New VR Tech Aims to Take Surround-Sound to the Next Level

Spatial audio promises immersive virtual experiences that engage more of the senses

ScientificAmerican.com reports that virtual reality’s goal is to fully immerse a person in a digital landscape, triggering the same kinds of physical and psychological reactions they would experience in the real world. In virtual reality (VR) parlance, this is called “presence”—a mental state in which people recall VR experiences as if they had actually occurred. Computer graphics have improved dramatically in recent years, and advances in haptic, or touch, VR technology are beginning to allow users to feel sensations such as temperature, pressure and vibrations. For VR to really take hold of a person, however, a dynamic soundscape is essential.

One of the most significant developments in VR sound is “spatial audio,” which is designed to mimic the pitch, volume, reverberation level and other audio cues the brain would expect during a real-world experience. “With our hearing we can sense what happens in those directions around us where we cannot see, [such as] car tires screeching behind us, and react—jump out of the way—without the need for visual input,” says Kai Havukainen, senior product manager for audio at Nokia Technologies, which is developing spatial audio technology for some of the company’s devices.

Read more at https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/new-vr-tech-aims-to-take-surround-sound-to-the-next-level/