Binaural sound source localization in humanoid "bert" robot

Abstract

This thesis explores the models and implementations of binaural sound source location and seeks to implement known and current methods within an existing robotic environment. The two primary methods of sound localization are interaural intensity difference and interaural time difference, also known as ILD and ITD, and they are discussed with their unique advantages and disadvantages and dependency upon each other to produce a meaningful location and output. Within Bert, an iCub humanoid robotic platform, the discussed methods for locating sounds are applied and experimented on to observe their accuracy and usefulness. This specific environment produces the challenge of a being a binaural system, limiting sound input capability to two inputs, along with a relatively noisy environment and limited hardware capabilities. Nonetheless, this development of a sound localization framework in Bert is done with future development in mind, as his pending hardware upgrade alone will allow for a great improvement in accuracy and precision.