Multi-Resolution Audio Signals

• US 20140126751A1
• Filed: 11/06/2012
• Published: 05/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Yliaho, Marko T., Koski, Ari J.
• Granted Patent: US 10,194,239 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/122
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10546 specifically adapted for audio data
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2227/005 Audio distribution systems for home, i.e. multi-room use
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2410/03 Reduction of intrinsic noise in microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2499/11 Transducers incorporated or for use in hand-held devices, e.g. mobile phones, PDA's, camera's
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/00 Circuits for transducers , loudspeakers or microphones

Abstract

An apparatus including at least one microphone; audio circuitry connected to the at least one microphone; and a memory connected to the audio circuitry. The audio circuitry is configured to output a first audio track and at least one second audio track. The audio circuitry is configured to form the first audio track from an output signal, provided by the at least one microphone, by processing the output signal with a first audio configuring, and where the audio circuitry is configured to form the at least one second audio track from the output signal, provided by the at least one microphone, without the first audio configuring. The memory is configured to store the first audio track and the at least one second audio track together.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

at least one microphone;

audio circuitry connected to the at least one microphone, where the audio circuitry is configured to output a first audio track and at least one second audio track, where the audio circuitry is configured to form the first audio track from an output signal, provided by the at least one microphone, by processing the output signal with a first audio configuring, and where the audio circuitry is configured to form the at least one second audio track from the output signal, provided by the at least one microphone, without the first audio configuring; and

a memory connected to the audio circuitry which is configured to store the first audio track and the at least one second audio track together.

2. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the apparatus is configured to store the first audio track and the at least one second audio track in the memory in a common file.

3. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the audio circuitry is configured to process the output signal with the first audio configuring comprising at least one of:

the output signal being dynamic range lowered with a first range lowering to a dynamic range of about 20 bits or 16 bits,

the output signal being downsampled with a first downsampling to a sample rate of about 96 kHz or 48 kHz.

4. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the audio circuitry is configured to process the output signal with the first audio configuring comprising at least one of:

the output signal being expanded to a higher dynamic range,

the output signal being upsampled to a higher sample rate.

5. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the output signal from the microphone is processed by the microphone with a microphone driver and hardware specific microphone processing.

6. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the audio circuitry is configured to perform at least one of:

the processing on the output signal to form the first audio track comprising noise reduction, upmixing, audio zooming, and/or audio encoding,

processing on the output signal to form the at least one second audio track comprising noise reduction, upmixing, audio zooming, and/or audio encoding.

7. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the audio circuitry is configured to form at least one of the second audio tracks without any resampling and/or dynamic range changing.

8. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the audio circuitry is configured to form at least one of the second audio tracks with a second processing comprising a second audio configuring which is different from the processing using the first audio configuring.

9. An apparatus as in claim 1 further comprising a selector configured to automatically select one of the audio tracks to be played by the apparatus, where each of the plurality of audio tracks has a different audio resolution of a same recorded sound, where the selector is configured to automatically select the audio track to be played based upon an ability of the apparatus to properly play the audio resolution of the audio track.

10. An apparatus as in claim 3 where the audio circuitry is configured to form at least one of the second audio tracks with a second audio configuring comprising a second different downsampling and/or a second different range lowering.

11. A method comprising:

recording a first audio track on a memory, where the first audio track comprises an output signal provided by a microphone which has been processed with a first audio configuring; and

recording at least one second audio track on the memory with the first audio track, where the at least one second audio track comprises the output signal provided by the microphone which has not been processed with the first audio configuring.

12. A method as in claim 11 comprising recording the first audio track and the at least one second audio track in the memory in a common file.

13. A method as in claim 11 comprising at least one of:

compressing the output signal to a dynamic range of about 20 bits or 16 bits as the first audio configuring, downsampling the output signal to a sample rate of about 96 kHz or 48 kHz as the first audio configuring.

14. A method as in claim 11 further comprising at least one of:

providing a user an ability to select audio resolution of the first audio track including dynamic range and sample rate, providing the user an ability to select audio resolution of at least one of the second audio tracks including dynamic range and sample rate of the at least one second audio track.

15. A method as in claim 11 further comprising a selector of an apparatus automatically selecting the audio track to be played by the apparatus from the audio tracks of a same recorded sound, where each of the audio tracks has a different audio resolution of the same recorded sound, where the selector automatically selects the audio track to be played based upon an ability of the apparatus to properly play the audio resolution of the audio track.

16. A non-transitory program storage device readable by a machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine for performing operations, the operations comprising:

recording a first audio track on a memory, where the first audio track comprises an output signal provided by a microphone which has been processed with a first audio configuring; and

recording at least one second audio track on the memory with the first audio track, where the second audio track comprise the output signal provided by the microphone which has not been processed with the first audio configuring.

17. An apparatus comprising:

a player configured to play sound from an audio track; and

a selector configured to select the audio track to be played by the player from a plurality of audio tracks of a same recorded sound, where each of the plurality of audio tracks has a different audio configuring of the same recorded sound, where the selector is configured to select the audio track to be played based, at least partially, upon an ability of the player to properly play the audio configuring of the audio track.

18. An apparatus as in claim 17 where the selector is configured to provide at least one of the following:

allow a user to choose the audio track to be played, automatically choose the audio track to be played.

19. A non-transitory memory device comprising:

a first audio track having a first output signal, provided by at least one microphone, which has been processed with a first audio configuring to thereby have a first audio configuration; and

a second audio track in a same file as the first audio track, where the second audio track has a second output signal, provided by the at least one microphone, which has not been processed with the first audio configuring to thereby have a second different audio configuration.