Adaptively reducing noise to limit speech distortion
First Claim
1. A method for reducing noise within an acoustic signal, comprising:
- separating, via at least one computer hardware processor, an acoustic signal into a plurality of sub-band signals, the acoustic signal representing at least one captured sound; and
reducing an energy level of a noise component in a sub-band signal in the plurality of sub-band signals based on an estimated threshold level of speech loss distortion in the sub-band signal, the reducing being in response to determining that speech loss distortion above a threshold would otherwise result if an amount of noise reduction was increased or maintained, the speech loss distortion being excessive when above the threshold.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The present technology provides adaptive noise reduction of an acoustic signal using a sophisticated level of control to balance the tradeoff between speech loss distortion and noise reduction. The energy level of a noise component in a sub-band signal of the acoustic signal is reduced based on an estimated signal-to-noise ratio of the sub-band signal, and further on an estimated threshold level of speech distortion in the sub-band signal. In various embodiments, the energy level of the noise component in the sub-band signal may be reduced to no less than a residual noise target level. Such a target level may be defined as a level at which the noise component ceases to be perceptible.
-
Citations
17 Claims
-
1. A method for reducing noise within an acoustic signal, comprising:
-
separating, via at least one computer hardware processor, an acoustic signal into a plurality of sub-band signals, the acoustic signal representing at least one captured sound; and reducing an energy level of a noise component in a sub-band signal in the plurality of sub-band signals based on an estimated threshold level of speech loss distortion in the sub-band signal, the reducing being in response to determining that speech loss distortion above a threshold would otherwise result if an amount of noise reduction was increased or maintained, the speech loss distortion being excessive when above the threshold. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
-
-
12. A system for reducing noise within an acoustic signal, comprising:
-
a frequency analysis module stored in memory and executed by at least one hardware processor to separate the acoustic signal into a plurality of sub-band signals, the acoustic signal representing at least one captured sound; and a noise reduction module stored in memory and executed by a processor to reduce an energy level of a noise component in a sub-band signal in the plurality of sub-band signals based on an estimated threshold level of speech loss distortion in the sub-band signal, the reducing being in response to determining that speech loss distortion above a threshold would otherwise result if an amount of noise reduction was increased or maintained, the speech loss distortion being excessive when above the threshold. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
-
-
15. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having embodied thereon a program, the program being executable by a processor to perform a method for reducing noise within an acoustic signal, the method comprising:
-
separating the acoustic signal into a plurality of sub-band signals, the acoustic signal representing at least one captured sound; and reducing an energy level of a noise component in a sub-band signal in the plurality of sub-band signals based on an estimated threshold level of speech loss distortion in the sub-band signal, the reducing being in response to determining that speech loss distortion above a threshold would otherwise result if an amount of noise reduction was increased or maintained, the speech loss distortion being excessive when above the threshold. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17)
-
Specification