Study on Optimal Position and Covering Pressure of Wearable Neck Microphone for Continuous Voice Monitoring

Vocal cord disorder is one of the important health problems, especially in noisy industrial sites where excessive voice is required. A convenient and reliable communication method is required in a noisy environment to prevent the related disorders. However, the signal sensitivity of previous neck microphones is still insufficient to accurately convey the voice. In this study, we developed a skin-attachable neck microphone with a lightweight and flexible form factor. Also, we optimized the attachment position and covering pressure to maximize the signal sensitivity. As a result, we obtained the optimal position near the thyroid cartilage and confirmed that the signal sensitivity is the highest when the covering pressure is approximately 4 mmHg.Clinical Relevance— People can measure the voice status using a wearable neck microphone at the optimal position and covering pressure. It provides a solution to keep the vocal cords in good health even in a noisy environment.