Auditory Feedback for Navigation with Echoes in Virtual Environments: Training Procedure and Orientation Strategies

Being able to hear objects in an environment, for example using echolocation, is a challenging task. The main goal of the current work is to use virtual environments (VEs) to train novice users to navigate using echolocation. Previous studies have shown that musicians are able to differentiate sound pulses from reflections. This paper presents design patterns for VE simulators for both training and testing procedures, while classifying users' navigation strategies in the VE. Moreover, the paper presents features that increase users' performance in VEs. We report the findings of two user studies: a pilot test that helped improve the sonic interaction design, and a primary study exposing participants to a spatial orientation task during four conditions which were early reflections (RF), late reverberation (RV), early reflections-reverberation (RR) and visual stimuli (V). The latter study allowed us to identify navigation strategies among the users. Some users (10/26) reported an ability to create spatial cognitive maps during the test with auditory echoes, which may explain why this group performed better than the remaining participants in the RR condition.

1 Introduction

In the seminal 1974 paper ‘What Is it Like to Be a Bat?’ [32], Nagel used the alien and ineffable mental life of bats to question common held views about what it means to be conscious. While we may never fully understand the subjective experience of bats, virtual reality (VR) might be able to provide users with a glimpse of what it is like to be a bat. Moreover, a particular feature of bats' perceptual system has proven to have many applications; namely echolocation. Echolocation has for example been applied for military purposes (e.g., radar for boats and planes), in robotics [6], and assistive technologies, where it potentially enables people with visual disabilities to localize objects, orient themselves, and navigate environments [44], [53]. It is meaningful to draw inspiration from bats when creating new echolocation technologies; it is also essential to establish the correct design patterns within audio-visual frameworks for virtual environments (VEs).