Analysis of room transfer function and reverberant signal statistics: Abstract of paper

For some time now, statistical analysis has been a valuable tool in analyzing room transfer functions (RTFs). This work examines existing statistical time-frequency models and techniques for RTF analysis (e.g., Schroeder's stochastic model and the standard deviation over frequency bands for the RTF magnitude and phase). RTF fractional octave smoothing, as with 1-slash 3 octave analysis, may lead to RTF simplifications that can be useful for several audio applications, like room compensation, room modeling, auralisation purposes. The aim of this work is to identify the relationship of optimal response smoothing (e.g., as in complex smoothing) with respect to the original RTF statistics. More specifically, the RTF statistics, derived after the complex smoothing calculation, are compared to the original statistics across space inside typical rooms, by varying the source, the receiver position and the corresponding ratio of the direct and reverberant signal. In addition, this work examines the statistical quantities for speech and audio signals prior to their reproduction within rooms and when recorded in rooms. Histograms and other statistical distributions are used to compare RTF minima of typical “anechoic” and “reverberant” audio speech signals, in order to model the alterations due to room acoustics. The above results are obtained from both in-situ room response measurements and controlled acoustical response simulations.