Theoretical Framework for the Optimization of Microphone Array Configuration for Humanoid Robot Audition

An important aspect of a humanoid robot is audition. Previous work has presented robot systems capable of sound localization and source segregation based on microphone arrays with various configurations. However, no theoretical framework for the design of these arrays has been presented. In the current paper, a design framework is proposed based on a novel array quality measure. The measure is based on the effective rank of a matrix composed of the generalized head related transfer functions (GHRTFs) that account for microphone positions other than the ears. The measure is shown to be theoretically related to standard array performance measures such as beamforming robustness and DOA estimation accuracy. Then, the measure is applied to produce sample designs of microphone arrays. Their performance is investigated numerically, verifying the advantages of array design based on the proposed theoretical framework.