CAREER: Importance of Late-Sound-Field Properties and Listener Envelopment to Room Acoustic Quality and Design

这个教师早期职业发展（CAREER）项目的总体研究目标是调查后期声场声学和感知的整体声学质量（OAQ）在表演艺术场馆之间的关系。后期声场声学对于听众沉浸感（LEV）的感知，即沉浸在声场中的感觉特别重要。然而，目前还没有普遍接受的LEV测量方法。本项目的具体目标是：A）开发LEV的可量化测量，B）探索这种新的LEV测量如何针对不同尺寸的展厅而变化，以及C）确定LEV和其他已建立的房间声学特性对OAQ的相对重要性。该研究将采用两种方法的组合：模拟声场和双耳录音评估的人的科目，并在美国和欧洲的音乐霍尔斯获得了不同大小和OAQ的实验测量。这项工作的结果将提供声学设计和研究社区与一个准确的方法来测量LEV，并将确定相对的重要性LEV OAQ，与广泛接受的室内声学测量相比。这些结果将使音乐表演场地的设计更加有效，并减少昂贵的翻新需求。该项目将增加美国学生参与室内声学研究的人数，并将提供在主要本科院校的研究机会。这些机会将提高本科生，特别是女生的教育质量，也将促进他们的专业发展。小学生将接触到声音的主题，以及女性榜样，与康涅狄格州科学中心的推广计划。此外，独立的声学实验和学习套件将与美国声学学会合作，为中学生科学教育。该奖项的支持是由国际科学与工程办公室的欧洲和美国计划和土木，机械和制造创新司的动力系统工程局提供。

The overall research objective of this Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) project is to investigate the relationship between late-sound-field acoustics and perceived overall acoustic quality (OAQ) in performing arts venues. Late-sound-field acoustics are particularly important to the perception of listener envelopment (LEV), the sense of being immersed in the sound field. However, no universally accepted measure of LEV currently exists. The specific objectives of this project are to: A) Develop a quantifiable measure of LEV, B) Explore how this new LEV measure varies for auditoriums of different sizes, and C) Determine the relative significance of LEV and other established room acoustics characteristics to OAQ. The research will employ a combination of two methods: simulated sound-fields and binaural recordings evaluated by human subjects, and experimental measurements obtained in a total of nine American and European concert halls with varying size and OAQ.The results of this work will provide the acoustical design and research community with an accurate methodology to measure LEV and will determine the relative importance of LEV to OAQ, as compared to well-accepted room acoustics measures. These results will allow for more efficient design of music performance venues and reduce the need for costly renovations. This project will increase the number of US students participating in room acoustics research and will provide research opportunities at a primarily undergraduate institution. These opportunities will improve the quality of the educational experience of undergraduate students, particularly females, and will also promote their professional development. Grade-school students will be exposed to the topic of sound, as well as a female role-model, in conjunction with the Connecticut Science Center's outreach program. In addition, self-contained acoustics experimental and learning kits will be created in collaboration with the Acoustical Society of America for middle-school student science education.Support for the award is being provided by the Office of International Science and Engineering's Europe and the America programs and the Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation Division's Dynamical Systems within the Directorate for Engineering.