Patents Examined by Paul W. Huber
  • Patent number: 11206487
    Abstract: This application relates to audio driving circuitry (100), and in particular to audio driving circuitry for outputting first and second audio driving signals for driving a stereo audio load (106), which may be a stereo audio load of an accessory apparatus (102) removably coupled to the audio driving circuitry in use. A load monitor (111) is provided for monitoring to monitor, from a monitoring node (112), an indication of a common mode return current passing through a common return path, together with an indication of a common mode component of the first and second audio driving signals and to determine an impedance characteristic of the stereo audio load. The load monitor (111) can provide dynamic monitoring of any significant change in load impedance. In some embodiments the load monitor (111) comprises an adaptive filter (301) which adapts a parameter of the filter which is related to the load impedance so as to determine the indication of load impedance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 21, 2021
    Assignee: Cirrus Logic, Inc.
    Inventors: John Paul Lesso, Mark James Mccloy-Stevens, John Bruce Bowlerwell, Yanto Suryono, Xin Zhao, Morgan Timothy Prior
  • Patent number: 11206482
    Abstract: A system method provides for multi-port wind noise protection. A sound may include a desired component such as speech and an undesired component such as wind. Multiple apertures on a housing receive the sound and conduct it to a microphone. The undesired component such as wind is uncorrelated at the apertures and mixes at the microphone, attenuating in amplitude while the desired component such as speech is correlated at the apertures. In this manner, the signal to noise ratio between the desired component and undesired component is improved at the microphone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 21, 2021
    Assignee: Knowles Electronics, LLC
    Inventor: Thomas Miller
  • Patent number: 11202149
    Abstract: A computer, including a processor and a memory, the memory including instructions to be executed by the processor to determine a first root-mean-square signal level of an audio data stream with a first delay, apply a bass shelf filter to the audio data stream based on the first root-mean-square signal level and an audio volume level, determine a second root-mean-square signal level of an audio data stream with a second delay and apply a treble shelf filter to the audio data stream based on the second root-mean-square signal level and the audio volume level. The instructions include further instructions to output the audio data stream to an audio amplifier and one or more speakers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 14, 2021
    Assignee: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
    Inventor: Alan Norton
  • Patent number: 11197094
    Abstract: The present disclosure discloses a noise reduction method and apparatus based on in-vehicle sound zones and a medium. The method includes: determining, based on voice signals obtained by sound zones, a target sound zone to which a voice signal waking up a vehicle-mounted terminal belongs, in which each sound zone has a corresponding noise reduction module; and sending a noise reduction termination instruction to noise reduction modules of sound zones other than the target sound zone, in which the noise reduction termination instruction is configured to instruct the noise reduction modules of the sound zones other than the target sound zone to terminate noise reduction algorithms in a process of performing voice interaction for the target sound zone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: December 7, 2021
    Assignee: BEIJING BAIDU NETCOM SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Tengfei Zhang, Long Zhang, Qie Yin
  • Patent number: 11189298
    Abstract: Method of performing acoustic zooming starts with microphones capturing acoustic signals associated with video content. Beamformers generate beamformer signals using the acoustic signals. Beamformer signals correspond respectively to tiles of video content. Each of the beamformers is respectively directed to a center of each of the tiles. Target enhanced signal is generated using beamformer signals. Target enhanced signal is associated with a zoom area of video content. Target enhanced signal is generated by identifying the tiles respectively having at least portions that are included in the zoom area, selecting beamformer signals corresponding to identified tiles, and combining selected beamformer signals to generate target enhanced signal. Combining selected beamformer signals may include determining proportions for each of the identified tiles in relation to the zoom area and combining selected beamformer signals based on the proportions to generate the target enhanced signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 30, 2021
    Assignee: Snap Inc.
    Inventors: Changxi Zheng, Arun Asokan Nair, Austin Reiter, Shree K. Nayar
  • Patent number: 11179135
    Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods are provided for capturing and outputting data regarding a bodily characteristic. In one embodiment, a hardware device can operate as a stethoscope with sensors to detect bodily characteristics such as heart sounds, lung sounds, abdominal sounds, and other bodily sounds and other characteristics such as temperature and ultrasound. The stethoscope can be configured to work independently with built solid state memory or SIM card. The stethoscope can be configured to pair via a wireless communication protocol with one or more electronic devices, and upon pairing with the electronic device(s), can be registered in a network resident in the cloud and can thereby create a network of users of like stethoscopes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2021
    Assignee: M3DICINE IP PTY LTD.
    Inventors: Arsil Nayyar Hussain, Dang Khoa Tran
  • Patent number: 11183205
    Abstract: A method for generating an acoustic stimulus for use in an ear biometric process on a user, the method comprising: receiving an indication of stimulation frequencies for use in the ear biometric process; grouping the stimulation frequencies into bands of a psychoacoustic scale; generating the acoustic stimulus, the acoustic stimulus comprising a masked bandpass component within each band of the psychoacoustic scale that comprises one or more of the stimulation frequencies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2021
    Assignee: Cirrus Logic, Inc.
    Inventors: Samuel P. Ebenezer, William E. Sherwood
  • Patent number: 11176920
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a system and a method for collecting unspecific and various sounds, occurring in the field of crime prevention, guard, or the like, in a wide area by means of a microphone without any loss, and provides means for a system and a method for collection using a single microphone and for a system and a method for collection using multiple microphones.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 6, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2021
    Inventor: Geum Cheol Kim
  • Patent number: 11172298
    Abstract: While a first wearable audio output component of a wearable audio output device is in a first position relative to a first ear of a user and a second wearable audio output component of the wearable audio output device is in the first position relative to a second ear, a computer system operates the wearable audio output device in a first mode. While doing so, the computer system detects a change in position of the first component from the first position to a second position; and, in response, while the second component is maintained in the first position, the computer system transitions the wearable audio output device from the first mode to a different, second mode that is a pass-through mode in which audio outputs provided via the wearable audio output device include pass-through audio components that include at least a portion of ambient sound from the physical environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2020
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Taylor G. Carrigan, David C. Graham, Andrew E. Greenwood, Thomas S. Hulbert, Hugo D. Verweij
  • Patent number: 11172295
    Abstract: An information processing device includes an outputter, a receiver, a storage, and a position specifying processor. The outputter outputs a detection signal to the plurality of acoustic apparatuses. The receiver receives a disposed position of each of the plurality of acoustic apparatuses, based on a response signal outputted from the plurality of acoustic apparatuses. The storage stores disposition data indicating disposed positions of the plurality of acoustic apparatuses. The position specifying processor allocates the disposed position received by the receiver to any one of the plurality of acoustic apparatuses included in the disposition data, and causes the storage to store the disposed position allocated to the disposition data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: YAMAHA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tomoko Ninomiya, Kazuya Mushikabe, Akihiko Suyama
  • Patent number: 11153692
    Abstract: A method operates a hearing system that has a first input transducer, a second input transducer and a signal processing device. An activity of a lateral useful signal source in an environment of the hearing system is ascertained by a first input signal being generated via an acoustic signal that impinges on the first input transducer, and a second input signal being generated via the acoustic signal that impinges on the second input transducer. A filtered input signal is generated via a directional notch filter based on the first and second input signals. A measure for attenuation that the directional notch filter causes is ascertained based on the filtered input signal and on the first and/or second input signals. The measure is compared with a reference, and from this comparison, the presence or absence of activity of the lateral useful signal source in the surroundings is inferred.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: Sivantos Pte. Ltd.
    Inventors: Homayoun Kamkar-Parsi, Marko Lugger
  • Patent number: 11153685
    Abstract: The present technology relates to an audio output controller, an audio output control method, and a program that can improve sound quality. An audio output controller includes multiple speaker units installed so as to face different directions, outputs measurement sound from at least one speaker unit of the multiple speaker units, and controls a gain of the speaker unit on the basis of a reverberation characteristic when the measurement sound is measured by a microphone in a predetermined position. Measurement sound output from a speaker unit installed in another audio output controller is measured by the microphone. Alternatively, measurement sound output from an installed speaker unit is measured by the microphone. The present technology can be applied to a wireless speakers, for example.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventor: Yasuhiro Toguri
  • Patent number: 11153703
    Abstract: A specific sound source automatic adjusting method and an electronic device using the same are provided. The electronic device includes a first audio recognition unit, a first multi-sound source determination unit, a directivity analysis unit, a directional separation unit, a second audio recognition unit, a second multi-sound source determination unit and an audio adjustment unit. If the number of sound sources of the original sound signal is larger than or equal to 2, the directivity analysis unit performs a directionality analysis procedure on the original sound signal. The directional separation unit separates out at least one specific directional sub-signal from the original sound signal according to the result of directional analysis procedure. If the number of sound sources of the specific directional sub-signal is equal to 1, the audio adjustment unit performs a sound source adjustment procedure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: ACER INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Po-Jen Tu, Jia-Ren Chang, Kai-Meng Tzeng
  • Patent number: 11152012
    Abstract: Method of performing acoustic zooming starts with microphones capturing acoustic signals associated with video content. Beamformers generate beamformer signals using the acoustic signals. Beamformer signals correspond respectively to tiles of video content. Each of the beamformers is respectively directed to a center of each of the tiles. Target enhanced signal is generated using beamformer signals. Target enhanced signal is associated with a zoom area of video content. Target enhanced signal is generated by identifying the tiles respectively having at least portions that are included in the zoom area, selecting beamformer signals corresponding to identified tiles, and combining selected beamformer signals to generate target enhanced signal. Combining selected beamformer signals may include determining proportions for each of the identified tiles in relation to the zoom area and combining selected beamformer signals based on the proportions to generate the target enhanced signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: Snap Inc.
    Inventors: Changxi Zheng, Arun Asokan Nair, Austin Reiter, Shree K. Nayar
  • Patent number: 11146887
    Abstract: An in-vehicle noise-cancellation system may optimize far-end user experience. The noise-cancellation system may incorporate real-time acoustic input from the vehicle, as well microphones from a telecommunications device. Audio signals from small, embedded microphones mounted in the vehicle can be processed and mixed into an outgoing telecom signal to effectively cancel acoustic energy from one or more unwanted sources in the vehicle. Multiple microphones may be mounted to headrests and spaced apart in one or more directions to give an indication of the direction of incoming sound from one or more listening zones so that sounds from certain zones may be suppressed. Unwanted noise captured by the embedded microphones may be used as direct inputs to the noise-cancellation system. As direct inputs, these streams can, therefore, be cancelled from the outgoing telecom signal, thus providing the user's far-end correspondent with much higher signal-to-noise ratio, call quality, and speech intelligibility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2021
    Assignee: Harman International Industries, Incorporated
    Inventors: Riley Winton, Chris Ludwig, Gorm H. Jorgensen, Lars Goller, Morten Lydolf
  • Patent number: 11140506
    Abstract: A sound signal processor includes a memory storing instructions and a processor configured to implement the stored instructions to execute a plurality of tasks, the tasks including a sound signal input task configured to obtain a sound signal, a beat detection task configured to detect a beat in the sound signal, and a processing task configured to perform an effect processing on the sound signal in accordance with a timing of the detected beat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 1, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 5, 2021
    Assignee: YAMAHA CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ryotaro Aoki, Akihiko Suyama, Tatsuya Fukuyama
  • Patent number: 11128942
    Abstract: A sound transducer arrangement for generating and/or detecting sound waves in the audible wavelength spectrum includes an acoustic unit, which includes a vibratable diaphragm and a MEMS unit coupled to the diaphragm for generating and/or detecting a deflection of the diaphragm. The sound transducer arrangement includes a MEMS structure, which includes a support unit on which the MEMS unit and the acoustic unit are arranged. The support unit includes a metallic lead frame and a plastic body, with which the lead frame is partially circumferentially fused.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: USOUND GMBH
    Inventors: Ferruccio Bottoni, Andrea Rusconi Clerici Beltrami
  • Patent number: 11123225
    Abstract: A wireless audio system suppresses exterior noise and directs desired sound into a user's ear canal. An audio system may include an earplug to create a seal in the interior of an ear canal. The earplug may include a ribbed exterior profile and can be flexible to create the seal. A speaker may be inserted within the earplug. A channel may extend through a body of the earplug to direct sound into a user's ear canal. A proximal opening may extend from the speaker to the channel of the earplug, and an audio wire may be connected to the speaker. The audio wire may connect to a wireless receiver, or other receiver, to allow audio data to pass through the wire and to the speaker, where it can be converted to audio that is passed directly into the ear canal of the user.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: INNATE DEVICES, LLC
    Inventors: Tyler Knudsen, Shaun Knudsen
  • Patent number: 11120814
    Abstract: Microphone signals are received from microphones of a computer device. Each microphone signal of the microphone signals is acquired by a respective microphone of the microphones. A previously unselected microphone is selected from the microphones as a reference microphone, which generates a reference microphone signal. An adaptive filter is used to create, based on microphone signals of the microphones other than the reference microphone, predicted microphone signals for the reference microphone. Based on the predicted microphone signals for the reference microphone, an enhanced microphone signal is outputted for the reference microphone. The enhanced microphone signal may be used as microphone signal for the reference microphone in subsequent audio processing operations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 16, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 14, 2021
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventor: Chunjian Li
  • Patent number: 11115753
    Abstract: A sound reproduction device including a sound reproduction control circuit that performs a required computation on audio source data so as to generate sound reproduction data to send to a speaker; a first communication interface circuit that performs communication with a control device; a counter circuit whose count operation is controlled by a control signal received from the control device through the first communication interface circuit, and that outputs a state of the count operation; and an error control circuit that stops generation of the sound reproduction data by the sound reproduction control circuit based on the state of the count operation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2020
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Assignee: LAPIS SEMICONDUCTOR CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Takashi Yamashita