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On time delay interpolation for improved acoustic reflector localization
Hannes Rosseel1, Toon van Waterschoot1
1KU Leuven, Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT), STADIUS Center for Dynamical Systems, Signal Processing and Data Analytics, Kasteelpark Arenberg 10, 3001 Leuven, Belgium.
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
|October 10, 2025
Summary
Accurate acoustic reflector localization uses time delay estimation (TDE) interpolation. Sinc and Whittaker-Shannon interpolation methods significantly improve subsample TDE accuracy, outperforming others in simulations and real-world tests.
Area of Science:
- Acoustics
- Signal Processing
- Computational Physics
Background:
- Acoustic reflector localization is crucial for applications like room acoustics and sound source localization.
- Traditional time delay estimation (TDE) methods lack the necessary time resolution for precise localization.
- Subsample TDE accuracy is required, leading to the development of various interpolation techniques.
Purpose of the Study:
- To comprehensively study time delay interpolation for achieving subsample accuracy in acoustic reflector localization.
- To derive and evaluate the Whittaker-Shannon interpolation formula in the context of short-time windowed TDE.
- To compare the performance of sinc and Whittaker-Shannon interpolation against existing methods.
Main Methods:
- Derivation of the Whittaker-Shannon interpolation formula from sinc interpolation for short-time windowed TDE.
- Simulations to evaluate time delay error and positional error for critically sampled and band-limited reflections.
- Performance evaluation using real-world measurements from the MYRiAD dataset.
Main Results:
- Sinc and Whittaker-Shannon interpolation methods demonstrated superior performance compared to existing techniques.
- These methods achieved lower time delay error and positional error in simulations.
- Consistent and reliable performance was observed in real-world acoustic environments across various configurations.
Conclusions:
- Sinc and Whittaker-Shannon interpolation significantly enhance subsample TDE accuracy for acoustic reflector localization.
- These advanced interpolation techniques improve the precision of localization systems in reverberant conditions.
- The findings are vital for advancing applications in room acoustics, sound source localization, and acoustic scene analysis.
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