Factors influencing auditory localization by moving listeners

Abstract

Previous results have shown that observers who are walking at a constant pace on a treadmill are able to localize continuous sound sources and acquire and identify audiovisual targets more quickly than observers who are standing on a stationary platform, with no apparent loss in accuracy. In order to better understand the conditions where self-motion might enhance localization performance, a follow-on experiment was conducted that measured localization accuracy with sounds of three different durations (250 ms, 1000 ms, and continuous) under four different movement conditions (standing on a stationary platform, standing on a moving platform, walking on a treadmill at a self-paced rate, and walking on a treadmill at a constant rate). Localization accuracy was also measured both standing and walking when spatial cues were degraded by the use of a hearing protection device. As expected, the results suggest that short sounds are localized less accurately than long-duration sounds. However, preliminary results also suggest that walking at a constant pace may provide a greater benefit for localization than self-paced walking. The results are discussed in terms of the possible dynamic localization cues listeners might have access to when they are moving relative to the location of a distant sound source. [Work supported by MRMC Grant W81XWH-12-2-0068; The opinions presented are the private views of the authors and are not to be construed as official or as necessarily reflecting the views of the Department of Defense.]