Apple just got granted a new patent for virtual audio. What it does is, it simulates sound from anywhere in the room. Around one month ago this patent was granted for special headphones. This patent was however for built-in MacBook speakers. This might be a sign that we can expect more apple products in the future with this technology.
It might sound rather simple and unimpressive at first thought, but if you think about how watching TV for example might change, it is simply awesome. Imagine you are watching a horror movie and you suddenly hear steps behind you. If that doesn’t get your feet tickling then I don’t know what will. E-sports are getting more and more popular as well, and in a lot of games hearing the steps or other sounds of the enemy are a crucial factor to win the game. Therefore games can become more realistic and exciting.
Furthermore, I don’t believe this only brings benefits to the entertainment sector, it might also be useful for certain jobs as well.
Let’s say we have created a remote controlled robot which helps fire fighters to rescue people from burning buildings, when somebody is trapped under a collapsed house, etc. hearing the person calling for help is useful, but it can take hours to actually locate where the person is shouting from. Through this technology the person could be located and helped quicker and more efficiently.
The same applies if we have remote controlled cars or trucks. Besides seeing through cameras what is going on it is still vital to hear, for example where sirens are coming from, in order to make space for the police or an ambulance, etc.I believe it is a great invention and in the future it will be very useful to make people feel that
Let’s say we have created a remote controlled robot which helps fire fighters to rescue people from burning buildings, when somebody is trapped under a collapsed house, etc. hearing the person calling for help is useful, but it can take hours to actually locate where the person is shouting from. Through this technology the person could be located and helped quicker and more efficiently.
The same applies if we have remote controlled cars or trucks. Besides seeing through cameras what is going on it is still vital to hear, for example where sirens are coming from, in order to make space for the police or an ambulance, etc.I believe it is a great invention and in the future it will be very useful to make people feel that
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they are actually present, whether it’s for entertainment or to save lives without risking their own.The system works through cross talk cancelling, making users feel/hear that the sounds are coming from a different place than from the speaker itself. According to Patently Apple this allows signals to contain “spatial cues” positioning the sound virtually in the room you are in. The sound waves are sent in different angles to create this illusion.
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https://www.theverge.com/2019/12/31/21044677/apple-spatial-audio-macbook-pro-patent-ar-applications
0https://edition.cnn.com/2020/01/02/tech/apple-macbooks-sound-patent/index.html
Wow that is a huge improvement even for casual playing games or just listening to music. Furthermore possibilities to use it in various industires like army training or help for police or firefighters are endless. It seem very useful.