Our ears only have a limited range to pick up sounds, so how do we make the loud things soft enough and the quiet things loud enough that we can hear them? We test. This week, it’s all about sound as host Derek welcomes two experts in the field. First, Jim Underbrink is a Former Boeing Technical Fellow with 35 years of experience in Dynamic Data Acquisitions Systems and Test Methods. He details some of the rigorous testing a plane goes through to make sure it can operate correctly and determine not only how loud the airplane is, but how we can locate and reduce the loudest sources an aircraft emits. Then, Kevin Seitz-Paquette, Director of Phonak Audiology Research Center, shares some of the exciting advancements in hearing aid technology that combat hearing loss while lessening the surrounding stigmas that come with it. He touches on testing to make sure the products are built in a way that gives us real-world solutions in a safe and effective manner. 

Learn More About: 

• How testing sound in aviation has developed over the years, and Jim gives us a behind-the-wings look at what goes on at Boeing’s noise lab. 
• How testers started studying different components of the whole airplane using models to see where certain noises were coming from, and how loud they were. 
• Why it matters to test the different volume noises given off by airplanes, not only to passengers and airline workers but also the community surrounding the airports. 
• How 800 microphones in a mathematical pattern were used to essentially take pictures of noise as airplanes approached and took off from a runway. 
• What race track patterns are and how they apply to testing. 
• Kevin talks about how the technological development of hearing aids can help lessen the stigma of hearing loss and having to wear a hearing device. 
• How they test hearing aids with a “crash test dummy” that models an actual human being and recreates real world examples of how the hearing aid may both work and malfunction.

Resources Mentioned: 

• NI
• James Underbrink 
• Kevin Seitz-Paquette 
• Phonak