An alternative method for reverberation time measurement using compact wireless loudspeakers and optimized short sine sweep pulses

In some building acoustics measurement campaigns, a large number of tests are often required. One of the most common metrics needed is the reverberation time of regular rooms. For practical reasons, many testing teams opt for simple and lightweight equipment to measure reverberation, often using the integrated impulsive method with impulsive sources such as balloons. This study proposes an alternative impulsive source consisting of a small wireless loudspeaker, readily available in many audio electronics stores, which reproduces short sine-swept pulses via a Bluetooth connection. The selection of sweep properties considered key factors such as pulse length, sweep rate, the minimum reverberation time for each frequency band, and the impact of harmonic distortion. The performance of the proposed impulsive source, designed for the direct integrated method, was evaluated in a reverberation room by comparing its results with those obtained using a reference method. The small speaker, powered remotely by a smartphone playing an appropriate pulse, achieved high signal-to-noise ratios, and the reverberation time results were highly consistent with the reference measurements.