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. 2020 Dec;148(6):3562.
doi: 10.1121/10.0002873.

Effects of face masks on acoustic analysis and speech perception: Implications for peri-pandemic protocols

Michelle Magee  1 , Courtney Lewis  1 , Gustavo Noffs  1 , Hannah Reece  1 , Jess C S Chan  1 , Charissa J Zaga  1 , Camille Paynter  1 , Olga Birchall  1 , Sandra Rojas Azocar  1 , Angela Ediriweera  1 , Katherine Kenyon  1 , Marja W Caverlé  1 , Benjamin G Schultz  1 , Adam P Vogel  1
Affiliations

Effects of face masks on acoustic analysis and speech perception: Implications for peri-pandemic protocols

Michelle Magee et al. J Acoust Soc Am. 2020 Dec.

Abstract

Wearing face masks (alongside physical distancing) provides some protection against infection from COVID-19. Face masks can also change how people communicate and subsequently affect speech signal quality. This study investigated how three common face mask types (N95, surgical, and cloth) affected acoustic analysis of speech and perceived intelligibility in healthy subjects. Acoustic measures of timing, frequency, perturbation, and power spectral density were measured. Speech intelligibility and word and sentence accuracy were also examined using the Assessment of Intelligibility of Dysarthric Speech. Mask type impacted the power distribution in frequencies above 3 kHz for the N95 mask, and above 5 kHz in surgical and cloth masks. Measures of timing and spectral tilt mainly differed with N95 mask use. Cepstral and harmonics to noise ratios remained unchanged across mask type. No differences were observed across conditions for word or sentence intelligibility measures; however, accuracy of word and sentence translations were affected by all masks. Data presented in this study show that face masks change the speech signal, but some specific acoustic features remain largely unaffected (e.g., measures of voice quality) irrespective of mask type. Outcomes have bearing on how future speech studies are run when personal protective equipment is worn.

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Figures

FIG. 1.
FIG. 1.
(Color online) Mask conditions.
FIG. 2.
FIG. 2.
(Color online) Average speech intelligibility based on mask condition using the ASSIDS.
FIG. 3.
FIG. 3.
(Color online) PSD extracted from reading task under different mask conditions. Mean power spectra density displayed between 1 and 10 kHz based on mask type. Shaded areas represent the standard error of mean. *p ≤ 0.05 no mask vs mask type at each frequency bin. Red stars denote significant differences between no mask and N95, blue stars denote significant differences between no mask and surgical masks, while orange stars denote significant differences between no mask and N95.
FIG. 4.
FIG. 4.
(Color online) Guidance on minimizing risk to patients and staff during speech recordings (reproduced with permission from Redenlab Inc.). *Disclaimer: Please be advised that nothing completely eliminates bacteria or viruses and the guidelines contained in this document are measures attempting to limit the spread of a virus. Further, these guidelines do not supersede medical practitioner recommendations or the COVID-19 safety policies implemented by your business or institution. It is your responsibility to follow the recommendations and safety policies applicable to your business or institution.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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