Sound volume adjustment system in personal computer and sound volume adjustment method thereof

• US 6,996,445 B1
• Filed: 07/25/2000
• Issued: 02/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Kamijo, Fumiaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Grier, Laura A.
• Application Number:
  US09/625,510
• Time in Patent Office: 2,023 Days
• Field of Search: 381104-107, 381/101, 700/94, 846/33, 846/65, 345/719, 345/722, 345/727, 345/716.T
• US Class Current: 700/94
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path

Abstract

The sound volume adjustment system for a personal computer includes a memory in which sound volume setting information set for each application is registered, and a sound volume adjustment control unit for adjusting, for each application, sound volume data transferred from the application to an operating system based on the sound volume setting information to generate adjusted sound volume data and transferring the adjusted sound volume data to the operating system.

Claims

1. A sound volume adjustment system for a personal computer, said personal computer having a sound device, the system comprising:

a memory resident on the personal computer in which a plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients are stored, each of the plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients corresponding to a respective one of a plurality of software applications;

an operating system resident on the personal computer; and

sound volume adjustment control means resident on the personal computer for adjusting, based on said plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients, sound volume data for each application of the plurality of software applications, and for transferring the adjusted sound volume data to the operating system,

wherein said sound volume adjustment control means adjusts said sound volume data for each application of the plurality of software applications by multiplying said sound volume data for each application by a corresponding one of said plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients; and

wherein each of the plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients are set as multiples of a variable level of a sound volume of a system sound generated by said operating system, said variable level of said sound volume of said system sound being unchanged when an application of the plurality of software applications requests the operating system to open the sound device.

2. The sound volume adjustment system for a personal computer according to claim 1, wherein

when data is transferred from a software application for which a corresponding sound volume adjustment coefficient is yet to be stored, said sound volume adjustment control means displays sound volume adjustment function indications on an operation screen to store, in said memory, the corresponding sound volume adjustment coefficient based on a sound volume set through said sound volume adjustment function indications corresponding to the software application.

3. The sound volume adjustment system of claim 1,

wherein a sound volume level of said adjusted sound volume data is set to a level near that of the level of the sound volume of the system sound generated by said operating system.

4. A sound volume adjustment method for a personal computer, said personal computer having a sound device, the method comprising the steps of:

storing an operating system on the personal computer;

storing a plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients that are set as multiples of a variable level of a sound volume of a system sound generated by said operating system, each of the plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients corresponding to a respective one of a plurality of software applications;

adjusting sound volume data for each of the plurality of software applications by multiplying said sound volume data for each application of the plurality of software applications by a corresponding one of said plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients; and

transferring adjusted sound volume data to the operating system;

wherein said variable level of said sound volume of said system sound is unchanged when an application of the plurality of software applications requests the operating system to open the sound device.

5. The sound volume adjustment method for a personal computer according to claim 4, further comprising:

when data is transferred from a software application for which a corresponding sound volume adjustment coefficient is yet to be stored, storing a sound volume adjustment coefficient based on a set sound volume in said memory corresponding to the software application.

6. The sound volume adjustment method of claim 4,

wherein the step of adjusting, comprises:

adjusting sound volume data for each of the plurality of software applications, such that a sound volume level of the adjusted sound volume data is set to a level near that of the level of the sound volume of the system sound generated by said operating system, by multiplying said sound volume data for each application of the plurality of software applications by a corresponding sound volume adjustment coefficient of the plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients.

7. A computer readable memory storing a sound volume adjustment program for controlling a personal computer to conduct sound volume adjustment, said personal computer having a sound device, said sound volume adjustment program operating to perform the following steps:

interfacing with an operating system on the personal computer;

storing a plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients that are set as multiples of a variable level of a sound volume of a system sound generated by said operating system, each of the plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients corresponding to a perspective one of a plurality of software applications;

adjusting sound volume data for each of the plurality of software applications by multiplying said sound volume data for each application of the plurality of software applications by a corresponding one of said plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients; and

transferring adjusted sound volume data to the operating system;

wherein said variable level of said sound volume of said system sound is unchanged when an application of the plurality of software applications requests the operating system to open the sound device.

8. The computer readable memory storing a sound volume adjustment program for controlling a personal computer to conduct sound volume adjustment according to claim 7, wherein the following additional steps are performed:

when data is transferred from a software application for which a corresponding sound volume adjustment coefficient is yet to be stored, storing a sound volume adjustment coefficient based on a set sound volume in said memory corresponding to the software application.

9. The computer readable memory storing a sound volume adjustment program of claim 7,

wherein the step of adjusting, comprises:

adjusting sound volume data for each of the plurality of software applications, such that a sound volume level of the adjusted sound volume data is set to a level near that of the level of the sound volume of the system sound generated by said operating system, by multiplying said sound volume data for each application of the plurality of software applications by a corresponding sound volume adjustment coefficient of the plurality of sound volume adjustment coefficients.