Skip to content
OverCalculator
  1. Home
  2. Health & Fitness
  3. Occupational Noise Criterion Dose Calculator
Health & Fitness

Occupational Noise Criterion Dose Calculator

Calculate occupational noise dose under one selected OSHA or NIOSH criterion while keeping their assumptions separate.

Published

Total noise dose
OSHA criterion dose
50.0%
Criterion time at highest level
16.00 hours
Criterion selected
OSHA 90 dBA / 5 dB exchange
Exposure breakdown
Exposure 1
85.0 dB for 8.0 h50.0% dose

Dose is calculated only under the selected occupational criterion. OSHA and NIOSH results are not interchangeable, and this calculator does not select hearing protection or apply an NRR method.

Standard
Choose between OSHA or NIOSH exposure standards.
Number of exposures
dB
hours

Results update as you type.

This occupational noise estimate is for education only. Workplace exposure assessment, hearing conservation, and PPE decisions should be made by qualified safety or healthcare professionals using appropriate measurements.

Use this page to total one, two, or three occupational noise exposures under one selected criterion. OSHA and NIOSH use different criterion levels and exchange rates, so their percentages must not be mixed or treated as interchangeable.

Entries and criteria

Choose OSHA or NIOSH, select the number of exposures, and enter each level in dB and duration in hours. The starting case is one 85 dB exposure lasting 8 hours. Levels are accepted from 70 to 140 dB and durations from 0.1 to 24 hours.

The allowed time $T$ at level $L$ is:

TOSHA=8×2−(L−90)/5T_{\text{OSHA}}=8\times2^{-(L-90)/5}

TNIOSH=8×2−(L−85)/3T_{\text{NIOSH}}=8\times2^{-(L-85)/3}

Each exposure contributes:

dose contribution=100×durationT\text{dose contribution}=100\times\frac{\text{duration}}{T}

Contributions are added for the selected exposures. The result also reports criterion time at the highest entered level.

Worked criterion comparison

Under OSHA, the allowed time at 85 dB is:

8×2−(85−90)/5=16 hours8\times2^{-(85-90)/5}=16\text{ hours}

An 8-hour exposure therefore contributes $100(8/16)=50%$, shown as 50.0%, with 16.00 hours as the criterion time. Under NIOSH, the allowed time at 85 dB is 8 hours, so the same entered exposure is shown as 100.0% with 8.00 hours criterion time.

This side-by-side arithmetic demonstrates why the selected criterion must travel with the percentage. It does not determine which legal program applies.

Exposure-review checklist

  1. Use calibrated, task-representative level and duration measurements.
  2. Split materially different levels into separate entries.
  3. Confirm the applicable workplace criterion before interpreting dose.
  4. Keep the standard, every level, every duration, and the resulting percentage in the same record.
  5. Escalate hearing-conservation and protective-equipment decisions to a qualified safety professional; this page does not select hearing protection or apply a noise-reduction-rating method.

Variable, impulsive, and non-occupational noise can require methods not represented here. A few entered periods may not represent a full shift or changing exposure pattern.

Sources

Related calculators

mcg to mL conversionConvert micrograms to milliliters only when concentration is known, using mcg to mg and mg per mL arithmetic with medical dosing cautions.mg to mL CalculatorConvert milligrams to milliliters from a required mg/mL concentration, with medication-label examples and concentration-dependent safety notes.2020 Vision CalculatorReview lifestyle inputs linked with eye health education, see the exact activity, diet, and smoking score logic, and learn the limits of this vision risk flag.4Ts Score CalculatorEstimate 4Ts pretest probability for heparin-induced thrombocytopenia by summing thrombocytopenia, timing, thrombosis, and other-cause scores.6 Minute Walk Test CalculatorCompare six-minute walk distance with sex-specific predicted values, lower limits, and percentage expected using the equations in the calculator form.Ankle-Brachial Index (ABI) CalculatorCalculate ankle-brachial index from arm and ankle systolic pressures, with lower-ABI interpretation, PAD context, limitations, and medical disclaimer.

Occupational Noise Criterion Dose Calculator updated at