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Where are we? Evaluating the current rendering fidelity of mobile audio augmented reality systems
(2016)
Mobile audio augmented reality systems (MAARS) simulate virtual audio sources in a physical space via headphones. While 20 years ago, these required expensive sensing and rendering equipment, the necessary technology has become widely available. Smartphones have become capable to run high-fidelity spatial audio rendering algorithms, and modern sensors can provide rich data to the rendering process. Combined, these constitute an inexpensive, powerful platform for audio augmented reality.
We evaluated the practical limitations of currently available off-the-shelf hardware using a voice sample in a lab experiment. State of the art motion sensors provide multiple degrees of freedom, including pitch and roll angles instead of yaw only. Since our rendering algorithm is also capable of including this richer sensor data in terms of source elevation, we also measured its impact on sound localization. Results show that mobile audio augmented reality systems achieve the same horizontal resolution as stationary systems. We found that including pitch and roll angles did not significantly improve the users' localization performance.
Laser cutters are 2D tools, but their speed and compatibility with a variety of affordable materials also makes them a frequent choice to create 3D objects. We propose CutCAD, a tool to easily construct simple 3D objects from 2D faces, inspired by the process of paper modeling and magnetic construction kits. The user creates her 3D model by drawing or loading existing 2D shapes, and connecting their edges in the software. CutCAD then automatically resolves the resulting constraints, and folds the faces up into a 3D model that is previewed live. CutCAD also automatically creates the required finger joints based on thickness of the material and dihedral angles, for smooth assembly. Cutouts are easy to add by importing their outlines as vector drawings, and placing them onto faces. After the faces have been cut, CutCAD provides assembly instructions. Observations and feedback from using CutCAD show the resulting process to be easier to understand than traditional 3D modelling. CutCAD is open-source, and has been downloaded over 2,000 times.
As humans, we have the natural capability of localizing the origin of sounds. Spatial audio rendering leverages this skill by applying special filters to recorded audio to create the impression that a sound emanates from a certain position in the physical space. A main application for spatial audio on mobile devices is to provide non-visual navigation cues. Current systems require users to either listen to artificial beacon sounds, or the entire audio source (e.g., a song) is repositioned in space, which impacts the listening experience. We present NavigaTone, a system that takes advantage of multi-track recordings and provides directional cues by moving a single track in the auditory space. While minimizing the impact of the navigation component on the listening experience, a user study showed that participants could localize sources as good as with stereo panning while the listening experience was rated to be closer to common music listening.
Choosing a seat for traveling can be a complex evaluation of constraints depending on personal preferences. There are websites that help to choose the best seat in a bus, in a train, or on an airplane. However, these recommendations only consider seat-related factors and not the view from the window. While a scenic view rarely influences the decision for a seat on a plane, it is much more important for train rides and especially for scenic bus tours. Therefore, travel website users often discuss which side offers the best view on a specific trip. We propose an algorithm, which decides on which side of the road the view is the most scenic based on Google Street View images. These results can be used by travelers to choose a seat and by scenic tour providers to balance the scenic views between sides or add options during checkout.
Haptic input is a common input method for navigation aids for visual impaired people, leveraging an otherwise unused sensory channel depending on the body region, but building systems with large numbers of vibration motors is rather complex.
For this purpose we developed a system to easily and quickly build systems with largen numbers of vibration motors. With only low requirements on manual skills as well as tools, such wearables with huge numbers of vibration motors can be reproduced, e.g., at a local Fab Lab or Makerspace.
Learning to play the transverse flute is not an easy task, at least not for everyone. Since the flute does not have a reed to resonate, the player must provide a steady, focused stream of air that will cause the flute to resonate and thereby produce sound. In order to achieve this, the player has to be aware of the embouchure position to generate an adequate air jet. For a beginner, this can be a difficult task due to the lack of visual cues or indicators of the air jet and lips position. This paper attempts to address this problem by presenting an augmented flute that can make the gestures related to the embouchure visible and measurable. The augmented flute shows information about the area covered by the lower lip, estimates the lip hole shape based on noise analysis, and it shows graphically the air jet direction. Additionally, the augmented flute provides directional and continuous feedback in real time, based on data acquired by experienced flutists.
This case study presents the design and evaluation of an end-user energy consumption display for an energy+ house. The goal of our application is to give an easy overview over the power balance and to provide the user with the necessary information to understand specific consumption patterns. We defined the unit of Counter Entropy points and used it to create several visualizations showing the consumption of appliances, climate control, and lighting. Our evaluation showed that users easily understand where the currently consumed power is sourced and which factors influence the overall power consumption.
Audio augmented reality systems overlay the physical world with a virtual audio space. Today's smartphones provide enough processing power to create the impression of virtual sound sources being located in the real world. To achieve this, information about the user's location and orientation is necessary which requires additional hardware. In a real-world installation, however, we observed that instead of turning their head to localize sounds, users tend to turn their entire body. Therefore, we suggest to simply measure orientation of the user's body - or even just the mobile device she is holding - to generate the spatial audio.
To verify this approach, we present two studies: Our first study in examines the user's head, body, and mobile device orientation when moving through an audio augmented reality system in a lab setting. Our second study analyzes the user experience in a real-world installation when using head, body, or device orientation to control the audio spatialization. We found that when navigating close to sound sources head tracking is necessary, but that it can potentially be replaced by device tracking in larger or more explorative usage scenarios. These findings help reduce the technical complexity of mobile audio augmented reality systems (MAARS), and enable their wider dissemination as mobile software-only apps.
Although an analog technology, many DJs still value the turntable as an irreplaceable performance tool. Digital vinyl systems combine the distinct haptic nature of the analog turntable with the advantages of digital media. They use special records containing a digital timecode which is then processed by a computer and mapped to properties like playback speed and direction. These records, however, are generic and, in contrast to traditional vinyl, do not provide visual cues representing the structure of the track. We present a system that augments the timecode record with a visualization of song information such as artist, title, and track length, but also with a waveform that allows the DJ to visually navigate to a certain beat. We conducted a survey examining the acceptance of such tools in the DJ community and conducted a user study with professional DJs. The system was widely accepted as a tool in the DJ community and received very positive feedback during observational mixing sessions with four professional DJs.
