Modal Estimation on a Warped Frequency Axis for Linear System Modeling

TL;DR

This paper introduces a warped frequency axis approach for more accurate modal parameter estimation in linear systems like room acoustics and musical instruments, improving resolution and model fidelity.

Contribution

It proposes a novel warped frequency domain method for modal estimation, incorporating an optimization step, and demonstrates its effectiveness on piano strings and room responses.

Findings

Improved resolution at low frequencies.

Favorable comparison to FZ-ARMA in modeling accuracy.

Effective mode number selection for desired fidelity.

Abstract

Linear systems such as room acoustics and string oscillations may be modeled as the sum of mode responses, each characterized by a frequency, damping and amplitude. Here, we consider finding the mode parameters from impulse response measurements, and estimate the mode frequencies and decay rates as the generalized eigenvalues of Hankel matrices of system response samples, similar to ESPRIT. For greater resolution at low frequencies, such as desired in room acoustics and musical instrument modeling, the estimation is done on a warped frequency axis. The approach has the benefit of selecting the number of modes to achieve a desired fidelity to the measured impulse response. An optimization to further refine the frequency and damping parameters is presented. The method is used to model coupled piano strings and room impulse responses, with its performance comparing favorably to FZ-ARMA.