How do our brains work to process Spatial Audio?
The research aims to unravel the mechanism of the "Cocktail-Party Effect", which is the phenomenon that humans can distinguish a particular speech even in a noisy environment. The method investigates how human auditory perception changes in different spatial conditions of the speech-in-noise task. Unlike the usual audio perception research, this project uses EEG (electroencephalography) to measure how much and how fast our brain responds to the sound. We're also trying to correlate their listening patterns with the Self-Construal Scale, which measures how people see themselves in relation to others.
Real-Time Decoding of Auditory Attention from Brainwaves:
This project explores how our brains focus on a single voice in noisy environments—like picking out a conversation at a crowded party. Using EEG (electroencephalography), we've developed a system that can detect, in real time, whether someone is paying attention to a voice on their left or right.
The system uses a neural network trained on both public and custom EEG data, and it works across different recording setups. In tests, participants listened to overlapping speeches while the system accurately tracked their attention based on brain activity alone.
Our next step is to expand the system to track attention in more dynamic listening situations, with multiple sound sources and shifting focus.
Updates:
- (05/11/2023) ASA Chicago poster session, Chicago, USA
Takeuchi, A., et al., 'Spatial Attentional Behavior Analysis Based On Cognitive Style During Speech-in-noise Task'
https://doi.org/10.1121/10.0019065
- (12/04-08/2023) Acoustic Sydney, Sydney, Australia
Takeuchi, A., et al., 'Measuring listeners’ distraction to spatially presented masking noise conditions'
https://doi.org/10.1121/10.0023392
- (02/22/2025) Association for Research in Otolaryngology 2025 MidWinter Meeting
Takeuchi, A., et al., 'Individual Spatial Auditory Cognitive Patterns and Self-Construal.'
DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.19576.15363
- (02/25/2025) Association for Research in Otolaryngology 2025 MidWinter Meeting
Takeuchi, A., et al., 'Real-time Spatial Auditory Attention Decoding from Single-trial EEG.'
Akira Takeuchi 