Method and device intended for the picking up of sounds, for their recording and their play-back, and reproducing the natural sensation of a sound space

• US 6,782,104 B1
• Filed: 12/28/1999
• Issued: 08/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Arkamys
• Original Assignee: Arkamys
• Inventors: Vieilledent, Georges Claude
• Primary Examiner(s): Isen, Forester W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PENDLETON, BRIAN T
• Application Number:
  US09/473,893
• Time in Patent Office: 1,701 Days
• Field of Search: 381/26, 381/91, 381/122, 381/170, 381/362, 381/356, 381/357, 381/61, 381/63
• US Class Current: 381/26
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/406 microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/027 Spatial or constructional arrangements of microphones, e.g. in dummy heads

Abstract

Method intended for the picking up of sounds coming from at least one sound source, for the recording of said sounds and their play-back, by means of a sound pick-up assembly, a recording medium and a transmission assembly.

the sound pick-up assembly being composed of at least two microphones, the relative position of which is constant,

the recording medium being of any known stereophonic type, particularly with at least two tracks,

the transmission assembly comprising at least two members such as earphones, loudspeakers or speaker boxes.

It is characterised in that sounds are picked up simultaneously by the two microphones, known as “right” (11) and “left” (12) respectively and that these two microphones (11 and 12) are displaced together with respect to said sound source (A), particularly by causing the distance and/or height of each microphone (11-12) to vary differentially with respect to that source (A), i.e. that one of them (11-12) is brought closer to the sound source (A) when the other (12-11) is moved away and vice versa, equally well by either of the two faces of the virtual plane that extends from one to the other, it being possible therefore for the right microphone (11) to become the left microphone (12) and vice versa, it being possible also for the two microphones (11 and 12) to be moved simultaneously closer to and further away from said sound source (A).

Claims

1. A method for picking up sounds coming from at least one sound source for recording and playing back said sounds using a sound pick-up assembly, a recording medium and a transmission assembly, the sound pick-up assembly having at least two microphones, the relative positions of which are constant, the recording medium being stereophonic having at least two tracks, the transmission assembly comprising at least two audio diffusion members, the method comprising:

picking up sounds from the at least one sound source simultaneously with the at least two microphones;

displacing the at least two microphones together with respect to the at least one sound source concurrently with the picking up sounds;

one of the at least one sound sources being a pre-existing recording, the pre-existing recording being an initial recording;

transmitting sounds from the initial recording using loudspeakers located in a place having acoustic and sound characteristics replicating optimal acoustic and sound characteristics;

making a specific recording of the sounds from the initial recording in the place, said specific recording being influenced by the acoustic and sound characteristics;

subsequently playing back the sounds from the initial recording and the specific recording; and

making a final recording by superimposing the initial recording and specific recording, for later transmission of the final recording.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising setting the playing back of the initial recording at a constant sound level, the constant sound level being a reference level, and a second sound level of the play back of the specific recording is varied within a range extending continuously from a minimum value to a maximum value and encompassing the reference level.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising recording of a fewer number of sound sources than the total number of sound sources to make a particular recording, making a plurality of particular recordings and storing the plurality of particular recordings on the at least two tracks.

4. A device comprising:

a sound pick-up assembly for receiving at least one sound source, the sound pick-up assembly having two microphones oriented in opposite directions and held rigidly at a distance from each other approximating a distance between the ears of a person, the sound pick-up assembly having means for displacing and orienting the sound pick-up assembly at any time while picking-up sounds from the at least one sound source in order to present the two microphones to the at least one sound source in any orientation ranging 360°

from one face of a virtual plane parallel to an axis joining the two microphones pointed directly at the at least one sound source;

a recording medium being a stereophonic type and having at least two tracks thereon;

a transmission assembly comprising at least two audio diffusion members; and

a marker on the pick-up assembly for differentiating between the faces of the virtual plane, the marker comprising an asymmetric handle integral with the sound pick-up assembly.

5. The device according to claim 4, wherein the sound pick-up assembly has a substantially planar sound insulation screen interposed between the microphones.

6. The device according to claim 4, wherein the sound pick-up assembly further comprises a sound insulation member extending between the microphones for defining a front sonic space and a rear sonic space.

7. The device according to claim 4, further comprising a sound insulation member comprising a substantially spherical volume approximately the same as a head of a human being, and a screen for separating the two microphones on opposite sides of the spherical volume.

8. The device according to claim 4, wherein the at least one sound source comprises an apparatus for radiating acoustical energy into the surrounding space.

9. The device according to claim 4, wherein the recording medium comprises one of a disk, a magnetic tape and a compact disk.

10. The device according to claim 4, wherein the recording medium is one of a sound track of a cinema film and a video medium.

11. The device according to claim 4, wherein the transmission assembly comprises a reader for sound recording media and a pair of apparatus for radiating acoustic energy into a surrounding space, the pair of apparatus spaced from each other and corresponding to right-hand and left-hand channels.

12. The device according to claim 4, wherein the transmission assembly is located in a premises having an image presentation screen, and the transmission assembly further comprises a reader for audiovisual recording media and a plurality of apparatus for radiating acoustic energy into a surrounding space for reproducing right-hand and left-hand channels.

13. The device according to claim 4, wherein the transmission assembly is located in an auditorium having an image presentation screen, the transmission assembly comprising a reader for audiovisual recording of media, and a plurality of apparatus for radiating acoustic energy into a surrounding space, the plurality of apparatus arranged spaced apart in a front and a rear of the auditorium.

14. The device according to claim 4, wherein the transmission assembly comprises a reader for sound recording media and headphones having two earphones.

15. A method for processing pre-recorded initial sound signals emanating from at least one sound source using a sound pick-up and transmission assembly, the method comprising:

providing the sound pick-up and transmission assembly with left and right microphones;

arranging the sound pick-up and transmission assembly in front of the sound source;

simultaneously picking-up the pre-recorded initial sound signals from the at least one sound source using the left and right microphones;

generating transmitted sound signals corresponding to the picked-up initial sound signals;

superimposing the initial sound signals on the transmitted sound signals; and

diffusing the superimposed signals to produce a specific recording.

16. The method according to claim 15, further comprising producing multiple specific recordings corresponding to the sound source and storing the specific recordings on at least two tracks of a recording medium.

17. A method for picking up sounds coming from at least one sound source for recording and playing back said sounds using a sound pick-up assembly, a recording medium and a transmission assembly, the sound pick-up assembly having at least two microphones, the relative positions of which are constant, the recording medium being stereophonic having at least two tracks, the transmission assembly comprising at least two audio diffusion members, the method comprising:

picking up sounds from the at least one sound source simultaneously with the at least two microphones, wherein one of the at least one sound sources is a pre-existing recording, the pre-existing recording being an initial recording; and

displacing the at least two microphones together with respect to the at least one sound source;

transmitting sounds from the initial recording using loudspeakers located in a place having acoustic and sound characteristics at least approximately replicating acoustic and sound characteristics existing at the time the initial recording was made;

making a specific recording of the sounds from the initial recording in the place, said specific recording being influenced by the acoustic and sound characteristics;

subsequently playing back the sounds from the initial recording and the specific recording; and

making a final recording by superimposing the initial recording and specific recording, for later transmission of the final recording.