Abstract

Abstract
Stress-ribbon footbridges are often prone to excessive vibrations induced by environmental phenomena (e.g., wind) and human actions (e.g., walking). This paper studies a stress-ribbon footbridge at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP) in Portugal, where different degrees of vertical vibrations are perceptible in response to human actions. We adopt sonification techniques to create a sonic manifestation that shows the footbridge’s dynamic response to human interaction. Two distinct sonification techniques – audification and parameter mapping – are adopted to provide intuitive access to the footbridge dynamics from low-level acceleration data and higher-level spectral analysis. In order to evaluate the proposed sonification techniques in exposing relevant information about human actions on the footbridge, an online perceptual test was conducted to assess the understanding of the three following dimensions: 1) the number of people interacting with the footbridge, 2) their walking speed, and 3) the steadiness of their pace. The online perceptual test was conducted with and without a short training phase. Results of n= 23 participants show that parameter mapping sonification is more effective in promoting an intuitive understating of the footbridge dynamics compared to audification. Furthermore, when exposed to a short training phase, the participants’ perception improved in identifying the correct dimensions. © 2023, ICST Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering.

Abstract
Language is closely related to how we perceive ourselves and signify our reality. In this scope, we created Desiring Machines, an interactive media art project that allows the experience of affective virtual environments adopting speech emotion recognition as the leading input source. Participants can share their emotions by speaking, singing, reciting poetry, or making any vocal sounds to generate virtual environments on the run. Our contribution combines two machine learning models. We propose a long-short term memory and a convolutional neural network to predict four main emotional categories from high-level semantic and low-level paralinguistic acoustic features. Predicted emotions are mapped to audiovisual representations by an end-to-end process encoding emotion in virtual environments. We use a generative model of chord progressions to transfer speech emotion into music based on the tonal interval space. Also, we implement a generative adversarial network to synthesize an image from the transcribed speech-to-text. The generated visuals are used as the style image in the style-transfer process onto an equirectangular projection of a spherical panorama selected for each emotional category. The result is an immersive virtual space encapsulating emotions in spheres disposed into a 3D environment. Users can create new affective representations or interact with other previously encoded instances (This ArtsIT publication is an extended version of the earlier abstract presented at the ACM MM22 [1]). © 2023, ICST Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering.

Abstract
This paper presents a clinical case study investigating the pattern of a saxophonist's embouchure as a possible origin of orofacial pain. The rehabilitation addressed the dental occlusion and a fracture in a metal ceramic bridge. To evaluate the undesirable loads on the upper teeth, two piezoresistive sensors were placed between the central incisors and the mouthpiece during the embouchure. A newly fixed metal ceramic prosthesis was placed from teeth 13 to 25, and two implants were placed in the premolar zone corresponding to teeth 14 and 15. After the oral rehabilitation, the embouchure force measurements showed that higher stability was promoted by the newly fixed metal-ceramic prosthesis. The musician executed a more symmetric loading of the central incisors (teeth 11 and 21). The functional demands of the saxophone player and consequent application of excessive pressure can significantly influence and modify the metal-ceramic position on the anterior zone teeth 21/22. The contribution of engineering (i.e., monitoring the applied forces on the musician's dental structures) was therefore crucial for the correct assessment and design of the treatment plan.

Abstract
Immersive audio technologies have broadened postproduction strategies for spatial audio, gaining popularity among mainstream audiences. However, there is a lack of defined procedures and critical thinking regarding audio mixing guidelines for surround sound in popular music. In this context, we conducted an empirical study to identify trends concerning instrument position, trajectories, and dynamics from surround mixings. Furthermore, we assess the degree to which they differ from their stereo renderings. Seven award-winning songs in the Grammy category for Best Immersive Album were analyzed, including surround 5.1 and stereo versions. The study found consistent instrument positions in the songs, with rhythmic instruments and bass in the center, lead vocals spread across front channels, and harmonic instruments in wider positions. Solo instruments occupied left, right, and center channels, with dynamics emphasizing lead vocals and solos. Trajectories were rarely used, indicating channel-based thinking. Limited adoption of immersive audio dimensions and reliance on stereo techniques were observed, with no notable differences between the surround and stereo versions. Identified song outliers are discussed and offer avenues for exploration, highlighting the importance of diverse musical expressions in informing immersive audio mixing. © 2023 IEEE.

Abstract
We study the impact of sound design – soundscape, sound effects, and auditory notifications, namely earcons – on the player’s experience of serious games. Three sound design versions for the game Venci’s Adventures have been developed: 1) no sound; 2) standard sound design, including soundscapes and sound effects; and 3) standard sound design with auditory notification (namely, earcons). Perceptual experiments were conducted to evaluate the most suitable attention retention earcons from a diverse collection of timbres, pitch, and melodic patterns, as well as the user experience of the different sound design versions assessed in pairs (1 vs. 2 and 2 vs. 3). Our results show that participants (n= 23 ) perceive better user experience in terms of game playing competence, immersion, flow, challenge and affect, and enhanced attention retention when adopting standard sound design with the earcons. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.