An Evaluation of the Requirements of a Tool for Mapping Workplace Soundscapes

McGregor, Iain Peter

Abstract

In a visually biased culture sound becomes taken for granted until it intrudes, this makes many systems designers shy away from sound as a method of communication. We are currently moving away from the notion of an isolated user sitting at a desktop, and are now witnessing the introduction of information appliances with the gradual progression towards invisible computing. If designers are to utilise the potential of augmented soundscapes, then it is important to understand the existing auditory environment and how it is used.

The major drawback to the use of sound at the present moment is that the existing auditory environment is extremely rich, complex and the workings remain largely mysterious. This dissertation reviews multidisciplinary literature on sound to inform the initial requirements of a tool for mapping workplace soundscapes. A number of disciplines have proved extremely useful with regards to illustrating how we perceive our environments through sound.

Cinema successfully creates an artificial soundscape incorporating multiple points of view; an analysis of the techniques employed gives a valuable insight in both how to create auditory environments, as well as how the end viewer perceives such an environment. The traditional approach to understanding how individuals perceive sound is psychoacoustics. This field illustrates how sounds are isolated and processed to enable an understanding of both content and source, in contrast, acoustic ecology concentrates on how to understand the way sound functions rather than its physical properties.

Currently any advanced use of audio within information systems almost always requires the use of headphones, which isolate the user from the soundscape. Before the introduction of additional auditory information into a workplace environment, it is necessary to understand what pre-exists. At present there are two main methods of measuring sound: for noise pollution and architectural acoustics. It is envisioned that the soundscape mapper would build upon these existing techniques which are currently of limited use to systems designers as they treat sound in a physical sense and do not impart any information about how people relate with and through their acoustical environments.

Based on the literature review it is clear than any tool will have to function in a broad range of environments with a wide application base. Not only would it have to map the physical properties of Volume, Pitch, Location and Duration, but more abstract concepts such as information content and amount of attention required. It is important that such a tool gives as rich a picture as possible to do justice to a concept as complex as the soundscape.

If computing is to make the qualitative leap from traditional isolated desktop computing with its emphasis on the visual display, then a complete understanding of how individual’s interact with their soundscape becomes essential. The soundscape mapping tool (SMT) will allow designers to audition soundscapes in order to augment them with systems which will enrich and enliven the sensitive, shared environment.

Citation

McGregor, I. P. An Evaluation of the Requirements of a Tool for Mapping Workplace Soundscapes. (Thesis)

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Oct 15, 2023
• Award Date: 2000