The 12th Panhellenic Conference “Acoustics 2024”, organised by the Hellenic Institute of Acoustics (HELINA), took place from October 17th to 19th in Rethymno, Crete. This biennial conference, co-organised with the Hellenic Mediterranean University, the Municipality of Rethymno, and the Region of Crete, brought together experts and researchers to spotlight Greece’s latest achievements in acoustics. The event aimed to showcase research advancements, encourage collaboration, and promote the application of acoustics in practical fields.

A highlight of this year’s conference was the contribution from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), a partner in the SCENE project, which presented two academic papers. Developed within the SCENE framework, these presentations demonstrated 2 advanced tools that bring new possibilities for assessing and simulating acoustics in heritage sites and filming locations.

1. A room acoustic simulation tool for filming location scouting

  • Summary: This tool was developed to assist filmmakers and sound designers in scouting and assessing filming locations. The tool allows users to enter acoustic data for heritage sites and other spaces and then simulates how sound behaves in these environments. Users can explore acoustic responses at different source and listener positions through a graphical interface with real-time rendering and playback, providing an immediate sense of the space’s acoustic properties. This tool helps production teams make informed decisions about sound quality and scene suitability before filming begins.

2. Simulation of room acoustic response for arbitrary selection of receiver-source positions

  • Summary: This second tool allows users to simulate the acoustic characteristics of any room, offering flexibility in selecting different receiver-source positions. Designed for ease of use, it enables non-experts to conduct acoustic evaluations with standard equipment, supporting broader participation in acoustic analysis. The tool’s adaptable design aims to help users identify locations suitable for sound recording and to assess a room’s acoustic quality for design purposes. By building repositories of acoustic data from user-contributed recordings, this tool supports scalable acoustic simulations, democratizing access to acoustic assessments for various spaces and purposes.