Binaural Hearing Effects of Mapping Microphone Array's Responses to a Listener's Head-Related Transfer Functions

This thesis focuses on the mapping of the microphone array’s response to match the characteristics of a human subject’s Head-Related Transfer Function (HRTF). The mapping of the response is first explored with a ‘monaural HRTF matching’ that filters the response independent of the arrival angles. For arbitrary array geometry with the listener external to the acoustic, the monaural HRTF matching did not provide listeners with enough spatial information to precisely localize sound sources. To correct this, a preprocessor control algorithm was added to the HRTF matching, a ‘binaural HRTF matching’ process. The binaural HRTF matching increased the listeners’ performance in perceiving the location of a sound source. With the addition of simulated head movement, the listeners’ perception increased by 20%. An issue with this approach is the use of HRTFs other than the listeners’ measured HRTF, creating a psychoacoustic based error in localization, i.e., front/back confusion.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Mechanical Engineering

Department dc:contributor.department

Mechanical Engineering

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Tech

Year dc:date.issued

2011

Author dc:creator

• Hughet, James

Chair dc:contributor.committeechair

• Roan, Michael J.

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Burdisso, Ricardo A.
• Papenfuss, Cory M.

• Binaural Hearing
• HRTF Matching
• Array Processing
• Listener Test
• Head-Movement
• Transplant Hearing

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Dc Identifier Other

etd-10112011-224056

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/35361