Abstract
This paper reports the quantitative effect of leakage on the noise
attenuation of earmuff hearing protectors. The technology used in this
study to measure the noise leakage is considered to be a new contribution
to this topic. An array of sensors placed between an earmuff and a dummy
human head or flat surface was used to measure the contact area. Areas of
no contact are considered as the leakage elements. Eight earmuffs varying
from high quality/high cost to low quality/low cost were tested, the
leakage areas were measured and the reduction in the noise attenuation due
to leakage was calculated
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