Communication acoustics: spatial sound and psychoacoustics

Our projects are gathered around spatial sound. We have developed, and are still developing, new reproduction methods for spatial sound taking into account the time-frequency-space resolution of the human hearing. These methods are applicable to multi-channel loudspeaker layouts, headphones, and binaural hearing aids. Additionally, we are currently developing new types of non-linear beam-forming algorithms.
To enable the research of perceptually optimised spatial audio methods, we have to know more about the perceptual spatial hearing mechanisms of humans. We study these mechanisms with listening tests and model the brain mechanism devoted to spatial auditory perception. In this context, we are very interested in the perception of spatially complex sound scenes and the binaural perception of timbre.
Furthermore, we research acoustical measurement techniques for spatial sound. Here, the head-related acoustics are of vital importance in spatial hearing research, and we work on new modelling and measurement tools to understand the acoustical effects near the head and in the ear canals.
For this purpose, we must also inspect proper acoustical sources in measurements. Our current topic is the suitability of laser-induced shock waves as massless point sources. They can be applied to acoustical room measurements, and the technique is currently in active development.

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement no 240453. The starting independent research project Technologies and Psychophysics of Spatial Sound (TEPESS) funded by European Research Council runs within the Communication acoustics team.
Group members
Latest publications
Magnitude-Least-Squares Binaural Ambisonic Rendering with Phase Continuation
Test-retest evaluation of a notched-noise test using consumer-grade mobile audioequipment
Effect of sound therapy on whole scalp oscillatory brain activity and distress in chronic tinnitus patients
Augmentation of perceived spatial extent of reverberation in stereophonic listening using elevation filters
A database of near-field head-related transfer functions based on measurements with a laser spark source
Parametric reproduction of microphone array recordings
Spatial Reconstruction-Based Rendering of Microphone Array Room Impulse Responses
Auralization of Measured Room Transitions in Virtual Reality
Perceived difficulty of upwind shouting is a misconception explained by convective attenuation effect
Space-domain cross-pattern coherence post-filter for speech enhancement with linear microphone arrays
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