A Procedure for Evaluating Auditory Warning Signals

Abstract

Auditory warning devices used on typical industrial vehicles or material handling devices are produced in quantity as standard items affording the equipment purchaser little or no choice of signal characteristics. Industrial experience has indicated that masking of auditory warning signals by industrial noise backgrounds occurs frequently, often presenting serious incidents or causing accidents. This paper presents statistical model and practical method whereby the effectiveness of auditory warning devices in industrial environments can be predicted based on spectral analyses of the signal and the background in which it is to be used.