USER-SPECIFIC AUDIO RENDERING AND STEERABLE SOUND FOR DISTRIBUTED VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS

We present a method for user-specific audio rendering of a virtual environment that is shared by multiple participants. The technique differs from methods such as amplitude differencing, HRTF filtering, and wave field synthesis. Instead we model virtual microphones within the 3-D scene, each of which captures audio to be rendered to a loudspeaker. Spatialization of sound sources is accomplished via acoustic physical modelling, yet our approach also allows for localized signal processing within the scene. In order to control the flow of sound within the scene, the user has the ability to steer audio in specific directions. This paradigm leads to many novel applications where groups of individuals can share one continuous interactive sonic space. [Keywords: multi-user, spatialization, 3-D arrangement of DSP, steerable audio] 1

A spatial interface for audio and music production

In an effort to find a better suited interface for musical performance, a novel approach has been discovered and developed. At the heart of this approach is the concept of physical interaction with sound in space, where sound processing occurs at various 3-D locations and sending sound signals from one area to another is based on physical models of sound propagation. The control is based on a gestural vocabulary that is familiar to users, involving natural spatial interaction such as translating, rotating, and pointing in 3-D. This research presents a framework to deal with realtime control of 3-D audio, and describes how to construct audio scenes to accomplish various musical tasks. The generality and effectiveness of this approach has enabled us to re-implement several conventional applications, with the benefit of a substantially more powerful interface, and has further led to the conceptualization of several novel applications. 1