Processing of multi-device audio capture

• US 9,332,346 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2010
• Issued: 05/03/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Ojanper, Juha Petteri
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsang, Fan
• Assistant Examiner(s): SIEGEL, DAVID F
• Application Number:
  US13/579,024
• Publication Number:
  US 20120310396A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,267 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/16 Sound input; Sound output speech processing G10L
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/568 audio processing specific to telephonic conferencing, e.g. spatial distribution, mixing of participants echo suppression in two-way loud-speaking telephone systems H04M9/02; sound field processing per se H04S7/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/406 microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 29/004 for microphones H04R29/007 takes precedence
• 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: H04S 2400/15 Aspects of sound capture and related signal processing for recording or reproduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/302 Electronic adaptation of stereophonic sound system to listener position or orientation H04S7/301 takes precedence

Abstract

It is inter alia disclosed to select, by a first apparatus (21), one or more recording devices (20) to obtain a set of selected recording devices, or to receive, at the first apparatus (21), information on a set of one or more selected recording devices. The selected recording devices in the set of selected recording devices are selected from a set of recording devices at least based on relevance levels determined for the recording devices of the set of recording devices. A combination of audio signals recorded by the selected recording devices of the set of selected recording devices in an audio scene to obtain one or more combined audio signals for rendering is performed or caused by the first apparatus (21).

Claims

1. A method of obtaining combined audio signals, the method comprising:

selecting, by a first apparatus, two or more recording devices based on an analysis of a similarity between representations of audio signals recorded by said two or more recording devices by using a similarity analysis function and determining that the representations of the audio signals recorded by said two or more recording devices stem from the same one or more audio sources, and

causing, by said first apparatus, a combination of audio signals recorded by said selected two or more recording devices in an audio scene, to obtain one or more combined audio signals for rendering.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said two or more selected recording devices are selected from a set of recording devices derived from a plurality of recording devices at least under consideration of a position relationship between a desired listening position in said audio scene and measured or estimated positions of said recording devices.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein said analysis of similarity is related to delays of representations of said audio signals recorded by said recording devices with respect to a reference signal.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein said reference signal is determined from said representations of said audio signals recorded by said recording devices as that representation that exhibits, among all of said representations, a largest sum of respective extreme values of a similarity analysis function with respect to the other representations.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at a second apparatus, said one or more combined audio signals,

providing, before said combination of said audio signals recorded by said selected two or more recording devices in said audio scene is received, to the first apparatus information allowing said two or more recording devices to be selected by said first apparatus to obtain said set of selected two or more recording devices.

20. A computer program comprising:

a memory comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including program code for performing the method according to claim 1 when said computer program is executed on a processor.

6. A first apparatus for obtaining combined audio signals, the first apparatus comprising at least one processor;

and at least one memory including computer program code, said at least one memory and said computer program code configured to, with said at least one processor, cause said first apparatus at least to;

select two or more recording devices based on an analysis of a similarity between representations of audio signals recorded by said two or more recording devices by using a similarity analysis function and determining that the representations of the audio signals recorded by said two or more recording devices stem from the same one or more audio sources, and

cause a combination of audio signals recorded by said selected two or more recording devices in an audio scene, to obtain one or more combined audio signals for rendering.

7. The first apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said two or more selected recording devices are selected from a set of recording devices derived from a plurality of recording devices at least under consideration of a position relationship between a desired listening position in said audio scene and measured or estimated positions of said recording devices.

8. The first apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said analysis of similarity of said recording devices are related to delays of representations of audio signals recorded by said recording devices with respect to a reference signal.

9. The first apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said reference signal is determined from said representations of said audio signals recorded by said recording devices as that representation that exhibits, among all of said representations, a largest sum of respective extreme values of a similarity analysis function with respect to the other representations.

10. A system for processing multiple-device audio capture comprising first apparatus according to claim 6 and a second apparatus, the second apparatus comprising at least one processor;

and at least one memory including computer program code, said at least one memory and said computer program code configured to, with said at least one processor, cause said second apparatus at least to;

receive said one or more combined audio signals, and

provide, before said combination of said audio signals recorded by said selected two or more recording devices in said audio scene is received, to the first apparatus information allowing said two or more recording devices to be selected by said first apparatus to obtain said selected two or more recording devices.

11. The first apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said analysis of similarity of said two or more recording devices are determined by grouping said delays into groups respectively representing said analysis of similarity.

12. The first apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said information on said two or more selected recording devices is received, and wherein said selected two or more recording devices are selected at a second apparatus on which said one or more combined audio signals are to be rendered.

13. The first apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said analysis of similarity is determined by said first apparatus and provided to said second apparatus as an at least partial basis for selecting said selected recording devices of said set of selected two or more recording devices.

14. The first apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said two or more recording devices are selected to obtain said selected two or more recording devices at said first apparatus, wherein said analysis of similarity is determined by said first apparatus.

15. The first apparatus according to claim 6, wherein said selected two or more recording devices are selected so that a combination of audio signals recorded by said selected two or more recording devices provides a targeted listening impression.

16. The first apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said selected two or more recording devices are selected based on said analysis of similarity and on a selection rule that at least depends on said targeted listening impression and relates to said analysis of similarity.

17. The first apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said targeted listening impression is one of a near-end listening impression and a far-end-listening impression.

18. The first apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said targeted listening impression is selected from a set of at least two pre-defined different targeted listening impressions.

19. The first apparatus according to claim 6, wherein at least two at least partially different sets of selected recording devices are determined from a same set of two or more recording devices.