Facebook’s AR/VR division has recently released a sneak peek for their upcoming AR glasses, and this facility which is now known as Facebook Reality Labs is all set to include some advanced auditory features to provide a much enhanced, and more immersive user experience in the alternate/virtual reality world.
The researchers at Facebook Reality Labs have made some interesting claims. They say that they aim to improve users’ sense of presence in AR and VR, engulfing them and involving them completely, while also to give them the capability to block unnecessary noise and amplify the sound they want to hear whether it is someone speaking to them in a room full of various noises, or it is some particular music in a room full of different sounds. While the preferred sound will be amplified, the background noise will all be canceled. The amplification of the users’ preferred sound will be made through some unique microphones.
The Chief Scientist of FRL Research Michael Abrash claims that this is going to be a life-altering experience because it is something that people have not experienced before in an AR/VR headset.
The Auditory Perception Lead Owen Brimijoin goes as far as thinking of this enhanced auditory experience with AR glasses as nothing short of magic! And like how magic is often construed as whimsical and unreal, this experience is most likely going to bring those feelings for people when they will get their hands on it. The magic actually lies in the technology which will make audio that is delivered over headphones completely indistinguishable from something happening in the surroundings- more like the user will not find any difference between real sound and a virtual sound. This will make telepresence much closer to reality. This technology of using spatial or 3D audio is already being used by Facebook to improve the immersive quality in its VR headsets. But to bring it to AR glasses, the researchers think that a lot more work needs to be done. For that, they are using the photographs and videos of different people’s ears to make personalized spatial audio.
These AR glasses will give the users ability to hear other people better in a social setting since it can block all other irrelevant noises, but on the other hand, this same feature of preferred sound amplification can raise a lot of security and privacy concerns too. So, these researchers are researching on how to minimize this issue and how to bring the maximum benefits out of these unique AR glasses.
Read next: Facebook is bringing an updated content censorship term for its users from October 1st
The researchers at Facebook Reality Labs have made some interesting claims. They say that they aim to improve users’ sense of presence in AR and VR, engulfing them and involving them completely, while also to give them the capability to block unnecessary noise and amplify the sound they want to hear whether it is someone speaking to them in a room full of various noises, or it is some particular music in a room full of different sounds. While the preferred sound will be amplified, the background noise will all be canceled. The amplification of the users’ preferred sound will be made through some unique microphones.
The Chief Scientist of FRL Research Michael Abrash claims that this is going to be a life-altering experience because it is something that people have not experienced before in an AR/VR headset.
The Auditory Perception Lead Owen Brimijoin goes as far as thinking of this enhanced auditory experience with AR glasses as nothing short of magic! And like how magic is often construed as whimsical and unreal, this experience is most likely going to bring those feelings for people when they will get their hands on it. The magic actually lies in the technology which will make audio that is delivered over headphones completely indistinguishable from something happening in the surroundings- more like the user will not find any difference between real sound and a virtual sound. This will make telepresence much closer to reality. This technology of using spatial or 3D audio is already being used by Facebook to improve the immersive quality in its VR headsets. But to bring it to AR glasses, the researchers think that a lot more work needs to be done. For that, they are using the photographs and videos of different people’s ears to make personalized spatial audio.
These AR glasses will give the users ability to hear other people better in a social setting since it can block all other irrelevant noises, but on the other hand, this same feature of preferred sound amplification can raise a lot of security and privacy concerns too. So, these researchers are researching on how to minimize this issue and how to bring the maximum benefits out of these unique AR glasses.
Read next: Facebook is bringing an updated content censorship term for its users from October 1st
