Videoworks and Coton Bring Adaptive Sound Technology to Yacht Design

Sound becomes part of the yacht interior

Rather than treating onboard audio solely as entertainment, the Immersive Audio Experience is designed to make sound another element of the interior. Coton can develop customised sound content from a client's requirements and the designer's creative direction, using keywords, sensations or other characteristics intended to define a particular space. The system can then create variations of that sound across different areas of the yacht while maintaining a consistent overall identity.

The approach means different spaces could interpret the same underlying sonic concept in different ways, much as materials, forms and colour palettes are used to establish visual continuity throughout an interior.

At the centre of the technology is Soundtope, which combines human-created sound foundations with algorithms that adapt them according to changing inputs. A dedicated system running Coton's generative engine can process information relating to the yacht's environment and location, including weather conditions and local time. Data from other onboard systems can also alter the parameters shaping the soundscape.

Videoworks is responsible for bringing this technology into the wider yacht design and technology package. The system can be integrated with displays, video, lighting and sensors, allowing several onboard technologies to interact with the environment rather than operating independently.

The Immersive Audio Experience also gives designers flexibility over how the hardware itself is incorporated. Loudspeakers can have a visible role within an interior or be integrated more discreetly to minimise their physical presence. The technology can also work with three-dimensional audio systems to expand the ways sound can be distributed through a space.

Privacy has also been considered for installations aboard private yachts. Videoworks says LiDAR sensors can detect the presence and movement of people without requiring cameras in interior spaces or collecting biometric information, providing environmental information that can be used by the system. 

The collaboration is particularly focused on superyacht interiors, where Videoworks says spatial design and speaker positioning can be used to maximise the potential of immersive audio. The objective is to create an adaptable sound environment that works alongside the yacht's architecture and interior design rather than functioning simply as a conventional audio system.

The technology is aimed particularly at the superyacht sector, where highly customised interiors are commonplace across yachts from builders including Feadship, Benetti, Lürssen and Sanlorenzo. For Videoworks and Coton, the focus is on making sound another customisable element within these increasingly detailed interior environments.