Bandwidth extension method, bandwidth extension apparatus, program, integrated circuit, and audio decoding apparatus

• US 10,566,001 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2017
• Issued: 02/18/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/09/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ishikawa, Tomokazu, Norimatsu, Takeshi, Zhou, Huan, Chong, Kok Seng, Zhong, Haishan
• Primary Examiner(s): Dorvil, Richemond
• Assistant Examiner(s): Villena, Mark
• Application Number:
  US15/688,971
• Publication Number:
  US 20170358307A1
• Time in Patent Office: 903 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/02 using spectral analysis, e.g. transform vocoders or subband vocoders
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 21/038 using band spreading techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 21/04 Time compression or expansion

Abstract

To provide a bandwidth extension method which allows reduction of computation amount in bandwidth extension and suppression of deterioration of quality in the bandwidth to be extended. In the bandwidth extension method: a low frequency bandwidth signal is transformed into a QMF domain to generate a first low frequency QMF spectrum; pitch-shifted signals are generated by applying different shifting factors on the low frequency bandwidth signal; a high frequency QMF spectrum is generated by time-stretching the pitch-shifted signals in the QMF domain; the high frequency QMF spectrum is modified; and the modified high frequency QMF spectrum is combined with the first low frequency QMF spectrum.

Claims

1. A bandwidth extension method for producing a full bandwidth signal from a low frequency bandwidth signal, the low frequency bandwidth signal being an audio signal, said method comprising:

transforming the low frequency bandwidth signal into a quadrature mirror filter bank (QMF) domain to generate a first low frequency QMF spectrum;

generating a low order harmonic patch by time-stretching the low frequency bandwidth signal by transforming the low frequency bandwidth signal into a second low frequency QMF spectrum having finer frequency resolution than the first low frequency QMF spectrum;

generating signals that are pitch shifted, by applying different shift coefficients to the low order harmonic patch, and generating a high frequency QMF spectrum from the signals; and

generating the full bandwidth signal by combining the high frequency QMF spectrum with the first low frequency QMF spectrum,

wherein said generating signals that are pitch shifted includes;

bandpassing the low order harmonic patch to generate bandpassed patches;

mapping each of the bandpassed patches into high frequency to generate high order harmonic patches; and

summing up the high order harmonic patches with the low order harmonic patch, and

wherein said bandpassing of the low order harmonic patch includes;

splitting each QMF subband in each of the bandpassed patches into multiple subsubbands;

mapping the sub-subbands to high frequency QMF subbands; and

combining results of the sub-subband mapping.

2. The bandwidth extension method according to claim 1,

wherein said mapping of the sub-subbands to high frequency QMF subbands includes:

dividing the sub-subbands of each of the QMF subbands into a stop band part and a pass band part;

computing transposed center frequencies of the sub-subbands on the pass band part with patch order dependent factor;

mapping the sub-subbands on the pass band part into high frequency QMF subbands according to the center frequencies; and

mapping the sub-subbands on the stop band part into high frequency QMF subbands according to the sub-subbands of the pass band part.

3. A bandwidth extension apparatus that produces a full bandwidth signal from a low frequency bandwidth signal, the low frequency bandwidth signal being an audio signal, said bandwidth extension apparatus comprising:

a first transform circuit configured to transform the low frequency bandwidth signal into a quadrature mirror filter bank (QMF) domain to generate a first low frequency QMF spectrum;

a low order harmonic patch generation circuit configured to generate a low order harmonic patch by time-stretching the low frequency bandwidth signal by transforming the low frequency bandwidth signal into a second low frequency QMF spectrum having finer frequency resolution than the first low frequency QMF spectrum;

a high frequency generation circuit configured to (i) generate signals that are pitch shifted, by applying different shift coefficients to the low order harmonic patch, and (ii) generate a high frequency QMF spectrum from the signals; and

a full bandwidth generation circuit configured to generate the full bandwidth signal by combining the high frequency QMF spectrum with the first low frequency QMF spectrum,

wherein said high frequency generation circuit includes;

a patch generation circuit configured to bandpass the low order harmonic patch to generate bandpassed patches;

a high order generation circuit configured to map each of the bandpassed patches into high frequency to generate high order harmonic patches; and

a summing circuit configured to sum up the high order harmonic patches with the low order harmonic patch, and

wherein said patch generation circuit includes;

a splitting circuit configured to split each QMF subband in each of the bandpassed patches into multiple sub subbands;

a mapping circuit configured to map the sub-subbands to high frequency QMF subbands; and

a combining circuit configured to combine results of the sub-subband mapping.

4. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium on which a program for producing a full bandwidth signal from a low frequency bandwidth signal is recorded, the low frequency bandwidth signal being an audio signal, the program causing a computer to execute:

transforming the low frequency bandwidth signal into a quadrature mirror filter bank (QMF) domain to generate a first low frequency QMF spectrum;

generating a low order harmonic patch by time-stretching the low frequency bandwidth signal by transforming the low frequency bandwidth signal into a second low frequency QMF spectrum having finer frequency resolution than the first low frequency QMF spectrum;

generating signals that are pitch shifted, by applying different shift coefficients to the low order harmonic patch, and generating a high frequency QMF spectrum from the signals; and

generating the full bandwidth signal by combining the high frequency QMF spectrum with the first low frequency QMF spectrum,

wherein said generating signals that are pitch shifted includes;

bandpassing the low order harmonic patch to generate bandpassed patches;

mapping each of the bandpassed patches into high frequency to generate high order harmonic patches; and

summing up the high order harmonic patches with the low order harmonic patch, and

wherein said bandpassing of the low order harmonic patch includes;

splitting each QMF subband in each of the bandpassed patches into multiple subsubbands;

mapping the sub-subbands to high frequency QMF subbands; and

combining results of the sub-subband mapping.

5. An integrated circuit that produces a full bandwidth signal from a low frequency bandwidth signal, the low frequency bandwidth signal being an audio signal, said bandwidth extension apparatus comprising:

a first transform circuit configured to transform the low frequency bandwidth signal into a quadrature mirror filter bank (QMF) domain to generate a first low frequency QMF spectrum;

a low order harmonic patch generation circuit configured to generate a low order harmonic patch by transforming the low frequency bandwidth signal into a second low frequency QMF spectrum having finer frequency resolution than the first low frequency QMF spectrum;

a high frequency generation circuit configured to (i) generate signals that are pitch shifted, by applying different shift coefficients to the low order harmonic patch, and (ii) generate a high frequency QMF spectrum from the signals; and

a full bandwidth generation circuit configured to generate the full bandwidth signal by combining the high frequency QMF spectrum with the first low frequency QMF spectrum,

wherein said high frequency generation circuit includes;

a patch generation circuit configured to bandpass the low order harmonic patch to generate bandpassed patches;

a high order generation circuit configured to map each of the bandpassed patches into high frequency to generate high order harmonic patches; and

a summing circuit configured to sum up the high order harmonic patches with the low order harmonic patch, and

wherein said patch generation circuit includes;

a splitting circuit configured to split each QMF subband in each of the bandpassed patches into multiple sub subbands;

a mapping circuit configured to map the sub-subbands to high frequency QMF subbands; and

a combining circuit configured to combine results of the sub-subband mapping.

6. An audio decoding apparatus comprising:

a separation circuit configured to separate a coded low frequency bandwidth signal from coded information;

a decoding circuit configured to decode the coded low frequency bandwidth signal;

a transform circuit configured to transform the low frequency bandwidth signal generated through the decoding by said decoding circuit, into a quadrature mirror filter bank (QMF) domain to generate a low frequency QMF spectrum;

a low order harmonic patch generation circuit configured to generate a low order harmonic patch by transforming the low frequency bandwidth signal into a second low frequency QMF spectrum having finer frequency resolution than the first low frequency QMF spectrum;

a high frequency generation circuit configured to (i) generate signals that are pitch shifted, by applying different shift coefficients to the low order harmonic patch, and (ii) generate a high frequency QMF spectrum from the signals;

a full bandwidth generation circuit configured to generate the full bandwidth signal by combining the high frequency QMF spectrum with the low frequency QMF spectrum; and

an inverse transform circuit configured to transform the full bandwidth signal, from a quadrature mirror filter bank (QMF) domain signal to a time domain signal,

wherein said high frequency generation circuit includes;

a patch generation circuit configured to bandpass the low order harmonic patch to generate bandpassed patches;

a high order generation circuit configured to map each of the bandpassed patches into high frequency to generate high order harmonic patches; and

a summing circuit configured to sum up the high order harmonic patches with the low order harmonic patch, and

wherein said patch generation circuit includes;

a splitting circuit configured to split each QMF subband in each of the bandpassed patches into multiple sub subbands;

a mapping circuit configured to map the sub-subbands to high frequency QMF subbands; and

a combining circuit configured to combine results of the sub-subband mapping.