Auditory space perception during self-motion

Abstract

Spatial information inputted to the auditory periphery dramatically changes with a listener’s body movements relative to the sound source. Nevertheless, listeners can perceive a stable auditory environment and react appropriately to the sound source. This suggests that the spatial information is reinterpreted in the brain by being integrated with information regarding movement, while it is well known that the motion itself sometimes negatively affects sound localization acuity. We have focused on how people perceive auditory space during movement. A linear-motor-driven chair and a spinning chair were installed in an anechoic room to provide linear and rotatory motion, respectively. The results revealed that the perceived sound position during linear self-motion was displaced compared with the physical sound position. This displacement was observed regardless of the self-motion direction and the inputted sensory information which induces self-motion. Such degradation of sound localization acuity was also o...