System and method of adjusting audiovisual content to improve hearing

• US 8,239,768 B2
• Filed: 08/03/2011
• Issued: 08/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Enhanced Personal Audiovisual Technology, LLC
• Original Assignee: Enhanced Personal Audiovisual Technology, LLC
• Inventors: Sokol, Anthony B., Orosz, Michael D., Ziegler, James E., Berk, Barry
• Primary Examiner(s): Beliveau, Scott
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ryan, Patrick A
• Application Number:
  US13/197,694
• Publication Number:
  US 20110289412A1
• Time in Patent Office: 370 Days
• Field of Search: 725/37, 725/135, 725/141, 725/147, 715716-732, 381/17, 381104-109, 381/119, 381/300, 381/306, 381/307, 381/310, 700/94, 345/619, 345/650
• US Class Current: 715/727
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/233 Processing of audio elementary streams monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/431 Generation of visual interfaces for content selection or interaction; Content or additional data rendering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/835 Generation of protective data, e.g. certificates protecting software against unauthorised usage in a vending or licensing environment G06F21/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/854 Content authoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/17318 Direct or substantially direct transmission and handling of requests
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2227/003 Digital PA systems using, e.g. LAN or internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 27/00 Public address systems circuits for preventing acoustic reaction H04R3/02; circuits for distributing signals to loudspeakers H04R3/12; monitoring or testing arrangements for public address systems H04R29/007; amplifiers H03F
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 3/008 in which the audio signals are in digital form, i.e. employing more than two discrete digital channels data reduction aspects thereof based on psychoacoustics G10L19/02

Abstract

A system for adjusting audiovisual content having a server including a receiver for receiving a first content from a media source, a first circuitry configured to generate a second content based on the first content, the second content having multiple audio channels, a first transceiver for sending the second content to one or more clients, each client including a second transceiver for receiving the second content, and a second circuitry configured to generate a third content based on the second content and provide the third content to an audio device, wherein the second circuitry is configured to provide a graphical user interface to a user, the graphical user interface having a plurality of icons representing the user and the multiple audio channels, wherein movement of any of the plurality of icons will alter the second content.

Claims

1. A method of adjusting audiovisual content comprising:

receiving, at a server, a first signal comprising a first content from a media source;

generating, at a server, a second content comprising multiple audio channels based on the first content;

providing, at a plurality of clients, a graphical user interface to a user on a display, the graphical user interface having an icon arrangement comprising a plurality of icons representing a user and the multiple audio channels at selected positions on the display, wherein a position of any of the plurality of icons is configured to be modified by the user and to affect a relative volume of the audio channels;

generating, at the plurality of clients, a third signal based on the second content in accordance with a relative position of the plurality of icons;

providing, at the plurality of clients, the third signal to an audio device; and

allowing, at the plurality of clients, the user to maintain an unbalanced sound condition of the third signal.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

increasing, at the plurality of clients, a volume of a first audio channel of the second content when a movement of an icon representing the first audio channel decreases a distance between the first audio channel icon and the user icon.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

maintaining or decreasing, at the plurality of clients, a volume of the audio channels of the second content other than the first audio channel when a movement of the first audio channel icon decreases the distance between the first audio channel icon and the user icon.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating the third signal based on the second content and the icon arrangement comprises generating the third signal such that a magnitude of an alteration in the second content corresponds to the distance an icon is moved.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface allows the user to alter the volume of the multiple channels by moving one or more of the plurality of icons.

6. The method of claim 1,

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client is configured to provide the video content to a video device in synchronization with the third signal provided to the audio device.

7. The method of claim 1:

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client is configured to provide a second graphical user interface to the user, where the second graphical user interface is configured to allow the user to alter the video content.

8. The method of claim 1,

wherein each client is configured to generate close-captioning text data based on the second content and provide the close-captioning text data to a video device, and

wherein the second graphical user interface is configured to allow the user to alter a characteristic of the text, wherein the characteristic is selected from the group consisting of size, color, and translucence.

9. The method of claim 1:

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client is configured to generate close-captioning text data based on the second content and provide the close-captioning text data to a video device.

10. The method of claim 1:

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client further comprises a video device configured to display the video content.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the video device is a head mounted video display.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the head mounted video display is configured to project at least a portion of the video content directly into an eye of the user.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the clients is a cell-phone or a personal data assistant.

14. A system for adjusting audiovisual content comprising:

a server configured to;

receive a first content from a media source, and

generate a second content comprising multiple audio channels based on the first content; and

a plurality of clients, where each client is configured to;

receive the second content from the server,

provide a graphical user interface to a user on a display, the graphical user interface having a plurality of icons representing the user and the multiple audio channels at selected positions on the display, wherein a position of any of the plurality of icons is configured to be modified by the user and to affect a relative volume of the audio channels,

generate a third content based on the second content in accordance with a relative position of the plurality of icons,

provide the third content to an audio device, and

allow the user to maintain an unbalanced sound condition of the third content.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein each client is further configured to increase a volume of a first audio channel group comprising at least one of the multiple audio channels when a movement of the user icon decreases a distance between a first icon group, comprising the audio icons representing the audio channels of the first audio channel group, and the user icon.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein each client is further configured to maintain or decrease a volume of the audio channels of the second content other than the audio channels of the first audio channel group when the movement of the user icon decreases the distance between the first icon group and the user icon.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein each client is configured to generate the third content such that a magnitude of an alteration in the second content corresponds to the distance an icon is moved.

18. The system of claim 14, wherein the graphical user interface allows the user to alter the volume of the multiple channels by moving one or more of the plurality of icons.

19. The system of claim 14:

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client is configured to provide the video content to a video device in synchronization with the third content provided to the audio device.

20. The system of claim 14:

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client is configured to provide a second graphical user interface to the user, where the second graphical user interface is configured to allow the user to alter the video content.

21. The system of claim 14,

wherein each client is configured to generate close-captioning text data based on the second content and provide the close-captioning text data to a video device, and

wherein the second graphical user interface is configured to allow the user to alter a characteristic of the text, wherein the characteristic is selected from the group consisting of size, color, and translucence.

22. The system of claim 14:

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client is configured to generate close-captioning text data based on the second content and provide the close-captioning text data to a video device.

23. The system of claim 14:

wherein the first content comprises video content, and

wherein each client further comprises a video device configured to display the video content.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the video device is a head mounted video display.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the head mounted video display is configured to project at least a portion of the video content directly into an eye of the user.

26. The system of claim 14, wherein at least one of the clients is a cell-phone or a personal data assistant.