Sound Localization in the Median Plane *

by J. BLAUERT

Institut fur elektrische Nachrichtentechnik der Rheinisch-Westfalischen

Technischen Hochschule Aachen
Summary
Psychoacoustic measurements with observers who were stimulated at both ears with iden-
tical narrow band signals yielded the following results:
The sound sensations of the observers were localized in the median plane. The direction
of the sound sensation is a function of frequency only and does not depend on the angle
of incidence.
Physical measurements of the linear distortions caused by the pinna showed further,
that the pinna and the hearing system behind the pinna work together in such a way, that
sound localization of broad band signals in the median plane can also be explained.
Zum Richtungshoren in der Medianebene
Zusammenfassung
Psychoakustische Messungen an Versuchspersonen, deren beide Ohren mit identi-
schem Schmalbandrauschen beschallt wurden, fiihrten zu folgendem Ergebnis:
Die Horereignisse der Versuchspersonen sind in der Medianebene lokalisiert. Die Rich-
tung der Horereignisse ist eine Funktion der Frequenz, sie ist von der Schalleinfallsrich-
tung unabhangig.
Physikalische Messungen der linearen Verzerrungen an den Ohrmuscheln zeigten wei-
terhin, daB die Ohrmuscheln und die nachgeschalteten Gehbrteile in soldier Weise zusam-
menarbeiten, daB das Richtungshoren in der Medianebene auch fur Breitbandsignale er-
klart werden kann.
Localisation Sonore dans le Plan Median
Sommaire
Des mesures psychoacoustiques sur des sujets dont les deux oreilles etaient exposees a
des signaux a bande etroite identique ont donne les resultats suivants:
Les sensations sonores des sujets sont localisees dans le plan median. La direction de la
sensation auditive est uniquement fonction de la frequence et independante de Tangle
d'incidence.
Les mesures physiques des distortions lineaires au niveau du pavilion de l'oreille sont
demontre que le pavilion et les elements du systeme auditif qui le suivent collaborent de
maniere a permettre egalement la localisation sonore des signaux de large bande de fre-
quence dans le plan median.

1. Introduction Even the function between the angle of incidence

of the sound waves and the interaural signal dif-
Sound sensations, like the phenomena of all other ferences cannot be described unambiguously. This
senses, are more or less precisely located in space. fact is illustrated in Fig. 1 by the example of inter-
The psychoacoustic intention concerning this fact is aural time differences.
to find out quantitatively the relations between the
location of the sound sensations and those physical
parameters that contribute to the formation of this
location.
The following article deals with the direction of
the sound sensations. The direction is normally sup-
posed to be determined by interaural differences of
the sound signals at the eardrums. These interaural right ear
differences depend on the angle of incidence of the
sound waves which strike the observers heads.
However, a well-defined function between the
interaural signal differences and the direction of the
sound sensations cannot be given. Fig. 1. Geometric locations of sound sources which pro-
duce identical interaural time-differences
* From a dissertation, accepted at the Rheinisch- (a) in the plane,
Westfalische Technische Hochschule Aachen, 1969. (b) in space.

206 J. BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION
Using a simple model of VON HORNBOSTEL and
WERTHEIMER [8], the ears of the observers are
represented by two points being at a distance of
approximately 21 cm from each other. It can be
shown that all sound sources situated on the surface
of a rotational hyperboloid as shown in the figure
produce the same interaural time differences at the
ears. For a zero time difference, the hyperboloid
turns into the median plane.
Since, in spite of the ambiguous relations of inter-
aural signal differences and the angle of sound
incidence, the direction of the sound sensations is
unambiguously determined, further information
must be perceived by the observers.
It is assumed by many authors (originally by
VAN SOEST [14], later for example by KLENSCH
[10], DE BOER [4], WALLACH [17] and THURLOW
and RtTNGE [16], that small head movements and
accompanying changes in the interaural signal
differences during sound perception are evaluated
to form the direction of the sound sensation.
This assumption, though surely correct and suf-
ficiently proven, does not give a full explanation of
the localization of sound sensations. Two arguments
can be named to explain this deficiency:
1) Unambiguously located sound sensations occur
even when the sound signal is so short that no
head movements take place (VON WlLMOWSKY
[19] reports a lag of 360 ms).
2) Unambiguously located sound sensations are ob-
served even when the head is mechanically fixed
(KIETZ [9], BURGER [5] and others).
For further examinations it is most appropriate
to use test arrangements, in which the sound sources
are situated in or symmetrically to the median plane.
In such arrangements no perceivable interaural
signal differences appear, if head movements larger
than about 1° are suppressed [3].
If observers are stimulated in this way, their
sound sensations are located in the median plane.
The cues which determine the direction of the sound
sensations must then be the same at both ears. The
problem to detect those cues is reduced to a mon-
aural one.
2. The theories of localization in the median
plane
To explain the localization in the median plane,
several theories have been discussed in the literature.
The more important ones are
(1) the theory of timbre differences,
(2) the theory of bone conduction,
(3) the theories of visual, tactile and vestibular cues.
The theory of timbre differences starts from the
fact that a sound wave which strikes the head of an
ACUSTICA
Vol. 22 (1969/70)
observer undergoes linear distortions by diffrac-
tion-, resonance- and shadow effects caused by head,
pinna and ear-canal (WIENER and Ross [18] and
others). Thus, the spectrum of the signal at the ear-
drum varies with the angle of incidence what can
be noticed by the observer by a variation of the
timbre of his sound sensation.
It is obvious to assume, that the same spectral
cues that are responsible for the timbre also in-
fluence the location of the sound sensation. Many
experimental results are reported which are con-
sistent with this theory (HECHT [7], KiETZ [9],
BATTEAU [1], ROFFLER and BUTLER [13] and
many others) but there remains one question which
makes some authors doubt the whole theory [5],
[9], [13]:
If the direction of the sound sensation is indeed
determined by spectral cues which are recognized by
timbre, one should assume, that a "reference-timbre"
must be known to the observer. Correct localization
(which means spatial coincidence of sound source
and sound sensation) would presume a sound signal
that is familiar to the observer. Experiments rather
show that this is not necessary. The only necessary
condition is, that the sound signal must be of suf-
ficient bandwidth.
The theory of bone conduction pays regard to the
two paths by which sound can reach the inner ear
namely by the ear canal, ear-drum etc. and by bone
conduction via the skull. It is assumed by some
authors (HECHT [7], SONE [15]), that the portion
of sound that reaches the inner ear by bone conduc-
tion varies with the angle of incident and so con-
tributes to the formation of the direction of the
sound sensation.
However, experiments with low level signals
(below the perception level for bone conduction)
and others with masked bone conduction (skull
stimulated by noise) did not support the hypothesis
that bone conduction is a necessary cue for localiza-
tion in the median plane.
The visual, tactile and vestibular theories are
heterosensoric theories, since they assume that hear-
ing alone cannot detect the location of the sound
source in order to determine the correct direction of
the sound sensation.
Visual stimuli which are most important for
localization in general also strongly influence
auditory localization. Experiments, proving this,
have been reported for example by GtJTTlCH [6],
WALLACH [17], ROFFLER and BUTLER [12] and by
[3].
Tactile stimuli which are supposed to be perceived
by the pinna or by the skin of the neck do not seem
to be important for auditory localization. GtJTTlCH
ACUSTICA
Vol. 22 (1969/70) J. BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION
reports, that narcotization of the pinna did not in-
jure auditory localization. Experiments of the author
in which the neck of the observer was covered with
felt, did not show significant results either.
Vestibular cues play a role in auditory localiza-
tion at least when head movements are admitted
(WALLACH [17], NEURMAN and MEURMAN [11]
and others). On the other hand when the head is
fixed influence of vestibular cues could hardly be
discriminated with non-physiological methods. Yet
one cannot exclude the possibility that parts of the
vestibular organ (for example the sacculus) are
stimulable by sound and so support the auditory
localization.
Anyway it must be assumed that sound localiza-
tion in the median plane and lateralization are based
on different physiological processes [2]. The results
of three experiments of the author, reported in the
next paragraphs, show that a modified theory of
timbre differences can give a new view on localiza-
tion of sound sensations in the median plane.
3. First experiment*
3.1. Procedure
In a darkened, anechoic chamber observers were
stimulated by noise signals of one third octave band-
width. The presentation of the stimuli was done
alternatively by five different arrangements of sound
sources (Fig. 2). The heads of the observers were
slightly clamped. Head movements did not exceed
0.8°. The stimuli arriving at the two ears of the ob-
servers could therefore be regarded as nearly
identical.
1a
Fig. 2. Different loudspeaker arrangements which pro-
duce identical signals at both ears,
la = front, lb = rear, lc = above,
2,2' = left and right together, 3 = head-
phones.
1
Results of the first experiment have partly been
reported by the author on the 6th ICA, Tokyo 1968.
207
The duration of the test signals was changed be-
tween 100ms and I s ; the sound pressure levels
were 30 dB, 40 dB, 50 dB and 60 dB above 2.10" 4
[xbar. The signal-to-noise-ratio was better than
65 dB; the distortion factor was less than 2%.
Switching from one loudspeaker arrangement to
another did not produce any click.
The test signals were presented in stochastic order
relative to the centre frequencies of the third octave
bands, the sound pressure levels and the loudspeaker
arrangements. In each of the test series 5 to 20 male
observers (19 to 30 year old) with normal hearing
took part who had been audiometrically tested. All
observers were able to localize "correctly" broad
band noise signals coming from the front, the rear,
the left or the right. In one test series a small brass
tube (5 cm long and 0.6 cm in diameter) was plug-
ged into each of the observers two ear-canals.
Preliminary experiments had shown that with the
speaker arrangements of Fig. 1 all sound sensations
appeared in the median plane and never more than
15° below the horizontal plane. The upper part of
the median plane was divided into three sectors "v",
" o " and "h" (Fig. 3). The observers had to estimate
..0"-
Fig. 3. Nominal scale of the observers to describe the
direction of the sound sensations.
in which of these three sectors their sound sensation
appeared. This judgment had to be given within
10 s.
3.2. Results
Fig. 4 shows the record of measurements with one
observer who was stimulated by the front and rear
loudspeaker. It is obvious that in some frequency
bands the judgments "h", "v" resp. " o " accumulate
independently of the direction of incidence.
In the Figs. 5, 6 and 7 the results of simular
measurements with 20 observers are summarized.
All three diagrams show a clear dependency of the
relative frequency of each of the judgments on the
centre frequency of the third octave bands.
Further statistical treatments show, that a signifi-
cant dependency of the relative frequencies of judg-
ments neither on the direction of sound incidence
 ACUSTICA
208 J. BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION Vol. 22 (1969/70)

Fig. 4.
H<TJ von vorne K->trLx . von hinten Record of measurements with one observer.
CO cingosp'ielt
eing?spieit
09 (A) Loudspeaker in front,
prel in dB VfK«1 in dB (B) loudspeaker in the rear.
JO Mitten-
40 50 «0 30 40 50 60
M
V V V V V . V V V
125 Ha
V V V V V ' V V V
KM
160 Ifa
V V V V V V V V
200 lU
u I*
V V V V V V V V
290 Hi
n — • *

V i V v V
315 H* V • v V y
* >» *tt sr
V V V V V V V V
400 H2
It a */» t*r Si
V V V V 500 Hi V V V V

V h h V 6J0 Hz ' h h V h
h h h " h 800 Hz
h h "h h
nt •4?

h h h h 1000 He h h h h
w
h h h h h h h
1250 Hs
" h h h V
1600 Hi
h * h * h * h
a,
h h *. h * V
2000 Hz h h h
««• -JH irt
" h V V V V V V V
2500 Hi
i* So tn
V V V V V V V V
5150 Ha
•ft It Jtf '
u\ H
V V V V V V V
*000 H* fp*
V
-n 'id 11
V V V V V V V
V 5000 Hz
41 J *»»
v , V -v f>500 Hz
' v V r 0
411 V

<«* r o •»
' h 0000 Hz h 0 ^ 0
ta W
'h loOOO Hz
" h h
v
" h 12500 Hs
"' h h
w w
V V " V •* v v v
16000 Hs

100

L75

\W

0
125 250 500 Hz 1 2 8 kHz 16 500 Hz 1 2 8 kHz 16
frequency frequency •

Fig. 5. Relative frequency of "v"-judgements (20 ob- Fig. 6. Relative frequency of "o"-judgements (20 ob-
servers, each stimulated once from the front, servers, each stimulated once from the front,
once from the rear, in each of the 1/3 octave once from the rear, in each of the 1/3 octave
bands). bands).
— 60 dB, 60 dB,
50 dB, 50 dB,
_._._ 40 dB, — — 40 dB,
30 dB. 30 dB.

nor on the sound pressure level or the signal dura- tubes in the ear-canals led to results which are fairly
tion can be proven. identical to those of the front-back-test without brass
The hearing tests with the other loudspeaker tubes as shown in Figs. 5, 6, 7, so that they need not
arrangements of Fig. 1 including those with brass be presented here in detail.
ACUSTICA
Vol. 22 (1969/70)
J. BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION
500 Hz 1
frequency
8 kHz 16
Fig. 7. Relative frequency of "h"-judgements (20 ob-
servers, each stimulated once from the front,
once from the rear, in each of the 1/3 octave
bands).
60 dB,
50 dB,
_ . _ . _ 40 dB,
30 dB.
In Fig. 8 the results of a nonparametric statistical
evaluation of the data are plotted. It can be shown
that the absolute majority of a population of ob-
servers will in certain frequency bands significantly
prefer one of the judgments to the sum of both of
the others. The bands in which such preferences
occur are shown on top of Fig. 8 as "directional"
bands.
directional bands
0 the above, the front and the rear loudspeaker of
125 250 500 Hz 1 2 8 kHz 16
frequency —
Fig. 8. Relative frequencies of observers who give one
of the judgements "v", "o" or "h" more fre-
quently than both of the others together (at a
95% level of significance).
The "directional" bands, presented on top of
the diagram, are those bands, in which the ab-
solute majority of the population of observers
gives one of the judgements more frequently
than both of the others together:
"bordered areas": at a 90% level of significance,
"shaded areas": most likely.
To prove the "objectivity" of the evaluated posi-
tions of the directional bands standard deviations of
209
a set of judgments obtained from measurements with
one representative observer are plotted against stan-
dard deviations of a groups' judgments in Fig. 9.
I greater at a
T 95% level of significance
-
i1 v o h
~2000Hz
v o h
4000 Hz
v o h
Fig. 9. Standard deviation of the judgements "v", "o",
8000 Hz
"h"
"white areas": of one trained observer in 10
tests,
"shaded areas": of 10 observers in 1 test each.
(8 stimuli per 1/3 octave band in each test.)
The diagram points to the fact that the limits of the
directional bands of the individual observers under-
lie inter-individual variations; however, in the cen-
tre parts of the directional bands inter-individual
agreement is quite good.
4. Second experiment
4.1. Procedure
WIENER and Ross [18] were the first who mea-
sured the linear distortions caused by head, pinna
and ear-canal. They used a probe microphone to
measure the sound pressure near the ear-drum and
at the entrance of the ear-canal in relation to the
sound pressure in the free field.
In this connection they pointed out that the trans-
mission factor from the entrance of the ear-canal to
the ear-drum does not depend on the angle of sound
incidence. In order to measure the influence of the
angle of sound incidence, it is therefore sufficient to
measure the sound pressure at the ear-canal entrance.
We did such measurements during stimulation by
Fig. 1. The experimental make up is shown in
Fig. 10.
4.2. Results
Fig. 11 shows the mean sound pressure level at
the ear-canal entrances of ten observers when stimu-
lated by the front speaker minus the mean sound
pressure level at the same point when likewise
stimulated by the rear speaker. The plotted curve is
identical with the corresponding curve to be mea-
sured at the ear-drums.
It can be seen from the diagram that in some
frequency bands the level at the ear-drum is higher

210 J.BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION
Fig. 10. Sound pressure measurements with a probe
microphone at the entrance of the ear-canal.
(The sound field near the pinna is hardly
distorted.)
during frontal stimulation than in other bands dur-
ing stimulation from the rear. After generalization
of these results for a population of observers, the
boosted bands shown at the top of Fig. 11 can be
specified. Stimulation from above produces another
boosted band at 8 kHz.
5. Third experiment
5.1. Procedure
The aim of this experiment was to prove the hypo-
thesis of the theory of timbre differences: that the
linear distortions which occur in the sound signal
when it strikes the head and passes the pinna on its
way to the ear-drum, really give the information
which is needed to form the "correct" direction of
sound sensation. Experiments of a similar kind
have been reported by KIETZ [9], BATTEAU [1]
and others who let the sound signals pass through
pinna imitations.
The procedure reported in this article uses the
natural pinnas of the observers as filters and so
ACUSTICA
Vol. 22 (1969/70)
boosted bands
JM-
Fr re fr
III V
NV
125 250 500 Hz 1 8 kHz 16
frequency
Fig. 11. SPL at the eardrum with loudspeaker in front
minus SPL at the eardrum with loudspeaker in
the rear.
(Mean of 10 observers and confidence inter-
val of the mean at a 95% level of significance.)
The "boosted" bands, presented on top of the
diagram, are those bands, in which the majo-
rity of the population of observers has a higher
SPL at the eardrum when stimulated from the
front (fr) resp. from the rear (re) than when
stimulated from the opposite direction:
"bordered areas": at a 95% level of signifi-
cance,
"shaded areas": most likely.
avoids any stimulation errors on principle (Fig. 12).
The steps are as follows:
(a) An electroacoustic canal including a probe
microphone was built. By the help of an equal-
izer the over-all-transmission-factor could be
adjusted to be nearly flat ( ± 3 dB) within a
frequency range of 0.1 to 16 kHz. A pink noise
generator was connected to the canal input.
(b) An observer was placed into the air section of
the canal so that the loudspeaker was in front
of him and the tip of the tube of the probe
microphone lay at the entrance of one of his
ear-canals. The output signal was now no longer
a pink noise like in case (a) but a pink noise
linearly distorted by the observers' pinna. This
output signal was recorded on tape.
(c) The same as under (b) but with the observer
having his back to the loudspeaker. The output
signal was again recorded.
(d) Another electroacoustic canal was provided for
the reproduction of the recorded signals. The
transmission factor was now adjusted in such
a way that it was flat between the input of the
canal and the ear-canal entrance of the same
observer who took part in the previous steps of
the experiment. For technical reasons (signal-
to-noise-ratio) two loudspeakers were used in
this part of the experiment. The adjustment of
the equalizer was controlled by means of the
probe microphone.
ACUSTICA
Vol. 22 (1969/70)
J. BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION 211

Fig. 12.
Explanation of symbols: Generation of special linear distort-
(a) transmission canal with a transmission factor f independent of frequency for 1/3 octave level diagrams: ed signals by using natural ears as
J L ...undistorted signal filters and stimulation of observers
noise- equalizer loud- probe- output n signal distorted with these signals.
generator speaker microphone signal J L ...by pinna
p signal distorted
J I by pinna
for logarithmic
pinna inserted into the canal, sound from front transmission factors :
^ ' " ' L ...linear distortion
h equalization .,
J ^^... of ^ - ' ' ' L
linear distortion
. by pinna
© pinna inserted into the canal f sound from the rear r\.. linear distortion
I . by pinna
N—ff]—m C=H^-—-fool linear distortion
. by pinna

n equalization
of

for reproduction (transmission factor independent of frequency)

(c) stimulation of observer with output signal

stimulation of observer with output signal ( c )

(e), (f) The lineary distorted noise signals recorded
under (b) and (c) were reproduced over the
canal provided under (d). The observer was
asked to describe the direction of his sound
sensation immediately after the presentation of
each of the signals.
The third experiment was performed with 10 ob-
servers like those used in the first experiment. They
were without any knowledge of the aim of the test
and they had not consciously listened to pink noise
before. During stimulation the anechoic chamber
was darkened.
was reproduced that was originally recorded during
sound exposure from the rear. Moreover, all of the
observers said that their sound sensations were
precisely located.
Statistically, the agreement of ten observers means
that at a 95% level of significance more than 74% of
a population of observers will behave like the test
group. The behaviour of the test group can thus be
referred to as typical.
It should be noticed that the experiment worked
as well when speech or music was used instead of the
pink noise.

5.2. Results 6. Discussion and conclusions

All ten test persons showed spontaneously exactly
the same behaviour. They reported their sound
sensation to be in front, when that signal was re-
produced that was originally recorded during sound
exposure from the front, and then reported their
sound sensation to be in the rear, when that signal
The results of the third experiment support the
theory of timbre differences. The direction of sound
sensation can be altered merely by altering the spec-
trum of the sound signal that reaches the ear-drum,
at least when visual cues are not available. If the
spectrum at the ear drum is constant, the direction of

212
sound incidence does not play any role for the direc-
tion of the sound sensation. To determine a certain
direction of the sound sensation, the sound signal
must obviously be linearly distorted in such a way
as is normally done by head and pinna, when the
sound wave reaches the observer from that very
direction from which the sound sensation is desired
to appear. This was proven for the front and rear
direction.
The experiment works as well when the sound
signals are unknown to the subjects under test. The
results of the first and second experiment fit to
explain this.
In the first experiment the observers have been
stimulated by narrow band signals. The effect of
head and pinna on these signals is not an alteration
of different parts of the spectra relative to each other
but only a variation of the sound pressure level.
The results of the experiment show that in narrow
band signals no information about the incidence
direction of the sound is included which could be
detected by the hearing system. The hearing system
forms the sound sensation in a direction that depends
only on the frequency of the signal. The psycho-
physiological function between the signal frequency
and the direction of the sound sensation can be
described by directional bands (Fig. 8).
In the second experiment the filter effect of head
and pinna has been measured in detail. In the case
of stimulation by the front resp. rear loudspeaker
Fig. 11 shows boosted bands, in which spectral parts
of a signal coming from one direction are boosted
in relation to the corresponding spectral parts of a
signal coming from the other direction.
In Fig. 13 the positions of the directional and the
boosted bands on the frequency axis are confronted.
It is obvious that the positions of directional "h"
directional bands v h
II
boosted bands
125 250 500 Hz 1 2 8
frequency
Fig. 13. Positions of the directional bands and the
boosted bands on the frequency axis.
bands and boosted "re" bands correspond to each
other. The same can be said about the "v" and "fr"
bands with the exception of a missing "v"-band at
16 kHz. A look at Fig. 8 shows however, that this
band may exist and become significant in tests with
larger groups of observers. (The "o"-band and its
corresponding boosted band may be neglected here
to simplify the discussion.)
ACUSTICA
J. BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION Vol. 22 (1969/70)
The directional bands have been found in tests
with narrow band signals. It may be assumed now
that they also effect the localization of broad band
signals in such a way that the sound sensation is
mainly determined by that class of directional bands,
in which the most power relative to the other classes
of directional bands comes in. The cooperation of
head and pinna with the other parts of the hearing
system can then be understood as is schematically
explained in Fig. 14 on front-back-discrimination:
linear distorted signal
fp fp fr -r, h v h v h v
fr fp fr h v h v h v
frequency *•
Fig. 14. The cooperation of the outer ear with those
parts of the hearing system which cause the
directional bands schematically represented
with three special noise signals.
In the first column three signals are represented
by their power density spectra. They may hit the
observer from the front. Head and pinna then form
a filter that in some way looks like a comb filter
(2nd column). The signals passing this filter are
relatively boosted within the "fr"-bands. The result-
ing power density spectra of the signals at the ear-
drum are shown in the third column.
In regard to the assumption that the direction of
the sound sensation is determined by those direc-
tional bands that get most of the signal power, the
v h
sound sensations of the signals of the first and
second row will be in front of the observers. This
V/A VM will be the same for nearly all usual signals, as long
fr as their power density curve is to some extend
kHz 16
smooth. The subjects under test need no previous
knowledge of the signal.
Only for very unusual signals like those in the
third row of Fig. 14 or special low pass or high pass
signals the detection system fails and the direction
of the sound sensation will be inverted. That these
inversions indeed occur exactly as predicted could
be proven by very extensive hearing tests with
various especially filtered signals [3].
Similar tests showed what happens when no clear
preponderation of power in one the classes of direc-
tional bands takes effect. For example, when about
the same power falls into "v" and "h" bands, the
ACUSTICA
Vol. 22 (1969/70) J. BLAUERT: SOUND LOCALIZATION
sound sensation is located in the head or is some-
times divided into a front and a rear part. If a
sufficient part of the power falls into the "o" band,
the sound sensation appears under a certain angle
of elevation.
All experimental results reported in this article
are consistent with the following hypothesis:
Localization in the median plane takes place in
cooperation with the outer ear (head, pinna etc.)
and the other parts of the hearing system in the
following way:
The arriving sound signal is filtered by the outer
ear. This effects a relative boosting of those parts of
the signal that lie in certain frequency bands which
depend on the direction of sound incidence.
If after the filtering the most powerful components
of the signal are in those frequency bands that have
been boosted, the sound sensation will be formed in
a direction that coincides with the direction of sound
incidence.
Acknowledgement
The author wishes to thank Prof. Dr.-Ing. V.
ASCHOFF, Aachen and Prof. Dr.-Ing. W. JANOWSKY,
Aachen for their promoting interest in this research.
(Received May 23 r d , 1969.)
References
[1] BATTEAU, D. W., The role of the pinna in human
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