Audio Technology and Virtual Acoustics
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Audio Technology and Virtual Acoustics
Audio Technology and Virtual Acoustics
Audio reproduction technology is present in many places in our daily life. The area encompasses the full chain from recording to reproduction in for example, telephony, public address systems, and music reproduction in home entertainment systems.
Our focus is on the authentic reproduction of acoustical environments and of recorded acoustic scenes. For this we are particularly interested in understanding the perceptual factors involved in the problem of an authentic reproduction. Specific themes of interest are spatial perception in rooms, sound coloration in audio reproduction systems, and the perceptual compensation for the acoustics of the reproduction environment.
Our research encompasses the study of room acoustical perception by means of psychoacoustic experiment and the development of perceptually motivated prediction models. Based on this knowledge we develop new methods for the authentic reproduction of acoustical environments and of recorded acoustic scenes. One major development is a fast and perceptually plausible room acoustics simulator RAZR.
Current Projects
Audio reproduction in non-optimal acoustical environments (HAPPAA, Project C2, SFB 1330)
Audio content is commonly reproduced over loudspeakers in reverberant and noisy environments. This often leads to non-optimal reproduction conditions. Impairments can both be with respect to the spatial and timbre fidelity of the reproduction as well as with respect to speech intelligibility. This project will focus on robust methods for compensating for the non-optimal acoustical conditions and hearing capabilities of the listeners that can be applied in multiple scenarios.
ESR 4 - Scalable immersive audio reproduction for higher-order ambisonics and channel-based audio content (SOUNDS, European Training Network)
Existing audio formats have predominantly been channel based which limits the scalability of the reproduction towards different loudspeaker set-ups. With the introduction of scene based descriptions using higher-order ambisonics and/or audio objects, as well as advanced remixing technology, the scalable and immersive reproduction of audio is within reach. Two important challenges still remain. The large existing base of channel-based audio content should be converted to the scalable immersive sound reproduction. For this advanced model-based signal-decomposition methods need to be developed which allow the parametric spatial analysis of audio content and allows primary and ambient component extraction. Secondly, for true immersive audio reproduction to be rolled out in practical room-acoustical conditions, robust acoustic compensation of the reproduction room will be developed based on optimizing perceptual metrics.
DFG SPP 2236 Priority Program)
Auditory distance perception (ADP) is an important part of spatial awareness and of key importance for evaluating and avoiding potential threats. The goal of this project is to gain a better understanding of static and dynamic ADP and their role in spatial awareness and navigation. We will investigate the effect and interaction of the three factors, familiarity with the acoustic environment, emotional valance of the source, and visual information for ADP.
DFG SPP 2236 Priority Program)
Interactive Virtual Environments (iVEs) provide new possibilities to study human perception and social cognitive processing in complex scenes, thereby opening new research perspectives. Social cognition is one very prominent field of research where iVEs can help to advance experimental paradigms and to understand the complex process of social interactions. Therefore, we investigate the impact of the audio rendering on selected cognitive processes relevant for the field and specifically for the investigation and treatment of social anxiety.
Completed Projects
Models of room acoustical perception
Subproject of the DFG Research Group SEACEN
The aim of this project is to understand how physical room acoustical parameters influence perceived room acoustical attributes.
Audio Playback
Subproject of the DFG Research Group Individualized Hearing Acoustics
Perceptual optimization of the sound presentation in spatially distributed loudspeakers.
Simulation of room acoustics
Subproject of the DFG Research Group Individualized Hearing Acoustics
In this project room acoustical simulation methods are developed that are of low computational complexity, but which provide a perceptually authentic simulation.
Researchers
- Timm-Jonas Bäumer
- James Brooks-Park
- Ali Fallah
- Siegfried Gündert
- Felix Stärz