Dr. Bonnie Schnitta, FASA, Founder and CEO of SoundSense
How long have you been part of the AV/IT industry, and how did you get into it? Please describe the unique area you serve. I began my acoustic engineering business in the 80s after leaving the classified world of signal processing for clients such as DARPA. My focus was high-end residential homes in the Hamptons. I engineered everything from road and mechanical noise reduction and mechanical noise isolation to STC/IIC calculations and reverberation time analysis for large-volume great rooms and home theaters. I was fortunate to have worked with Robert A.M. Stern Architects and other great architects. I loved the challenge of being given a room's design and told to "make it sound as good as it looked." As a young woman, I was often grilled about my capabilities before being allowed to take on a job.
My association with CEDIA began when an architect hired me to engineer walls for a small cottage being converted into a home theater. Because the cottage was near a boundary line, the walls needed to contain the home theater sounds to avoid violating any noise code. At that job, I met with the AV engineer to discuss sound levels and commented that the room's acoustics could and should be improved. He smiled and said, "Thank you, now please convince them." It was a famous designer, so the surface's appearance couldn't change, but I had some acoustic tricks to solve the problem. After that job, I became his go-to for acoustic needs, and he said I should join CEDIA. I did and even taught a couple of classes.
What is your role at your organization? I start my day by reviewing engineering deadlines and talking to my engineers to see if they need any help or if I can assist them by sharing how I solved a similar problem in the past. Sometimes it allows me to explain how and why I invented something (I have over 20 patents). My engineers are smart and experienced, so more often than not, the discussion becomes nothing more than a fun chat. Those are my favorite mornings, since I like to start my day with a laugh.
Article continues belowWhen I started my company, I only did engineering. When I was told that something did not work as well as I had indicated in my report, I went into the field to understand why it underperformed. I found that sometimes materials were swapped for something of little acoustic value, because "it looked just like it," or it was not installed properly. That was when I expanded my company to include a material and installation division. Although my engineers typically do the site inspections, my day can include going into the field to inspect and test an installation.
Although we have a technical editor, I do the final review of outgoing reports. My day can include doing some math to confirm our answer. I always explain this to my engineers, so the longer they are with SoundSense, the rarer it is for me to suggest a possible alternative solution that might be easier to install.
You are a strong mentor to both young women and men. Why is this important to you? I enjoy mentoring, so each year I sponsor a senior engineering (electrical, mechanical, or computer engineering) capstone project. In the past few years, I have sponsored at Tufts University. My day might include looking at their progress and making suggestions. The most recent group of senior engineers is working on further development with a colleague at Harvard Medical to detect bioelectric signal changes when a certain sound signature is played into their headset. This, in turn, can identify certain health conditions, such as cancer or thyroid conditions. Recently, we also noticed a reaction to a sound signature for someone with celiac disease, and we will include that pattern recognition in our next phase.
Each year, I either present a paper at the Acoustical Society's conference or chair a session. I encourage my engineers to think of something that they engineered that was unique or a new approach to solving an acoustic project, and submit a paper to be presented at the conference. One of my recent papers, later published in Acoustics Today, addressed solving noise problems in tall needle buildings. Part of the presentation discussed working with the AV company to coordinate with a sound-making company so that, on very windy days, the speaker system could be used to raise the ambient level. This made the small residual noise often inaudible.
Then, of course, there is client follow-up. By asking questions about noise sensitivity, I have found that certain structure-borne sounds—beyond being an indication of a health condition—are essential to eliminate before the client can truly enjoy the sound from their system.
What do you most like about your role in the industry? Making people's lives better and happier through properly engineered sound and the elimination of unwanted noise. SoundSense has a trademark on this: "The Paradise Effect."
You've got a technical background. Please share a bit about this and what inspired you. My father taught me how to love math, so my first degree was a BS in Math from Purdue. At the end, I realized that my passion for solving math problems was best served as an engineer, so I went back for a master's degree in Mechanical Engineering. I loved vibrations, and after viewing a video on the collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, I wanted to understand and engineer that vibration so it would not have collapsed. Later, I wanted to better understand signal modeling and noise, and pursued my PhD in signal processing. I did everything from geophysical signal processing to underwater acoustics. It was exciting, but when my children were born, I needed better control over my projects and schedule, so I started my own company.
Do you have advice for mothers and fathers of girls to help inspire their daughters in STEM? Yes, help them to understand the basics enough, so they find STEM fun.
You are a strong mentor to both young women and men. Why is this important to you? First and foremost, it is to help them learn how to solve problems by more than one way, so they do not get "stuck" trying to find the answer. Then, I help them stay on schedule. But the most important part is learning about some of the latest technologies with them. It keeps my brain young.
Please share something about yourself that would help our audience better understand you. I had an urge to travel when I was at Purdue, so I did a "Semester at Sea." Purdue said it would not accept the grades but would accept the credits as pass/fail. That allowed me to take courses that had nothing to do with my major, so I took a religion course. We were taught to meditate as we traveled through India and Asia, visiting several places for meditation. That helps me in so many ways, from staying calm amidst chaos to removing the noise in my mind before I solve a math problem.
My son had several ear infections at an early age, and the ENT doctor suggested he learn ballet or karate to help him regain his balance. I did Taekwondo with him. Together, we got our black belts. While learning not to punch back at an opponent but instead to divert that energy, I discovered how to use this concept when men made hurtful comments about me because they either did not understand my mathematical approach or felt threatened.
Three years ago, I was in a car accident. I was stopped at a light in New York City, and a big truck smashed into me from behind, and I got a concussion. After that point, I had severe pain, level-eight headaches that started around 10 o'clock every day. To make a long story short, it was when I started to read that caused the problem. I then used my AV/IT background to develop a system that could read to me, including, of course, the meta-eyeglasses, as well as projections onto the television, which helped me significantly.
Then I started to think about the reason for the disconnect between my right eye and the nerve bundle when I was reading, and perceived it as a problem with the waves arriving out of alignment between my optic nerve and the nerve bundle. I then worked with NYU Langone on their transcranial DC stimulation system to retrain the waves, and that has significantly improved my ability to read. Then, I thought about it further, and now I am getting special glasses to help with that misalignment.
If it weren't for my knowledge base in AV/IT and signal processing, I wouldn't be able to read as I do now.
