arrow_back_ios

Main Menu

See All Acoustic End-of-Line Test Systems See All DAQ and instruments See All Electroacoustics See All Software See All Transducers See All Vibration Testing Equipment See All Academy See All Resource Center See All Applications See All Industries See All Insights See All Services See All Support See All Our Business See All Our History See All Our Sustainability Commitment See All Global Presence
arrow_back_ios

Main Menu

See All Actuators See All Combustion Engines See All Durability See All eDrive See All Transmission & Gearboxes See All Turbo Charger See All DAQ Systems See All High Precision and Calibration Systems See All Industrial electronics See All Power Analyser See All S&V Hand-held devices See All S&V Signal conditioner See All Accessories See All DAQ Software See All Drivers & API See All nCode - Durability and Fatigue Analysis See All ReliaSoft - Reliability Analysis and Management See All Test Data Management See All Utility See All Vibration Control See All Acoustic See All Current / voltage See All Displacement See All Load Cells See All Pressure See All Strain Gauges See All Torque See All Vibration See All LDS Shaker Systems See All Power Amplifiers See All Vibration Controllers See All Accessories for Vibration Testing Equipment See All Training Courses See All Whitepapers See All Acoustics See All Asset & Process Monitoring See All Custom Sensors See All Data Acquisition & Analysis See All Durability & Fatigue See All Electric Power Testing See All NVH See All Reliability See All Smart Sensors See All Vibration See All Weighing See All Automotive & Ground Transportation See All Calibration See All Installation, Maintenance & Repair See All Support Brüel & Kjær See All Release Notes See All Compliance See All Our People
arrow_back_ios

Main Menu

See All CANHEAD See All GenHS See All LAN-XI See All MGCplus See All Optical Interrogators See All QuantumX See All SomatXR See All Fusion-LN See All Accessories See All Hand-held Software See All Accessories See All BK Connect / Pulse See All API See All Microphone Sets See All Microphone Cartridges See All Acoustic Calibrators See All Special Microphones See All Microphone Pre-amplifiers See All Sound Sources See All Accessories for acoustic transducers See All Experimental testing See All Transducer Manufacturing (OEM) See All Accessories See All Non-rotating (calibration) See All Rotating See All CCLD (IEPE) accelerometers See All Charge Accelerometers See All Impulse hammers / impedance heads See All Cables See All Accessories See All Electroacoustics See All Noise Source Identification See All Environmental Noise See All Sound Power and Sound Pressure See All Noise Certification See All Industrial Process Control See All Structural Health Monitoring See All Electrical Devices Testing See All Electrical Systems Testing See All Grid Testing See All High-Voltage Testing See All Vibration Testing with Electrodynamic Shakers See All Structural Dynamics See All Machine Analysis and Diagnostics See All Process Weighing See All Calibration Services for Transducers See All Calibration Services for Handheld Instruments See All Calibration Services for Instruments & DAQ See All On-Site Calibration See All Resources See All Software License Management

The increasing requirements for indoor and outdoor noise levels set by international standards and legislation mean that today’s manufacturers must be able to provide precise specifications for their products’ noise levels. For determining the noise emissions of products, sound power is the preferred quantity to investigate because it measures the absolute power of a noise source independently from its acoustic environment.

Product noise levels have become increasingly more important to buyers of tools, appliances, machinery and other equipment. Purchasers seek to ensure lower noise exposure for both users and bystanders.

To encourage lower product noise, regulations such as the EU Directive 2010/30/EU require that products clearly display their sound power levels. This provides open information that facilitates the consumer’s choice and promotes competition on lower sound levels.

Undisputable Noise Levels

In order for noise labels on products to be effective, they must be based on fair and comparable measurements. Sound power represents the absolute acoustic energy of a product, independent of the acoustic environment. To keep test methods identical, standards stipulate the exact methods you must use to measure noise from any type of equipment, from household appliances to earth-moving machinery. Brüel & Kjær’s solutions are designed to support a wide range of relevant EU and international standards and to guide users through each one of them.

 

Sound Power Measurements

It is possible to calculate sound power based on several different types of measurements, depending on your test object. Sound intensity-based methods are used for in situ measurements and product engineering, making them ideal for fixed objects like extractor fans.

Reverberation room-based sound power and free-field-based sound power measurements are most often used for production audits and high-volume testing of products such as household appliances.

Brüel & Kjær is deeply involved in the creation and maintenance of measurement standards. Important standards include IEC 60704-2-4 for washing machines, and ISO 6393, ISO 6394, ISO 6395, and ISO 6396 for outdoor machinery.