Sound field reproducing method and apparatus for the same

A sound field reproducing apparatus, comprising:

• a convolution operating unit, in which impulse responses are set as parameters of convolution operations, for each of combinations of sound source element regions and sound receiving element regions, wherein each of the impulse responses is obtained in a sound field which is to be reproduced and in which a space surrounding a sound source disposed in the sound field is divided into the sound source element regions of an appropriate solid angle in which the sound source is centered, a space surrounding a sound receiving point disposed in the sound field is divided into the sound receiving element regions of an appropriate solid angle in which the sound receiving point is centered, and a sound radiated from the sound source is emitted from at least one of the sound source element regions, passes through the sound field, enters at least one of the sound receiving element regions, and reaches the sound receiving point;
• an adder which additively combines output signals of the convolution operating unit for each of combinations of the corresponding sound receiving element regions;
• a plurality of microphones placed at positions which surround a real sound source in an arbitrary real space and at an appropriate distance in directions corresponding to the sound source element regions, respectively;
• and
• a plurality of loudspeakers placed at positions which surround a real sound receiving point in an arbitrary real space and at an appropriate distance in directions corresponding to the sound receiving element regions, respectively,
• wherein a sound radiated from the real sound source is picked up by the microphones, pickup signals are subjected to convolution operations by the convolution operating unit with the impulse responses which relate to the sound source element regions of corresponding directions, respectively, and sound signals which are obtained by the convolution operations are additively combined by the adder for each of the sound receiving element regions of corresponding directions, and then reproduced from the loudspeakers which are placed correspondingly with the sound receiving element regions, respectively.

A sound field reproducing apparatus, comprising:

• a convolution operating unit, in which impulse responses are set as parameters of convolution operations, for each of combinations of sound source element regions and sound receiving element regions, wherein each of the impulse responses is obtained in a sound field which is to be reproduced and in which a space surrounding a sound source disposed in the sound field is divided into the sound source element regions of an appropriate solid angle in which the sound source is centered, a space surrounding a sound receiving point disposed at a different position in the sound field is divided into the sound receiving element regions of an appropriate solid angle in which the sound receiving point is centered, and a sound radiated from the sound source is emitted from at least one of the sound source element regions, passes through the sound field, enters at least one of the sound receiving element regions, and reaches the sound receiving point;
• an adder which additively combines output signals of the convolution operating unit for each of combinations of corresponding sound receiving element regions;
• a plurality of microphones placed at positions which surround a real sound source in an arbitrary real space and at an appropriate distance in directions corresponding to the sound source element regions, respectively;
• a recording and playing back apparatus which records and plays back signals picked up by the microphones;
• and
• a plurality of loudspeakers placed at positions which surround a real sound receiving point in an arbitrary real space and at an appropriate distance in directions corresponding to the sound receiving element regions, respectively,
• wherein a sound radiated from the real sound source is picked up by the microphones, the picked up sounds are recorded by the recording and playing back apparatus and then played back, the played back pickup signals of the microphones are subjected to the convolution operations by the convolution operating unit with the impulse responses which relate to the sound source element regions of corresponding directions, respectively, and sound signals which are obtained by the convolution operations are additively combined by the adder for each of the sound receiving element regions of corresponding directions, and then played back from the loudspeakers which are placed correspondingly to the sound receiving element regions, respectively.

A sound field reproducing apparatus, comprising:

• a convolution operating unit, in which impulse responses are set as parameters of convolution operations, for each of combinations of sound source element regions and sound receiving element regions, wherein each of the impulse responses is obtained in a sound field which is to be reproduced and in which a space surrounding a sound source disposed in the sound field is divided into the sound source element regions of an appropriate solid angle in which the sound source is centered, a space surrounding a sound receiving point disposed at a different position in the sound field is divided into the sound receiving element regions of an appropriate solid angle in which the sound receiving point is centered, and a sound radiated from the sound source is emitted from at least one of the sound source element regions, passes through the sound field, enters at least one of the sound receiving element regions, and reaches the sound receiving point;
• an adder which additively combines output signals of the convolution operating unit for each of combinations of the corresponding sound receiving element regions;
• a playing back apparatus that plays back signals picked up by a plurality of microphones placed at positions which surround a real sound source in an arbitrary real space, and which are at an appropriate distance in directions corresponding to the sound source element regions, respectively;
• and
• a plurality of loudspeakers placed at positions which surround a real sound receiving point in an arbitrary real space, and which are at an appropriate distance in directions corresponding to the sound receiving element regions, respectively,
• wherein the pickup signals of the microphones which are to be played back by the playing back apparatus are subjected to the convolution operations by the convolution operating unit with the impulse responses which relate to the sound source element regions of corresponding directions, respectively, and sound signals which are obtained by the convolution operations are additively combined by the adder for each of the sound receiving element regions of corresponding directions, and then played back from the loudspeakers which are placed correspondingly with the sound receiving element regions, respectively.