AcousTools: A'Full-Stack', Python-Based, Acoustic Holography Library

2025-11-10

AI Summary

Current acoustic holography research lacks a unified, end-to-end software framework spanning abstract modeling to physical implementation; existing tools are fragmented across acoustic field modeling, phase inversion, acoustic radiation force analysis, and hardware co-control—hindering methodological comparability, reproducibility, and cross-application development. Method: We introduce the first open-source, full-stack acoustic holography software framework implemented in Python. It integrates wave propagation simulation, transducer phase optimization, 3D acoustic field and radiation force field analysis, and real-time multi-array hardware control. Contribution/Results: The framework unifies the modeling–simulation–control paradigm, enabling seamless workflow from design to deployment for applications including mid-air haptics, 3D acoustic displays, and biomedical manipulation. It significantly lowers the barrier to entry, promotes standardization, and provides an extensible, verifiable software foundation for reproducible acoustic holography research.

Technology Category

• Machine Learning: Hardware-aware ML
• Search and Optimization: Sampling/Simulation-based Search
• Cognitive Modeling & Cognitive Systems: Affective Computing

Application Category

• Systems and Infrastructure for Web, Mobile and WoT: Web applications in cross-disciplinary domains and verticals such as mixed reality, smart cities, and digital health
• User Modeling, Personalization and Recommendation: Accountability, Transparency, and Ethics for personalization
• Search and Retrieval-Augmented AI: Agentic search

Abstract

Acoustic Holography is an emerging field where mid-air ultrasound is controlled and manipulated for novel and exciting applications. These range from mid-air haptics, volumetric displays, contactless fabrication, and even chemical and biomedical applications such as drug delivery. To develop these applications, a software framework to predict acoustic behaviour and simulating resulting effects, such as applied forces or scattering patterns is desirable. There have been various software libraries and platforms that attempt to fill this role, but there is yet to be a single piece of software that acts as a'full-stack'solution. We define this full-stack as the process from abstraction to physicalisation starting with setup, modelling acoustic propagation, transducer phase retrieval, sound field analysis, and control of the acoustic holographic hardware itself. Existing methods fail to fulfil one or more of these categories. To address this, we present AcousTools, a Python-based acoustic holography library, designed to support the full suite of acoustic holographic applications and we show AcousTools's ability to meet each step of the full-stack's requirements. AcousTools has the potential to become the standard code library for acoustic holography, with the uniquely complete suite of features wrapped in a language that is known to be easy to use, AcousTools will increase the ability for researchers to develop novel applications as well as accurately review other's work. The full-stack, aside from software, will also be useful for researchers - providing a way to view and compare methodologies by understanding where they fit into the stack.

Problem

• Develops a full-stack software for acoustic holography applications
• Provides tools to model ultrasound propagation and hardware control
• Unifies scattered methodologies into a single Python library

Innovation

• Python-based full-stack acoustic holography library
• Covers setup, modeling, phase retrieval, and hardware control
• Provides complete software framework for ultrasound applications