Dynamically changing master audio playback device

• US 10,212,530 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2017
• Issued: 02/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Original Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Inventors: Lai, Trevor, Duthaler, Gregg Michael, Elliot, Michael, Smith, Matthew C., Banerjee, Debasmit, Malone, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Fischer, Mark
• Application Number:
  US15/812,478
• Publication Number:
  US 20180070189A1
• Time in Patent Office: 462 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/613 for the control of the source by the destination control signals issued by the client directed to the server or network components specially adapted for selective content distribution H04N21/637
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/06 specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2227/005 Audio distribution systems for home, i.e. multi-room use
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 3/008 in which the audio signals are in digital form, i.e. employing more than two discrete digital channels data reduction aspects thereof based on psychoacoustics G10L19/02

Abstract

A method for dynamically changing the master audio playback device of a set that includes at least two audio playback devices, wherein one audio playback device of the set is a set master audio playback device that controls the play of audio data by at least one other slave audio playback device of the set. A first slave audio playback device receives its selection as a new recipient of audio data and, in response, the first slave audio playback device is designated as a new set master audio playback device and the set master audio playback device is designated as a new slave audio playback device. The new set master audio playback device controls the play of audio by the new slave audio playback device.

Claims

1. A system, comprising;

at least two audio playback devices, wherein one audio playback device is a master audio playback device that is configured to receive audio data from a first audio source and send the received audio data to at least one other slave audio playback device, wherein the at least one other slave audio playback devices is configured to receive audio data only from the master audio playback device and not from the audio data source;

wherein a first slave audio playback device is configured to receive a selection of the first slave audio playback device as a new recipient of audio data from the audio data source; and

wherein, in response to the first slave audio playback device receiving a selection as the new recipient of audio data from the audio data source, designating the first slave audio playback device as a new master audio playback device, and designating the master audio playback device as a new slave audio playback device, wherein the new master audio playback device is configured to receive audio data from the audio data source and send the received audio data to the new slave audio playback device, wherein the new slave audio playback device is configured to receive audio data only from the new master audio playback device and not from the audio data source.

2. The system of claim 1, comprising at least three audio playback devices.

3. The system of claim 1, comprising a group comprising at least two group audio playback devices, wherein the group has one group master audio playback device and at least one group slave audio playback device, where the group master audio playback device is configured to control the play of audio by the at least one group slave audio playback device.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the group comprises a left-right stereo pair of audio playback devices.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein the group comprises multiple surround sound audio playback devices.

6. The system of claim 3, wherein the first slave audio playback device comprises a group slave audio playback device.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the audio playback devices comprise a set of devices comprising one set master device and at least one set slave device, and wherein the first slave audio playback device is designated as both the new set master audio playback device and the new group master audio playback device.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the new set master audio playback device is configured to distribute audio data to all other audio playback devices of the set, and wherein the group master audio playback device is configured to control the play of audio by all group slave audio playback devices.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the set master is configured to control the play of audio data that originates from a first audio data source, and wherein the selection of the first slave audio playback device as the new recipient of audio data comprises selection of audio data from a second audio data source that differs from the first audio data source, and the new set master device is configured to control the play of audio data from the second audio data source.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the second audio data source comprises a Bluetooth audio data stream from a Bluetooth-enabled source device.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein Bluetooth audio data is distributed by the new set master audio playback device to all set slave audio playback devices.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the audio data is distributed to the set slave audio playback devices by one of Bluetooth, WiFi, and via a local access point.

13. The system of claim 9, wherein the second audio data source comprises an auxiliary audio data input.

14. The system of claim 9, wherein the first slave audio playback device comprises a user interface comprising a user-operated switch that when operated initiates a Bluetooth connection between the first slave audio playback device and the second audio data source.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein each audio playback device comprises:

a digital-to-analog converter configured to receive an audio stream comprising a digital representation of audio content via a network and convert the audio stream to analog form;

an electro-acoustic transducer;

a network interface; and

a processor coupled to the digital-to-analog converter, the electro-acoustic transducer, and the network interface, the processor configured to;

receive the selection of the audio playback device as a new recipient of audio data from the audio data source; and

in response to receiving the selection of the audio playback device as the new recipient of audio data from the audio data source, designate the audio playback device as the new set master audio playback device, wherein the new set master audio playback device is configured to receive audio data from the audio data source and send the received audio data to the set slave audio playback devices, wherein the slave audio playback devices are configured to receive audio data only from the new master audio playback device and not from the audio data source.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the new master audio playback device is configured to designate the master audio playback device as a new slave audio playback device.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the designation of the master audio playback device as a new slave audio playback device is accomplished using a reset designation command.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the reset designation command causes the master audio playback device to disconnect from the first audio data source.

19. A system, comprising;

a plurality of audio playback devices organized into a set of audio playback devices, wherein each audio playback device comprises a digital-to-analog converter configured to receive an audio stream comprising a digital representation of audio content via a network and convert the audio stream to analog form, an electro-acoustic transducer, a network interface, and a processor coupled to the digital-to-analog converter, the electro-acoustic transducer, and the network interface;

wherein one audio playback device is a set master audio playback device that is configured to receive audio data from a first audio source and send the received audio data to at least one other set slave audio playback device, wherein the at least one other set slave audio playback device is configured to receive audio data only from the set master audio playback device and not from the audio data source;

wherein at least some of the set audio playback devices are organized into a group comprising at least two group audio playback devices, wherein the group has one group master audio playback device and at least one group slave audio playback device, where the group master audio playback device is configured to send the received audio data to the at least one group slave audio playback device;

wherein the processor of a first set slave audio playback device is configured to receive a selection of the first set slave audio playback device as a new recipient of audio data from the audio data source; and

wherein, in response to the processor of the first set slave audio playback device receiving a selection as the new recipient of audio data from the audio data source, designating the first set slave audio playback device as a new set master audio playback device and designating the set master audio playback device as a new set slave audio playback device, wherein the new set master audio playback device is configured to receive audio data from the audio data source and send the received audio data to the new set slave audio playback device, wherein the new set slave audio playback device is configured to receive audio data only from the new set master audio playback device and not from the audio data source.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the group comprises at least one of a left-right stereo pair of audio playback devices, and multiple surround sound audio playback devices.