METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CONFIGURATION AND CONTROL OF MIXER FOR AUDIO SYSTEM USING WIRELESS DOCKING SYSTEM

• US 20140301575A1
• Filed: 11/09/2012
• Published: 10/09/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: Holtman, Koen Johanna Guillaume, Dees, Walter
• Granted Patent: US 9,686,030 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/119
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/04 Studio equipment; Interconnection of studios
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2205/021 Aspects relating to docking-station type assemblies to obtain an acoustical effect, e.g. the type of connection to external loudspeakers or housings, frequency improvement
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/12 for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407

Abstract

Efficiency for mixing audio signals from one or more portable user devices in an audio system employing a number of docking station is achieved by a docking station that includes a controller for detecting the presence of an activated mixer associated with another docking station in the system. The controller activates its associated mixer when no activated mixer associated with another docking host in the system is detected. When its associated mixer is activated, the controller in the one docking station causes its associated mixer to be connected both to the audio sound system for supplying an input signal thereto and indirectly to the output(s) of the one or more portable devices. Transfer of mixing from one docking station to another in the same system upon the occurrence of a particularly defined event is also described.

Claims

1. A system for mixing audio signals from one or more portable user devices docked in said system, the system comprising:

an audio sound system;

at least two docking hosts communicatively coupled to each other, each said docking host including;

means for creating at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system for each individual portable user device docked with said docking host, and for coupling an audio output signal from each individual portable user device to the virtual presence of the audio system with which the individual portable user device is associated;

means, responsive to an audio output signal from each of said one or more portable user devices docked in said system, for mixing the audio output signals together as an input for the audio sound system, said mixing means adapted to be controllably activated and controllably coupled to said audio sound system; and

control means for detecting the presence of an activated mixing means associated with another docking host in said system, said control means also for activating its associated mixing means when no activated mixing means associated with another docking host in said system is detected, and in response to activating its associated mixing means, said control means is adapted for causing said mixing means to be connected both to the audio sound system for supplying said input signal thereto and to an output of the at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system within the associated docking host.

2. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein:

the control means in each said docking host is further adapted for detecting whether the one or more portable user devices or the associated docking host are initiating a defined event,

in response to detection of an occurrence of at least one defined event, said control means is further adapted for communicating with another docking host to effect a transfer of mixing, and

the control means deactivates and decouples the associated mixing means from said audio system in response to said another docking host controllably activating its mixing means and controllably coupling to said audio system, wherein said defined event includes at least one of;

a last portable user device is initiating an undocking from the associated docking host,

a last portable user device is initiating a powering down operation while remaining connected to the associated docking host, and

powering down of the associated docking host to a low power or off state of operation.

3. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein the control means in the docking host suppresses activation of its associated mixing means when a mixing means is found to be activated in another docking host communicatively coupled to the audio sound system.

4. The system as defined in claim 3, wherein, in response to detection of said mixing means in said another docking host as being activated, said control means is further adapted for causing the output from the at least one virtual presence in the associated docking host to be communicatively coupled to the mixing means detected as being activated in said another docking host.

5. The system as defined in claim 2, wherein the at least two docking hosts are communicatively coupled with each other via a backbone network.

6. The system as defined in claim 1, wherein at least one of said one or more portable user devices includes:

means for creating at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system for said at least one portable device docked with said docking host, and for coupling an audio output signal from said at least one portable user device to the virtual presence of the audio system with which the individual portable user device is associated;

means, responsive to an audio output signal from each of said one or more portable user devices docked in said system, for mixing the audio output signals together as an input for the audio sound system, said mixing means adapted to be controllably activated and controllably coupled to said audio sound system; and

control means for detecting the presence of an activated mixing means in another docking host or another portable user device in said system, said control means also for activating its associated mixing means when no activated mixing means is detected, and in response to activating its associated mixing means, said control means is adapted for causing said mixing means to be connected both to the audio sound system for supplying said input signal thereto and to an output of the at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system.

7. A docking host adapted for use in a system comprising an audio sound system and at least two docking hosts, wherein the docking host mixes audio signals from one or more portable user devices docked in said host for input to an audio system, the host comprising:

means for creating at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system for each individual portable user device docked with said docking host, and for coupling an audio output signal from each individual portable user device to the virtual presence of the audio system with which the individual portable user device is associated;

means, responsive to an audio output signal from each of said one or more portable user devices docked in said system, for mixing the audio output signals together as an input for the audio sound system, said mixing means adapted to be controllably activated and controllably coupled to said audio sound system; and

control means for detecting the presence of an activated mixing means associated with another docking host in said system, said control means also for activating its associated mixing means when no activated mixing means associated with another docking host in said system is detected, and in response to activating its associated mixing means, said control means is adapted for causing said mixing means to be connected both to the audio sound system for supplying said input signal thereto and to an output of the at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system within the associated docking host.

8. The docking host as defined in claim 7, wherein:

the control means in said docking host is further adapted for detecting whether the one or more portable user devices or the docking host itself are initiating a defined event,

in response to detection of an occurrence of at least one defined event, said control means is further adapted for communicating with another docking host to effect a transfer of mixing, and

the control means deactivates and decouples the associated mixing means from said audio system in response to said another docking host controllably activating its mixing means and controllably coupling to said audio system, wherein said defined event includes at least one of;

a last portable user device is initiating an undocking from the associated docking host,

a last portable user device is initiating a powering down operation while remaining connected to the associated docking host, and

powering down of the docking host itself to a low power or off state of operation.

9. The docking host as defined in claim 7, wherein the control means in the docking host suppresses activation of its associated mixing means when a mixing means is found to be activated in another docking host communicatively coupled to the audio sound system.

10. The docking host as defined in claim 9, wherein, in response to detection of the mixing means in said another docking host as being activated, said control means is further adapted for causing the output from the at least one virtual presence in the associated docking host to be communicatively coupled to the mixing means detected as being activated in said another docking host.

11. The docking host as defined in claim 8, wherein the docking host is communicatively coupled with at least one other docking host via a backbone network.

12. A method for mixing audio signals from one or more portable user devices docked on at least two docking hosts for presentation on an audio sound system, wherein the at least two docking hosts are communicatively coupled to each other, the method comprising:

creating, in a docking host, at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system for each individual portable user device docked with said docking host, and for coupling an audio output signal from each individual portable user device to the virtual presence of the audio system with which the individual portable user device is associated;

in a docking host, in response to an audio output signal from each of said one or more portable user devices docked in said system, mixing the audio output signals together as an input for the audio sound system, wherein said mixing is controllably activated; and

detecting, in a docking host, the presence of an activated mixing step associated with another docking host in said system,

activating its associated mixing step when no activated mixing step associated with another docking host in said system is detected, and

in response to activating its associated mixing, connecting said input to the audio sound system and supplying an output of the at least one virtual presence of the audio sound system within the associated docking host to said mixing step.

13. The method as defined in claim 12, the method further including suppressing activation of mixing step by the associated docking host when mixing is found to be activated in another docking host communicatively coupled to the audio sound system.

14. The method as defined in claim 13, wherein, in response to detection of mixing in said another docking host as being activated, causing the output from the at least one virtual presence in the associated docking host to be communicatively coupled as an input to the mixing detected as being activated in said another docking host.

15. The method as defined in claim 12, wherein the methods further comprises:

detecting by the docking host whether the one or more portable user devices or the docking host itself are initiating a defined event,

in response to detection of an occurrence of at least one defined event, communicating with another docking host to effect a transfer of mixing from the docking host to the another docking host, and

deactivating said mixing in the docking host, and

decoupling the input from said audio system in response to said another docking host controllably activating mixing and controllably coupling the input generated by the another docking host to said audio system, wherein said defined event includes at least one of;

a last portable user device is initiating an undocking from the associated docking host,

a last portable user device is initiating a powering down operation while remaining connected to the associated docking host, and

powering down of the docking host itself to a low power or off state of operation.