ANALYSIS OF THE ACOUSTIC RESPONSE OF DIFFERENT STONE PAVING FOR BLIND PEOPLE

The paper reports the preliminary results of a research aimed to verify the acoustic contrast between the responses of different materials used in the paving of routes for blind people. Two kinds of problems were analyzed: the contrast between global level of equivalent sound pressure levels and the contrast in frequency composition of the impact sound. In both cases, the sound signal was generated by the impact of a blind stick in the stone paving. Sound signals were normalized fixing the way of falling of the stick and the measurement procedure. Eleven kinds of paving (natural and artificial stones, asphalt, wood), with different surface finishing (smooth, scored, etc.) were analyzed. Results, here presented in the form of matrix with contrasts classified in low, medium and high, were used to realize some prototype paths for blinds were acoustic contrast is of primary importance.