FILTER SELECTION FOR DELIVERING SPATIAL AUDIO

• US 20140270187A1
• Filed: 03/16/2014
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jawbone Innovations, LLC
• Original Assignee: AliphCom, Inc. (AliphCom Corp.)
• Inventors: Donaldson, Thomas Alan, Hall, James
• Granted Patent: US 11,140,502 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/17
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 5/00 Pseudo-stereo systems, e.g. in which additional channel signals are derived from monophonic signals by means of phase shifting, time delay or reverberation
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/303 Tracking of listener position or orientation

Abstract

Various embodiments relate generally to electrical and electronic hardware, computer software, wired and wireless network communications, and audio and speaker systems. More specifically, disclosed are an apparatus and a method for processing signals for optimizing audio, such as 3D audio, by adjusting the filtering for cross-talk cancellation based on listener position and/or orientation. In one embodiment, an apparatus is configured to include a plurality of transducers, a memory, and a processor configured to execute instructions to determine a physical characteristic of a listener relative to the origination of the multiple channels of audio, to cancel crosstalk in a spatial region coincident with the listener at a first location, to detect a change in the physical characteristic of the listener, and to adjust the cancellation of crosstalk responsive to detecting the change in the physical characteristic to establish another spatial region at a second location.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving data representing a position for a region in space adjacent a media device;

selecting a filter configured to project spatial audio to the region in space;

generating a first channel of the spatial audio;

propagating the first channel of the spatial audio from a first subset of transducers to the region in space;

generating a second channel of the spatial audio; and

propagating the second channel of the spatial audio from a second subset of transducers to the region in space.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the data representing the position comprises:

receiving data representing an angle.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the filter comprises:

identifying the filter associated with the position; and

selecting the filter from a plurality of filters, each of which is associated with a different position.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the data representing the position comprises:

determining the position is between a first position and a second position;

identifying a first filter associated with the first position;

identifying a second filter associated with the second position;

interpolating filter parameters based on the first filter and the second filter to form interpolated filter parameters; and

generating the first channel and the second channel of the spatial audio based on the interpolated filter parameters.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

detecting a rate of change of the position;

interpolating the filter parameters at the rate of change; and

.

propagating the first and the second channels of the spatial audio at the rate of change.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating probe signals;

propagating a first subset of the probe signals via the first subset of transducers; and

propagating a second subset of the probe signals via the second subset of transducers.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein generating the probe signals comprises:

generating acoustic probe signals.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

receiving a first subset of data associated with a first point in the region of space, the first subset of data describing a location of the first point as a function of the first and the second subsets of the probe signals; and

receiving a second subset of data associated with a second point in the region of space, the second subset of data describing a location of the second point as a function of the first and the second subsets of the probe signals.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving the first subset of data and the second subset of data via either an electronic communications link or an ultrasonic communications link, or both.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the first point and the second point are associated with a first microphone and a second microphone, respectively.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the data representing the position comprises:

receiving data representing an angle generated responsive to a user input accepted on a user interface disposed at the region of space.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving data representing another position for another region in the space adjacent the media device;

selecting another filter configured to project the spatial audio to the another region in space;

propagating the first channel of the spatial audio from a third subset of transducers to the another region in space; and

propagating the second channel of the spatial audio from a fourth subset of transducers to the another region in space.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the data representing the position for the region comprises:

receiving the data associated with the position via either an image capture device or an ultrasonic signal, or both.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein propagating the first channel of the spatial audio and propagating the second channel of the spatial audio comprises:

propagating the spatial audio via a left channel; and

propagating the spatial audio via a right channel, respectively.

15. A media device comprising:

a plurality of transducers configured to emit acoustic signal into an adjacent region, at least a subset of the plurality of transducers oriented relative to a reference line;

a plurality of filters configured to project spatial audio to a portion of the region in space, each of the filters corresponding to a different portion of the region in space;

a position determinator configured to determine a position adjacent the media device; and

a controller configured to select a filter associated with the position to propagate the spatial audio to the position.

16. The media device of claim 15, further comprising:

a user interface configured to generate data representing the position responsive to a user input.

17. The media device of claim 15, further comprising:

an interpolator configured to interpolate filter parameters based on the filter and another filter.

18. The media device of claim 17, wherein the position determinator detects a change in the position and the interpolator is further configured to propagate the spatial audio at a rate at which the position changes.

19. The media device of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more of an array of ultrasonic signal transducers and an image capture device.

20. The media device of claim 15, further comprising:

a spatial audio generator.