Audio processing in a multi-participant conference
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method of distributing audio content in a multi-participant audio/video conference, the method comprising:
- at a device of a first participant of said conference;
receiving audio signals from at least second and third participants of said conference;
determining a strength of each received audio signal;
generating indicia representative of said strengths for the received audio signals;
generating at least first and second mixed audio signals from the received audio signals, said first mixed audio signal different from said second mixed audio signal;
to each particular mixed audio signal, appending a set of generated strength indicia of the audio signals that are mixed to produce the particular mixed audio signal;
transmitting said first mixed audio signal to said second participant; and
transmitting said second mixed audio signal to said third participant.
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Abstract
Some embodiments provide an architecture for establishing multi-participant audio conferences over a computer network. This architecture has a central distributor that receives audio signals from one or more participants. The central distributor mixes the received signals and transmits them back to participants. In some embodiments, the central distributor eliminates echo by removing each participant'"'"'s audio signal from the mixed signal that the central distributor sends to the particular participant.
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Citations
53 Claims
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1. A method of distributing audio content in a multi-participant audio/video conference, the method comprising:
at a device of a first participant of said conference; receiving audio signals from at least second and third participants of said conference; determining a strength of each received audio signal; generating indicia representative of said strengths for the received audio signals; generating at least first and second mixed audio signals from the received audio signals, said first mixed audio signal different from said second mixed audio signal; to each particular mixed audio signal, appending a set of generated strength indicia of the audio signals that are mixed to produce the particular mixed audio signal; transmitting said first mixed audio signal to said second participant; and transmitting said second mixed audio signal to said third participant. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method of distributing audio content in a multi-participant audio/video conference the method comprising:
at a device of a first participant of said conference; receiving audio signals from at least second and third participants of said conference; generating at least first and second mixed audio signals from the received audio signals, said first mixed audio signal different from said second mixed audio signal; transmitting said first mixed audio signal to said second participant; and transmitting said second mixed audio signal to said third participant, wherein generating said mixed audio signals comprises removing the audio signal of the second participant from the first mixed audio signal and removing the audio signal of the third participant from the second mixed audio signal. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11)
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12. A method of creating a stereo panning effect in a multi-participant audio/video conference, the method comprising:
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displaying representations of at least two different participants in a display area, said displaying comprising displaying each of the representations in a distinct location in the display area; receiving a mixed audio signal that comprises a set of indicia indicative of a signal strength for each of the different participants; and panning the mixed audio signal across audio loudspeakers using said set of signal strength indicia in order to create an effect that a perceived location of an audio signal of a particular participant matches the location of the particular participant in the display area. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
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15. A method of creating a stereo panning effect in a multi-participant audio/video conference, the method comprising:
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determining that a first participant in said conference performed a particular action; identifying a location of a video presentation of the first participant on a display device of a second participant, said display device of the second participant further displaying a video presentation of at least a third participant at another location; determining a sound effect for the particular action; and based on said identified location, panning said sound effect across audio loudspeakers of the second participant to cause the second participant to perceive sound associated with said action to originate from the location of the video presentation of the first participant on the display device. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18)
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19. A computer readable medium storing a computer program for distributing audio content in a multi-participant audio/video conference, the computer program comprising sets of instructions for:
at a device of a first participant of said conference; receiving audio signals from at least second and third participants of said conference; determining a strength of each received audio signal; generating indicia representative of said strengths for the received audio signals; generating at least first and second mixed audio signals from the received audio signals, said first mixed audio signal different from said second mixed audio signal; to each particular mixed audio signal, appending the set of generated strength indicia of the audio signals that are mixed to produce the particular mixed audio signal; transmitting said first mixed audio signal to said second participant; and transmitting said second mixed audio signal to said third participant. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21)
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22. A computer readable medium storing a computer program for distributing audio content in a multi-participant audio/video conference, the computer program comprising sets of instructions for:
at a device of a first participant of said conference; receiving audio signals from at least second and third participants of said conference; generating at least first and second mixed audio signals from the received audio signals, said first mixed audio signal different from said second mixed audio signal; transmitting said first mixed audio signal to said second participant; and transmitting said second mixed audio signal to said third participant; wherein the set of instructions for generating the mixed audio signals comprises a set of instructions for removing the audio signal of the second participant from the first mixed audio signal and removing the audio signal of the third participant from the second mixed audio signal. - View Dependent Claims (23)
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24. A computer readable medium storing a computer program for creating a stereo panning effect in a multi-participant audio/video conference, the computer program comprising sets of instructions for:
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displaying representations of at least two different participants in a display area, said displaying comprising displaying each of the representations in a distinct location; receiving a mixed audio signal that comprises a set of indicia indicative of a signal strength for each of the different participants; and panning the mixed audio signal across audio loudspeakers using said set of signal strength indicia in order to create an effect that a perceived location of an audio signal of a particular participant matches the location of the particular participant in the display area. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26)
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27. A method of distributing audio content in a multi-participant audio/video conference the method comprising:
at a device of a first participant of said conference; receiving audio signals from at least second and third participants of said conference; generating at least first and second mixed audio signals from the received audio signals, said first mixed audio signal being different from said second mixed audio signal; transmitting said first mixed audio signal to said second participant; and transmitting said second mixed audio signal to said third participant, wherein a plurality of the mixed audio signals are transmitted using real time protocol (RTP) packets comprising an indicia of strength of each audio signal in the mixed audio signal. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29)
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30. For an audio/video conference comprising a plurality of participants, a method comprising:
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providing a graphical user interface (GUI) comprising a display area for displaying graphical representations of each of the plurality of participants in a particular location; and providing a controller for (i) receiving a mixed audio signal comprising audio signals corresponding to each participant of the plurality of participants, (ii) specifying at least one playback parameter for playing back the mixed audio signal in order to create a panning effect that a perceived location of an audio signal of a particular participant matches the particular location of the particular participant in the display area, and (iii) receiving a set of signal strength indicia. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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38. For an audio conference having a plurality of participants, a method comprising:
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providing an audio capture module for capturing a first audio signal of a first participant speaking during said conference; providing an audio signal strength calculator for calculating a signal strength of the received audio signals; and providing an audio mixer for (i) receiving the first audio signal and at least a second audio signal of a second participant, (ii) generating a mixed audio signal for the second participant, said generating comprising removing the audio signal of the second participant from said mixed audio signal, and (iii) transmitting said mixed audio signal to said second participant with data regarding said calculated audio signal strength, wherein said audio capture module and said audio mixer are provided as parts of one audio conference application. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40)
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41. For an audio conference having a plurality of participants, a method comprising:
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providing an audio capture module for capturing a first audio signal of a first participant speaking during said conference; providing an audio mixer for (i) receiving the first audio signal and at least a second audio signal of a second participant, (ii) generating a mixed audio signal for the second participant, said generating comprising removing the audio signal of the second participant from said mixed audio signal, and (iii) transmitting said mixed audio signal to said second participant, wherein said audio capture module and said audio mixer are provided as parts of one audio conference application; and providing a display area for displaying signal strengths of the received audio signals. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43)
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44. For an audio conference having a plurality of participants, a method comprising:
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providing an audio capture module for capturing a first audio signal of a first participant speaking during said conference; and providing an audio mixer for (i) receiving the first audio signal and at least a second audio signal of a second participant, (ii) generating a mixed audio signal for the second participant, said generating comprising removing the audio signal of the second participant from said mixed audio signal, and (iii) transmitting said mixed audio signal to said second participant, wherein said audio capture module and said audio mixer are provided as parts of one audio conference application, wherein the mixed audio signal comprises indicia that express signal strengths of the received audio signals. - View Dependent Claims (45, 46)
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47. For a multi-participant audio/video conference, a method comprising:
providing a multi-participant audio/video conference application, wherein said providing said multi-participant audio/video conference application comprises; providing an audio capture module for locally capturing an audio signal of a first participant speaking during said multi-participant audio/video conference; and providing an audio mixer for (i) receiving at least one other audio signal from at least a second participant of said conference, (ii) generating a mixed audio signal from the audio signals of the first and second participants, and (iii) transmitting said mixed audio signal to a third participant of said conference. - View Dependent Claims (48, 49, 50)
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51. A method of distributing audio content in a multi-participant audio/video conference, said method comprising:
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receiving audio signals from at least first and second participants of said conference; for the first participant, generating a mixed audio signal from the received audio signals, said generating comprising removing the audio signal of the first participant from said mixed audio signal; and transmitting said mixed audio signal to said first participant of said conference, wherein said receiving, generating, and transmitting are operations performed on a device of a participant of said conference other than the first participant, said operations performed by an audio/video conference application executing on said device. - View Dependent Claims (52, 53)
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Specification