Abstract
This paper reports on the types and magnitudes of localization errors of simulated binaural direction cues generated using non-individualized, head-related transfer functions (HRTFs) with different levels of complexity. Four levels of complexity, as represented by the number of non-zero coefficients of the associated HRTF filters (128, 64, 32, 18 non-zero coefficients), were studied. Experiment 1 collected 1728 data runs that were exhaustive combinations of the four levels of complexity, nine simulated directions of sound (no direction (i.e., diotical-mono), 0°, 45°, 90°, 135°, 180°, 225°, 270°, and 315° azimuth angles at 0° elevation), two repetitions, and 24 participants). Binaural cues generated from HRTFs of reduced complexity (from 128 to 18 non-zero coefficients) produced significantly higher localization errors for the directions of 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315° azimuth angles (p < 0.01). From the directions of 0°, 90°, and 270° azimuth angles, the cues produced by HRTFs with reduced complexity did not affect the localization error (p > 0.2). Surprisingly, cues produced by HRTFs of 128 non-zero coefficients did not have the lowest number of errors. From 45°, 135°, 225°, and 315°, the lowest numbers of errors were obtained from cues produced by HRTFs of 64, 32, 32, and 64 non-zero coefficients, respectively. Based on these findings, a prototype virtual headphone-based surround-sound (VHSS) system was developed. A double-blind usability experiment with 32 participants indicated that the prototype VHSS system received significantly better surround-sound ratings than did a DolbyTMstereo system (p < 0.02). This paper reports results from an original ergonomics study and the application of these results to the design of a consumer product.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 695-707 |
Number of pages | 13 |
Journal | Applied Ergonomics |
Volume | 37 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2006 |
Keywords
- Binaural direction cue
- HRTF
- Sound localization
- Spectral complexity
- Virtual surround sound
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Human Factors and Ergonomics
- Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation
- Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
- Engineering (miscellaneous)