Annika Neidhardt: Audio systems for augmented and extended reality – promising technological approaches
When: Wednesday 30th October @ 5:15 PM
Where: The Atrium (G.10), Alison House, 12 Nicholson Sq, University of Edinburgh
Title: Audio systems for augmented and extended reality – promising technological approaches
Speakers: Annika Neidhardt (University of Surrey)
Abstract
Systems for Augmented and Extended Reality (AR/XR) aim at rendering virtual content into the user’s natural environment or seemingly modify the properties of the actual environment. A future vision, for example, is to replace a person’s speech with the same text spoken in foreign language, or offering users more control over which parts of the actual environment they want to hear. Such ideas require analysing the natural acoustic environment and render the contents accordingly in the best case without any noticeable delay. Achieving high physical accuracy of the simulated content, remains challenging under these circumstances. How accurately does it need to be?
What happens, if we want to create fantasy contents, for which there is no real reference?
The expectations and perceptual require a lot on the specific content and application.
How can we make use of that? Is there maybe a simple technical solution?
This presentation will discuss different technical approaches that seem very promising.
Annika has been a researcher in Spatial Audio and Virtual Acoustics for more than 10 years and is currently a Senior Research Fellow in Immersive Audio at the Institute of Sound Recording at the University of Surrey. After working 3 years in the audio industry, Annika started pursuing her research ideas in 2013 at Technische Universität Ilmenau in Germany and has not stopped ever since. She completed her PhD on the plausibility of simplified room acoustic representations in position-dynamic binaural audio reproduction with Karlheinz Brandenburg and her research has contributed to starting the company Brandenburg Labs. She is interested in the audio technology for Virtual, Augmented, and Mixed Reality and its efficient application. Perceptual matching of room acoustics, headphone transparency, perceptual optimisation of (room) acoustic models and the design of technical systems are part of her research. Currently, Annika is chairing the Technical Committee on Virtual Acoustic of the German Acoustics Society. Furthermore, she is Vice-Chair of the TC Spatial Audio of the Audio Engineering Society. In Surrey, she has joined the research team in room acoustics modelling and immersive audio and continues to explore efficient methods for creating convincing spatial auditory illusions.