System and method for transmitting audio data

• US 7,991,018 B2
• Filed: 05/14/2008
• Issued: 08/02/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Airbus Operations GmbH (Airbus SE)
• Original Assignee: Airbus Operations GmbH (Airbus SE)
• Inventors: Deimer, Sandra, Kriebisch, Thomas, Andersen, Dirk, Dietl, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): PHAM, BRENDA H
• Application Number:
  US12/452,442
• Publication Number:
  US 20100142552A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,175 Days
• Field of Search: 370/533, 370/535, 370/536, 370/537, 370/389, 370/349
• US Class Current: 370/534
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/0015 Arrangements for entertainment or communications, e.g. radio, television
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 11/00155 Individual entertainment or communication system remote controls therefor, located in or connected to seat components, e.g. to seat back or arm rest
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/167 Audio streaming, i.e. formatting and decoding of an encoded audio signal representation into a data stream for transmission or storage purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 20/62 for transportation systems, e.g. in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/40 Weight reduction

Abstract

The invention relates to a system and method for transmitting audio data in a combined cabin management system in an aircraft with the steps: playing back entertainment programs and providing communications possibilities with an entertainment system (1), which is connected to several first audio data sources (3) and to several first audio playback devices (4), setting and displaying cabin parameters with a control system (2), which is connected to several second audio data sources (8) and to several second audio playback devices (9), transmitting audio data between the control system (2) and the entertainment system (1) with several audio channels (6) each with a coding device (5) and a decoding device (7) respectively. In order to be able to carry out the transmission of audio data and associated information by using commercially available coding chips with the lowest possible expense, the steps are provided: interlinking the audio signals from the several audio data sources (3; 8) into one data stream through a multiplexer (12), via which the coding device (5) is connected to several audio data sources (3; 8), and depacketing the data stream into audio signals for the several audio playback devices (4; 9) through a demultiplexer (15) via which the decoding device (7) is connected to several audio playback devices (4; 9), wherein the audio data are transmitted between the coding device (5) and the decoding device (7) with a predetermined resolution.

Claims

1. A combined cabin management system in an aircraft, said management system comprising an entertainment system, a control system and several audio channels connecting the entertainment system with the control system, wherein said entertainment system is configured for playing back entertainment programs and providing communications possibilities for passengers in the aircraft, and said entertainment system is connected to several first audio data sources for storing and/or recording audio data and to several first audio playback devices for playing back audio data, said control system is configured for setting and displaying cabin parameters by crew members in the aircraft, said control system is connected to several second audio data sources for at least one of storing and recording audio data and to several second audio playback devices for playing back audio data, said several audio channels in both directions are configured for transferring audio data as a series of data packets between the control system and the entertainment system, each of said entertainment and control systems having a coding device for an upward transmission of audio data and a decoding device respectively for a downward reception of audio data and each of said audio channels having an information channel for transmitting channel parameters of the relevant audio channel, wherein

each coding device is connected by a multiplexer to said several audio data sources of the respective system for interlinking audio data from said several audio data sources into one data stream;

and

each decoding device is connected by a demultiplexer to said several audio playback devices of the respective system for depacketing the data stream into audio data for the several audio playback devices,

wherein the audio data are transmitted between respective coding devices and decoding devices with a predetermined resolution.

2. The system according to claim 1 in which the multiplexer packets each audio channel into a subframe and codes the subframes in pairs into each one data frame.

3. The system according to claim 1 in which the multiplexer packets each two audio channels in pairs into a subframe and codes the subframes in pairs each into one data frame.

4. The system according to claim 3 in which the multiplexer packets the odd-numbered channels each into the 12 least significant bits and the even-numbered channels each into the 12 most significant bits of the subframe.

5. The system according to claim 1 in which the multiplexer is controlled by a control unit so that each of the transmitted channels starts with a predetermined bit in each data packet.

6. The system according to claim 1 in which the demultiplexer receives at its input a signal of the decoder with which it can allocate the received audio channels in a clear manner to the destination channels so that the audio data of the individual data sources are each always allocated to the same audio playback device.

7. The system according to claim 1 in which a channel identification takes place by the transmission of identification details for the relevant audio channel in the 12 least significant bits of the subframe.

8. The system according to claim 1 in which a channel identification takes place through the transmission of an additional synchronisation signal.

9. A method for transferring audio data in a combined cabin management system in an aircraft including an entertainment system, a control system and several audio channels connecting said entertainment system and said control system, said method comprising the steps of:

playing back entertainment programs and providing communications possibilities for passengers in the aircraft with said entertainment system connected to several first audio data sources for at least one of storing and recording audio data and to several first audio play-back devices for playing back audio data,

setting and displaying cabin parameters by crew members in the aircraft with said control system connected to several second audio data sources for at least one of storing and recording audio data and to several second audio playback devices for playing back audio data,

transferring audio data as a sequence of data packets between the control system and the entertainment system with several audio channels in both directions with a coding device in each of said systems for an upward transmission of audio data and a decoding device in each of said systems for a downward reception of audio data,

transmitting channel parameters of each respective audio channel each with one information channel belonging to an audio channel,

interlinking the audio signals from the several audio data sources of a respective system into one data stream through a multiplexer by which the coding device is connected to several audio data sources, and

depacketing the data stream into audio data for the several audio playback devices of the respective system through a demultiplexer via which the decoding device is connected to several audio playback devices wherein the audio data are transmitted between the coding device and the decoding device with a predetermined resolution.

10. The method according to claim 9 in which the multiplexer packets each one audio channel into a subframe and codes the subframes in pairs into each one data frame.

11. The method according to claim 9 in which the multiplexer packets each two audio channels in pairs into one frame and codes the subframes in pairs into each one data frame.

12. The method according to claim 11 in which through the multiplexer the odd-numbered channels are each packeted into the 12 least significant bits and the even-numbered channels are each packeted into the 12 most significant bits of the subframe.

13. The method according to claim 9 in which the multiplexer is controlled by a control unit so that each of the transmitted channels starts with a predetermined bit in each data packet.

14. The method according to claim 9 in which the demultiplexer receives at its input a signal of the decoder with which it can allocate the received audio channels in a clear manner to the destination channels so that the audio data of the individual data sources are each always allocated to the same audio playback devices.

15. The method according to claim 11 in which a channel identification takes place through transmitting identification details for each relevant audio channel in the 12 least significant bits of the subframe.

16. The method according to claim 9 in which a channel identification takes place through the transmission of an additional synchronisation signal.