Remote control signaling using audio watermarks
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method, comprising:
- receiving, at a user device, an audio content embedded with one or more substantially inaudible watermarks, the audio content having been acoustically propagated to the user device, wherein the one or more substantially inaudible watermarks include designed characteristics that improve watermark robustness against impairments due to acoustic propagation of the audio content;
recovering at least one embedded watermark from a first portion of the received audio content; and
in response to the recovery of the at least one embedded watermark, enabling an operation of the user device in synchronization with subsequent portions of the audio content.
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Abstract
A system for using a watermark embedded in an audio signal to remotely control a device. Various devices such as toys, computers, and appliances, equipped with an appropriate detector, detect the hidden signals, which can trigger an action, or change a state of the device. The watermarks can be used with a “time gate” device, where detection of the watermark opens a time interval within which a user is allowed to perform an action, such as pressing a button, typing in an answer, turning a key in a lock, etc.
50 Citations
51 Claims
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1. A method, comprising:
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receiving, at a user device, an audio content embedded with one or more substantially inaudible watermarks, the audio content having been acoustically propagated to the user device, wherein the one or more substantially inaudible watermarks include designed characteristics that improve watermark robustness against impairments due to acoustic propagation of the audio content; recovering at least one embedded watermark from a first portion of the received audio content; and in response to the recovery of the at least one embedded watermark, enabling an operation of the user device in synchronization with subsequent portions of the audio content. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method, comprising:
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receiving, at a device, an acoustically propagated audio content embedded with one or more substantially inaudible watermarks, wherein the one or more substantially inaudible watermarks include designed characteristics that improve watermark robustness against impairments due to acoustic propagation of the audio content; recovering at least one embedded watermark from the received audio content; obtaining a control message from the recovered watermark(s); and controlling an operation of the device in accordance with the control message and in concert with the acoustically propagated audio content. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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31. A device, comprising:
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a receiver configured to receive an audio content embedded with one or more substantially inaudible watermarks, the audio content having been acoustically propagated to the receiver, wherein the one or more substantially inaudible watermarks include designed characteristics that improve watermark robustness against impairments due to acoustic propagation of the audio content; an extractor configured to recover at least one embedded watermark from a first portion of the received audio content; a control module configured to, in response to the recovery of the at least one embedded watermark, enable an operation of the user device in synchronization with subsequent portions of the audio content. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50)
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51. A non-transitory computer-readable medium with an audio content embodied thereupon, the audio content comprising:
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one or more substantially inaudible watermarks that are embedded in the audio content, wherein the one or more substantially inaudible watermarks include designed characteristics that improve watermark robustness against impairments due to acoustic propagation of the audio content and wherein upon the reception of the audio content that has been acoustically propagated to a user device equipped with a watermark extractor, the user device is triggered to; recover at least one embedded watermark from a first portion of the received audio content; and in response to the recovery of the at least one embedded watermark, enable an operation of the user device in synchronization with subsequent portions of the audio content.
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Specification