Noise-cancelling headphones

Noise-cancelling headphones are headphones that suppress unwanted ambient sounds using active noise control (ANC).

Noise-cancelling headphones alongside a carry case

Active noise cancellation makes it possible to listen to audio content without raising the volume excessively. In an aviation environment, noise-cancelling headphones increase the signal-to-noise ratio significantly more than passive noise attenuating headphones or no headphones, making hearing important information such as safety announcements easier.^[1] Noise-cancelling headphones can improve listening enough to completely offset the effect of a distracting concurrent activity.^[2]

Theory

Simplified graphical depiction of active noise reduction

To cancel the lower-frequency portions of the noise, noise-cancelling headphones use active noise control. A microphone captures the targeted ambient sounds, and a small amplifier generates sound waves that are exactly out of phase with the undesired sounds. When the sound pressure of the noise wave is high, the cancelling wave is low (and vice versa). The opposite sound waves collide and are eliminated or "cancelled" (destructive interference). Most noise-cancelling headsets in the consumer market generate the noise-cancelling waveform in real time with analog technology. In contrast, other active noise and vibration control products use soft real-time digital processing. According to an experiment conducted to test how lightweight earphones reduced noise as compared to commercial headphones and earphones, lightweight headphones achieved better noise reduction than normal headphones. The experiment also supported that in-ear headphones worked better at reducing noise than outer-ear headphones.^[3]

Cancellation focuses on constant droning sounds like road noise and is less effective on short/sharp sounds like voices or breaking glass. It also is ineffective in eliminating higher frequency noises like the sound of spraying. Noise-cancelling headphones often combine sound isolation with ANC to maximize the sound reduction across the frequency spectrum. Noise cancellation can also be used without sound isolation to make wanted sounds (such as voices) easier to hear. Noise cancellation to eliminate ambient noise is never passive because of the circuitry required, so references to passive noise cancellation actually are referring to products featuring sound isolation.

To prevent higher-frequency noise from reaching the ear, most noise-cancelling headphones depend on sound isolation or soundproofing. Higher-frequency sound has a shorter wavelength, and cancelling this sound would require locating devices to detect and counteract it closer to the listener's eardrum than is currently technically feasible or would require digital algorithms that would complicate the headphone's electronics.^[4]

Noise-cancelling headphones specify the amount of noise they can cancel in terms of decibels. This number may be useful for comparing products but does not tell the whole story, as it does not specify noise reduction at various frequencies.

In aviation

By the 1950s, Lawrence J. Fogel created systems and submitted patents regarding active noise cancellation in the field of aviation. This system was designed to reduce noise for the pilots in the cockpit area and help make their communication easier and protect hearing. Fogel is considered to be the inventor of active noise cancellation, and he designed one of the first noise-cancelling headphones systems. Later on, Willard Meeker designed an active noise control model that was applied to circumaural earmuffs for advanced hearing protection. Noise-cancelling aviation headsets are now commonly available.^[5][6]

In 1984, German audio equipment manufacturer Sennheiser was asked by Lufthansa Airlines, a German airline company, to develop a pilot headset which could reduce the hearing loss, stress, and interference associated with the constant noise of aviation cockpits.^[7] In response, Sennheiser developed its patented NoiseGard technology, a flagship ANC software of its time. In 1987, the Sennheiser LHM-45 headset launched, and was the first ANC headset to obtain U.S. Federal Aviation Association's (FAA) Technical Standard Orders (TSO) certification to authorize mass-manufacturing for American aviation markets.^[7]

By 1989, Bose introduced its Aviation Headset Series I, which is claimed as the first commercially available ANC headset, although dates of commercial availability are disputed between 1986 and 1989.^[8][9] On the first flight to navigate the entire globe without refueling, pilots Jeana Yeager and Dick Rutan wore prototype ANC headsets for pilots developed by Bose in 1986.^[10]

Several airlines provide noise-cancelling headphones in their business and first-class cabins. Bose started supplying American Airlines with noise-cancelling headphones in 1999 and started offering the "Quiet Comfort" line for the general consumer in 2000.^[8]

Sensory protection

Aside from its role in communication and occupational health, ANC is used to protect wearers from lower levels of noise that still impact people sensitive to noise.

Noise-cancellation headphones have been used as sleeping aids.^[11] Both passive isolating and active noise-cancellation headphones or earplugs help to achieve a reduction of ambient sounds, which is particularly helpful for people suffering from insomnia or other sleeping disorders, for whom sounds such as cars honking and snoring impact their ability to sleep. For that reason, noise-cancelling sleep headphones and earplugs are designed to cater to this segment of patients.^[12]

Noise-cancelling headphones have been provided for patients in intensive care units to reduce the noise exposure they face while in a hospital environment. Active noise control technology has been shown to reduce noise exposure, which is associated with sleep disturbance, delirium, and morbidity.^[13]

Many neurodivergent people, particularly autistic people or people with ADHD, are sensitive to everyday noises, and benefit from using ANC.^[14] A December 2016 study from the Hong Kong Journal of Occupational Therapy found that noise-cancellation headphones helped children with autism spectrum disorder cope with behaviors related to hyper-reactivity and auditory stimuli.^[15]

Health and safety

See also: Headphones § Health and safety

There is a general danger that listening to loud music in headphones can distract the listener and lead to injury and accidents.^[16][17] Noise-cancelling headphones add extra risk. Several countries and states have made it illegal to wear headphones while driving or cycling.^[18]

It is not uncommon to get a pressure-like feeling when using noise-cancelling headphones initially. This is caused by the lack of low-frequency sounds being perceived as a pressure differential between the inner and outer ear.^[19][20][21]

Drawbacks

The active noise control requires power, usually supplied by a USB port or a battery that must occasionally be replaced or recharged. Without power, some models do not function as regular headphones. Any battery and additional electronics may increase the size and weight of the headphones compared to regular headphones. The noise-cancelling circuitry may reduce audio quality and add high-frequency hiss, although reducing the noise may result in higher perceived audio quality.^[22]

See also

• Active vibration control
• Noise-canceling microphone
• Passive noise-cancelling headphones
• Throat microphone