AURORA: Controlling sound like we do with light
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Sussex
Department Name: Sch of Engineering and Informatics
Abstract
Current sound design does not have a spatial component: architects design buildings or public spaces so that the same sound is either everywhere or nowhere. We count on headphones for getting personal, high quality soundscapes, even in augmented/virtual/mixed reality applications.
Our society, however, manages light differently: a theatre director can populate a scene with focused or diffused light, a spotlight that follows a character, alternation of light and shadows. This is possible because centuries of optical science have given us tools that can shape light beams: we call the simplest lenses, but these can be assembled to form telescopes, microscopes etc. Adding a 3D holographic image of a crown on a £5 note is now as easy as getting good fish and chips in Brighton.
The difference between sound and light design is even more apparent in television/computer displays: we use special materials (liquid crystals) to compose lights of different nature, shaping them in what we perceive as 3D landscapes, even one for each observer. Conversely, there is no such a thing as a 3D display for acoustics, and this is probably the main reason why immersive experiences and videogames are mainly designed for visual feedback. Medical and industrial applications, which are based on transducer arrays, often require costly and bulky electronics and are difficult to scale up. Designers simply don't have the right tools.
In this fellowship, I will exploit my research on meta-materials (i.e., materials designed and engineered to have acoustic properties not present in nature) to create these tools. If my research is successful, at the end of the 3 years we will have very thin DIY acoustic lenses that can be assembled in acoustic "telescopes" and "microscope" objectives, but also speakers that deliver personalised messages to passing users (like in the movie "Minority Report"). We will have windows that let the air through, but not the noise of the air-conditioning unit. We will have a new type of VR/AR environments, incorporating localised music and long-range haptics (like in "Iron Man"), available to the UK creative industries for early adoption. We will have diagnostic and therapeutic applications based on ultrasound with a simple 3D printer.
To achieve this result, I will partner with selected industrial stakeholders (in UK and abroad), through workshops and short feasibility studies, to explore what lies beyond our everyday acoustics and how this can be applied to the benefit of UK companies. I will even build devices that have no optical counterpart, but that can manipulate sound with a precision beyond our perception. And you will able to see them in action, because I will be active in public engagement to facilitate their uptake.
At the end of the three years, we will have a new way of designing, thinking and experience sound. We will have on sound the same control we now have on light.
Our society, however, manages light differently: a theatre director can populate a scene with focused or diffused light, a spotlight that follows a character, alternation of light and shadows. This is possible because centuries of optical science have given us tools that can shape light beams: we call the simplest lenses, but these can be assembled to form telescopes, microscopes etc. Adding a 3D holographic image of a crown on a £5 note is now as easy as getting good fish and chips in Brighton.
The difference between sound and light design is even more apparent in television/computer displays: we use special materials (liquid crystals) to compose lights of different nature, shaping them in what we perceive as 3D landscapes, even one for each observer. Conversely, there is no such a thing as a 3D display for acoustics, and this is probably the main reason why immersive experiences and videogames are mainly designed for visual feedback. Medical and industrial applications, which are based on transducer arrays, often require costly and bulky electronics and are difficult to scale up. Designers simply don't have the right tools.
In this fellowship, I will exploit my research on meta-materials (i.e., materials designed and engineered to have acoustic properties not present in nature) to create these tools. If my research is successful, at the end of the 3 years we will have very thin DIY acoustic lenses that can be assembled in acoustic "telescopes" and "microscope" objectives, but also speakers that deliver personalised messages to passing users (like in the movie "Minority Report"). We will have windows that let the air through, but not the noise of the air-conditioning unit. We will have a new type of VR/AR environments, incorporating localised music and long-range haptics (like in "Iron Man"), available to the UK creative industries for early adoption. We will have diagnostic and therapeutic applications based on ultrasound with a simple 3D printer.
To achieve this result, I will partner with selected industrial stakeholders (in UK and abroad), through workshops and short feasibility studies, to explore what lies beyond our everyday acoustics and how this can be applied to the benefit of UK companies. I will even build devices that have no optical counterpart, but that can manipulate sound with a precision beyond our perception. And you will able to see them in action, because I will be active in public engagement to facilitate their uptake.
At the end of the three years, we will have a new way of designing, thinking and experience sound. We will have on sound the same control we now have on light.
Planned Impact
AURORA will enable a multi-platform technology, which will change the way we manage sound/noise across all frequencies and, potentially, all applications. This will be demonstrated producing 5 key tools (D1-D5), each with a an increasing level of complexity, which will be tested in VR/AR environments through dedicated experiments.
The path to impact comes from Metasonics, a start-up company that I have recently co-founded. Almost 1 day/week how my time will be dedicated in exploring new leads for the company and ways to increase its IP portfolio. A successful AURORA will therefore strengthen Metasonics, allowing recruitment of new staff and a leadership story for the UK.
Economic impact will be primarily seeded in UK industries using digital technologies (e.g. human computer interaction, augmented and virtual reality) or in the creative sector (cinema, television, concert halls, architecture), as these are the sectors where meta-materials may have a short-term impact. . In particular, the AURORA team will reach these stakeholders through the research residency at the FuseBox in Brighton, through the workshops organised in collaboration with Wired Sussex and the Knowledge Transfer Network and through public engagement. Contact with these companies will enhance the significance of the end-user tests, thus facilitating the uptake of meta-material based solutions for delivering localised, targeted, immersive sound into VR/AR environments.
After an initial contact AURORA will then deliver 9 "technology vouchers": 5-days long one-to-one interactions with the most promising companies, giving game designers, television studios, safety engineers and architects the possibility of testing our technologies on their own projects. Within the limitations imposed by confidentiality, these "case studies" will potentially seed long-term relationships and generate IP, that may be better exploited directly through these companies.
In AURORA, however, we will also explore medium-term impact on noise management and healthcare, running a couple of targeted demonstrations linked to the main deliverables (i.e. the "tools") and seeding future collaborations.
Academic impact will be achieved by high-quality publications and early-stage interactions with other groups working in the field of acoustic meta-materials.
Public engagement in science festivals and trade shows will be a way to facilitate the uptake of a new way of thinking, designing and experiencing sound. The Fellow is extremely active in this field and this aspect will remain in AURORA.
The path to impact comes from Metasonics, a start-up company that I have recently co-founded. Almost 1 day/week how my time will be dedicated in exploring new leads for the company and ways to increase its IP portfolio. A successful AURORA will therefore strengthen Metasonics, allowing recruitment of new staff and a leadership story for the UK.
Economic impact will be primarily seeded in UK industries using digital technologies (e.g. human computer interaction, augmented and virtual reality) or in the creative sector (cinema, television, concert halls, architecture), as these are the sectors where meta-materials may have a short-term impact. . In particular, the AURORA team will reach these stakeholders through the research residency at the FuseBox in Brighton, through the workshops organised in collaboration with Wired Sussex and the Knowledge Transfer Network and through public engagement. Contact with these companies will enhance the significance of the end-user tests, thus facilitating the uptake of meta-material based solutions for delivering localised, targeted, immersive sound into VR/AR environments.
After an initial contact AURORA will then deliver 9 "technology vouchers": 5-days long one-to-one interactions with the most promising companies, giving game designers, television studios, safety engineers and architects the possibility of testing our technologies on their own projects. Within the limitations imposed by confidentiality, these "case studies" will potentially seed long-term relationships and generate IP, that may be better exploited directly through these companies.
In AURORA, however, we will also explore medium-term impact on noise management and healthcare, running a couple of targeted demonstrations linked to the main deliverables (i.e. the "tools") and seeding future collaborations.
Academic impact will be achieved by high-quality publications and early-stage interactions with other groups working in the field of acoustic meta-materials.
Public engagement in science festivals and trade shows will be a way to facilitate the uptake of a new way of thinking, designing and experiencing sound. The Fellow is extremely active in this field and this aspect will remain in AURORA.
Organisations
- University of Sussex (Fellow, Lead Research Organisation)
- Arts and Humanities Research Council (Co-funder)
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University (Collaboration)
- University of Portsmouth (Collaboration)
- Wired Sussex (Collaboration, Project Partner)
- Draw to Perform (Collaboration)
- Bioecology (Collaboration)
- IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF EXETER (Collaboration)
- Environmental Resources Management (Collaboration)
- Portal Devices Ltd (Collaboration)
- Royal College of Art (Collaboration)
- University of Bristol (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON (Collaboration)
- LCE Architects Ltd (Project Partner)
- Outshift (Project Partner)
- Knowledge Transfer Network Ltd (Project Partner)
- Environmental Resource Management Ltd (Project Partner)
- Drawtoperform (Project Partner)
- 4GROUNDmedia Limited (Project Partner)
Publications
Andrade M
(2019)
Experimental investigation of the particle oscillation instability in a single-axis acoustic levitator
in AIP Advances
Azbaid El Ouahabi A
(2021)
On the use of the Angular Spectrum Method for the evaluation of acoustic metasurfaces
Azbaid El Ouahabi A
(2020)
Theoretical and experimental investigation of the transmission/reflection pressure fields of labyrinthine unit cells
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Azbaid El Ouahabi A
(2022)
A transfer matrix method for calculating the transmission and reflection coefficient of labyrinthine metamaterials.
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Brianza G
(2020)
One step at a time to feel lighter: Understanding the impact of sound and smell on body image perception
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Chisari L
(2021)
Preliminary studies for metamaterial-based audio systems
Chisari L
(2020)
Metamaterial solutions for noise management in hospital settings
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Chisari, L.
(2023)
TOWARD ABERRATIONS CORRECTION IN AUDIO SYSTEMS WITH ACOUSTIC METAMATERIALS
in Proceedings of the Institute of Acoustics
Curati N
(2023)
How Long Is a Note? Simple Experiments to Understand Sound
in Frontiers for Young Minds
Title | Music by Gillian Spragg - for Physical Review Applied |
Description | Gillian created a piece of music completely different from the one composed by Thor. At science festivals, we noted that if a member of general public could not get the effect with Thor's piece, they could get it with Gillian's music....and viceversa. |
Type Of Art | Composition/Score |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Impact | A paper currently awaiting the decision from Physical Review Applied. I learned how a composer makes a score...and how different composers see the world differently. |
Title | Music by Thor Magnusson |
Description | This piece was created by Thor for our work at AudioMostly 2019. It is the first example of sound for speaker and metamaterial |
Type Of Art | Composition/Score |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Impact | A paper for AudioMostly 2019 An interview with the BBC |
Description | Recruitment: completed in February 2019, restarted in February 2020, completed in March 2020. Work Package 1: we have found a way to expand the frequency response of our devices. Originally they had a bandwidth of 5% (3 notes on a piano), now they cover almost three octaves. In 2021, we moved to 4 octaves. While this is still far from the 11 octaves of audible sounds, this is sufficient to pass base melodies and to meet the standards for telephone conversations. WP1 Promised deliverables: D1. "metamaterial-based windows that deviate noise from air-conditioning units or garden pubs, while still allowing free airflow" (completed in January 2020) D2. "metamaterial-based sleeves, like masks in front of a light projector, for tonal alarms that only reach parts of public spaces" (completed in May 2019) In particular, we demonstrated how this effect can be achieved with a collimator, a varifocal lens for sound, a blazed diffraction grating. D3. "a touchless, interactive keyboard made of sound, with ultrasonic feedback" (it was not possible to start the collaboration with UltraLeap, so this was delivered through a master student in 2022). Work package 2: the work on actuated metamaterials has been delayed due to difficulties in recruiting a suitable PDRA. Planned deliverables: D4: "collecting a musical piece and spatially splitting it into its main components, for digital content" (completed in August 2019) We run a user-centred evaluation of an "acoustic rainbow" and this was the chance to work with music composers, to evaluate the possibility of using metamaterials to augment musical instruments and to transform rhythm in spatial messages. The paper, however, received so many negative comments in February 2020, that we would have needed to go back to laboratories...which was not possible until basically now. D5: "a device that creates different tangible forms to sound, depending on which key is played on an AR piano" Device completed in January 2021, but only tested on volunteers in 2022 (through a Master student). WP3: user studies were run in parallel to each prototype designed, in an agile approach. Unexpected outputs: 1. a test for lateral auditory localisation and a much deeper understanding of spatial audio. 2. broadband metamaterial panels used in hospitals 3. broadband attenuators for air conditioning 4. a more thorough understanding of the synergies between sound and other sensory inputs (taste, smell, sight) 5. an application of soundscape methods to user studies in human-computer interaction Dissemination: more than 10,000 contacts with the general public in 2019, not to mention the media coverage. |
Exploitation Route | some of our findings are being used by a company in an Innovate UK (Audiences of the Future) grant others (e.g. the noise cancelling panels) have been assigned to Metasonixx others open to new research and elicit in the general public a new approach to what sound is and what can be done with it. |
Sectors | Creative Economy Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) Environment Healthcare |
Description | The first spin-out from Sussex and Bristol that I co-founded (Metasonics) went dormant in May 2019. Even if we received different awards for the technology (e.g. we were voted one of the 10 rising stars by TechNation) and a lot of potential interest, the business model simply did not work. Most companies perceived "metamaterials" still as research, while they wanted a plug-and-play product. All the companies that were open to running research collaborations for a fee, eventually wanted access to the IP. This was a chance for me to learn much more about the whole process of starting a company...and in the end I felt confident enough to start a new one. Metasonixx was incorporated from the ashes of Metasonics, in August 2019, but with a slightly different business model, focused on a line of products. With this model in mind, at the start of the pandemic in 2020 we realised that what we (as researchers in acoustics) could actually give a contribution....so we pivoted our activities in searching for what could be done to alleviate the augmented noise pollution in hospitals. As described in my fellowship proposal, this activity covers 5% of my time, which went up to 20% due to additional proof-of-concept funds. Different outreach activities that were planned for 2020 have been paid for and delivered in 2022. The same applies to the collaboration with many artists: a lot of brainstorming started transforming into tangible outputs only from 2022 onwards. During 2020 I realised how much of the impact I had planned relied on having access to a laboratory. I appreciated how much of my work relied on daily contact with my students and collaborators. When lockdown hit, it hit hard. Suddenly it was necessary to take care of "my people" and maintain enough sanity to keep working and adapt to the circumstances. This took time, which flew away quickly, and some additional time was needed due to family issues. At the end of 2020, I had already learned a lot about myself as a researcher and as PI....a lot of ideas simply did not happen, others came and went: a lot of the research we are doing now was not planned, a lot of what I planned only started to take shape in 2022. At the start of 2021, I experienced a divorce. After 6 months of paralysis, I started again. I found myself with a lot of new ideas to follow up, that I slowly started transforming into small funding applications. In 2022, I started thinking big again. In 2023, I focused my research towards the higher part of the TRL scale, helping to bring the first product made by Metasonixx (i.e. partitions) to paid pilots (TRL6-7) and first sales (TRL9). This was completely new for me. |
First Year Of Impact | 2022 |
Sector | Aerospace, Defence and Marine,Construction,Environment,Healthcare,Transport |
Impact Types | Economic |
Description | Testing in hospitals for metamaterial panels |
Geographic Reach | Local/Municipal/Regional |
Policy Influence Type | Contribution to new or Improved professional practice |
Impact | The pandemic has brought in a number of new nurses. The most visible impact was their increased caution towards unnecessary noise |
Description | COST Action CA15125 - travel grant for Thomas Graham |
Amount | € 2,000 (EUR) |
Organisation | European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) |
Sector | Public |
Country | Belgium |
Start | 02/2019 |
End | 03/2019 |
Description | Metamaterial-based Noise Control in Intensive Care Units |
Amount | £49,828 (GBP) |
Funding ID | 63615 |
Organisation | Innovate UK |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 04/2020 |
End | 11/2020 |
Description | Metamaterial-based Noise Control in Intensive Care Units |
Amount | £22,400 (GBP) |
Organisation | Higher Education Innovation Funding (HEIF) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2021 |
End | 07/2021 |
Description | SIGGRAPH ASIA - Travel grant for volunteers (Chinmay Rajguru) |
Amount | £2,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | Association for Computing Machinery |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United States |
Start | 11/2019 |
End | 12/2019 |
Description | UK Acoustic Network - Travel Grant for Joshua Kybett |
Amount | £2,500 (GBP) |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 06/2019 |
End | 08/2019 |
Description | UKRI Audiences of the Future |
Amount | £47,112 (GBP) |
Funding ID | 133742 |
Organisation | Innovate UK |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 09/2018 |
End | 03/2019 |
Title | AUDIOZOOM |
Description | We designed an acoustic projector, which looks like an auto-zoom camera. Initially tested in 2019, its development has been paused by lockdown. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | What we learned has started for us research into compact acoustic cameras. |
URL | https://www.inavateonthenet.net/features/article/the-sound-projector-revolutionising-audio |
Title | Acoustic Telescope and Vari-Focal lens |
Description | This is the first example (to date) of using two metasurfaces to create a lens of variable focus. We used it to deliver sound to a moving object. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Demonstrating the validity of the underpinning design laws opened to a new set of developments. Results will be made public at CHI 2019 after patenting. |
Title | Acoustic rainbows: Exploiting frequency response |
Description | Anytime I mentioned metamaterials the typical response was: they are only good in a narrow band. We designed a blazed diffraction grating and found that it could be used to split melodies into acoustic rainbows over almost 2 octaves. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | We found that people don't have the right vocabulary to describe spatial sound...and this is stemming into an experiment that we are preparing for Frontiers of Psychology. |
Title | Expanding bricks' bandwidth |
Description | We found a way to expand the frequency response of single metamaterial bricks...and also that assemblies of bricks may work over larger bandwidths than single bricks. The goal is to reach 3 octaves, which is the standard for telephone communication |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | One of the major concerns during my interview was: can your metamaterials be used for larger bandwidths? I promised to sort this...and I did. We are not yet at 3 octaves, but at 50% of the project's lifetime, we moved from 2 notes to 2 octaves. This is enough to pass melodies. |
Title | Method to assess lateral auralisation |
Description | We developed a method based on 3D virtual environments to detect the capability of a person to detect lateral sound. The tool is currently being tested online, to determine an average profile. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2021 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | We expect impact on game designers, but also on engineering aural impants. One day, it will be possible to measure lateral audio capabilities just by looking at a screen, like we do for lateral vision in optics. |
Title | Smaller meta-material bricks |
Description | In collaboration with Bristol, I resolved one key issue with the practical use of the metamaterials described in [Memoli et al. Nature Communications volume 8, 14608 (2017)] i.e. their size. We found that the same design could be used at wavelengths much bigger than the design ones, exploiting one of the lower frequency resonances. This solution also doubled the bandwidth of each brick, moving it from three notes to almost one octave. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Our finding opened to further miniaturisation of the bricks. Results will be published at CHI 2019 and will be part of a patent. |
Title | analytical model for sound propagation in labyrinthine metamaterials |
Description | The method published before ours did not work...this works very well. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | This method will allow us the complete design of a metamaterial starting from the desired acoustic field. This is a crucial step towards the development of shape-changing metamaterials. |
Title | curved metasurfaces |
Description | We worked with designers on a project funded by the UK Acoustic Network +, to produce noise management solutions for MRI machines. This was an experience in itself, because it is clear that designers and engineers have a different language and a different approach to things. Personally, the PI learned a lot. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2023 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | results were presented at different public shows. |
Title | immersive experiences |
Description | We managed to design a small, portable cinema for immersive experiences indoor. The use of metamaterials allowed to avoid extra reflections, so the setup could also be used in small rooms. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2022 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Portal Devices started selling similar structures. We learned how to design 3D audio with a smaller number of speakers. |
Title | wide-band noise-cancelling metamaterial panels |
Description | We managed to design wide-band noise cancelling panels, that have been used to build noise management solutions for hospitals. |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | The company Metasonixx had been funded by Innovate UK for developing these panels together with Sussex. The plan is to use them to reduce noise in hospital wards, where noise has increased due to equipment to treat COVID. |
Description | Draw to Perform |
Organisation | Draw to Perform |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
PI Contribution | The PI contributed to the design of different events. |
Collaborator Contribution | They attended the kick-off meeting, providing strategic insight into their sector. We had a further meeting to define a demonstrator. |
Impact | multi-disciplinary: performing arts we have so far submitted together two bids: one to Ars Electronica and one to the Digital Catapult |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Imperial College |
Organisation | Imperial College London |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We wrote together a proposal for a Royal Society meeting on metamaterials. It was not funded. This has generated different discussions on potential projects together. |
Collaborator Contribution | They contributed to the proposal |
Impact | One proposal - not funded. Two workshops: one in 2021, one in 2022, one planned for 2023 On follow-up proposal, in discussion |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Master Student - Greg |
Organisation | University of Southampton |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We are contributing with some insight into acoustic metamaterials |
Collaborator Contribution | They provide a master student, a weekly meeting and their expertise in active control |
Impact | one master student being trained, one paper being written, one proposal in preparation |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | Mitchell Environmental Solutions |
Organisation | Environmental Resources Management |
Country | Global |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | We have been discussing how to employ meta-material windows in their noise-management projects. The company then became a supporter for this award and has influenced some of the deliverables |
Collaborator Contribution | They attended the kick-off meeting and another meeting in the first 6 months. |
Impact | Discussion on potential new projects We are now both part of the IOA committee for Environmental Noise and Soundscapes In 2023 we have started a joint PhD, funded partially by Metasonixx |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Portal Devices |
Organisation | Portal Devices Ltd |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | We have used meta-material techniques to investigate the acoustic properties of perforated films, to be used as cinema screens. As measurement techniques improved, thanks to this award, they requested more work. |
Collaborator Contribution | They have contributed samples to analyse and funding for the time of temporary staff (Thomas Graham, Chinmay Rajguru). |
Impact | Results may become a publication, once cleared from confidentiality. Tom Graham decided to stay as PDRA. We continued discussions on possible applications of our technology to audio-visual domes, and this resulted in a proposal (to HEIF funding at Sussex) for building a TRL6 demonstrator. This was successful and generated more work, which is currently delivered through Metasonixx. |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Royal College of Art - master students |
Organisation | Royal College of Art |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We contribute with our expertise in metamaterial design |
Collaborator Contribution | They contributed with their expertise in product design |
Impact | This collaboration involved a team of Master students, who started designing curved metasurfaces. This has generated a proposal for UKAN+, on ways to reduce noise in MRI machines, which was funded. Other students followed up with questions. |
Start Year | 2021 |
Description | Royal Society travel grant |
Organisation | Shanghai Jiao Tong University |
Country | China |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We contributed with our expertise in metamaterials |
Collaborator Contribution | They contributed with their expertise in non-destructive testing |
Impact | Due to lockdown it was not possible to use the travel grant. We produced anyway a joint paper, doing in 2 years what we planned to do in 6 months. |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | Sani-Robot |
Organisation | Bioecology |
Country | Italy |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | We were invited to participate in a research project funded by one of the local authorities in Italy. The idea was to build a robot capable of sanitising industrial factories according to the World Health Organisation recommendations, using dispersed aerosols. My team designed an acoustic sensor for measuring the concentration of the aerosol in the room, as a part of a larger project assigned to the School of Engineering and Informatics. Gianluca Memoli also acted as a project manager. The project was updated in 2022 with an additional request. |
Collaborator Contribution | Two other Sussex academics were involved. Bioecology involved different industrial and academic realities in Italy: we were the only non-Italian partner. They contributed with their expertise and did the testing in situ. |
Impact | - a sensor for aerosol concentration, based on ultrasound and a metamaterial lens - a navigation protocol for the robot The collaboration involved biology, chemistry, robotics, acoustics. The project is leading to a follow-up proposal led by the industrial partner |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | University of Bristol |
Organisation | University of Bristol |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | The PI wrote a joint paper together in 2019. One of teh professors there, Bruce Drinkwater, became one of teh co-founders for Metasonixx. |
Collaborator Contribution | Prof Drinkwater collaborated to the submission and to the generation of results |
Impact | Paper to CHI 2019, published in May 2019 Participation to SETSquared thanks to Metasonixx Different pitching events together |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | University of Exeter |
Organisation | University of Exeter |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | I finalised a proposal for a Royal Society Meeting - it was not funded |
Collaborator Contribution | They contributed to the proposal. |
Impact | One meeting proposal, a chance to contact leading academics working on acoustic metamaterials. |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | Wired Sussex |
Organisation | Wired Sussex |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | The PI has been a resident at the Fusebox (i.e. a SME incubator) once a week until 2020. While there, he talked to other residents and we explored potential collaborations. We now regularly attend their events |
Collaborator Contribution | They offered me a honorary residency, facilitated discussions and networking opportunities. A total in-kind + cash contribution of £16,050 was received by the end of the project. The company closed in 2023 and a new one is being formed |
Impact | Dissemination of project results to creative companies. Discussions of future collaborations. Two or three of our students conclude their last year project with Fusebox companies |
Start Year | 2018 |
Description | bid for SMART with Portsmouth |
Organisation | University of Portsmouth |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | We completed part of a proposal for Innovate UK, which was unsuccessful. Discussions on resubmission are ongoing. |
Collaborator Contribution | They completed the rest of the proposal |
Impact | SMART application Feb 2020 Rediscussed in 2021, but decided not to follow up |
Start Year | 2019 |
Title | ACOUSTIC METAMATERIAL SYSTEMS |
Description | Disclosed herein are systems using acoustic metamaterial surfaces comprising arrangements of unit cells arranged to introduce time delays to an incident acoustic wave. In embodiments the relative positions of two or more acoustic metasurfaces (81, 82) is selected or adjusted to control the acoustic output of the system such that the acoustic output of the system is a non-linear combination of the respective operations performed by the plurality of acoustic metasurfaces (81, 82), the non- linear combination being a convolution of the respective operations performed by the plurality of acoustic metasurfaces that is determined as a function of the relative positioning between the acoustic metasurfaces (81, 82). Also disclosed are applications of such acoustic metasurfaces in noise-reducing structures. |
IP Reference | WO2020208380 |
Protection | Patent application published |
Year Protection Granted | 2020 |
Licensed | Yes |
Impact | licensed to Metasonixx with the right to sub-license |
Title | ACOUSTIC WAVE MANIPULATION BY MEANS OF A TIME DELAY ARRAY |
Description | A device (20) for manipulating an incident acoustic wave to generate an acoustic output is described wherein the device comprises a plurality of unit cells arranged into an array, at least some of said unit cells being configured to introduce time delays to an incident acoustic wave at the respective positions of the unit cells within the array of unit cells, such that said plurality of unit cells define an array of time delays to thereby define a spatial delay distribution for manipulating an incident acoustic wave to generate an acoustic output (30). The array of time delays may be re-configured to vary the spatial delay distribution of the device in order to generate different acoustic outputs. Also described are methods for designing or configuring such devices. |
IP Reference | US2019364362 |
Protection | Patent application published |
Year Protection Granted | 2019 |
Licensed | Commercial In Confidence |
Impact | This patent is being licensed to the spin-out Metasonixx. We finalised the patent originally submitted in 2017, which arrived at national phase in August 2019. This patent has attracted a lot of attention from potential end-users, which allowed the PI to get a much clearer idea of the potential applications of acoustic metamaterials. It also generated a small contract with Portal Devices (see appropriate section) |
Title | ACOUSTIC WAVE MANIPULATION BY MEANS OF A TIME DELAY ARRAY |
Description | A device (20) for manipulating an incident acoustic wave to generate an acoustic output is described wherein the device comprises a plurality of unit cells arranged into an array, at least some of said unit cells being configured to introduce time delays to an incident acoustic wave at the respective positions of the unit cells within the array of unit cells, such that said plurality of unit cells define an array of time delays to thereby define a spatial delay distribution for manipulating an incident acoustic wave to generate an acoustic output (30). The array of time delays may be re-configured to vary the spatial delay distribution of the device in order to generate different acoustic outputs. Also described are methods for designing or configuring such devices. |
IP Reference | WO2018146489 |
Protection | Patent granted |
Year Protection Granted | 2018 |
Licensed | Yes |
Impact | This IP has been licensed to the company Metasonixx |
Title | ACOUSTIC WAVE MANIPULATION BY MEANS OF A TIME DELAY ARRAY |
Description | This is the EU version of the patent submitted in 2017, now at the national phase. |
IP Reference | EP3580557 |
Protection | Patent application published |
Year Protection Granted | 2019 |
Licensed | Commercial In Confidence |
Impact | The patent is currently being licensed to the spin-out Metasonixx |
Title | SoundBlind |
Description | This trademark describes the main product associated to the company Metasonixx |
IP Reference | |
Protection | Trade Mark |
Year Protection Granted | 2020 |
Licensed | Commercial In Confidence |
Impact | This Trademark was invented during the training received by the Knowledge Transfer Network in Feb-March 2020. It is been licensed directly by the company, after university approval. |
Company Name | Metasonics |
Description | Metasonics develops a soundwave controlling system, with applications in health wearables, smart homes, advertising and automotive entertainment setups. |
Year Established | 2018 |
Impact | The company tried to raise investment and sublicense the patent technology...but not successfully. Both angel investors and venture capitalists asked for a product to be developed. |
Website | https://www.metasonics.co.uk/ |
Company Name | Metasonixx |
Description | Metasonixx develops metamaterial technology that is designed to integrate with existing products to manipulate sound. |
Year Established | 2019 |
Impact | The company has one employee, Mr. Lorenzo Bonoldi, which is working part-time with the intention to start a PhD under my supervision. I submitted two proposals for SMART grants with Innovate UK: results are expected by the end of March 2020. |
Website | https://metasonixx.uk/ |
Description | Friends of Downs Junior 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | An invitation to the summer science festival in a local school. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Future Build 2023 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Sussex research was exhibited in a stand at FutureBuild 2023 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | FutureBuild 2024 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | We had a stand at this trade show, in collaboration with Metasonixx |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2024 |
Description | IEEE Ultrasound - Legacy |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | I was invited to prepare a stand for schools as part of the IEEE Ultrasonics conference. We shipped a selection of our demos to the Glasgow Science Centre and delivered the event with help from local volunteers. We had some WOW from the school children involved, but the major impact was on the staff from the Glasgow Science Centre, who invited us to come back for a dedicated event in 2020. They even passed my contacts to the National Science Museums Association, who contacted me for an event in Bradford in 2020. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | INAVATE - interview |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | An interview with an INAVATE reporter |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://www.inavateonthenet.net/features/article/the-sound-projector-revolutionising-audio |
Description | Interview with BBC International |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | A radio interview with a fantastic reporter. The presenters summarised very well the ambition behind AURORA...much better than I could ever have done! |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3csy67k |
Description | Interview with Russian channel |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | We were interviewed by the russian channel as a follow up to my presentation at CHI 2019. We presented data from AudioZoom and the Acoustic Rainbow. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrHiMLIGG4Y |
Description | Invited talk at Southampton |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
Results and Impact | I was invited to give a talk in the seminar series at Southampton University |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Italian Science Festival in Genoa |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | The Italian Science Festival in Genoa is the most prestigious science festival in Italy, with access only by invitation. The Festival gave us a room where I installed different demos (for school visits) and where evening talks were run (for adults). It was like transporting my lab there! We had fantastic feedback: visitors reported "they had never thought about sound in this way", the organisers invited us to submit a new proposal for 2020 (done) and some companies called back to discuss potential applications. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | http://www.festivalscienza.eu/site/en/home.html |
Description | Knowledge Transfer Network - Conference on Metamaterials |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | I gave two talks: one focused on teh use of metamaterials for the built environment and one for their use in hospitals |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://web-eur.cvent.com/event/dc2a2a01-4186-4c0f-a89f-7856be798e8f/websitePage:f27307c0-d244-43e5-... |
Description | New Scientist Live |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | The New Scientist Live happens at London Excel. In 2019 it had about 40,000 visitors. We had fantastic demos to showcase our research, they were well received and sparked lots of discussions. In particular, it was clear that there is not a vocabulary for describing sound experiences. We received many compliments and a couple of school kids even applied for work experience within the team. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://live.newscientist.com/exhibitors/university-of-sussex#/ |
Description | New Scientist Live - Manchester |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | More than 500 members of the general public visited teh stand everyday, showing interest and suggesting applications |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://live.newscientist.com/ |
Description | New Scientist Live 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | The AURORA team supported the UKAN+ stand at New Scientist in London (October 2022). We had all types of metamaterials |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://live.newscientist.com/ |
Description | Press Release - CHI 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | This has sparked interest in a different media |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | http://www.sussex.ac.uk/broadcast/read/48605 |
Description | Press Release - New Scientist Live |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Press release for my stand at New Scientist Live |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://www.brightonandhoveindependent.co.uk/education/sussex-university-academics-share-expertise-w... |
Description | Press Release - SOUNDBENDER |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | A press release for our paper at UIST 2018 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
URL | http://www.sussex.ac.uk/broadcast/read/46729 |
Description | SETSquared Invest 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Supporters |
Results and Impact | This was the first event in which I participated to support Metasonixx, as acting CEO. It gave me a great insight into the world of startups. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.setsquared.co.uk/programme/setsquared-2021-invest/ |
Description | SINC event - emerging research |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | The Sussex Innovation Centre invited me to talk about metamaterials and how to translate them into applications. The talk was held online in October 2020 and stemmed a discussion with local companies. I talked of academic research and of my involvement with a start-up |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://www.sinc.co.uk/event-detail/open-innovation-metamaterials |
Description | School Visit (Westdene) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | A talk to Y4 students in a local school |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Show & Tell with the Art Council |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
Results and Impact | Wired Sussex organised a meeting with the Art Council, where every participant showed an update on their work. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Talk at the EMF Camp Festival |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | I gave a talk called "shaping sound" where I tested for the first time the topic of my fellowship on a general audience. The talk was very well received, even if I was very emotional about it...people came out of their tents later on teh day to tell me how much they enjoyed it. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
URL | https://www.emfcamp.org/line-up/2018/340-shaping-sound |
Description | Talk to CASE organisation's annual dinner |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
Results and Impact | An invited talk to the dinner of the Alumni Relations Institute 2019 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://www.case.org/Conferences_and_Training/Alumni_Relations_Institute_2019.html |
Description | Talk to annual meeting of ISCE |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | I was invited to talk about my research by the Institute of Sound & Communications Engineers for the annual meeting. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | UK Construction Week |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | We had a stand in collaboration with Metasonixx |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | Virtual chat with Bower and Wilkins |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | A team of 3 people from Bowers and Wilkins (Worthing) arranged some demos and discussions in view of a potential collaboration. Plans for a joint research project were made. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Visit by Huawei |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | A team of 3 representatives from Huawei Acoustics in Germany visited Sussex looking for collaborators for a joint project. The visit happened in February and this kindled discussions that led to a research proposal submitted in September 2020 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Visit by Sony Europe |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | A team of researchers from Sony visited Sussex to discuss potential collaborations. We discussed a proposal and this was later submitted to the Sony Research Award competition. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Widening Participation Event: "Primary Space" |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | The university runs a Widening Participation program in which I take part actively. This year, we attempted for the first time to run an event for year 6, including external partners, in a speed-dating format. I used the event to test the first prototypes of the AURORA's demos. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
URL | https://thelatest.co.uk/brighton/2018/09/18/we-have-lift-off-primary-space-exploration-at-sussex-uni... |