Acoustic dampening compensation system

• US 10,506,329 B2
• Filed: 11/02/2018
• Issued: 12/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Staton Techiya, LLC
• Original Assignee: Staton Techiya, LLC
• Inventors: Usher, John, Goldstein, Steve
• Primary Examiner(s): Jamal, Alexander
• Application Number:
  US16/179,171
• Publication Number:
  US 20190075391A1
• Time in Patent Office: 403 Days
• Field of Search: 381 56, 381 72, 381 74, 381 60, 704231
• CPC Class Codes: G01H 3/00 Measuring characteristics of vibrations by using a detector in a fluid G01H7/00, G01H9/00, G01H11/00 take precedence
• 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

Abstract

At least one exemplary embodiment is directed to a communication device that includes a microphone configured to detect an acoustic signal from an acoustic environment, and a processor, configured to detect an acoustical dampening between the acoustic environment and the microphone, based on a change in a characteristic of the acoustic signal and, responsive to the acoustical dampening, apply a compensation filter to the acoustic signal to form a compensated acoustic signal that is reproduced. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A device, comprising:

a processor that performs operations, the operations comprising;

detecting, based on a change in a characteristic of an acoustic signal occurring in an acoustic environment, an acoustical dampening of the acoustic signal between the acoustic environment and a microphone, wherein the acoustical dampening of the acoustic signal results in a damped acoustic signal, wherein the acoustical dampening is facilitated by an acoustic dampening element in a path between the acoustic environment and the microphone of the device; and

applying a compensation filter to the damped acoustic signal to form a compensated acoustic signal that is reproduced.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise approximating, by utilizing the compensation filter, an inverse of the acoustical dampening between the acoustic environment and the microphone.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise detecting a presence of headwear communicatively coupled to the microphone.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the operations further comprise detecting the presence of the headwear based on an analysis of the change in the characteristic of the acoustic signal.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determining an acoustic transmission index of headwear communicatively coupled to the microphone.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise obtaining an impulse response from headwear communicatively coupled to the microphone, wherein the impulse response is generated in response to a test signal emitted from a receiver of the device.

7. The device of claim 6, wherein the operations further comprise comparing the impulse response with measured impulse responses stored in a database to match the impulse response with at least one of the impulse responses stored in the database.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise applying the compensation filter based on a transfer function between the damped acoustic signal and a reference signal.

9. The device of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprise determining that headwear is worn if the transfer function indicates that high-frequency content is attenuated in a voice spectral profile.

10. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise not applying the compensation filter if headwear communicatively coupled to the microphone is determined to not be worn.

11. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise predicting if headwear communicatively coupled to the microphone is worn.

12. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise detecting when headwear coupled to the device is adjusted.

13. A method, comprising:

detecting, by utilizing a processor and based on a change in a characteristic of an acoustic signal occurring in an acoustic environment, an acoustical dampening of the acoustic signal between the acoustic environment and a microphone of a device, wherein the acoustical dampening of the acoustic signal results in a damped acoustic signal, wherein the acoustical dampening is facilitated by an acoustic dampening element in a path between the acoustic environment and the microphone of the device; and

applying, by utilizing the processor, a compensation filter to the damped acoustic signal to form a compensated acoustic signal that is reproduced.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising detecting an onset of the acoustical dampening.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising applying the compensation filter in response to the onset of the acoustical dampening.

16. The method of claim 13, further comprising updating an acoustic transmission index of headwear communicatively coupled to the microphone continuously or intermittently.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising terminating the updating if the acoustic transmission index is calculated once.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising emitting a test signal from a receiver associated with the device.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising receiving an impulse response from headwear communicatively coupled to the device in response to the test signal.

20. A method, comprising:

detecting, by utilizing a processor and based on a change in a characteristic of an acoustic signal occurring in an acoustic environment, an acoustical dampening of the acoustic signal between the acoustic environment and a microphone of a device, wherein the acoustical dampening of the acoustic signal results in a damped acoustic signal, wherein the acoustical dampening is facilitated by an acoustic dampening element in a path between the acoustic environment and the microphone of the device; and

applying, by utilizing the processor, a compensation filter to the damped acoustic signal to form a compensated acoustic signal that is reproduced, wherein the compensation filter approximates an inverse of the acoustical dampening.