Applications

The research that is undertaken for this project will have three main application areas. These are discussed below.

Measurement

The major outcome from the project will be a measurement model that predicts the perceived source and environment width of a wide range of stimuli. It is intended that the measurement model will be useful in any situation in which a human listener can make a similar judgement, including natural acoustic signals and artificially created signals.

Application areas

• Auditorium design
• Hi-fi system design
• Home theatre system design
• Microphone technique design
• Audio processing design
• Virtual reality design
• Virtual auditory display design

Synthesis

The knowledge gained from the development of the measurement model will also help to create sounds that have a specific perceived effect, allowing for more precise simulation and greater control of sounds. There are a number of ways in which this information can be used, including the creation of custom test signals for use with the measurement tool, synthesis of artificial signals with tightly controlled perceived results, and synthesis of signals that sound as natural as possible.

Application areas

• Test signal creation for all application areas listed under measurement
• Soundscape design
• Virtual reality design
• Design of artificial natural sounds

Understanding the hearing process

In addition to the two application areas listed above, the research will also contribute to our understanding of the human hearing system. Whilst this may not have any direct application areas, it will contribute to future advances in fields such as hearing aid design, auditory system physiology, psychoacoustics, and neural processing of audio signals.