Active noise cancelling apparatus

• US 5,499,301 A
• Filed: 10/20/1994
• Issued: 03/12/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Sekiguchi, Yasuyuki, Sudo, Yuko, Saruta, Susumu
• Primary Examiner(s): Isen, Forester W.
• Application Number:
  US08/323,730
• Time in Patent Office: 509 Days
• Field of Search: 381/71, 381/94
• US Class Current: 381/71.3
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17823 Reference signals, e.g. ambient acoustic environment
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17853 of the filter
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17854 the filter being an adaptive filter
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17855 for improving speed or power requirements
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17861 using additional means for damping sound, e.g. using sound absorbing panels
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17883 the reference signal being derived from a machine operating condition, e.g. engine RPM or vehicle speed
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/104 Aircos
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/1054 Refrigerators
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/109 Compressors, e.g. fans
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/121 Rotating machines, e.g. engines, turbines, motors; Periodic or quasi-periodic signals in general
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/3032 Harmonics or sub-harmonics
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/3045 Multiple acoustic inputs, single acoustic output

Abstract

An active noise cancelling apparatus for actively controlling noise generated by a compressor, where noise is apt to externally leak from an opening portion of a machine chamber storing the compressor driven by an A.C. power supply. The active noise cancelling apparatus includes: a microphone, provided in the vicinity of the opening portion, for detecting noise generated by the compressor; fundamental wave component extracting portion for extracting a fundamental wave component of rotation frequency of the compressor, from a sound signal of the noise detected by the microphone; periodic signal generating circuit for a periodic signal correlative to the fundamental wave component extracted by the fundamental wave component extracting portion; periodic signal outputting circuit for outputting a predetermined periodic signal by means of comparing a phase of the periodic signal generated by the periodic signal generating circuit with a phase of the fundamental wave component; uncancelled sound extracting portion for extracting noise having been not cancelled, excluding the fundamental wave component; sound source waveform generating circuit for forming a harmonics component from the signal outputted by the fundamental wave component extracting circuit; control signal generating circuit for correcting a control signal outputted from the sound source waveform generating circuit, based on a signal from the uncancelled sound extracting portion and for generating the corrected signal in a feedback manner; and a loudspeaker for outputting the control signal generated from the control signal correcting circuit.

Claims

1. An active noise cancelling apparatus for actively controlling high frequency cyclic noise generated by a rotary machine, where noise is apt to externally leak from an opening portion of a machine chamber storing the rotary machine driven by an A.C. power supply, the apparatus comprising:

sound detecting means, provided in the vicinity of the opening portion, for detecting noise generated by the rotary machine;

fundamental wave component extracting means for extracting a fundamental wave component of rotation frequency of the rotary machine, from a sound signal of the noise detected by the sound detecting means;

periodic signal generating means for generating a periodic signal correlative to the fundamental wave component extracted by the fundamental wave component extracting means;

periodic signal outputting means for outputting a predetermined periodic signal by means of comparing a phase of the periodic signal generated by the periodic signal generating means with a phase of the fundamental wave component;

uncancelled sound extracting means for extracting noise having been not cancelled, after a control signal is outputted from control signal outputting means, excluding the fundamental wave component;

sound source waveform generating means for forming a harmonics component from the signal outputted by the periodic signal outputting means, the harmonics component being a sound source waveform which has a phase opposite to and a same amplitude with a sound source signal detected by the sound detecting means;

control signal generating means for correcting a control signal outputted from the sound source waveform generating means, based on a signal from the uncancelled sound extracting means and for generating the corrected signal in a feedback manner; and

output means for outputting the control generated from the control signal correcting means.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fundamental wave component extracting means comprises:

a band-pass filter which extracts a fundamental wave component of a rotation noise detected by the sound detecting means;

an A-D converter for digitizing a signal from the band-pass filter; and

a sound source periodic signal stabilizing circuit for processing digitized signal output from the A-D converter to stabilize a periodic signal of the sound source.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the sound source periodic signal stabilizing circuit comprises in a feedback manner:

oscillating means for constantly generating a periodic signal;

phase compare means for comparing an output of the oscillating means and a periodic signal detected by the sound detecting means; and

integrating means for controlling a phase of the oscillating means to coincide with the periodic signal detected by the sound detecting means, so that fluctuation of the periodic signal caused by external disturbance is eliminated.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the fundamental wave component extracting means includes power supply frequency detecting means for detecting a frequency of the A.C. power supply, the power supply frequency detecting means comprising:

full-wave rectifying means for doubling a voltage waveform of the power supply by full-wave rectification; and

A-D converting means for binary-coding and digitizing a signal obtained by the full-wave rectifying means.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the uncancelled sound extracting means includes a high-pass filter for cutting off a fundamental frequency from a signal detected by the sound detecting means.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control signal generating means comprises:

transfer characteristic filter means for correcting a fundamental wave component based on a transfer characteristic between the sound detecting means and the output means; and

error identification adaptive filter means for identifying a noise-cancelling error factor.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein there is provided switching means in an input side of the transfer characteristic filter means.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the control signal generating means further comprises:

noise cancelling waveform generating filter means to which a result of calculation obtained by the error identification adaptive filter means is fed, and where each factor for electromagnetic noise and rotation sound is updated, so that such factor-updated cancelling noises are synthesized so as to generate a final noise cancelling signal through the output means.

9. An active noise cancelling apparatus for actively controlling high frequency cyclic noise generated by a rotary machine, where noise is apt to externally leak from an opening portion of a machine chamber storing the rotary machine driven by an A.C. power supply, the apparatus comprising:

sound detecting means, provided in the vicinity of the opening portion, for detecting noise generated by the rotary machine;

fundamental wave component extracting means for extracting a fundamental wave component of rotation frequency of the rotary machine, from a sound signal of the noise detected by the sound detecting means;

periodic signal generating means for a periodic signal correlative to the fundamental wave component extracted by the fundamental wave component extracting means;

periodic signal outputting means for outputting a predetermined periodic signal by means of comparing a phase of the periodic signal generated by the periodic signal generating means with a phase of the fundamental wave component;

uncancelled noise extracting means for extracting noise having been not cancelled, after a control signal is outputted from control signal outputting means, excluding the fundamental wave component;

sound source waveform generating means for forming a harmonics component from the signal outputted by the fundamental wave component extracting means, the harmonics component being a sound source waveform which has a phase opposite to and a same amplitude with a sound source signal detected by the sound detecting means;

control signal generating means for correcting a control signal outputted from the sound source waveform generating means, based on a signal from the uncancelled sound extracting means and for generating the corrected signal in a feedback manner, wherein respective sound source waveforms of an electromagnetic sound detected from the A.C. power supply and a rotation sound of the rotary machine detected by the sound detecting means are synthesized so as to form a final control noise-cancelling waveform; and

output means for outputting the control generated from the control signal correcting means.

10. An active noise cancelling apparatus for reducing noise emanating from a rotary machine driven in synchronism with a fundamental frequency comprising:

a microphone provided at a location where said noise is desired to be reduced;

a band-pass filter connected to said microphone in order to extract said fundamental frequency from the noise;

a sound waveform generating circuit connected to said band-pass filter for generating signals representing harmonic sounds of said fundamental frequency with half-wave phase differences;

a speaker provided adjacent to said rotary machine;

a driving circuit connected to said speaker and said sound waveform generating circuit for controlling said speaker to generate said harmonic sounds in accordance with the signals output from said sound waveform generating circuit;

a high pass filter connected to said microphone in order to detect harmonic components of sounds occurring at said location other than that having said fundamental frequency; and

a silencing error adaptive filter connected to said driving circuit and said high pass filter to control said driving circuit to enhance cancellation of said noise at said location by said harmonic sound generated from said speaker in accordance with a transfer characteristic function rectified in accordance with said harmonic component detected by said high pass filter.