Identification of Audio Content Facilitated by Playback Device

• US 20160299737A1
• Filed: 04/10/2015
• Published: 10/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sonos, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Sonos, Inc.
• Inventors: Clayton, Eric, Ramos, Aurelio Rafael
• Granted Patent: US 9,678,707 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/27 Replication, distribution or synchronisation of data between databases or within a distributed database system; Distributed database system architectures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/10 Indexing; Addressing; Timing or synchronising; Measuring tape travel
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/37 for identifying segments of broadcast information, e.g. scenes or extracting programme ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/01 Protocols
• 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 3/12 for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407

Abstract

An example playback device includes one or more processors and a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the playback device to perform functions. The functions include receiving digital data representing audio content. The functions further include sending at least a portion of the digital data to an identification system configured to identify the audio content based on the at least a portion of the digital data. The functions further include receiving information associated with the audio content from the identification system. The functions further include, in response to receiving the information associated with the audio content from the identification system, sending the received information to a control device that is configured to control the playback device. The functions further include playing the audio content via one or more speakers electrically connected to the playback device via a wired connection.

Claims

1. A playback device comprising:

one or more processors; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the playback device to perform functions comprising;

receiving digital data representing audio content;

sending at least a portion of the digital data to an identification system configured to identify the audio content based on the at least a portion of the digital data;

receiving information associated with the audio content from the identification system;

in response to receiving the information associated with the audio content from the identification system, sending the received information to a control device that is configured to control the playback device; and

playing the audio content via one or more speakers electrically connected to the playback device via a wired connection.

2. The playback device of claim 1, wherein the identification system comprises a server of an audio content identification service.

3. The playback device of claim 1, wherein the one or more speakers are structurally integrated within the playback device.

4. The playback device of claim 1, wherein the digital data is decoded digital data received from a decoder of the playback device.

5. The playback device of claim 1, the functions further comprising:

receiving, from the control device, a command for the playback device to send the at least a portion of the digital data to the identification system,

wherein the at least a portion of the digital data is sent to the identification system based on the received command.

6. The playback device of claim 1, the functions further comprising:

detecting a discontinuity in the digital data,

wherein the at least a portion of the digital data is sent to the identification system based on the detected discontinuity.

7. The playback device of claim 1, the functions further comprising sending portions of the digital data to the identification system at periodic instances of time.

8. The playback device of claim 1, the functions further comprising:

processing the digital data to change a sample rate of the digital data,

wherein sending the at least a portion of the digital data comprises sending at least a portion of the processed digital data.

9. The playback device of claim 1, further comprising a first data processing module and a second data processing module,

wherein the digital data is first digital data received as output from the first data processing module, the functions further comprising:

receiving second digital data as output from the second data processing module; and

sending at least a portion of the second digital data to the identification system.

10. The playback device of claim 1, the functions further comprising:

segregating the digital data into a plurality of portions representing respective audio frequency ranges of the audio content;

wherein sending the at least a portion of the digital data comprises sending a given portion of the segregated plurality of portions of the digital data.

11. The playback device of claim 1, the functions further comprising:

compressing the at least a portion of the digital data,

wherein sending the at least a portion of the digital data comprises sending the compressed at least a portion of the digital data.

12. The playback device of claim 1, wherein the information sent to the control device comprises one or more of (i) metadata related to the audio content, (ii) data identifying a network location of a device from which metadata related to the audio content can be retrieved, (iii) a uniform resource locator identifying a network location of a device from which metadata related to the audio content can be retrieved, and (iv) an identifier recognizable to a metadata curating device as corresponding to metadata related to the audio content.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a control device, cause the control device to perform functions comprising:

sending, to a playback device, a command for the playback device to retrieve, from an identification system, information related to digital data that is being received by the playback device, wherein the playback device is playing audio content represented by the digital data when the command is sent;

receiving, from the playback device, the information retrieved by the playback device from the identification system; and

displaying a representation of at least one of (i) the received information or (ii) metadata retrieved from a metadata curating device at a network location indicated by the received information.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the information comprises the network location of the metadata curating device, the functions further comprising:

sending a request for the metadata to the metadata curating device at the network location; and

receiving the metadata from the metadata curating device.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the information comprises an identifier recognizable to the metadata curating device as corresponding to metadata related to the audio content, the functions further comprising:

sending the identifier to the metadata curating device; and

receiving the metadata related to the audio content from the metadata curating device.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, the functions further comprising:

receiving a command input for the playback device to retrieve the information related to the digital data,

wherein the command is sent based on the receiving the command input.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the information related to the digital data pertains to a given category of information, the functions further comprising:

receiving metadata related to the audio content from the playback device; and

determining that the metadata received from the playback device lacks the information pertaining to the given category of information,

wherein the command is sent based on determining that the metadata received from the playback device lacks the information pertaining to the given category of information.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a playback device, cause the playback device to perform functions comprising:

receiving digital data representing audio content;

sending at least a portion of the digital data to an identification system configured to identify the audio content based on the at least a portion of the digital data;

receiving information associated with the audio content from the identification system;

in response to receiving the information associated with the audio content from the identification system, sending the received information to a control device that is configured to control the playback device; and

playing the audio content via one or more speakers electrically connected to the playback device via a wired connection.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, the functions further comprising:

receiving, from the control device, a command for the playback device to send the at least a portion of the digital data to the identification system,

wherein the at least a portion of the digital data is sent to the identification system based on the received command.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18, wherein the playback device comprises a first data processing module and a second data processing module,

wherein the digital data is first digital data received as output from the first data processing module, the functions further comprising:

receiving second digital data as output from the second data processing module; and

sending at least a portion of the second digital data to the identification system.