Patent ID: 8862273

Claim:
A method to manage noise levels by control of operation of noise emitting devices, the method comprising: identifying a desired noise profile of a first area, wherein the first area is proximate to the noise emitting devices; monitoring noise characteristics within the first area to determine if the monitored noise characteristics exceed a limit defined by the identified noise profile; in response to a determination that one or more of the monitored noise characteristics exceed the limit: retrieving device noise profiles associated with each operating mode of the noise emitting devices; estimating noise characteristics of the first area for each operating mode of each of the noise emitting devices using the retrieved device noise profiles; adjusting an operation of at least one of the noise emitting devices to achieve the identified noise profile of the first area based on the estimated noise characteristics of the first area; and in response to a detection of a closed door between the first area and an adjacent second area: determining a new noise profile through a measurement of an acoustic transfer function within the first area; and adjusting the operation of the at least one of the noise emitting devices to achieve the new noise profile.