Concurrent multi-loudspeaker calibration with a single measurement

• US 9,648,422 B2
• Filed: 07/21/2015
• Issued: 05/09/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sonos, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Sonos, Inc.
• Inventors: Sheen, Timothy, Ramos, Aurelio
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Thang
• Application Number:
  US14/805,340
• Publication Number:
  US 20160014511A1
• Time in Patent Office: 658 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: H03G 3/20 Automatic control H03G3/005 takes precedence; combined with volume compression or expansion H03G7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H03G 5/005 of digital signals
• CPC Class Codes: H03G 5/16 Automatic control
• CPC Class Codes: H03G 5/165 Equalizers; Volume or gain control in limited frequency bands
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/22 for obtaining desired frequency characteristic only circuit for combining transducers having different responses H04R3/00; for hearing aids H04R25/407
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2227/005 Audio distribution systems for home, i.e. multi-room use
• 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: H04R 29/001 for loudspeakers H04R29/007 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 29/008 Visual indication of individual signal levels visual indication of stereophonic sound image H04S7/40
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/04 for correcting frequency response
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/12 for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/04 Circuit arrangements, e.g. for selective connection of amplifier inputs/outputs to loudspeakers, for loudspeaker detection, or for adaptation of settings to personal preferences or hearing impairments combinations of amplifiers H03F3/68; stereophonic systems H04S
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 1/007 in which the audio signals are in digital form data reduction aspects thereof based on psychoacoustics G10L19/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/301 Automatic calibration of stereophonic sound system, e.g. with test microphone

Abstract

An example implementation may involve a control device detecting a trigger condition that initiates calibration of a plurality of playback devices. The control device may send, to the playback devices of the plurality, respective commands that instruct the playback devices to repeatedly emit the calibration sound according to a sequence. The commands may instruct the one or more playback devices to stagger emission of the calibration sounds such that each emitted calibration sound is delayed relative to a preceding calibration sound in the sequence. The control device may detect the emitted calibration sounds via a microphone.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored therein instructions executable by one or more processors to cause a device to perform operations comprising:

detecting a trigger condition that initiates calibration of a plurality of playback devices, wherein calibrating the plurality of playback devices comprises a given number of playback devices respectively emitting a calibration sound according to a sequence;

sending, to a first playback device of the plurality of playback devices, a command that instructs the first playback device to repeatedly emit the calibration sound according to the sequence, wherein the calibration sound cycles through frequencies of a calibration frequency range, and wherein a duration of the calibration sound is proportional to the given number of playback devices in the plurality of playback devices;

sending, to one or more additional playback devices of the plurality of playback devices, respective commands that instruct the one or more additional playback devices to repeatedly emit the respective calibration sound according to the sequence, wherein the commands instruct the one or more additional playback devices to stagger emission of the calibration sounds such that each emitted calibration sound is delayed relative to a preceding calibration sound in the sequence; and

detecting, via a microphone, the emitted calibration sounds.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein repeatedly emitting the calibration sound that cycles through frequencies of the calibration frequency range comprises outputting a hybrid sound that comprises (i) a first component that includes noise at frequencies between a minimum of the calibration frequency range and a first threshold frequency, and (ii) a second component that sweeps through frequencies between a second threshold frequency and a maximum of the calibration frequency range.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 2, wherein the second threshold frequency is a lower frequency than the first threshold frequency such that the first component and the second component overlap in a transition frequency range that includes frequencies between the second threshold frequency and the first threshold frequency.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein repeatedly emitting the calibration sound that cycles through frequencies of the calibration frequency range comprises outputting (i) a first sound that includes noise at frequencies between a minimum of the calibration frequency range and a first threshold frequency, and (ii) a second sound that sweeps through frequencies between a second threshold frequency and a maximum of the calibration frequency range.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the calibration sound comprises a baseline tone that covers frequencies of the calibration frequency range within a given duration, and wherein the operations further comprise:

selecting, as the calibration sound, a particular calibration sound that is substantially proportional in duration to the product of the given duration of the baseline tone and the given number of playback devices of the plurality of playback devices.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the calibration sound comprises a baseline tone that covers frequencies of the calibration frequency range within a given duration, and wherein the operations further comprise:

selecting, as the calibration sound, a particular calibration sound that is substantially proportional in duration to the product of the given duration of the baseline tone and the given number of playback devices of the plurality of playback devices rounded up to the nearest power of two.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the calibration sound comprises a baseline tone that covers frequencies of the calibration frequency range within a given duration, and wherein the operations further comprise:

generating the calibration sound by increasing the given duration of the baseline tone to a duration that is proportional to the product of the given duration of the baseline tone and the given number of playback devices of the plurality of playback devices rounded up to the nearest power of two.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the operations further comprise generating the baseline tone by combining (i) a first component that includes noise at frequencies between a minimum of the calibration frequency range and a first threshold frequency, and (ii) a second component that sweeps through frequencies between a second threshold frequency and a maximum of the calibration frequency range.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the calibration sound comprises a baseline tone that covers frequencies of the calibration frequency range within a given duration, and wherein instructing the one or more additional playback devices to stagger emission of the calibration sounds comprises instructing each of the one or more playback devices to delay emission of the calibration tone by a portion of the given duration of the baseline tone.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein instructing each of the one or more playback devices to delay emission of the calibration tone comprises instructing each of the one or more playback devices to delay emission of the calibration tone by approximately one half of the duration of the calibration tone.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein detecting, via the microphone, the emitted calibration sounds comprises detecting the emitted calibration sounds in the sequence, and wherein the operations further comprise:

identifying, among the detected calibration sounds, the calibration sounds emitted by each playback device based on the sequence in which the plurality of playback device emitted the calibration sounds.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein each calibration sound comprises a notch at a respective frequency, and wherein the operations further comprise:

identifying, among the detected calibration sounds, the calibration sounds emitted by each playback device based on the respective notches in the detected calibration sounds.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining, from the identified calibration sounds, a respective frequency response of each playback device; and

calibrating each playback device to equalize the determined frequency response to a calibration frequency response.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

sending the calibration sound to the first playback device and to the one or more additional playback devices.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the calibration range is inclusive of frequencies from 20-20,000 Hertz.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein detecting the trigger condition that initiates concurrent calibration of a plurality of playback devices comprises detecting input data indicating selection of a selectable control that when selected, causes calibration of the plurality of playback devices.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein detecting the trigger condition that initiates concurrent calibration of a plurality of playback devices comprises detecting that a physical movement of one or more of the plurality of playback devices has exceeded a threshold magnitude.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored therein instructions executable by one or more processors to cause a device to perform operations comprising:

detecting a trigger condition that initiates concurrent calibration of a plurality of playback devices, wherein calibrating the plurality of playback devices comprises a given number of channels emitting a respective calibration sound according to a sequence, and wherein each playback device comprises one or more channels;

sending, to a first playback device of the plurality of playback devices, a command that causes each of one or more channels of the first playback device to repeatedly emit a calibration sound according to the sequence, wherein the calibration sound covers frequencies of a calibration frequency range, wherein a duration of the calibration sound is proportional in duration to the given number of channels, and wherein the command instructs the first playback device to stagger emission of the calibration sounds by the one or more channels such that each emitted calibration sound is delayed relative to a preceding calibration sound in the sequence;

sending, to a second playback device of the plurality of playback devices, a command that causes each of one or more channels of the second playback device to repeatedly emit the calibration sound according to the sequence, wherein the command instructs second playback device to stagger emission of the calibration sounds by the one or more channels such that each emitted calibration sound is delayed relative to a preceding calibration sound in the sequence; and

detecting, via a microphone, the emitted calibration sounds.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein sending, to the first playback device of the plurality of playback devices, the command that causes each of one or more channels of the first playback device to repeatedly emit a calibration sound according to the sequence comprises sending a command that causes (i) a first channel of the playback device to emit the calibration sound and (ii) a second channel of the playback device to emit the calibration sound, wherein the command causes the first playback device to stagger the second channel after the first channel.

20. A method comprising:

detecting, by a computing device, a trigger condition that initiates concurrent calibration of a plurality of playback devices, wherein calibrating the plurality of playback devices comprises a given number of playback devices respectively emitting a calibration sound according to a sequence;

sending, to a first playback device of the plurality of playback devices, a command that instructs the first playback device to repeatedly emit the calibration sound according to the sequence, wherein the calibration sound cycles through frequencies of a calibration frequency range, and wherein a duration of the calibration sound is proportional to the given number of playback devices in the plurality of playback devices;

sending, to one or more additional playback devices of the plurality of playback devices, respective commands that instruct the additional playback devices to repeatedly emit the respective calibration sound according to the sequence, wherein the commands instruct the one or more additional playback devices to stagger emission of the calibration sounds such that each emitted calibration sound is delayed relative to a preceding calibration sound in the sequence; and

detecting, via a microphone, the emitted calibration sounds.