The development of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) allows advanced interactive participation of citizens in the decision making processes. These participatory processes can be conducted through an innovative technology such as the Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR), as long as this technology is accessible and affordable for citizens. This paper explains the development of an online interactive tool that combines the use of IVR with maps. The tool can be used for the evaluation and monitoring of the spatial changes in the environmental noise appraisals of different areas of the city for future design processes, and will allow to involve a higher number of participants in comparison with laboratory experiments. It is aimed at becoming a collective participatory tool that uses spatial audio and virtual scenarios for a smart soundscape study, with the unique condition that the users have a smartphone and an IVR phone based headset, or the head mounted display Oculus Rift. A preliminary implementation of this tool has been tested in the Naples, using 360◦-video based Immersive Reality and in situ sound registrations with the Ambisonic technique. The outcomes on the citizens’ participation are shown through coloured maps. Laboratory test in the anechoic chamber and on-site interviews have been conducted to compare the results with the ones of the home test and evaluate the validity of the tool. The data analysis show no statistically significant differences between the outcomes of the three modalities of multisensorial experience evaluated for the variables under study.
Interactive Soundscapes: 360◦-Video Based Immersive Virtual Reality in a Tool for the Participatory Acoustic Environment Evaluation of Urban Areas
MAFFEI, Luigi;MASULLO, Massimiliano
2017
Abstract
The development of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) allows advanced interactive participation of citizens in the decision making processes. These participatory processes can be conducted through an innovative technology such as the Immersive Virtual Reality (IVR), as long as this technology is accessible and affordable for citizens. This paper explains the development of an online interactive tool that combines the use of IVR with maps. The tool can be used for the evaluation and monitoring of the spatial changes in the environmental noise appraisals of different areas of the city for future design processes, and will allow to involve a higher number of participants in comparison with laboratory experiments. It is aimed at becoming a collective participatory tool that uses spatial audio and virtual scenarios for a smart soundscape study, with the unique condition that the users have a smartphone and an IVR phone based headset, or the head mounted display Oculus Rift. A preliminary implementation of this tool has been tested in the Naples, using 360◦-video based Immersive Reality and in situ sound registrations with the Ambisonic technique. The outcomes on the citizens’ participation are shown through coloured maps. Laboratory test in the anechoic chamber and on-site interviews have been conducted to compare the results with the ones of the home test and evaluate the validity of the tool. The data analysis show no statistically significant differences between the outcomes of the three modalities of multisensorial experience evaluated for the variables under study.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
