Calculating the Loudness of Impulsive Sounds

In this paper, a procedure for calculating the loudness of impulsive sounds is presented. Impulsive sounds are defined as short duration (< 500 msec), high energy sounds usually caused by an impact. Each of the six steps in this procedure are discussed in some detail. Validation of the method is obtained by psychoacoustic testing using both loudness matching and modified Levitt (up-down) techniques. The implementation of the impulsive loudness metric is then illustrated for door closing and power lock sounds.