaged over 8 working hours, or an 8-hour time-weighted average (TWA). Exposure to sound events at more than 105 dB average (dBA) will cause some amount of permanent hearing loss. In addition, exposure to impulse events, such as blast exposure, can produce high intensity overexposures, often referred to as blast overpressure (BOP), which can pose both a risk of NIHL and a risk of traumatic brain injury (TBI) with one or more cumulative exposures. Impulse events also include impulse noise events, such as gunshots, explosions, or other sound events having fast initial rise times, such as of 50 μs or less (e.g., frequencies of 20 kHz or higher), often with SPLs above 140 dB (depending on distance from the event). Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is the most prevalent service-related disability for US veterans, with VA-related expenditures exceeding $1b USD annually. Hearing protection devices (HPDs) provide some protection from noise exposure, but suffer intrinsic limitations, such as noise levels exceeding protective capabilities, bone conduction through the skull bypassing the HPD, operational requirements for long exposure periods or communication requirements, compliance issues, improper fit, or unexpected exposure to events when the HPD is not worn. There is a need to monitor human exposure to excessive acoustic and impulse events using stationary sensors configured to monitor acoustic or impulse events from stationary locations and portable, ambulatory sensors configured to be attached to or incorporated in equipment or worn by a user. SUMMARY Systems and methods to provide vocal acoustic attenuation for an acoustic sensor are disclosed, comprising attenuating an acoustic signal (e.g., acoustic pressure waves, impulse or blast pressure waves, etc.) using an attenuation material covering at least a portion of a first surface of an acoustic sensor. In an example, the acoustic sensor can include a microphone package having a sound port in the first surface, and the attenuation material can be configured to cover the sound port. In certain examples, an adhesive material can adhere the attenuation material to the acoustic sensor. Attenuating the acoustic signal can include attenuating a vocal audible decibel range, such as a conversational vocal audible decibel range from the acoustic signal, such as to a range below a noise floor of the acoustic sensor, prior to the acoustic signal reaching the acoustic sensor. Vocal acoustic attenuation can include attenuation of audible and inaudible acoustic frequency ranges (e.g., less than 20 Hz, greater than 20 kHz, etc.). In an example, vocal acoustic attenuation can provide 60 dB of attenuation. This summary is intended to provide an overview of subject matter of the present patent application. It is not intended to provide an exclusive or exhaustive explanation of the disclosure. The detailed description is included to provide further information about the present patent application. Other aspects of the disclosure will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the following detailed description and viewing the drawings that form a part thereof, each of which are not to be taken in a limiting sense. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, like numerals may describe similar components in different views. Like numerals having different letter suffixes may represent different instances of similar components. The drawings illustrate generally, by way of example, but not by way of limitation, various embodiments discussed in the present document. FIG. 1 illustrates an example sound scale in decibels (dB). FIG. 2 illustrates an example system including an acoustic sensor including a sound port in a first surface of the acoustic sensor and an attenuation material covering the sound port and at least a portion of the first surface of the acous