Method and apparatus for computer communication using audio signals

• US 8,054,986 B2
• Filed: 08/18/2009
• Issued: 11/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kanevsky, Dimitri, Zilca, Ran D., Zlatsin, Alexander
• Primary Examiner(s): Mei; Xu
• Application Number:
  US12/543,306
• Publication Number:
  US 20090315687A1
• Time in Patent Office: 812 Days
• Field of Search: 714/4, 714/6, 714/13, 714/47, 714/4.1, 340/384.4, 340/384.5, 340/902, 700/94, 381/77
• US Class Current: 381/77
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 11/00 Transmission systems employing sonic, ultrasonic or infrasonic waves

Abstract

An acoustic communication device includes a computer device having an acoustic transmitter and/or an acoustic receiver. A signal processing module processes sound signals such that the transmitter and/or receiver are employed to permit acoustic communication between computer devices using sound signals.

Claims

1. An alert system, comprising:

a siren which acoustically transmits encoded digital information when activated, the siren being disposed at an arbitrary location; and

the digital information being received by one or more distributed computer devices within an audible range of the siren to determine a message provided in the encoded digital information, wherein the siren commands the one or more computer devices, responsive to the siren, to acoustically transmit stored data.

2. The alert system as recited in claim 1, wherein the distributed computer devices include a microphone to receive the audible signals.

3. The alert system as recited in claim 1, further comprising one or more transceiver devices for propagating the sound signals to remote computer devices outside of the audible range of the siren.

4. The alert system as recited in claim 1, wherein the siren commands the one or more distributed computer devices, responsive to the siren, to backup data.

5. The alert system as recited in claim 1, wherein the siren commands the one or more distributed computers devices to warn people in an area of an emergency situation.

6. An alert system, comprising:

a siren which acoustically transmits encoded digital information when activated, the siren being disposed at an arbitrary location; and

the digital information being received by one or more distributed computer devices within an audible range of the siren to determine a message provided in the encoded digital information, wherein the siren commands the one or more distributed computer devices, responsive to the siren, to backup data.