HYBRID ACTIVE NOISE CONTROL

• US 20170301338A1
• Filed: 04/06/2016
• Published: 10/19/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Harman International Industries Incorporated (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Harman International Industries Incorporated (Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.)
• Inventors: Butts, Donald Joseph, Suko, Todd
• Granted Patent: US 10,440,480 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/1785 Methods, e.g. algorithms; Devices G10K11/1781, G10K11/1783 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17857 Geometric disposition, e.g. placement of microphones
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/17879 using both a reference signal and an error signal
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/12 Rooms, e.g. ANC inside a room, office, concert hall or automobile cabin
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/1281 Aircraft, e.g. spacecraft, airplane or helicopter
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/1282 Automobiles
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/1283 Trains, trams or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/3028 Filtering, e.g. Kalman filters or special analogue or digital filters
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/3044 Phase shift, e.g. complex envelope processing
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 2210/3046 Multiple acoustic inputs, multiple acoustic outputs
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/403 loud-speakers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/406 microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 17/02 Microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2499/13 Acoustic transducers and sound field adaptation in vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/005 for combining the signals of two or more microphones specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/12 for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407

Abstract

A technique for reducing noise in a listening environment. The technique includes dividing the listening environment into a plurality of zones, where each zone is associated with a different active noise cancellation (ANC) system. A boundary between a first zone included in the plurality of zones and a second zone included in the plurality of zones comprises open space. The technique further includes assigning a plurality of acoustic sensors and a plurality of speakers to the ANC system associated with each zone included in the plurality of zones. The technique further includes, for each zone included in the plurality of zones, acquiring acoustic data via the plurality of acoustic sensors, processing the acoustic data, via a processor, to generate noise cancellation signals, and outputting the noise cancellation signals via the plurality of speakers.

Claims

1. A system for reducing noise in a listening environment, the system comprising:

a first active noise cancellation (ANC) system associated with a first zone of the listening environment, the first ANC system comprising;

a first plurality of acoustic sensors configured to acquire first acoustic data;

a first plurality of speakers configured to output first noise cancellation signals; and

a first processor coupled to the first plurality of acoustic sensors and the first plurality of speakers and configured to;

receive the first acoustic data via the first plurality of acoustic sensors;

process the first acoustic data to generate the first noise cancellation signals; and

transmit the first noise cancellation signals to the first plurality of speakers; and

a second ANC system associated with a second zone of the listening environment, wherein the first zone and the second zone share a boundary within a continuous volume of the listening environment, the second ANC system comprising;

a second plurality of acoustic sensors configured to acquire second acoustic data;

a second plurality of speakers configured to output second noise cancellation signals; and

a second processor coupled to the second plurality of acoustic sensors and the second plurality of speakers and configured to;

receive the second acoustic data via the second plurality of acoustic sensors;

process the second acoustic data to generate the second noise cancellation signals; and

transmit the second noise cancellation signals to the second plurality of speakers.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first ANC system is configured to reduce noise in the first zone of the listening environment independently of the second ANC system.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first processor and the second processor comprise at least one of a digital signal processor and an analog signal processor.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first processor is further configured to:

divide the first zone into two or more zones based on third acoustic data received via the first plurality of acoustic sensors, wherein the two or more zones share at least one boundary within the continuous volume of the listening environment;

assign each acoustic sensor included in the first plurality of acoustic sensors to a zone included in the two or more zones; and

assign each of the speakers included in the first plurality of speakers to a zone included in the two or more zones.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the entirety of the boundary between the first zone and the second zone comprises open space.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the first plurality of speakers comprises two speakers, and the second plurality of speakers comprises two speakers.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the listening environment comprises a passenger compartment of vehicle.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the first noise cancellation signals and the second noise cancellation signals have a frequency from approximately 100 Hz to approximately 300 Hz.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the first acoustic sensors and the second acoustic sensors comprise piezoelectric microphones.

10. A method for reducing noise in a listening environment, the method comprising:

dividing the listening environment into a plurality of zones, wherein each zone is associated with a different active noise cancellation (ANC) system, and a boundary between a first zone included in the plurality of zones and a second zone included in the plurality of zones comprises open space;

assigning a plurality of acoustic sensors and a plurality of speakers to the ANC system associated with each zone included in the plurality of zones; and

for each zone included in the plurality of zones;

acquiring acoustic data via the plurality of acoustic sensors;

processing the acoustic data, via a processor, to generate noise cancellation signals; and

outputting the noise cancellation signals via the plurality of speakers.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein dividing the listening environment into the plurality of zones comprises processing acoustic data acquired from the listening environment to determine a number of modes included in the listening environment.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein each ANC system is configured to reduce noise in the associated zone of the listening environment independently of other ANC systems included in the listening environment.

13. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

removing one or more acoustic sensors and one or more speakers from the first zone based on the acoustic data to reduce a size of the first zone; and

assigning the one or more acoustic sensors and the one or more speakers to the second zone to increase a size of the second zone.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the noise cancellation signals have a frequency from approximately 100 Hz to approximately 300 Hz.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein each zone included in the plurality of zones comprises substantially the same dimensions.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the plurality of zones comprises three zones.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the plurality of speakers included in each ANC system comprises two speakers.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the listening environment comprises a passenger compartment of an aircraft.

19. A vehicle, comprising:

a passenger compartment comprising a plurality of zones, wherein a boundary between a first zone included in the plurality of zones and a second zone included in the plurality of zones comprises open space;

a plurality of active noise cancellation (ANC) systems, each ANC system associated with a different zone of the passenger compartment, and each ANC system comprising;

a plurality of acoustic sensors configured to acquire acoustic data;

a plurality of speakers configured to output noise cancellation signals; and

a processor coupled to the plurality of acoustic sensors and the plurality of speakers and configured to;

receive the acoustic data via the plurality of acoustic sensors;

process the acoustic data to generate the noise cancellation signals; and

transmit the noise cancellation signals to the plurality of speakers.

20. The vehicle of claim 19, wherein the passenger compartment comprises at least one of an aircraft cabin, a train cabin, and an automobile cabin.