Sensory information · behavioural decisions · active sensing
How sensory information guides animal behaviour.
I am an experimental and theoretical ethologist studying how animals acquire information, use it to make decisions, and organise action in their interaction with the world.
Dr Ravi Umadi
TUM School of Life Sciences · Technische Universität München
Using echolocating bats as a model system, I combine mechanistic theory, generative modelling, behavioural experiments, and field measurements to connect acoustic information with sensorimotor control, adaptive behaviour, and collective dynamics.
My research spans sensory ecology, behavioural decision-making, spatial hearing, and collective behaviour, with broader relevance to comparative cognition, bio-inspired sensing, robotics, and distributed autonomous systems.
Alongside this research, I develop open instruments and software for ultrasonic recording, spatial localisation, experimental control, simulation, and reproducible bioacoustic analysis.
Research programme
Sensory ecology
Sensory information and perception
How acoustic geometry, morphology, motion, and environmental structure determine what information an animal can acquire.
Behavioural control
Behavioural decisions and control
How sensory timing, uncertainty, and physical constraints regulate sampling, pursuit, coordination, and action.
Computational ethology
Theoretical and computational ethology
Mechanistic and generative models that explain observed behaviour and produce testable predictions.
Collective behaviour
Active and collective sensing
How individuals and groups maintain effective behaviour when sensing is delayed, probabilistic, and interaction-dependent.
Publications
Highlighted work
The Temporal Logic of Bat Echolocation: A Responsivity Theory of Call Timing Patterns
The temporal patterning of bat echolocation has been extensively characterised and used to interpret behavioural regulation during active foraging. Yet a general mathematical account linking these patterns to acoustic propagation, relative motion, and the timing of behaviourally selected information remains incomple...
Temporal Feasibility Constraints on Wingbeat-Call Synchrony in Actively Echolocating Bats.
ESPERDYNE - A Dual-Band Heterodyne Monitor and Ultrasound Recorder for Bioacoustic Field Surveys.
Widefield Acoustics Heuristic - Advancing Microphone Array Design for Accurate Spatial Tracking of Echolocating Bats
The Monumental Mistake of Evicting Bats from Archaeological Sites—A Reflection from New Delhi
WAH-i - Optimising Microphone Array Geometry for Customised Localisation Accuracy
Tools & Technology
Apps and utilities
Chirps
iPhone and iPad companion for listening, visualising, recording, and reviewing sound-centred field observations.
Chalks
Digital slate for handwritten ideas, diagrams, derivations, and low-friction research notes on iPad.
Noxtra
Monochrome light and live colour reference for low-distraction use, macro illumination, and field visibility.
FileOn
Lightweight macOS menu-bar utility for creating files directly in the current Finder folder.
Research instruments
BATSY4-PRO
Open-source four-channel ultrasonic recorder for portable field deployments, acoustic localisation, and behavioural bioacoustics.
ESPERDYNE
Dual-band heterodyne monitor and ultrasound recorder designed for accessible, portable field bioacoustic surveys.
Scientific software
RUBAT Studio
Unified workbench for multichannel high-speed bioacoustic recording, monitoring, visualisation, and experimental control.
WAH-i
Iterative optimisation workflow for customised microphone-array geometry and volumetric localisation accuracy.
Array WAH
Forward simulation framework for microphone-array design and spatial localisation in bat bioacoustics.
Ripple Studio
Interactive toolkit for exploring sonar geometry, spectral interference, and responsivity in water-foraging bats.
Spectra
Browser-based spectrogram and spectrum viewer for fast, local inspection and export of bioacoustic recordings.
Bat Reviewer
Cross-platform workflow for sorting, visualising, and listening to ultrasonic field recordings.
Speech Stimulus Tool
Interactive application for speech segmentation and signal-processing workflows.
News
FileOn Released: macOS Utility for Creating Files
Create files in current folder with a lightweight macOS menu bar app. Learn more or download FileOn
Joining the Editorial Team of Methods in Ecology and Evolution
I have joined the editorial team of the British Ecological Society journal Methods in Ecology and Evolution as an Associate Editor. View the editorial board
Spectra Web App Released!
A new browser-based spectral analysis tool is now live: Spectra is available for fast, local inspection of bioacoustic recordings directly in the browser. Spectra brings...
Published: Temporal Feasibility Constraints...
The paper “Temporal Feasibility Constraints on Wingbeat-Call Synchrony in Actively Echolocating Bats” is now published in Ecology and Evolution. It develops a constraint-based f...
Chirps App Is Now Available On The App Store
Chirps is now available on the App Store for iPhone and iPad.
Blog
The Making Of Esperdyne
Esperdyne, an open-source bat detector and recorder, is a fully open-source project by Ravi Umadi. The device implements unique features, such as simultaneous tuning to two sepa...
Why Do I Share What I Create?
I share my code and tools not just to comply with journals, but to contribute meaningfully. Science only moves forward when we share more than the polished results, when we open...
Behind The Paper - Widefield Acoustics Heuristic
How a simple idea—simulating microphone arrays before building them—grew into the Array WAH toolkit, a method to map localisation accuracy for bat echolocation studies and beyond.
A Digital Metronome
A metronome makes and keeps the rhythm and is a most useful tool for any musician. For electronic projects involving music, a simple microcontroller-based metronome can be easil...