A Quantitative and Qualitative Experimental Framework for the Evaluation of Urban Soundscapes: Application to the City of Sidi Bou Saïd

Abstract

This research introduces an experimental framework based on 3D acoustic and psycho-acoustic sensors supplemented with ambisonics and sound morphological analysis, whose objective is to study urban soundscapes. A questionnaire that highlights the differences between what has been measured and what has been perceiveSd by humans complements the quantitative approach with a qualitative evaluation. The comparison of the measurements with the questionnaire provides a global vision of the perception of these soundscapes, as well as differences and similarities. The approach is experimented within the historical center of the Tunisian city of Sidi Bou Saïd, demonstrating that from a range of complementary protocols, a soundscape environment can be qualified. This framework provides an additional dimension to urban planning studies.

Keywords

• environmental acoustics
• urban heritage
• soundscape
• psychoacoustics