Anti-interference self-powered acoustic fabric for complex acoustic environments

Abstract

Traditional airborne microphones are at risk of failure due to their dependence on airborne media in complex acoustic environments (CAEs). Here, we report an anti-interference self-powered acoustic fabric (ASAF) that can shield the interfering factors in the process of sound production and propagation to serve as a precise and wearable sound receiver. The use of the soft and safe woven structure polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) as a vibration-sensitive layer enables the ASAF to record human speech at wide vibration frequencies (0–5000 Hz). A speech recognition system is established which can recognize 25 words related to extreme weather conditions, with more than 95.8% accuracy. This speech recognition is carried out in CAEs such as wearing masks, silent communication, windstorms, and rainstorms, with corresponding losses of accuracy less than 1.6%, 6.7%, 6.3%, and 5.8%, respectively. The ASAF is expected to facilitate outdoor rescuers, journalists, students, and other professionals working in CAEs.