Manfred Robert Schroeder (12 July 1926 – 28 December 2009) was a German physicist, most known for his contributions to

acoustics Acoustics is a branch of physics that deals with the study of mechanical waves in gases, liquids, and solids including topics such as vibration, sound, ultrasound and infrasound. A scientist who works in the field of acoustics is an acoustician ...

and

computer graphics Computer graphics deals with generating images with the aid of computers. Today, computer graphics is a core technology in digital photography, film, video games, cell phone and computer displays, and many specialized applications. A great de ...

. He wrote three books and published over 150 articles in his field. Born in

Ahlen Ahlen (; Westphalian: ''Aulen'') is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, 30 km southeast of Münster. Ahlen is part of the District of Warendorf and is economically the most important town in that district. Ahlen is part of the larger ...

, he studied at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...

(1947–52), earning a

vordiplom A ''Diplom'' (, from grc, δίπλωμα ''diploma'') is an academic degree in the German-speaking countries Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and a similarly named degree in some other European countries including Albania, Bulgaria, Belarus, ...

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

(1951) and

Dr. rer. nat. ''Doctor rerum naturalium'' ( for, , Latin, doctor of natural sciences, lit. 'doctor of the things of nature'), abbreviated Dr. rer. nat., is a doctoral academic degree awarded by universities in some European countries (e.g. Germany, Austria and C ...

(1954) in

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

. His thesis showed how small regular cavities in concert halls cause unfortunate resonances. He joined the technical staff at

Bell Labs Nokia Bell Labs, originally named Bell Telephone Laboratories (1925–1984), then AT&T Bell Laboratories (1984–1996) and Bell Labs Innovations (1996–2007), is an American industrial research and scientific development company owned by mult ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

(1954–) researching speech and graphics, securing forty-five patents. With Bishnu Atal, he advanced and promoted

linear predictive coding Linear predictive coding (LPC) is a method used mostly in audio signal processing and speech processing for representing the spectral envelope of a digital signal of speech in compressed form, using the information of a linear predictive model. ...

(LPC) during the late 1960s to 1970s and then developed

code-excited linear prediction Code-excited linear prediction (CELP) is a linear predictive speech coding algorithm originally proposed by Manfred R. Schroeder and Bishnu S. Atal in 1985. At the time, it provided significantly better quality than existing low bit-rate algori ...

(CELP) in 1985. Still affiliated with Bell, he rejoined

as ''Universitätsprofessor Physik'' (1969) becoming

professor emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

(1991). He was a visiting professor at

University of Tokyo , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...

(1979). With

Ning Xiang Ning Xiang () is a Chinese-American acoustical physicist, former Research Engineer of HEAD acoustics, and former Research Scientist of Fraunhofer Institut fuer Bauphysik, and of National Center for Physical Acoustics (NCPA). He is now Director an ...

he was a promoter of a synchronous dual channel measurement method using reciprocal maximum-length sequences (2003). He led a famed study of 22 concert halls worldwide, leading to a comparison method requiring no travel.

Books

* * * *''Hundert Jahre Friedrich Hund: Ein Rückblick auf das Wirken eines bedeutenden Physikers'' (1996)

Awards and honors

*1969 First Prize at the International Computer Art Competition for his application of concepts from mathematics and physics to the creation of artistic works. *fellow of the Acoustical Society of America *

IEEE Fellow As of 2019, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has 5,082 members designated Fellow, each of whom is associated with one of the 41 societies under the IEEE. The Fellow grade of membership is the highest level of membershi ...

(1971). *

Audio Engineering Society The Audio Engineering Society (AES) is a professional body for engineers, scientists, other individuals with an interest or involvement in the professional audio industry. The membership largely comprises engineers developing devices or products ...

fellow and Gold medalist (1972) *Member of the

United States National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of ...

(1979), for "founding the statistical theory of wave propagation in multi-mode media and contributions to speech coding and acoustics". *Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

(1986). *Helmholtz Medal of the German Acoustical Society *1975

Max Planck Society The Max Planck Society for the Advancement of Science (german: Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften e. V.; abbreviated MPG) is a formally independent non-governmental and non-profit association of German research institutes. ...

appointed foreign scientific member *

New York Academy of Sciences The New York Academy of Sciences (originally the Lyceum of Natural History) was founded in January 1817 as the Lyceum of Natural History. It is the fourth oldest scientific society in the United States. An independent, nonprofit organization wit ...

member 1978 *

Rayleigh Medal The Rayleigh Medal is a prize awarded annually by the Institute of Acoustics for "outstanding contributions to acoustics". The prize is named after John Strutt, 3rd Baron Rayleigh. It should not be confused with the medal of the same name awarded ...

1984 and 1987 *

Gold Medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

from the

Acoustical Society of America The Acoustical Society of America (ASA) is an international scientific society founded in 1929 dedicated to generating, disseminating and promoting the knowledge of acoustics and its practical applications. The Society is primarily a voluntary orga ...

(1991), for "theoretical and practical contributions to human communication through innovative application of mathematics to speech, hearing, and concert hall acoustics". * ''ISCA Medal for Scientific Achievement'' from the

International Speech Communication Association The International Speech Communication Association (ISCA) is a non-profit organization and one of the two main professional associations for speech communication science and technology, the other association being the IEEE Signal Processing Society ...

(2004). * Technology Award from the German

Eduard Rhein Foundation The Eduard Rhein Foundation was founded in 1976 in Hamburg (Germany) by Eduard Rhein. The goal of the foundation is to promote scientific research, learning, arts, and culture. This is done in particular by granting awards for outstanding achievemen ...

(2004).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schroeder, Manfred 1926 births 2009 deaths People from Warendorf (district) German acoustical engineers 20th-century German physicists Scientists at Bell Labs University of Göttingen alumni University of Göttingen faculty Fellow Members of the IEEE Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Members of the United States National Academy of Engineering Fellows of the Acoustical Society of America ASA Gold Medal recipients Engineers from North Rhine-Westphalia