Voice-based conversation is a fundamental mode of human communication. The growing prevalence of online communication systems and voice user interfaces for managing smartphones and smart devices has enhanced the everyday importance of these interfaces.
However, voice input presents a challenge in noisy environments or situations where multiple individuals are speaking simultaneously due to the inclusion of unintended sounds.
Traditionally, solutions like pin microphones, contact-type microphones such as throat microphones, and Non-Audible Murmur (NAM) microphones have been proposed to reduce ambient noise. Yet, pin microphones struggle with high volume levels, and contact-type microphones produce contact noise during actions like nodding or walking.
We proposed WhisperMask, a wearable electret condenser microphone designed to effectively capture speech even in noisy environments. This proposed mask-style microphone facilitates hands-free input and serves as a wearable, unintrusive, and lightweight interface, revolutionizing the way we interact with our devices in everyday situations.
Hirotaka Hiraki
Third-year Doctor Course Student
My research interests include Human-Computer Interaction(HCI), Machine Learning, Speech Interface.