Investigating Concurrent Speech-based Designs for Information Communication

Speech-based information is usually communicated to users in a sequential manner, but users are capable of obtaining information from multiple voices concurrently. This fact implies that the sequential approach is possibly under-utilizing human perception capabilities to some extent and restricting users to perform optimally in an immersive environment. This paper reports on an experiment that aimed to test different speech-based designs for concurrent information communication. Two audio streams from two types of content were played concurrently to 34 users, in both a continuous or intermittent form, with the manipulation of a variety of spatial configurations (i.e. Diotic, Diotic-Monotic, and Dichotic). In total, 12 concurrent speech-based design configurations were tested with each user. The results showed that the concurrent speech-based information designs involving intermittent form and the spatial difference in information streams produce comprehensibility equal to the level achieved in sequential information communication.