EchoXR: Real-Time VR Acoustics for Collaborative Architectural Design

EchoXR introduces a new framework by embedding real-time spatial audio simulation into an immersive, multi-user Virtual Reality (VR) environment. The platform enables architects, acousticians, and engineers to collaboratively explore how design choices, such as materials, partitions, or geometry, directly impact the acoustic performance of a space. Users can hear how their design changes influence speech clarity, reverberation, and the overall acoustic experience in real time. EchoXR also parses the voices of participants through the virtual environment itself, allowing them to be spatialized and experienced as if the conversation were taking place in the actual designed space. This creates an embodied and context-aware auditory experience that aligns with the spatial characteristics under review.

Scientific goals:

• Prototype a collaborative VR environment that integrates real-time spatial audio simulation for early-stage architectural acoustic evaluation.

• Develop a hands-free interaction model using gesture input to support co-design workflows and enhance spatial awareness.

• Implement a motion-tracked, proximity-aware multiplayer system that activates passthrough mode to prevent physical collisions in shared physical spaces.

• Design a responsive, in-environment 3D user interface for architectural editing tasks, such as surface changes and material selections, with immediate auditory feedback.

• Evaluate how multisensory design tools influence the perception and understanding of acoustics and spatial qualities during the conceptual design phase.

EchoXR supports a broader shift toward multisensory, interactive, and participatory workflows in architectural design - bridging the divide between how environments are visualized and how they are experienced through sound.