MULTI-CHANNEL DECODING DEVICE, MULTI-CHANNEL DECODING METHOD, PROGRAM, AND SEMICONDUCTOR INTEGRATED CIRCUIT

• US 20100241434A1
• Filed: 02/14/2008
• Published: 09/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ono, Kojiro
• Application Number:
  US12/513,797
• Publication Number:
  US 20100241434A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 704/500
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/008 Multichannel audio signal coding or decoding using interchannel correlation to reduce redundancy, e.g. joint-stereo, intensity-coding or matrixing

Abstract

The multi-channel decoding device (20) according to the present invention is a multi-channel decoding device which converts a monaural frequency signal (106) of an input channel count that is at least one into adjustment frequency signals (109) of an output channel count that is greater than the input channel count. The multi-channel decoding device (20) includes a channel expansion unit (102) which generates expansion frequency signals (107) of the output channel count by expanding the channel count of the monaural frequency signal (106) of the input channel count, and a sound quality adjustment unit (132) which generates the adjustment frequency signals (109) of the output channel count by adding, at a predetermined ratio, one of the expansion frequency signals (107) of the output channel count and the monaural frequency signal (106).

Claims

1. A multi-channel decoding device which converts an input audio signal of an input channel count that is at least one into output audio signals of an output channel count that is greater than the input channel count, said multi-channel decoding device comprising:

a first expansion unit configured to generate expansion signals of the output channel count by expanding a channel count of the input audio signal of the input channel count; and

a first addition unit configured to generate one of the output audio signals of the output channel count by adding, at a predetermined ratio, one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal.

2. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first conversion unit configured to generate the input audio signal of the input channel count by converting an input time signal of the input channel count from a time signal to a frequency signal; and

a second conversion unit configured to generate output time signals of the output channel count by converting each of the output audio signals of the output channel count from a frequency signal to a time signal,

wherein said first expansion unit is configured to generate the expansion signals of the output channel count by expanding the channel count of the input audio signal of the input channel count, each of the expansion signals being a frequency signal, the input audio signal being a frequency signal converted by said first conversion unit, and

said first addition unit is configured to generate the output audio signals of the output channel count by adding, at the predetermined ratio, one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal, each of the output audio signals, the expansion signals and the input audio signal being a frequency signal.

3. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 1,

wherein said first expansion unit includes:

a first conversion unit configured to generate an input frequency signal of the input channel count by converting the input audio signal of the input channel count from a time signal to a frequency signal; and

a second expansion unit configured to generate the expansion signals of the output channel count by expanding a channel count of the input frequency signal of the input channel count, and

said first addition unit includes;

a second conversion unit configured to generate output time signals of the output channel count by converting each of the expansion signals of the output channel count from a frequency signal to a time signal; and

a second addition unit configured to generate the output audio signals of the output channel count by adding, at the predetermined ratio, one of the output time signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal, each of the output audio signals being a time signal.

4. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 1,

wherein said first addition unit is configured to weight a certain frequency-time band of the input audio signal, and add, at the predetermined ratio, one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal.

5. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 1, further comprising

an information input unit configured to generate gain information which designates the predetermined ratio according to an operation of a user,

wherein said first addition unit is configured to add one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal at the predetermined ratio designated by the gain information.

6. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 5,

wherein said information input unit is configured to accept a plurality of modes each designating the predetermined ratio according to the operation of the user.

7. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 5,

wherein said information input unit is configured to generate the gain information which designates the predetermined ratio for each of the output audio signals of the output channel count according to the operation of the user, and

said first addition unit is configured to add each of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal at the corresponding predetermined ratio designated by the gain information.

8. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 5,

wherein said information input unit includes an adjusting knob for designating the predetermined ratio by the user successively changing the predetermined ratio.

9. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 1,

wherein the input audio signal of the input channel count is generated by synthesizing audio signals of the output channel count, and

said first expansion unit is configured to generate the expansion signals of the output channel count by expanding the channel count of the input audio signal of the input channel count, using expansion information which is generated in the synthesizing and indicates an inter-channel relationship of the audio signals.

10. The multi-channel decoding device according to claim 1,

wherein the input channel count is two or more, and

said first addition unit is configured to average the two or more input audio signals, and add, at the predetermined ratio, one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the averaged input audio signal.

11. A multi-channel decoding method for converting an input audio signal of an input channel count that is at least one into output audio signals of an output channel count that is greater than the input channel count, said method comprising:

generating expansion signals of the output channel count by expanding a channel count of the input audio signal of the input channel count; and

generating one of the output audio signals of the output channel count by adding, at a predetermined ratio, one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal.

12. A program causing a computer to execute a multi-channel decoding method for converting an input audio signal of an input channel count that is at least one into output audio signals of an output channel count that is greater than the input channel count, the method comprising:

generating expansion signals of the output channel count by expanding a channel count of the input audio signal of the input channel count; and

generating one of the output audio signals of the output channel count by adding, at a predetermined ratio, one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal.

13. A semiconductor integrated circuit which converts an input audio signal of an input channel count that is at least one into output audio signals of an output channel count that is greater than the input channel count, said semiconductor integrated circuit comprising:

a first expansion unit configured to generate expansion signals of the output channel count by expanding a channel count of the input audio signal of the input channel count; and

a first addition unit configured to generate one of the output audio signals of the output channel count by adding, at a predetermined ratio, one of the expansion signals of the output channel count and the input audio signal.