Contribution
Manipulation of Acoustic Properties to Guide Attention in Auditory Augmented Reality
* Presenting author
Abstract:
In virtual environments, particularly in settings like virtual classrooms and multi-party conferencing, where distractions can significantly impair user experience. This paper explores enhancing auditory attention in Auditory Augmented Reality by adjusting acoustic properties to direct listeners' attention. Four methods that manipulate acoustic parameters are introduced: dynamic range compression for roughness, equalization for brightness, distortion for harmonicity, and a novel approach involving Subspace Decomposition of Spatial Room Impulse Responses (SRIRs). The latter method allows for the adjustment of a room's reverberation characteristics by separating the SRIR into direct and residual components, which can then be independently manipulated. A real-time binaural auralization pipeline was implemented to be able to use this method. The methods were evaluated through two listening tests designed to assess their effectiveness in modifying auditory salience. The results demonstrate that manipulating these acoustic parameters can successfully guide auditory attention in virtual environments. Specifically, the tests showed that altering the reverberation characteristics of a room, as well as applying dynamic range compression and equalization, can significantly influence the perceived salience of auditory events. This suggests that these techniques have the potential to enhance the effectiveness of AAR applications by improving focus and reducing distractions in complex auditory scenes.