Wireless speaker system

• US 10,397,684 B2
• Filed: 01/05/2017
• Issued: 08/27/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: VOXX International Corporation
• Original Assignee: VOXX International Corporation
• Inventors: Chang, Arthur, Chang, Chung Lung
• Primary Examiner(s): Yu, Norman
• Application Number:
  US15/398,983
• Publication Number:
  US 20170195769A1
• Time in Patent Office: 964 Days
• Field of Search: 381 74, 381 79, 381 11, 381311, 381 77, 381 80, 455 412, 4555752, 704500
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1016 Earpieces of the intra-aural type
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1025 Accumulators or arrangements for charging secondary cells per se H01M10/00; charging in general H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1041 Mechanical or electronic switches, or control elements switches in general H01H
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/09 Applications of special connectors, e.g. USB, XLR, in loudspeakers, microphones or headphones

Abstract

Wireless speaker systems and methods for synchronous audio playback. Speaker systems can comprise more than one wireless speaker assembly, such as wireless earphones, in serial communication with an audio source device, such as a smartphone. Separate audio rendering by each wireless speaker assembly and synchronization of audio playback by imposing a fixed latency from an output timestamp associated with the audio source data, and rate matching the sample allow for tightly synchronized playback of stereo audio at low latency.

Claims

1. A wireless speaker system comprising:

a first wireless earphone comprising;

a first speaker; and

a wireless transceiver configured to receive timestamped audio source data from an audio source device, generate a synchronization delay based on the timestamped audio source data, transmit the audio source data and synchronization delay, and decompress the timestamped audio source data for playback through the first speaker; and

a second wireless earphone comprising;

a second speaker; and

a wireless transceiver configured to receive the time-stamped audio source data and the synchronization delay from the first wireless earphone and decompress the timestamped audio source data for playback through the second speaker;

wherein;

an inherent latency of the wireless speaker system is less than about 500 ms; and

the synchronization delay is greater than or equal to the inherent latency of the wireless speaker system.

2. The wireless speaker system of claim 1, wherein each wireless transceiver comprises hardware compliant with Bluetooth v4.0 specifications.

3. The wireless speaker system of claim 2, wherein each wireless transceiver is a Bluecore®

CSR8670™

chip.

4. The wireless speaker system of claim 1, wherein the audio source device is a smartphone, a music server available through a wireless data access point, a laptop, or a tablet.

5. The wireless speaker system of claim 4, wherein the audio source device is a smartphone.

6. The wireless speaker system of claim 1, where in the first wireless earphone further comprises a port to optionally receive audio source data from an audio source device through a wired connection.

7. The wireless speaker system of claim 1, wherein the first wireless earphone and/or second wireless earphone further comprises a microphone.

8. The wireless speaker system of claim 1, wherein the first wireless earphone and/or the second wireless earphone comprise a switch key on an external facing portion of the wireless earphone.

9. The wireless speaker system of claim 8, wherein the switch key is configured to respond to capacitive touch or pressure.

10. The wireless speaker system of claim 1, further comprising a storage case configured to seat the first wireless earphone and the second wireless earphone.

11. The wireless speaker system of claim 10, wherein the storage case is further configured to recharge a battery of the first wireless earphone and/or a battery of the second wireless earphone from a rechargeable power bank battery when the first wireless earphone and/or the second wireless earphone are stored in the storage case.

12. The wireless speaker system of claim 11, wherein the storage case comprises a micro-USB input coupled to the rechargeable power bank battery.

13. A method of synchronously playing audio through a wireless speaker system comprising a plurality of wireless speaker assemblies, the method comprising:

pairing a first wireless speaker assembly to an audio source device;

pairing a second wireless speaker assembly to the first wireless speaker assembly, wherein the second wireless speaker assembly is designated the slave in a master/slave configuration with the first wireless speaker assembly;

receiving, at the first wireless speaker assembly, audio source data from the audio source device;

transmitting at least a portion of the audio source data from the first wireless speaker assembly to the second wireless speaker assembly;

separately decompressing at least a portion of the audio source data on each of the first and second wireless speaker assemblies, respectively; and

synchronizing the decompressed audio source data at the first and second wireless speaker assemblies, the synchronization comprising;

delaying playback of the decompressed audio source data at the first wireless speaker assembly and playback of the decompressed audio source data at the second wireless speaker assembly by a synchronization delay, the synchronization delay being fixed relative to an output timestamp embedded in the audio source data; and

matching a sample playback rate of the decompressed audio source data at the second wireless speaker assembly to that of the first wireless speaker assembly;

wherein

the synchronization delay is greater than or equal to an inherent latency of the wireless speaker system;

the inherent latency of the wireless speaker system is less than about 500 ms; and

the playback of the decompressed audio source data by the first and second wireless speaker assemblies is synchronized to a variance of less than about 10 ms or less than about 100 samples.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first and second wireless speaker assemblies are wireless earphones.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the playback of the decompressed audio source data by the first and second wireless speaker assemblies is synchronized to a variance of less than about 1 ms or less than about 20 samples.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the audio source data further comprises volume data, track selection data, pause/play data, equalizer data, trim gain data, or any combination thereof.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein:

audio source data comprises stereo audio data; and

the playback of the decompressed audio source data by the first and second wireless speaker assemblies independently comprises left channel audio data or right channel audio data.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein at least one pairing step is initiated through detection of capacitive touch by a switch key disposed on the first and/or second wireless speaker assembly.