RESEARCH: Considerations when designing a grid array

[MAMware]

TOPICS: The physics of sound, human auditory perception, and music theory.

CONSTRAINTS: Given a 45ms time frame, the frequency range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz, and the role of tempo.

Example question: in a sequential approach, how short the notes could be due to a human coherent resolution?

The shortest note duration for coherent perception in a sequential approach is ~5–10 ms for mid-to-high frequencies, allowing 4–9 notes without gaps or 3–6 notes with small gaps (2 ms) in a 45ms frame. Lower frequencies require longer durations (20–40 ms), reducing the count to 1–2 notes.

MORE:
https://github.com/MAMware/acoustsee/blob/developing/docs/RESEARCH.md

[MAMware]

DISCUSS: Overlaying a webcam feed with a grid resembling an extended, more complex Guitar Hero-style interface, where approaching objects on a sidewalk (e.g., cracks, obstacles, people) that are represented as a sequence of "notes" to be translated into audio cues for a visually impaired user in the AcoustSee project, is a way to conceptualize the photon-to-phonon transformation.

This approach the real-time navigation task, mapping visual objects to auditory sequences in a structured, intuitive way.

Let’s explore how this could work, tying it to our previous discussions on audio frames (45–66ms), OpenCV’s real-time feasibility, and human auditory resolution, while addressing implementation on mobile phone hardware for a blind user.

Guitar Hero-style grid overlay for AcoustSee translates sidewalk objects (e.g., cracks, walls, people) into a scrolling sequence of audio “notes” using a computational grid:
Grid design: 5–7 lanes (left-right panning), vertical axis for depth (10m to 1m), notes scroll downward as objects approach, triggering cues at the strike zone (1m).

Mapping:
Lanes: Stereo panning (e.g., left lane = -1.0).

Objects: Spectral signatures (e.g., crack = 2000 Hz click, person = 200–2000 Hz hum).

Depth: Volume (louder closer) and timing (cues trigger at strike zone).

Audio output: 3–6 cues per 66ms frame, spaced ~5–10ms, aligning with auditory resolution (3–12 notes in 66ms).