Intelligent ambient sound monitoring system
First Claim
1. An ambient sound monitoring system, comprising:
- a microphone, said microphone monitoring an ambient sound environment;
a set of headphones; and
a processor, said processor receiving a microphone output from said microphone, wherein said processor compares said microphone output to a preset set of sound characteristics and identifies critical background sounds within said ambient sound environment, said critical background sounds corresponding to a match between said microphone output and said preset set of sound characteristics, wherein said processor outputs an audio notification to said set of headphones only when said critical background sounds are identified, wherein said preset set of sound characteristics comprises at least one frequency signature, and wherein said audio notification is selected from the group consisting of an alarm signal and at least a portion of said ambient sound environment.
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Abstract
A system and method for interjecting ambient background sounds into a set of headphones is provided. The system monitors an ambient sound environment and compares the ambient sound environment to a preset set of sound characteristics (e.g., frequency signatures, amplitudes and durations) in order to detect important or critical background sounds (e.g., alarm, horn, directed vocal communications, crying baby, doorbell, telephone, etc.). When a critical background sound is detected, the system interjects either a notification signal or a portion of the ambient background into the audio stream, thus alerting a user of a potentially important sound or event occurring within their immediate vicinity.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. An ambient sound monitoring system, comprising:
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a microphone, said microphone monitoring an ambient sound environment; a set of headphones; and a processor, said processor receiving a microphone output from said microphone, wherein said processor compares said microphone output to a preset set of sound characteristics and identifies critical background sounds within said ambient sound environment, said critical background sounds corresponding to a match between said microphone output and said preset set of sound characteristics, wherein said processor outputs an audio notification to said set of headphones only when said critical background sounds are identified, wherein said preset set of sound characteristics comprises at least one frequency signature, and wherein said audio notification is selected from the group consisting of an alarm signal and at least a portion of said ambient sound environment. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A method of interjecting ambient background sounds into a set of headphones, the method comprising the steps of:
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monitoring an ambient sound environment; comparing said ambient sound environment to a preset set of sound characteristics, wherein said preset set of sound characteristics comprises at least one frequency signature; identifying critical background sounds, wherein said critical background sounds correspond to a match between said ambient sound environment and said preset set of sound characteristics; and interjecting at least a portion of said ambient sound environment into said set of headphones when said critical background sounds are identified. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification