Audiology Booths: Design Technology For Your Hearing Needs

Posted by Waveform Acoustics on August 8th, 2019

A number of key elements need to be considered by the engineers, architects and users before an audiology booth or an audiometric testing facility is designed and built.

Types of Hearing Tests

In the Pure Tone testing method, the patient will wear headphones and asked to raise their hand every time they hear a tone. The test primarily measures the ability to hear volumes and pitches through air conduction. In the Bone Conduction Test, a conductor is placed behind the ear in order to send vibrations directly to the inner ear. SRT or Speech Reception Threshold is administered within the audiology booth or outside of it to measure the lowest speech that can be understood. It also tests the patient’s ability to differentiate between background noises and speech. Tympanometry is used to check what type of hearing loss has occurred and the response of the eardrum to air pressure. Acoustic Reflex Testing is able to locate the exact source of the hearing problem. Newborn babies are usually administered the ABR or the OAE to screen for hearing problems. Otoacoustic Emissions are also used to check for blockages o damage to the cochlea, hair cells or middle ear.

Design Factors of an Audiometry Room

An audiometric room must be fairly large in order to optimize the acoustics. The impact of people, equipment and furniture is lower if the room is fairly spacious. ISO guidance has set a specific level of frequencies beyond which ambient sound pressure levels should not exceed. Acoustic panels, absorptive walls can be used to reduce the reverberation effect and time. These panels can also lend an aesthetic appeal to an audiology booth. In order to ensure that consistency in testing is maintained the furniture in the room must be placed in an ideal location. Loudspeakers for both listener and speaker need to angled right to avoid any negative effects. One of the first things that is considered in the designing stage is the number of doors and windows and their positions. Well positioned ones will accentuate the acoustics in the room. The location of the audiology room itself can affect the acoustics. Busy roads, noisy traffic and factory sounds can all affect the level of acoustic isolation. Since it is usually a very tightly sealed ability, it is important to add a good ventilation. This ensures fresh air and the ability to control humidity and temperature.  

The design of an audiology booth can make a world of difference to every person coming in for their hearing needs.