Exterior sound field estimation based on physics-constrained kernel

Abstract: Exterior sound field interpolation is a challenging problem that often requires specific array configurations and prior knowledge on the source conditions. We propose an interpolation method based on Gaussian processes using a point source reproducing kernel with a trainable inner product formulation made to fit exterior sound fields. While this estimation does not have a closed formula, it allows for the definition of a flexible estimator that is not restricted by microphone distribution and attenuates higher harmonic orders automatically with parameters directly optimized from the recordings, meaning an arbitrary distribution of microphones can be used. The proposed kernel estimator is compared in simulated experiments to the conventional method using spherical wave functions and an established physics-informed machine learning model, achieving lower interpolation error by approximately 2 dB on average within the analyzed frequencies of 100 Hz and 2.5 kHz and reconstructing the ground truth sound field more consistently within the target region.