The Influences of Hearing and Vision on Egocentric Distance and Room Size Perception under Rich-Cue Conditions

Abstract

Artistic renditions are mediated by the performance rooms in which they are staged. The perceived egocentric distance to the artists and the perceived room size are relevant features in this regard. The influences of both the presence and the properties of acoustic and visual environments on these features were investigated. Recordings of music and a speech performance were integrated into direct renderings of six rooms by applying dynamic binaural synthesis and chroma-key compositing. By the use of a linearized extraaural headset and a semi-panoramic stereoscopic projection, the auralized, visualized, and auralized-visualized spatial scenes were presented to test participants who were asked to estimate the egocentric distance and the room size. The mean estimates differed between the acoustic and the visual as well as between the acoustic-visual and the combined single-domain conditions. Geometric estimations in performance rooms relied upon nine-tenths on the visual, and one-tenth on the acoustic properties of the virtualized spatial scenes, but negligibly on their interaction. Structural and material properties of rooms may also influence auditory-visual distance perception.