Determining distances and angles between speakers and other home theater components

• US 10,299,060 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2017
• Issued: 05/21/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Caavo Inc
• Original Assignee: Caavo Inc
• Inventors: Satheesh, Sharath Hariharpur, Aggarwal, Ashish D., Kumar, Siddharth
• Primary Examiner(s): Islam, Mohammad K
• Application Number:
  US15/857,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20180192223A1
• Time in Patent Office: 509 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H03G 5/165 Equalizers; Volume or gain control in limited frequency bands
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/02 Spatial or constructional arrangements of loudspeakers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/04 Circuit arrangements, e.g. for selective connection of amplifier inputs/outputs to loudspeakers, for loudspeaker detection, or for adaptation of settings to personal preferences or hearing impairments combinations of amplifiers H03F3/68; stereophonic systems H04S
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 2400/15 Aspects of sound capture and related signal processing for recording or reproduction
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/301 Automatic calibration of stereophonic sound system, e.g. with test microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/305 Electronic adaptation of stereophonic audio signals to reverberation of the listening space H04S7/301 takes precedence

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatuses are described herein for determining distances and angles between speakers and other home theater components for performance of calibration operations and functions. Distances are determined through timing playback of sweep signals from a reference speaker to the speakers, and also by timing playback the sweep signals between the speakers and a capture device at a desired listening position. Angles between the speakers and other theater components are determined based on the distances, and locations or mappings of the speakers and other theater components are determined from the angles and distances. The locations/mappings are utilized to perform different calibration operations. The calibration operations improve the user audio experience for speakers that are located in non-optimal positions for speaker configurations.

Claims

1. A method for determining a distance between two or more speakers and a reference speaker co-located with an audio source device, and calibration thereof, the method comprising:

playing back a sweep signal from the reference speaker at a first time;

receiving the played back sweep signal by a first microphone of a first speaker of the two or more speakers at a second time;

receiving the played back sweep signal by a second microphone of a second speaker of the two or more speakers at a third time;

determining a first distance between the first speaker and the audio source device based on the first time and the second time;

determining a second distance between the second speaker and the audio source device based on the first time and the third time;

capturing the played back sweep signal by a capture device located at a listening position at a fourth time, and in response, playing back the sweep signal from the capture device, wherein a third distance is between the first speaker and the listening position, and a fourth distance is between the second speaker and the listening position,

receiving the sweep signal from the capture device by the first speaker at a fifth time, and

determining the third distance based on one or more of the fourth time, the fifth time, and a duration of the sweep signal;

capturing the played back sweep signal by the capture device located at the listening position at a sixth time, and in response, playing back the sweep signal from the capture device,

receiving the sweep signal played back from the capture device by the second speaker at a seventh time, and

determining the fourth distance based on at least one of the sixth time, the seventh time, and the duration of the sweep signal; and

calibrating at least one of the first speaker or the second speaker based on the first distance, the second distance, the third distance, and the fourth distance.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a first angle formed with respect to;

an axis connecting the listening position and the reference speaker at the audio source device, and

the first speaker; and

determining a second angle formed with respect to;

the axis, and

the second speaker.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first angle is determined in accordance with the following equation:

ar1Lp=cos<sup>−

1</sup>(((dtxcx)²+(dcxr1)²−

(dtxr1)²)/(2*(dtxcx)*(dcxr1)))

where,

dcxr1 corresponds to the third distance,

dtxcx corresponds to the axis,

dtxr1 corresponds to the first distance, and

ar1Lp corresponds to the first angle.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the second angle is determined in accordance with the following equation:

ar2Lp=cos<sup>−

1</sup>(((dtxcx)²+(dcxr2)²−

(dtxr2)²)/(2*(dtxcx)*(dcxr2)))

where,

dcxr1 corresponds to the fourth distance,

dtxcx corresponds to the axis,

dtxr1 corresponds to the second distance, and

ar2Lp corresponds to the second angle.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein calibrating further comprises at least one of:

determining audio signal delays for one or more of the first speaker or the second speaker;

determining audio signal levels for one or more of the first speaker or the second speaker;

or

performing equalization for the first speaker and the second speaker according to an acoustic space in which the first speaker and the second speaker are located.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the reference speaker is part of a display device located at the audio source device.

7. A system for determining speaker distances and performing speaker calibration in an acoustic space, the system comprising a reference speaker, a controller, and a calibrator;

the controller being configured to;

cause the reference speaker to playback a sweep signal at a first time, the sweep signal having a predefined duration;

receive indicia of a second time from a first informational signal from a first remote speaker and indicia of a third time from a second informational signal from a second remote speaker;

determine a first distance between the reference speaker and the first remote speaker based on the second time and a second distance between the reference speaker and the second remote speaker based on the third time;

cause the sweep signal to be played back at a fourth time by the first remote speaker, wherein a third distance is between the first speaker and a listening position, and a fourth distance is between the second speaker and the listening position,

receive indicia of a fifth time from a third informational signal from the first remote speaker where the fifth time relates to receipt of the sweep signal, provided from a capture device at the listening position responsive to capture of the sweep signal played back at the fourth time, by the first remote speaker,

cause the sweep signal to be played back at a sixth time by the second remote speaker,

receive indicia of a seventh time from a fourth informational signal from the second remote speaker where the seventh time relates to receipt of the sweep signal, provided from the capture device at the listening position responsive to capture of the sweep signal played back at the sixth time, by the second remote speaker, and

determine the third distance based on the fifth time and the fourth distance based on the seventh time; and

the calibrator being configured to;

perform a calibration of at least one of the first remote speaker or the second remote speaker for the acoustic space based on the first distance, the second distance, the third distance, and the fourth distance.

8. The system of claim 7, further comprising the first remote speaker, the second remote speaker, and the capture device;

the capture device being configured to;

capture the sweep signal played back at a fourth time and at the sixth time at the listening position, and

play back the sweep signal responsive to said capture;

the first remote speaker being configured to;

receive the sweep signal played back from the capture device at the fifth time;

the second speaker being configured to;

receive the sweep signal played back from the capture device at the seventh time; and

the controller being further configured to;

determine the third distance and the fourth distance also based on the predefined duration.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the first remote speaker is configured to receive the played back sweep signal via a first microphone thereof;

wherein the second remote speaker is configured to receive the played back sweep signal via a second microphone thereof; and

wherein the capture device is configured to;

capture the played back sweep signal via a capture microphone thereof, and

play back the sweep signal via a capture speaker thereof.

10. The system of claim 7, wherein the calibrator is configured to perform the calibration that includes at least one of:

to determine audio signal delays for one or more of the first speaker or the second speaker;

to determine audio signal levels for one or more of the first speaker or the second speaker;

or

to perform equalization for the first speaker and the second speaker according to an acoustic space in which the first speaker and the second speaker are located.

11. The system of claim 7, wherein the controller is configured to generate a relative mapping of the reference speaker, the first remote speaker, the second remote speaker, and the listening position in the acoustic space;

and

wherein the calibrator is configured to perform the calibration that includes to rotate a sound field with respect to the listening position based at least on a parameter of the relative mapping.

12. The system of claim 7, the system comprising one or more of the first remote speaker, the second remote speaker, or the capture device;

and

wherein the one or more of the first remote speaker, the second remote speaker, or the capture device comprise the controller.

13. A computer readable storage medium having program instructions recorded thereon that, when executed by a processor, perform a method for determining a distance between two or more speakers and a reference speaker co-located with an audio source device, and calibration thereof, the method comprising:

playing back a sweep signal from the reference speaker at a first time;

receiving the played back sweep signal by a first microphone of a first speaker of the two or more speakers at a second time;

receiving the played back sweep signal by a second microphone of a second speaker of the two or more speakers at a third time;

determining a first distance between the first speaker and the audio source device based on the first time and the second time;

determining a second distance between the second speaker and the audio source device based on the first time and the third time;

capturing the played back sweep signal by a capture device located at a listening position at a fourth time, and in response, playing back the sweep signal from the capture device, wherein a third distance is between the first speaker and the listening position, and a fourth distance is between the second speaker and the listening position,

receiving the sweep signal from the capture device by the first speaker at a fifth time, and

determining the third distance based on one or more of the fourth time, the fifth time, and a duration of the sweep signal;

capturing the played back sweep signal by the capture device located at the listening position at a sixth time, and in response, playing back the sweep signal from the capture device,

receiving the sweep signal played back from the capture device by the second speaker at a seventh time, and

determining the fourth distance based on at least one of the sixth time, the seventh time, and the duration of the sweep signal; and

calibrating at least one of the first speaker or the second speaker based on the first distance, the second distance, the third distance, and the fourth distance.

14. The computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the method further comprises:

determining a first angle formed with respect to;

an axis connecting the listening position and the reference speaker at the audio source device, and

the first speaker; and

determining a second angle formed with respect to;

the axis, and

the second speaker.

15. The computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the first angle is determined in accordance with the following equation:

ar1Lp=cos<sup>−

1</sup>(((dtxcx)²+(dcxr1)²−

(dtxr1)²)/(2*(dtxcx)*(dcxr1)))

where,

dcxr1 corresponds to the third distance,

dtxcx corresponds to the first axis,

dtxr1 corresponds to the first distance, and

ar1Lp corresponds to the first angle.

16. The computer readable storage medium of claim 14, wherein the second angle is determined in accordance with the following equation:

ar2Lp=cos<sup>−

1</sup>(((dtxcx)²+(dcxr2)²−

(dtxr2)²)/(2*(dtxcx)*(dcxr2)))

where,

dcxr1 corresponds to the fourth distance,

dtxcx corresponds to the first axis,

dtxr1 corresponds to the second distance, and

ar2Lp corresponds to the second angle.

17. The computer readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the calibrating comprises at least one of:

determining audio signal delays for one or more of the first speaker or the second speaker;

determining audio signal levels for one or more of the first speaker or the second speaker;

performing equalization for the first speaker and the second speaker according to an acoustic space in which the first speaker and the second speaker are located;

or

rotating a sound field with respect to the listening position based at least on a parameter of a relative mapping for the first speaker and the second speaker in the acoustic space.