An experimental setup to investigate relevant validation parameters for the auralization of commercial aircraft flyovers in complex urban contexts

Auralization has a key role in the design of immersive virtual reality tools for the study of human environments and their evolution. In soundscape and multisensory research, the validation of auralization frameworks traditionally relies on the impressions engendered by the virtual acoustic environment on the human subjects, and whether those impressions match real-world experiences. It uses subjective surveys related to the perceptual and affective spheres of individuals. This may lead to unclear validation. In this paper, we present an experimental setup to search for a set of relevant validation parameters for the auralization of complex urban environments involving commercial aircraft flyovers. Our investigation is tailored to the study of working and learning activities in offices or universities neighboring the flight paths. The experimental setup focuses on the quantitative evaluation of cognitive performance instead of the classic perceptual or affective personal survey-based approach. In the experiment, subjects undergo distinct acoustic environments, synthesized from real-world binaural recordings. Simultaneously, subjects perform memory, fluency, or puzzle-like tasks. Different cognitive performance parameters are measured throughout the experiment. The parameters most strongly correlated to the environments' acoustic events and properties are considered meaningful validation parameters.