Method and device for background mitigation

• US 9,456,268 B2
• Filed: 04/07/2014
• Issued: 09/27/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/31/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: St Awaretech LLC
• Original Assignee: Personics Holdings, Inc.
• Inventors: Usher, John, Boillot, Marc Andre
• Primary Examiner(s): Ensey, Brian
• Application Number:
  US14/246,273
• Publication Number:
  US 20140219462A1
• Time in Patent Office: 904 Days
• Field of Search: 381/312, 381/317, 381/318
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H03G 3/32 the control being dependent upon ambient noise level or sound level
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/10 Earpieces; Attachments therefor ; Earphones; Monophonic headphones H04R1/28 takes precedence; stereophonic headphones H04R5/033
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1016 Earpieces of the intra-aural type
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1083 Reduction of ambient noise active noise reduction per se G10K11/175; protective devices for the ear, e.g. providing acoustic protection A61F11/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2410/05 Noise reduction with a separate noise microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/005 for combining the signals of two or more microphones specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/04 for correcting frequency response

Abstract

An earpiece includes an Ambient Sound Microphone (ASM) configured to measure a background noise signal, an Ear Canal Receiver (ECR) configured to deliver audio to an ear canal, and an optional Ear Canal Microphone (ECM) configured to convert an internal sound within an ear canal of a user to an internal sound signal, and a processor operatively coupled to the ASM, the ECR and optionally the ECM. Note, internal sounds can also include residual background noise related to ambient sounds in the environment. The processor is configured to maintain a natural audio level based on a combined measurement of the background noise signal and the internal sound signal.

Claims

1. An earpiece, comprising:

an Ambient Sound Microphone (ASM) configured to measure a background noise signal of an ambient field;

an Ear Canal Receiver (ECR) configured to deliver audio to an ear; and

a processor operatively coupled to the ASM and the ECR, where the processor is configured to;

maintain a natural audio level based on a combined measurement of a background noise signal and an internal sound signal;

determine a residual background noise level within the ear canal based on at least one of the background noise level of the ambient sound or a measured ear canal background noise level within the ear canal using an ear canal microphone;

determine an ear canal signal to noise ratio (SNR) between the audio content level of the audio and the residual background noise level;

determine a mismatch between the ear canal SNR and a target SNR; and

adjust a gain applied to at least one of the audio or the ambient sound based on the mismatch such that an approximately constant SNR is maintained between the audio content level and the residual background noise level within the ear canal.

2. The earpiece of claim 1, further comprising an Ear Canal Microphone (ECM) operatively coupled to the processor and configured to convert an internal sound within the ear canal to the internal sound signal.

3. The earpiece of claim 1, wherein the Ambient Sound Microphone is within a media player or cell phone operatively coupled to the processor.

4. The earpiece of claim 1, wherein the Ambient Sound Microphone measures the background noise signal of the ambient sound at an entrance to an occluded ear canal or to a partially occluded ear canal.

5. The earpiece of claim 1, wherein the processor maintains the natural audio level based on maintaining a constant signal to noise ratio which is further based on automatic gain control.

6. The earpiece according to claim 1, wherein the processor estimates a residual background noise signal within the ear canal by subtracting an estimated audio content sound level (ACL) from a background noise level of the background noise signal.

7. The earpiece according to claim 1, wherein the processor

estimates a residual background noise signal within the ear canal by subtracting a noise reduction rating from the background noise signal.

9. The earpiece according to claim 1, wherein the internal sound signal comprises an input audio signal.

8. An earpiece, comprising:

an Ambient Sound Microphone (ASM) configured to measure a background noise signal of an ambient field;

an Ear Canal Receiver (ECR) configured to deliver audio to an ear; and

a processor operatively coupled to the ASM and ECR, where the processor is configured to;

maintain a natural audio level based on a combined measurement of a background noise signal and an internal sound signa;

estimates a sensitivity of the ASM and the ECM; and

updates a residual background noise signal based on characteristics of the sensitivity.

10. A method for audio processing, the method comprising the steps of:

delivering audio to an ear canal using an ear canal receiver;

estimating a residual background noise level within the ear canal using an ambient microphone or an ear canal microphone;

adjusting the audio based on characteristics of the residual background noise level to maintain a natural audio lever;

determining a first sensitivity of the ambient sound microphone and a second sensitivity of the ear canal microphone; and

updating the residual background noise level based on characteristics of the first and second sensitivity.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising:

monitoring a background noise level external to the ear canal; and

estimating an updated residual background noise level by subtracting an estimated audio content sound level (ACL) from the background noise level,

wherein the background noise level is measured external to the ear canal.

12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising:

determining a mixing of an ambient sound signal and an ear canal signal; and

calculating an updated residual background noise level based on the mixing.

13. The method according to claim 10, further comprising:

subtracting an estimated audio content sound level (ACL) from the background noise level when the ear canal microphone is used to measure the background noise.

14. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

adjusting an audio level of audio presented to the ear canal to maintain an approximately constant signal to noise ratio of an audio content level to the residual background noise level within the ear canal.

15. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

regulating a delivery of ambient sound to the ear canal to maintain an approximately constant signal to noise ratio of an audio content level to the residual background noise level within the ear canal.

16. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

selecting a compression based on an amplitude level and a frequency content of the residual background noise; and

adjusting an audio level of the audio in the ear canal to maintain a constant signal to noise ratio using the compression.

17. The method according to claim 10, wherein the method further maintains a record of a total sound exposure delivered.

18. The method according to claim 10, wherein the method further maintains a record of a total sound exposure and presents a predetermined sound pressure level dose value.