Sidetone management in an adaptive noise canceling (ANC) system including secondary path modeling

• US 9,325,821 B1
• Filed: 11/27/2012
• Issued: 04/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cirrus Logic Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Cirrus Logic Incorporated
• Inventors: Hendrix, Jon D., Abdollahzadeh Milani, Ali
• Primary Examiner(s): Desir, Pierre-Louis
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thomas-Homescu, Anne
• Application Number:
  US13/686,353
• Time in Patent Office: 1,246 Days
• Field of Search: 381/57, 381/71.1, 381/26, 381/71.11, 381/312, 381/94.7, 381/95, 381/92, 381/313, 381/71.6, 381/73.1, 381/71.9, 381/60, 381/56, 381/300, 381/94.2, 381/81, 381/318, 381/58, 381/71.14, 381/71.4, 381/71.8, 381/94.9, 381/317, 381/71.7, 381/71.12, 381/119, 381/71.5, 381/107, 704/233, 704/226
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/175 using interference effects; Masking sound
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17817 between the output signals and the error signals, i.e. secondary path
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17825 Error signals
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17854 the filter being an adaptive filter
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17855 for improving speed or power requirements
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17857 Geometric disposition, e.g. placement of microphones
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17881 the reference signal being an acoustic signal, e.g. recorded with a microphone
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17885 additionally using a desired external signal, e.g. pass-through audio such as music or speech
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/108 Communication systems, e.g. where useful sound is kept and noise is cancelled
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/30231 Sources, e.g. identifying noisy processes or components
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/30391 Resetting of the filter parameters or changing the algorithm according to prevailing conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/503 Diagnostics; Stability; Alarms; Failsafe
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/03 Constructional features of telephone transmitters or receivers, e.g. telephone hand-sets
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 29/00 Monitoring arrangements; Testing arrangements for hearing aids H04R25/30; detection of loudspeaker connection H04R5/04; sound-field adaptation dependent on speaker detection H04S7/308

Abstract

A wireless telephone includes an adaptive noise canceling (ANC) circuit that adaptively generates an anti-noise signal from a reference microphone signal and injects the anti-noise signal into the speaker or other transducer output to cause cancellation of ambient audio sounds. An error microphone is also provided proximate the speaker to provide an error signal indicative of the effectiveness of the noise cancellation. A secondary path estimating adaptive filter is used to estimate the electro-acoustical path from the noise canceling circuit through the transducer so that source audio can be removed from the error signal. Sidetone is injected into the transducer output, but is not provided to the coefficient control of the secondary path estimating adaptive filter, so that the ambient noise present in the near-end speech microphone signal, and thus present in the sidetone information, does not destabilize the ANC circuit or otherwise cause improper generation of the anti-noise signal.

Claims

1. A wireless telephone, comprising:

a housing;

a transducer mounted on the housing for reproducing an audio signal including combined downlink audio and sidetone for playback to a listener and an anti-noise signal for countering the effects of ambient audio sounds in an acoustic output of the transducer;

a reference microphone mounted on the housing for providing a reference microphone signal indicative of the ambient audio sounds;

an error microphone mounted on the housing in proximity to the transducer for providing an error microphone signal indicative of the acoustic output of the transducer and the ambient audio sounds at the transducer;

a near-speech microphone mounted on the housing for providing a near-speech microphone signal indicative of speech of the listener and the ambient audio sounds; and

a processing circuit that generates the anti-noise signal from the reference microphone signal to reduce the presence of the ambient audio sounds heard by the listener in conformity with an error signal and the reference microphone signal, wherein the processing circuit generates sidetone from a portion of the near-speech microphone signal, wherein the processing circuit combines the downlink audio with the sidetone, wherein the processing circuit implements a secondary path adaptive filter having a secondary path response that shapes the combined downlink audio and sidetone and a combiner that removes an output of the secondary path adaptive filter from the error microphone signal to provide the error signal, wherein the secondary path adaptive filter is controlled by a secondary path coefficient controller that compares the error signal with the downlink audio and adapts to minimize components of the downlink audio present in the error signal but does not minimize components of the sidetone, so that the anti-noise signal is not affected by the ambient audio sounds present in the near-speech microphone signal.

2. The wireless telephone of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit further implements a primary adaptive filter that generates the anti-noise signal from the reference microphone signal.

3. The wireless telephone of claim 2, wherein the processing circuit further implements a copy of the secondary path adaptive filter that filters the reference microphone signal to provide a correlation input to the primary adaptive filter that is correlated with the error signal to control the adapting of the adaptive filter, wherein the processing circuit adapts the primary adaptive filter to minimize components of the error signal that are correlated with an output of the copy of the secondary path adaptive filter.

4. The wireless telephone of claim 1, wherein the processing circuit comprises:

a coefficient control block that controls coefficients of the secondary path adaptive filter;

a first combiner that combines the sidetone with the downlink audio; and

a second combiner that combines an output of the first combiner with the anti-noise signal to generate the audio signal reproduced by the transducer, wherein a signal input of the secondary path adaptive filter receives the output of the first combiner.

5. The wireless telephone of claim 4, further comprising a third combiner for combining the downlink audio signal with internal source audio of the wireless telephone and wherein an output of the third combiner is provided to an input of the first combiner and to a correlation input of the coefficient control block.

6. The wireless telephone of claim 4, further comprising a sigma-delta noise-shaper having an input coupled to the output of the first combiner and an output coupled to the signal input of the secondary path adaptive filter.

7. The wireless telephone of claim 4, wherein the coefficient control block is a least-means-square control block.

8. A method of canceling ambient audio sounds in the proximity of a transducer of a personal audio device, the method comprising:

first measuring ambient audio sounds with a reference microphone to produce a reference microphone signal;

second measuring an output of the transducer and the ambient audio sounds at the transducer with an error microphone;

third measuring near-end speech and the ambient audio sounds with a near-speech microphone to produce a near-speech microphone signal;

adaptively generating an anti-noise signal from a result of the first measuring, the second measuring and the third measuring, for countering the effects of ambient audio sounds at an acoustic output of the transducer;

first combining the anti-noise signal with a source audio signal and a portion of the near-speech microphone signal to generate an audio signal provided to the transducer;

shaping a result of the first combining with a secondary path response;

removing the result of the shaping the result of the first combining with the error microphone signal to produce an error signal indicative of the combined anti-noise and ambient audio sounds delivered to the listener;

controlling the secondary path response by comparing the error signal with the downlink audio to generate coefficients of the secondary path response; and

adapting the secondary response to minimize components of the source audio present in the error signal, but so as not to minimize components of the near-speech microphone signal, so that the anti-noise signal is not affected by the ambient audio sounds present in the near-speech microphone signal.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the adapting adapts a response of a primary adaptive filter that generates the anti-noise signal from the reference microphone signal.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the adapting further comprising filtering the reference microphone signal with a copy of the secondary path adaptive filter to provide a correlation input to the primary adaptive filter, and correlating the correlation input with the error signal, wherein the adapting adapts the primary adaptive filter to minimize components of the error signal that are correlated with an output of the copy of the secondary path adaptive filter.

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the shaping comprises controlling coefficients of the secondary path adaptive filter using a coefficient control block, and further comprising second combining the sidetone with the downlink audio, wherein the first combining combines a result of the first combining with the anti-noise signal to generate the audio signal reproduced by the transducer, wherein a signal input of the secondary path adaptive filter receives the result of the second combining.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising third combining the downlink audio signal with internal source audio of the wireless telephone, wherein a result of the third combining is provided as an input to the second combining, and wherein the coefficient control block also receives the result of the third combining as a correlation input.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising noise-shaping the result of the second combining with a sigma-delta noise-shaper and providing a result of the noise-shaping as a signal input to the shaping.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the coefficient control block is a least-means-square control block.

15. An integrated circuit for implementing at least a portion of a personal audio device, comprising:

an output for providing a signal to a transducer including both source audio for playback to a listener and an anti-noise signal for countering the effects of ambient audio sounds in an acoustic output of the transducer;

a reference microphone input for receiving a reference microphone signal indicative of the ambient audio sounds;

an error microphone input for receiving an error microphone signal indicative of the acoustic output of the transducer and the ambient audio sounds at the transducer;

a near-speech microphone input for providing a near-speech microphone signal indicative of speech of the listener and the ambient audio sounds; and

a processing circuit that generates the anti-noise signal from the reference microphone signal to reduce the presence of the ambient audio sounds heard by the listener in conformity with an error signal and the reference microphone signal, wherein the processing circuit generates sidetone from a portion of the near-speech microphone signal, wherein the processing circuit combines the downlink audio with the sidetone, wherein the processing circuit implements a secondary path adaptive filter having a secondary path response that shapes the combined downlink audio and sidetone and a combiner that removes an output of the secondary path adaptive filter from the error microphone signal to provide the error signal, wherein the secondary path adaptive filter is controlled by a secondary path coefficient controller that compares the error signal with the downlink audio and adapts to minimize components of the downlink audio present in the error signal but does not minimize components of the sidetone, so that the anti-noise signal is not affected by the ambient audio sounds present in the near-speech microphone signal.

16. The integrated circuit of claim 15, wherein the processing circuit further implements a primary adaptive filter that generates the anti-noise signal from the reference microphone signal.

17. The integrated circuit of claim 16, wherein the processing circuit further implements a copy of the secondary path adaptive filter that filters the reference microphone signal to provide a correlation input to the primary adaptive filter that is correlated with the error signal to control the adapting of the adaptive filter, wherein the processing circuit adapts the primary adaptive filter to minimize components of the error signal that are correlated with an output of the copy of the secondary path adaptive filter.

18. The integrated circuit of claim 15, wherein the processing circuit comprises:

a coefficient control block that controls coefficients of the secondary path adaptive filter;

a first combiner that combines the sidetone with the downlink audio; and

a second combiner that combines an output of the first combiner with the anti-noise signal to generate the audio signal reproduced by the transducer, wherein a signal input of the secondary path adaptive filter receives the output of the first combiner.

19. The integrated circuit of claim 18, further comprising a third combiner for combining the downlink audio signal with internal source audio of the wireless telephone and wherein an output of the third combiner is provided to an input of the first combiner and to a correlation input of the coefficient control block.

20. The integrated circuit of claim 18, further comprising a sigma-delta noise-shaper having an input coupled to the output of the first combiner and an output coupled to the signal input of the secondary path adaptive filter.

21. The integrated circuit of claim 18, wherein the coefficient control block is a least-means-square control block.