[Princeton Alumni Weekly]
THE INVENTION Audio technology that allows the listener to experience true three-dimensional sound. Unlike surround-sound systems, this invention — called BACCH 3D Sound — enables you to hear with precision where each sound on a recording is coming from. Listen to a recording of a fly circling your head, and you can detect exactly where that fly is located. Listen to a symphony, and you can hear the viola coming from the left and the bass coming from a spot on the back right. The technology works with any pair of loudspeakers, but not with headphones.
THE SCIENTIST The moment he perfected his invention — at 3 a.m. — Edgar Choueiri (pronounced “Shu-WAY-ri”) *91, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, woke up his wife to listen to a recording of Bach’s “Mass in B Minor.” (BACCH 3D Sound stands for Band-Assembled Crosstalk Cancellation Hierarchy and is a tribute to Bach, Choueiri’s favorite composer.) Choueiri created a way of designing a filter that accurately cancels a sound recording’s crosstalk without changing the tonal quality of the sound. …
WHERE YOU’LL BE SEEING IT Choueiri’s BACCH 3D Sound is available in a portable wireless speaker called Jambox and will be available in 3D televisions. Sony has given Choueiri $3 million to fund his lab for the next three years and do research on headphones. Choueiri also is exploring how to adapt the technology for use in hearing aids.
Read the full story here: http://paw.princeton.edu/issues/2012/02/08/pages/7041/index.xml