Effects of Acoustic Transparency of Wearable Audio Devices on Audio AR

The provision of audio augmented reality (AAR) experiences is becoming more widespread.In this study, to investigate the influence of device design on AAR experience from the perspective of acoustic transparency, physical and subjective evaluations were conducted using five devices with different shapes and transparency modes.In the subjective evaluation, perceived transparency, impressions of real-world sound, and subjective impressions of AAR experience when wearing each device were evaluated for two distinct content types.We found that device design can potentially influence impressions of real-world sound, such as auditory source width, listener envelopment and punch, and subjective impressions during AAR experience.Devices with high transparency were more likely to draw attention to real-world sounds when users were experiencing AAR, and the experience was evaluated as enjoyable and natural.Two demonstration experiments showed that adding virtual sounds by open-ear earphones to real contents can provide acoustic effects such as distance enhancement.