System and method to enhance speakers connected to devices with microphones

• US 9,913,056 B2
• Filed: 08/03/2016
• Issued: 03/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation (Dolby Laboratories Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation (Dolby Laboratories Incorporated)
• Inventors: Master, Aaron Steven, Seefeldt, Alan J., Hou, Yu Cecilia
• Primary Examiner(s): Islam, Mohammad
• Application Number:
  US15/227,739
• Publication Number:
  US 20170041724A1
• Time in Patent Office: 580 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 21/0208 Noise filtering
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/08 Mouthpieces; Microphones; Attachments therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2430/01 Aspects of volume control, not necessarily automatic, in sound systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2499/11 Transducers incorporated or for use in hand-held devices, e.g. mobile phones, PDA's, camera's
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 29/001 for loudspeakers H04R29/007 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 29/002 Loudspeaker arrays
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/04 for correcting frequency response
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/301 Automatic calibration of stereophonic sound system, e.g. with test microphone

Abstract

Embodiments are described for calibrating a speaker in a device having a microphone by inputting an original audio signal to a processing component and an output stage of the device for playback through the speakers, receiving playback sound output from the speakers through the microphone to generate a microphone signal, and inputting the microphone signal into the processing component to calibrate the speakers for optimal playback of the original audio signal, wherein the processing component is configured to compare the original audio signal to the microphone signal and correct the microphone signal by one or more audio processing functions in accordance with a refresh schedule.

Claims

1. A method for calibrating sound played through speakers of a device having a microphone in an enclosure, comprising:

inputting an original audio signal to a processing component and an output stage of the device for playback through the speakers;

receiving playback sound output from the speakers through the microphone to generate a microphone signal, wherein the enclosure is a unitary enclosure housing both the speakers and microphone in the same device; and

inputting the microphone signal into the processing component to calibrate the speakers for optimal playback of the original audio signal, wherein the processing component is configured to compare the original audio signal to the microphone signal and correct the microphone signal by one or more audio processing functions in accordance with a refresh schedule.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the original audio signal generating the microphone signal comprises actual program content desired to be listened to by the user, and wherein optimal playback of the original audio signal comprises tuning a characteristic of the original audio signal to produce output sound sufficiently pleasing to the user relative to a qualitative scale, the characteristic selected from the group consisting of:

frequency response, frequency distribution, gain, and timbre, the method further comprising providing a graphical user interface having a plurality of preset parameters providing the qualitative scale including most authentic, best match for speakers, and loudest.

3. The method of any of claim 1 further comprising inputting one or more device characteristics into the processing component to further calibrate the speakers.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the device characteristics comprises at least one of speaker characteristics and microphone characteristics, the method further comprising obtaining the device characteristics from one or more databases accessible by the device.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the speaker and microphone characteristics each comprise make, manufacturer, and type of device, and wherein the databases are populated with data provided from at least one of:

a manufacturer, a certification body, and a group of users.

6. The method of claim 3 further comprising:

determining the presence of suspicious audio data input to the microphone;

filtering the suspicious audio data to preserve integrity of the microphone signal input to the processing component, and wherein the suspicious audio data is selected from the group consisting of background noise, talking, wind noise, and physical movement noise.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising determining if sufficient information exists for the processing component to provide to the original audio signal to calibrate the speakers based on a signal to noise ratio of the microphone signal, and in the case that insufficient information exists, waiting until sufficient information exists or prompting the user to increase volume of the original audio signal until sufficient information exists.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein, if insufficient information exists, the method further comprises inputting a supplemental signal to the processing component, the supplemental signal selected from the group consisting of:

a pre-defined broadband signal, a combined test signal and the output signal, a spectrally flattened version of the output signal, and a frequency boosted version of the original audio signal.

9. The method of claim 6 further comprising calibrating the speakers for optimal playback of the original audio signal according to a defined tuning update schedule comprising at least one of:

a prompted update, a continuous periodic update, and an automated update.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the update is triggered by one of:

change of location of the device, change in content comprising the original input audio, change of time of use of the device, and change in type of speaker or microphone.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the speakers comprise one of an internal speaker integrated in the device or an external speaker connected to the device through a wired or wireless link, and wherein the microphone comprises one of an internal microphone or an external microphone connected to the device through a wired or wireless link.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

defining default tuning settings to modify the microphone signal; and

defining one or more limit values to limit the tuning settings.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the default tuning settings comprise settings that allow the system to not deviate from the default tuning of a given speaker by more than 10 dB.

14. A system for calibrating sound played through speakers of a device having a microphone, comprising:

an audio source inputting an original audio signal to a processing component and an output stage of the device for playback through the speakers;

the microphone receiving playback sound output from the speakers to generate a microphone signal;

an enclosure housing the speakers and a microphone in a single unitary device; and

a processing component receiving the microphone signal to calibrate the speakers for optimal playback of the original audio signal, wherein the processing component is configured to compare the original audio signal to the microphone signal and correct the microphone signal by one or more audio processing functions in accordance with a defined refresh schedule.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein the original audio signal generating the microphone signal comprises actual program content desired to be listened to by the user, and wherein optimal playback of the original audio signal comprises tuning a characteristic of the original audio signal to produce output sound sufficiently pleasing to the user relative to a qualitative scale, the characteristic selected from the group consisting of:

frequency response, frequency distribution, gain, and timbre, the system further comprising a graphical user interface having a plurality of preset parameters providing the qualitative scale including most authentic, best match for speakers, and loudest.