Developing an Acoustic Sensing Yarn for Health Surveillance in a Military Setting.

Theodore Hughes-Riley,Tilak Dias

doi:10.3390/s18051590

Abstract

Overexposure to high levels of noise can cause permanent hearing disorders, which have a significant adverse effect on the quality of life of those affected. Injury due to noise can affect people in a variety of careers including construction workers, factory workers, and members of the armed forces. By monitoring the noise exposure of workers, overexposure can be avoided and suitable protective equipment can be provided. This work focused on the creation of a noise dosimeter suitable for use by members of the armed forces, where a discrete dosimeter was integrated into a textile helmet cover. In this way the sensing elements could be incorporated very close to the ears, providing a highly representative indication of the sound level entering the body, and also creating a device that would not interfere with military activities. This was achieved by utilising commercial microelectromechanical system microphones integrated within the fibres of yarn to create an acoustic sensing yarn. The acoustic sensing yarns were fully characterised over a range of relevant sound levels and frequencies at each stage in the yarn production process. The yarns were ultimately integrated into a knitted helmet cover to create a functional acoustic sensing helmet cover prototype.

Highlights

This work created a textile noise dosimeter suitable for military use
Noise exposure can lead to a variety of disorders [4,5,6] with tinnitus and noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) being the most common among them
In the last 10 years there have been 1505 claims to the United Kingdom Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit scheme relating to NIHL in the period 2007–2016 [8], and in the United States of America more than 10 million adults under 70 (6 percent of the under 70 population) exhibit some form of hearing loss from noise exposure [9]

Summary

Introduction

This work created a textile noise dosimeter suitable for military use. Overexposure to noise is known to cause permanent hearing damage, and as a result, employers are required to implement suitable health-monitoring measures when workers will be exposed to loud noises [1,2,3]. Noise exposure can lead to a variety of disorders [4,5,6] with tinnitus and noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) being the most common among them. NIHL results in a loss of hearing at a range of higher frequencies (3–6 kHz) [7] and can hinder the perception of sound. A secondary symptom of acoustic trauma can be tinnitus, which presents as the perception of a sound when no sound source is present. In both cases, damage can be permanent with no accepted common treatment methods. In the last 10 years there have been 1505 claims to the United Kingdom Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit scheme relating to NIHL in the period 2007–2016 [8], and in the United States of America more than 10 million adults under 70 (6 percent of the under 70 population) exhibit some form of hearing loss from noise exposure [9]

Methods

Results

Conclusion