AUDIO SPOTLIGHTING

AUDIO SPOTLIGHTING

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1. ABSTRACT

Audio spot lighting is a very recent technology that creates focused beams of sound
similar to light beams coming out of a flashlight. By ‘shining’ sound to one
location, specific listeners can be targeted with sound without others nearby
hearing it. It uses a non-linear acoustics for its working. But it is real and is
better than any conventional loud speaker. This acoustic device comprises a
speaker that fires inaudible ultrasound pulses with very small wavelength which
act in a manner very similar to that of a narrow column. The ultrasound beam acts as
an airborne speaker. Holosonic Research Labs invented the AudioSpotlight that is
made of a sound processor, an amplifier and the transducer. This use ultrasound
based solutions to beam sound into a focused beam. Audio spotlight can be either
directed at a particular listener or to a point where it is reflected. The targeted
or directed audio technology is going to a attain a huge commercial market in
entertainment and consumer electronics and technology. Being the most recent and
dramatic change in the way we perceive sound, audio spot light technology can do
many miracles in various fields like, Home theatre audio system, Navy and military
applications, museum displays etc.Thus audio spotlighting helps us to control where
sound comes from and where it goes.

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2. INTRODUCTION

Hi-fi speakers from piezoelectric tweeters to various kinds of mid range speakers and
woofers which generally rely on circuit ant enclosures to produce quality
sound,whether it dynamic , electrostatic or some other transducer based design
engineers have struggled nearly for a century to produce a speaker design with the
ideal 20Hz-20KHz capability of human hearing and also produce a narrow beam of
audible sound.

RECENT TECHNOLOGY

Audio spotlighting is a very recent technology that creates focused beam of sound
similar to light beam coming out of a flash light. Specific listeners can be targeted
with sound without others nearby hearing it i.e. to focus into a coherent and highly
directional beam.it makes use of non-linearity of air.The audio spotlighting developed
by American corporation uses ultrasonic energy to create extremely narrow beam of
sound that behave like of light. Audio spotlighting exploits the property of no-
linearity of air. A device know as parametric array employs the non linearity of the air
to create audible by products from inaudible ultrasound, resulting in extremely
directive and beam like sound.This source can projected about an area much like a
spotlight and creates an actual specialized sound distant from a transducer. The
ultrasound column act as a airborn speakers,and as the beam moves through the air
gradual distortion takes place in a predictable way.This gives rise to audible
components that can be accurately predicated and precisely controlled.

The regular loudspeakers produce sound by directly moving the air molecules. The
audible potions of sound tends to spread out in all directions from the point of
origin.They do not travel as narrow beams.In fact the beam angle of audible sound is
very wide just about 360 degree.This effectively means of sound you hear will be
propagated through the air equally in all directions.Conventional loudspeakers suffer
from amplitude distortion,harmonics distortion,inter-modulation distortion,phase
distortion,crossover distortion etc..Some aspects of their mechanical aspects are
mass,magnetic structure, enclosure design and cone construction.

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In order to focus sound into a narrow beam,you need to maintain low beam angle and
hence, more focused sound.The beam angle is also depeds on apeature size of
speaker.A large loudspeaker will focus the sound over a smaller area.If the source
loud speaker can be made several times bigger than the wavelength of the sound
transmitted then a finely focused beam can be created. The problem here is that this is
not a very pratical solution,thus the low beam angle can be achieved only by making
the wavelength smaller and this can be achieved by making use of ultrasonic sound.as
shown in fig 1

FIG 1 :F.JOSEPH POMPEI AT THE MIT LAB. PROPAGATION OF SOUND

BEAM FROM AUDIO SPOTLIGHTING DEVICE._

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3. TECHNOLOGY OVERVIEW

3.1 HISTORY

The technology of using nonlinear interaction of high frequency waves to generate

low frequency waves was originally pioneered by researchers developing underwater
sonar tech. in1960.In 1975 an article cited on nonlinearity of air.Over the next two
decades, several large companies including Panasonic and Ricoh attempted to develop
a loudspeaker using this principle.They were successful in producing some sort of
sound but with the higher level of distortion(>50%).In 1990 Woody Norris a Radar
technician solved the parametric problems of this technology.

3.2 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL AND AUDIO

SPOTLIGHTING

Audio spotlighting works by emitting harmless high frequency ultrasonic tones that
human here cannot here. It uses ultrasonic energy to create extremely narrow beam of
sound that behave like beam of light.Ultrasonic sound is that sound which have very
small wavelength-in the millimeter range.These tones make useof non linearity
property of air to produce new tones that are within the range of human hearing which
results in audible sound.The sound is created indirectly in air by down converting the
ultrasonic energy into the frequency spectrum we can here.

In an audio spotlighting sound system there are no voice coils,cones or enclosures.The

result is Sound with a potential purity and fidelity we attined never before.Sound
quality is no longer tied to speaker size.This sound system holds the promise of
replacing conventional speaker in home,movie theaters and automobile-everywhere.

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FIG 2: CONVENTIONAL SPEAKERS

FIG 3: AUDIO SPOTLIGHTING

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4. RANGE OF HEARING
The human ear is sensitive to frequency rangefrom 20 Hz to 20KHz.If the range of
human hearing as a percentage of shift from the lowest audible frequency to the
highest it spans a range of 100,000 percentage.No single loudspeaker element can
operate efficiently over such a wide range of frequency.

Using this technology it is possible to design a perfect transducer which can be work
over a with range of frequency which is audible to human hear.

FIG 4: RANGE OF HEARING

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5. WORKING
The original low frequency sound sound wave such a human speech or a music is
applied into an audio spotlight emitter device.This low frequency signal is frequency
modulated with ultrasonic ranging from 21kHz-28KHz.The output of the modulator
will be the modulated from of original sound wave.Since ultrasonic frequency is used
the wavelength of the combined signal will be in the order of few millimeter.Since the
wavelength is smaller the beam angle will be around 3 degree,as a result the sound
beam will be a narrow one with a small dispersion.

FIG 5: AUDIO SPOTLIGHTING EMITTER

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While the frequency modulated signal travels through the air,the nonlinearity
property of air comes into action which slightly changes the sound wave.If there is a
change in a sound wave,new sounds are formed with in wave.Therefore if we know
how the air affects the sound waves,we can predict exactly what new frequency will
be added into the sound wave by the air itself.The new sound signal generated within
the ultrasonic sound wave will be corresponding to the original information signal
with a frequency in the range of 20-20KHz will be produced within the ultrasonic
sound wave.Since we can not hera the ultrasonic sound wave we only here the new
sound s that are formed by non-linear action of the air.Thus in an audio spotlighting
there are no actual speakers that produce the sound but the ultrasonic envelope acts as
the airborne speaker.

FIG:6 DIRECTIVIT

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The new sound produced virtually has no distortion of sound is freed from bulky
enclosers.There are no woofers or crossovers.This technology is similar in that you
can direct the ultrasonic emitter towarda a hard surface, a wall for instance and the
listener perceives the sound as coming from the spot on the wall.The listener does not
perceive the sound as emanating from face of the transducer,but only from the
reflection from the wall.For the maximum volumn that trade show use demands,it is
recommended that the audio spotlight speaker,more accurately called a transducer,is
mounting no more than 3 meters from the avg. listeners ears,or 5 meter in the air.The
mounting hardware is constructed with a ball joint so that the audio spotlighting are
easly aimed wherever the sound is desired.

Properties of audible sound:

• The human hearing ranges from a frequency of 20Hz to 20 KHz.

• Wavelength varies between 2cm to 17m.

• Beam angle - 360 degrees.

The audible portion of sound tends to spread out in all directions

from the point of origin. The beam angle of audible sound is very wide, just about
360 degrees. This means the sound that you hear will be propagated through air
equally, in all directions, which is why you don’t need to be right in front of a
radio to hear the music.

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ULTRASOUND IN AIR

Researchers discovered that if short pulses of ultrasound were fired

into water, the pulses were spontaneously converted into low frequency sound.
Dr. Orhan Berktay established that water distorts ultrasound signals in a non-
linear, but predictable mathematical way. It was later found that similar
phenomenon happens in air also. When inaudible ultrasonic sound pulses are
fired into the air, the air spontaneously converted the inaudible ultrasound into
audible sound tones, hence proving that as with water, sound propagation in air
is just as non-linear, but can be calculated mathematically. As the beam moves
through the air gradual distortion takes place giving rise to audible component
that can be accurately predicted and precisely controlled.

The problem with firing off ultrasound pulses, and having them
interfere to produce audible tones is that the audible component created are
nowhere similar to the complex signals in speech and music which contains
multiple varying frequency signals, which interfere to produce sound and
distortion.

BERKTAY’S EQUATION

In 1965, Dr. H.O. Berktay published the first accurate and more complete
theory of distortion of ultrasound signal in air. He uses the concept of modulation
envelope. The air demodulates the modulated signal and the demodulated signal
depends on the envelope function. Berktay assumes the primary wave has the form

P1 (t) = P1 E (t) sin (Wct)

Where we is the carrier frequency and E (t) is the envelope function

which in this case is the speech or music signal

The secondary wave or demodulated wave is given by

P2 (t) =d/dt2 E (t)

This is called berktay’s far field solution. The berktay’s solution

states that the demodulated signal is proportional to the second time derivative of
the envelope squared. This is the fundamental expression for the output resulting
from the distortion due to air.

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HYPERSONIC SOUND TECHNOLOGY

The ultrasound signal is used as a carrier wave and the audible

speech and music signal are superimposed on it to create a hybrid wave similar to
the amplitude modulation. The resultant hybrid wave is then broadcast. As this
wave moves through the air, it creates complex distortions that give rise to two
new frequency sets,

(i) One slightly higher than the hybrid wave. This sideband is identical the
original sound wave

(ii) Slightly lower, than the hybrid wave. This sideband component is a badly
distorted component.

These two sidebands interfere with the hybrid wave and produce the two signal
components - the normal and the distorted components. But the problem that arises
is that the volume of the original sound wave is proportional to that of the
ultrasound, while the volume of the signal’s distorted component is exponential. So,
a slight increase in the volume drowns out the original sound wave as the distorted
signal becomes predominant.

An MIT Media labs researcher, Joseph Pompei, managed to

crack the problem by studying current technique and he realized that the focused
should have been on the signal’s distorted component. The technique to create the
audio beam is simple,

• Modulate the amplitude to get the hybrid wave

• Calculate what the berktay’s equation does to this signal

• And do the exact opposite

In other words distort it before the distortion by air takes place.

When this wave is passed through air and what you get is the original sound wave
component. But this time

(a) The volume of the original sound wave component is exponentially

related to the volume of the ultrasound beam

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(b) The distorted component volume now varies directly as the

ultrasound

You could also bounce the beam off a reflecting surface, so that people in the path
of the audio reflection can hear the sound. This is known as projected audio. In
short, unlike ordinary speakers, you will hear the sound only if you disrupt the
sound beam, whether you stand in “its path or in the path of a reflection from an
acoustic mirroring surface. If you step away from the path of the sound, you will
hear nothing. The sound’s source is not the physical device you see, but the
invisible ultrasound beam that generates it.

Alternative technology:

There is another alternative approach to creating targeted

audio, other than the ultrasound modulation technique. One is the parabolic dish
approach that essentially uses antennae .to focus and direct sound. Here a
relatively omni-directional loudspeaker is placed at the focal point of a parabolic
dish pointing towards it. When the loudspeaker generates the sound signal, it acts
as a point source, emitting waves that reflect off the parabolic dish that is pointed
towards a particular direction. This is very much in use, but the size of the
parabolic dish required to accommodate the longer wavelengths of lower
frequencies is too large.

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SIGNAL PROCESSING

In order to convert the source program material to ultrasonic

signals, a modulation scheme is required. In addition error correction is needed if
distortion is to be reduced without loss of efficiency. The goal is to produce the
audio in the most efficient manner while maintaining acceptably low distortion
levels. The type of modulation adopted also has importance the requirement is for
a method for modulation and distortion reduction mat

• Is able to minimize distortion by creating output that matched the ideal

modulation envelope while simultaneously

• Does not increase bandwidth requirements i.e. reduction of bandwidth

• Allows high modulation index for good efficiency

• Allows the lowest possible ultrasound operating frequency for greater output

Preprocessing:

There should be necessary preprocessing for reducing the distortion

due to air. Referring back the Berktay’s equation it can be seen that the
demodulation due to the medium gives an output that is the two-time derivative of
the envelope square. Therefore the necessary preprocessing required are

1. Double integration and

2. Square rooting

The two time derivative operations Berktay’s solution translates to a

12db/octave high pass slope in the output which can be corrected independent of
the modulation scheme, with an equalization factor.

The Berktay’s solution says that the audio signal will be proportional
to the envelope. Not the spectrum. Therefore there is considerable freedom in
choosing the modulation scheme. The two modulation schemes used are

1. Double sideband amplitude modulation (DSB) with square root

preprocessing - which results in many sidebands

2. Single sideband amplitude modulation (SSB) - so that the interaction

between the sidebands are eliminated.

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Comparing the envelopes of DSB with square rooting:

9.2 The envelope of DSB with square rooting-

The envelope of SSB-

It can be seen that both the schemes result in a waveform that has
the same envelope.

The following is the waveform both put together for comparison.

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The blue is the DSB line. The red gives the SSB waveform. It can be seen that
though they are of different values they result in the same envelope.

BEAM DISPERTION

FIG 7: DISPERSION OF SOUND BEAM

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COMPONENT OF AUDIO SPOTLIGHTING SYSTEM

1.Power supply
2.Frequncy oscillator
3.Modulator
4. Audio signal processor
5. Microcontroller
6. Ultrasonic amplifier
7. Transducer

FIG9: BLOCK DIAGRAM OF AN AUDIO SPOLIGHTING SYSTEM

1. Power Supply: Like all electronic systems, the audio spotlighting system
works off DC voltage. Ultrasonic amplifier requires 48V DC supply for its working
and low voltage for microcontroller unit and other process management.

2. Frequency oscillator: The frequency oscillator generates ultrasonic

frequency signals in the range of (21,000 Hz to 28,000 Hz) which is required
for the modulation of information signals.

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3. Modulator: In order to convert the source signal material into ultrasonic

signal a modulation scheme is required which is achieved through a modulator.
In addition, error correction is needed to reduce distortion without loss of
efficiency. By using a DSB modulator the modulation index can be reduced to
decrease distortion.

4. Audio signal processor: The audio signal is sent to electronic signal

processor circuit where equalization and distortion control are performed in
order to produce a good quality sound signal.

5. Microcontroller: A dedicated microcontroller circuit takes care of the

functional management of the system. In the future version, it is expected
that the whole process like functional
management,signal processing, double side band modulation
and even switch mode power supply would be effectively taken care of by a
single embedded IC.

6. Transducer: It is 1.27 cm thick and 17” in diameter. It is capable of

producing audibility up to 200 meters with better clarity of sound. It has the ability
of real time sound reproduction with zero lag. It can be wall, overhead or flush
mounted. These transducers are arranged in form of an array called parametric
array in order to propagate the ultrasonic signals from the emitter and thereby to
exploit the nonlinearity property of air.

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FIG10: PARAMETRIC LOUDSPEAKER

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MODES OF LISTENING

There are two modes of listening

1 Direct mode
2 Projected mode

FIG11: DIRECTED AUDIO AND PROJECTED AUDIO

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1 Direct mode:Direct mode requires a clear line of approach from the sound system
unit to the point where the listener can hear the audio.To restrict the audio in a
specific area this method is appropriate

2 Projected or virtual mode:This mode requires an unbroken line of approach from

the emitter of audio spotlighting system,so the emitter is pointed at the spot where the
is to be heard.For this mode of operation the sound beam from emitter is made to
reflect from a reflecting surface such a wall surface or a diffuser. A virtual sound
source creates an illution of sound source that emanates from a surface or direction
where no physical loudspeaker is present.

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ADVANTAGES:

1. Can focus sound only at the place you want.

2. Ultrasonic emitter device are thin and flat and do not require a mounting
cabinet.
3. The focused or directed sound travels much faster in a straight line than
conventional loudspeaker.
4. Dispersion can be controlled very narrow or wider to cover more listening
area.
5. Can reduce or eliminate the feedback from microphone.
6. Highly cost effective as the maintenance required is less as compared to
conventional loud speakers and have longer life span.
7. Requires only same power as required for regular speakers.
8. There is no lag in reproducing the sound.

DISADVANTAGES

• The output is proportional to the area of the ultrasonic column.

• Ultrasonic design is based directly on emitter diameter,

• Directivity directly depended on the length of the ultrasonic column.

• Lower modulation index decreases distortion.

• Greater modulation index increases gain

• Single sideband envelope is equal to square rooted envelope for a

single tone.

APPLICATIONS:

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1.Automobiles: Beam alert signal can be directly propagated from an

announcement device in the dashboard to the driver .Presently Mercedes Benz
buses are fitted with audio spotlighting speaker so that individual travelers can
enjoy the music.

2.Retail sales: Provide targeted advertising directly at the point of purchase.

3.Safety officials: Portable audio spotlighting device for communication with

a specific person in a crowd of people.

4.Public announcement: Highly focused announcement in noisy environment

such as subways,airport,traffic intersections etc..

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5.Emergency rescue: Rescue can communicate with endangerd people far

from reach.

6.Entertainment system: in home theatre system tear speaker can be

eliminated by the implementation of audio spotlighting and the properties of
sound can be improved.

7.Museums:In museums audio spotlighting can be used to describe about a

particular object to a person standing in front it ,so that the order person
standing in front of another object will not be able to here the description.

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8.Military applications:Ship to ship communication and shipboard

announcements.

9.Audio/video conferencing:
Project the audio from a conference in four different language,forma single
central device without the need for headphone.

10.Sound bullets:Jack the level 50 times the human threshold of pain and an
offshoot of audio spotlighting sound technology become a nonlethal weapon.

FUTURE OF AUDIO SPOTLIGHTING:

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Even the best loudspeaker are subject to distortion and their omni
directional sound is annoying to the people in the vicinity who do not wish to
listen.Audio spotlighting system holds the promise of replacing conventional
speakers.It allows the user to control the direction of propagation with sound.
Audio spotlighting really “put sound where you want it”.

CONCLUSION

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Audio spotlighting is really going to make a revolution in sound

transmission and the user can decide the path in which audio signal propagate. Due to
the unidirectional propagation it finds application in large number of fields. Audio
spotlighting system is going to shape the future of sound and will serve our ears with
magical experience.

REFERENCE

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