Omnitone is Google’s answer for better web-based VR audio

Google seeks to develop enhanced web-based surround sound to make the internet VR experience even more engaging without needing to develop a new standard. Image INQUIRER.net

As the VR market develops, Google is taking a few steps ahead of the pack by working on delivering a high-quality surround-sound experience over the web through the Omnitone system.

Google is banking on ambisonics to develop its Omnitone system, a technique that simulates the full sphere of sound around the user, giving coordinates in 3D space and allowing the renderer to convert the coordinate into appropriate sound waves, Tech Crunch reports.

The WebAudio team for Google Chrome is looking to utilize tools that are already available, in an effort to avoid cluttering the web with another standard. This is how they came up with Omnitone, which combines the sound data from the ambisonic sound stream with the VR headset’s sensors.

Image Google Omnitone

The combined sound output is then forwarded to a virtual eight-speaker setup and then mixed down to a binaural renderer to create a passable streaming full-sphere surround sound using only existing web components.

Those with VR equipment can test out the latest Omnitone developments through this link. Alfred Bayle