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Asound baffle is a construction or device which reduces the strength (level) ofairborne sound. Sound baffles are a fundamental tool ofnoise mitigation, the practice of minimizingnoise pollution orreverberation. An important type of sound baffle is thenoise barrier constructed alonghighways to reduce sound levels in the vicinity of properties. Sound baffles are also applied to walls and ceilings in building interiors toabsorb sound energy and thus lessen reverberation.[1]
The technology for accurate prediction of the effects of noise barrier design using acomputer model to analyzeroadway noise has been available since the early 1970s. The earliest published scientific design of a noise barrier may have occurred inSanta Clara County,California in 1970 for a section of theFoothill Expressway inLos Altos, California.[citation needed] The county used a computer model to predict the effects of sound propagation fromroadways, with variables consisting ofvehiclespeed, ratio of trucks to automobiles, road surface type, roadwaygeometrics, micro-meteorology and the design of proposedsoundwalls.
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Since the early 1900s, scientists have been aware of the utility of certain types of interior coatings or baffles to improve theacoustics ofconcert halls,theaters,conference rooms and other spaces where sound quality is important. By the mid-1950s,Bolt, Beranek and Newman and a few other U.S. research organizations were developing technology to address sound quality's design challenges. This design field draws on several disciplines includingacoustical science, computer modeling,architecture andmaterials science. Sound baffles are also used inspeaker cabinets to absorbenergy from the pressure created by the speakers, thus reducing cabinetresonance.
In 1973, Pearl P. Randolph, aschool bus driver inVirginia, won a new school bus in a national contest held byWayne Corporation for the suggestion that sound baffles be installed in the ceiling ofschool buses. In 1981, they were first made mandatory by thestate of California.
Baffles are also found in the exhaust pipes of vehicles, particularly motorcycles.
