UTILIZING TELECOIL COMPATIBILITY ON A MOBILE DEVICE FOR IMPROVING FREQUENCY RANGE OF MULTIMEDIA PLAYBACK

• US 20160021229A1
• Filed: 07/15/2014
• Published: 01/21/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wistron Corporation
• Original Assignee: Wistron Corporation
• Inventors: Lewis, Ian, Burke, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 9,344,543 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6033 for providing handsfree use or a loudspeaker mode in telephone sets arrangements for preventing acoustic echo H04M9/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72478 for hearing-impaired users
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/43 Electronic input selection or mixing based on input signal analysis, e.g. mixing or selection between microphone and telecoil or between microphones with different directivity characteristics H04R25/407 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/50 Customised settings for obtaining desired overall acoustical characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/505 using digital signal processing
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/554 using a wireless connection, e.g. between microphone and amplifier or using Tcoils

Abstract

A system is providing for augmenting multimedia playback on a mobile device. The system includes the mobile device and an auxiliary loudspeaker device. The mobile device includes a telecoil transmitter and is configured to, in a multimedia mode, provide a multimedia audio signal to the telecoil transmitter for transmission to the auxiliary loudspeaker device. The auxiliary loudspeaker device includes a telecoil to receive the transmitted multimedia audio signal and plays a low frequency portion of multimedia audio content at a loudspeaker of the auxiliary loudspeaker device.

Claims

1. A system for augmenting multimedia playback on a mobile device, comprising:

the mobile device, comprising a telecoil transmitter configured to generate an electromagnetic field carrying an audio signal, the mobile device being configured to be operated in a hearing-aid compatible (HAC) voice call mode and a multimedia mode, wherein an audio processing unit of the mobile device is configured to, in the HAC voice call mode, provide a voice call audio signal to the telecoil transmitter for transmission to a hearing aid device and configured to, in the multimedia mode, provide a multimedia audio signal to the telecoil transmitter for transmission to an auxiliary loudspeaker device, wherein the multimedia audio signal is based on multimedia audio content to be played in part by the mobile device; and

the auxiliary loudspeaker device, comprising a telecoil and a loudspeaker, configured to receive the multimedia audio signal via the telecoil and to play a low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the audio processing unit of the mobile device is further configured to apply a filter to the multimedia audio content to obtain the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content;

and

wherein the multimedia audio signal consists of the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the multimedia audio signal transmitted to the auxiliary loudspeaker device includes both the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content and a high frequency portion of the multimedia audio content;

and

wherein the auxiliary loudspeaker device is configured to apply a filter to the multimedia audio content of the transmitted multimedia audio signal to obtain the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein in the multimedia mode, the audio processing unit of the mobile device is configured to apply a filter to the multimedia audio content to obtain a high frequency portion of the multimedia content;

and

wherein the mobile device further comprises a loudspeaker and the mobile device is configured to utilize the loudspeaker to play the high frequency portion of the multimedia audio content.

5. The system according to claim 4, wherein the mobile device comprises two loudspeakers and the mobile device is configured to utilize both loudspeakers to play the high frequency portion of the content of the audio source.

6. The system according to claim 4, wherein the high frequency portion of the multimedia content consists of audio having frequencies higher than approximately 1 kHz.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the low frequency portion of the multimedia content consists of audio having frequencies lower than approximately 1 kHz.

8. An apparatus for operating in a hearing-aid compatible (HAC) voice call mode and a multimedia mode, comprising:

a telecoil transmitter; and

an audio processing unit configured to, in the HAC voice call mode, provide a voice call audio signal to the telecoil transmitter for transmission to a hearing aid device and configured to, in the multimedia mode, provide a multimedia audio signal to the telecoil transmitter for transmission to an auxiliary loudspeaker device, wherein the multimedia audio signal is based on multimedia audio content to be played.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the audio processing unit is further configured to filter the multimedia audio content to obtain a low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content;

and

wherein the multimedia audio signal consists of the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the low frequency portion of the multimedia content consists of audio having frequencies lower than approximately 1 kHz.

11. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the audio processing unit is configured to filter the multimedia audio content to obtain a high frequency portion of the multimedia content.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the apparatus further comprises a loudspeaker to play the high frequency portion of the multimedia content.

13. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the high frequency portion of the multimedia content consists of audio having frequencies higher than approximately 1 kHz.

14. An apparatus for operating in a multimedia mode, comprising:

an audio processing unit configured to apply filters to obtain a low frequency portion and a high frequency portion of multimedia audio content to be played;

a loudspeaker configured to play the high frequency portion of the multimedia audio content; and

an audio signal transmission interface configured to transmit the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content to an auxiliary loudspeaker device having an audio signal reception interface corresponding to the audio signal transmission interface.

15. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the audio signal transmission interface and the audio signal reception interface of the auxiliary loudspeaker device communicate using a radiofrequency-based short-range wireless communication protocol.

16. The system according to claim 14, wherein the audio signal transmission interface is a telecoil transmitter.

17. A system for augmenting multimedia playback on a mobile device, comprising:

the mobile device, comprising an audio signal transmission interface and an audio processing unit, wherein the audio processing unit is configured to apply filters to obtain a low frequency portion and a high frequency portion of multimedia audio content to be played in part by the mobile device, wherein the mobile device is configured to play the high frequency portion of the multimedia audio content via a loudspeaker of the mobile device and to transmit the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content via the audio signal transmission interface to an auxiliary loudspeaker device; and

the auxiliary loudspeaker device, comprising an audio signal reception interface and a loudspeaker, the auxiliary loudspeaker device being configured to receive the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content via the audio signal reception interface and to play the low frequency portion of the multimedia audio content via the loudspeaker of the of the auxiliary loudspeaker device.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein the audio signal transmission interface of the mobile device and the audio signal reception interface of the auxiliary loudspeaker device communicate using a radiofrequency-based short-range wireless communication protocol.

19. The system according to claim 17, wherein the audio signal transmission interface of the mobile device is a telecoil transmitter and the audio signal reception interface of the auxiliary loudspeaker device is a telecoil.

20. The system according to claim 17, wherein the high frequency portion of the multimedia content consists of audio having frequencies higher than approximately 1 kHz;

and

wherein the low frequency portion of the multimedia content consists of audio having frequencies lower than approximately 1 kHz.