Estimation of loudspeaker positions

• US 9,332,371 B2
• Filed: 05/27/2010
• Issued: 05/03/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: De Bruijn, Werner Paulus Josephus
• Primary Examiner(s): Ratcliffe, Luke
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jobe, Amienatta M Ndure
• Application Number:
  US13/322,746
• Publication Number:
  US 20120075957A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,168 Days
• Field of Search: 381/80, 381/17, 381/305, 381/306, 381/59, 381/58, 367 18-127, 367/129, 181/187, 181/30, 181/138
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2205/024 Positioning of loudspeaker enclosures for spatial sound reproduction
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/301 Automatic calibration of stereophonic sound system, e.g. with test microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/302 Electronic adaptation of stereophonic sound system to listener position or orientation H04S7/301 takes precedence

Abstract

A system for determining loudspeaker position estimates comprises motion sensors (201,203) and a movement processor (205) arranged to determine motion data for a user movable unit where the motion data characterizes movement of the user moveable unit. A user input interface (207) receives user inputs and a user processor (209) processes them into user activations which indicate that at least one of a current position and orientation of the user movable unit is associated with a loudspeaker position. An analyzing processor (211) then generates loudspeaker position estimates in response to the motion data and the user activations. The system thus performs speaker position estimations based on (i) the motion data of the user moveable unit being pointed towards or positioned on a speaker and (ii) the user activations.

Claims

1. A system for determining loudspeaker position estimates in a setup of surround sound loudspeakers, the system comprising:

means for determining motion data of a user movable unit that characterizes a movement of the user movable unit to be associated with a loudspeaker position of a corresponding loudspeaker in the setup;

a user input for receiving user activations that indicate, respectively, for each loudspeaker in the setup, that (i) a current position and (ii) a current orientation of the user movable unit is associated with the loudspeaker position of a corresponding loudspeaker in the setup in response to receiving a respective user activation of the received user activations; and

analyzing means for generating loudspeaker position estimates for the loudspeakers in the setup in response to (i) the determined motion data of the user movable unit and (ii) the received user activations, wherein the user movable unit comprises a motion detection sensor and the determining means is arranged to determine the motion data in response to data from the motion detection sensor, wherein the motion detection sensor comprises at least one of;

a gyroscope;

an accelerometer; and

a magnetometer.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyzing means is arranged to determine orientation data, indicative of an orientation of the user movable unit, in response to the determined motion data.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the analyzing means is arranged to estimate a direction from the current position of the user movable unit to a respective loudspeaker position for each of a plurality of user activations in response to orientation data for the user activations;

and to determine the loudspeaker position estimates further in response to the directions.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the analyzing means is arranged to determine the loudspeaker position estimates further in response to a predetermined distance estimate from the current position of the user movable unit to each respective loudspeaker position.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the analyzing means is arranged to determine position data indicative of the current position of the user movable unit in response to the determined motion data.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the analyzing means is arranged to estimate a relative position of the user movable unit for each of a plurality of user activations in response to the position data associated with the user activations, and to determine the loudspeaker position estimates further in response to the relative positions.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the loudspeaker position estimates are determined in which each relative position corresponds to a respective position of a loudspeaker in the setup.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the user input is arranged to receive a reference user activation indicating that the current position or orientation of the user movable unit is associated with a listening position reference, and wherein the analyzing means is arranged to determine a reference position or orientation in response to the reference user activation, and to determine the loudspeaker position estimates further in response to the reference position or orientation.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the analyzing means is further arranged to determine the loudspeaker position estimates relative to the listening position reference.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the user input is further arranged to receive a user input indicating that a loudspeaker position in the setup is unused;

and wherein the analyzing means is further arranged to designate a corresponding loudspeaker position in the setup as unused.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the user movable unit comprises a handheld device.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the user movable unit is arranged to determine at least one of (i) a position estimate and (ii) an orientation estimate for the user movable unit at a time of user activation;

and wherein the user movable unit further comprises means for communicating the at least one of (i) the position estimate and (ii) the orientation estimate to a remote unit.

13. The system of claim 1, further comprising means for causing a sound signal to be radiated from a first loudspeaker position to be estimated;

and means for linking a user activation received within a time interval associated with the sound radiation to the first loudspeaker position.

14. A method of determining loudspeaker position estimates in a setup of surround sound loudspeakers, the method comprising:

determining motion data of a user movable unit that characterizes a movement of the user movable unit to be associated with a loudspeaker position of a corresponding loudspeaker in the setup;

receiving user activations that indicate, respectively, for each loudspeaker in the setup, that (i) a current position and (ii) a current orientation of the user movable unit is associated with the loudspeaker position of a corresponding loudspeaker in the setup in response to receiving a respective user activation of the received user activations; and

generating loudspeaker position estimates for the loudspeakers in the setup in response to (i) the determined motion data of the user movable unit and (ii) the received user activations, wherein the user movable unit comprises a motion detection sensor and wherein determining further comprises determining the motion data in response to data from the motion detection sensor, wherein the motion detection sensor comprises at least one of;

a gyroscope;

an accelerometer; and

a magnetometer.