Preparation of a model on the prediction of annoyance from shooting sounds for application

What is it about?

Laboratory studies show that the annoyance caused by shooting sounds can be predicted from the outdoor A-weighted and C-weighted sound exposure levels. In order to prepare the model for use in practice, the concrete values of two parameters in the model had to be estimated. To achieve this, subjective reactions to shooting and road-traffic sounds were determined for 400 respondents divided among 15 residential areas. Also, the noise dose for road traffic was calculated and the ammunition spent in the 12 months preceding the administration of the questionnaire was listed. Next, for all impulsive sources, the required sound exposure levels received in the residential areas were calculated. As a result, parameter values were obtained for appropriate prediction of the community response.

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Why is it important?

Determination of the community response to shooting sounds is complicated (1) by the fact that in many conditions the sounds have been produced by a variety of small-, medium, and large-caliber firearms. Moreover, (2) since especially for medium- and large-caliber firearms, the relevant distance between the source and the receiver may extend to 2-10 km, adoption of an advanced propagation model is highly relevant. Prevention or reduction of the annoyance caused by these sounds can be achieved only with the help of an efficient prediction model.

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