Identification of auditory cues utilized in human echolocation—Objective measurement results

We present objective measurements of source-to-ear responses obtained in a previously established experimental paradigm of human echolocation. We identify and analyze the binaural localization cues encoded in those responses and we discuss their significance with respect to the previously reported performance in this specific experimental paradigm. The cues encoded in both the echo (lagging) and the direct transmission and echo (leading and lagging) parts of the responses are examined and their significance in view of the “precedence effect” is discussed. The variation and salience of the binaural cues pertaining to extensions of the previous experimental paradigm are examined and interpreted. This work allows us to formulate more detailed hypotheses and to design more informative subjective listening tests in order to further investigate the viability of using the acquired sensory modality of human echolocation in real-world applications.