Enhancing Auditory Immersion in Interactive Virtual Reality Environments.

The realm of sound remains relatively underexplored in comparison to its visual counterpart within the context of interactive virtual reality (IVR). It is a well-known practice to create a digital representation of the user’s human body in the virtual space, thereby enhancing human-computer interaction and facilitating navigation amid fellow users and objects within these environments, commonly referred to as avatars. Human sensory feedback is predominantly oriented towards visual stimuli. The sonic design, presence and interactions of avatars are often neglected in research. However, a more accurate representation of the virtual body, both visual and sonic, can increase immersion and the overall effectiveness of the user experience.By studying how users react to their own sonic environments and to the sounds created by themselves/their avatars, developers could create more personalized scenarios for IVR applications. To the best of my knowledge, there is still a lot to explore in this field.The goal of this research is to investigate the effects of sonic interactions between humans and computers in VR, where the users have six degrees of freedom to interact with their environment. This doctoral research aims to find the answers to the following questions: How can auditory immersion be enhanced in IVR? How do interactive sounds affect body ownership in a virtual environment? How do procedurally generated sounds affect the agency of the user in IVR?The focus of this study will be on finding ways to enhance the plausibility illusion experienced by the users, which allows them to believe that the given scenario is truly happening, even though they know it is not real. Both sample-based, and procedural audio productions will be explored to create a more effective user experience. Advancements in this field of study could be applied for both entertainment, serious games, health, and other IVR applications, to increase their desired impact.