Patents by Inventor Michael William Mason
Michael William Mason has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
-
Patent number: 11937074Abstract: The present document relates to methods and apparatus for rendering input audio for playback in a playback environment. The input audio includes at least one audio object and associated metadata, and the associated metadata indicates at least a location of the audio object. A method for rendering input audio including divergence metadata for playback in a playback environment comprises creating two additional audio objects associated with the audio object such that respective locations of the two additional audio objects are evenly spaced from the location of the audio object, on opposite sides of the location of the audio object when seen from an intended listener's position in the playback environment, determining respective weight factors for application to the audio object and the two additional audio objects, and rendering the audio object and the two additional audio objects to one or more speaker feeds in accordance with the determined weight factors.Type: GrantFiled: January 28, 2021Date of Patent: March 19, 2024Assignees: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation, Dolby International ABInventors: Michael William Mason, Juan Felix Torres, Antonio Mateos Sole, Daniel Arteaga, Adam J. Mills, Mark David de Burgh, Andrew Robert Owen
-
Publication number: 20240084808Abstract: A ceiling fan includes a motor housing and a motor enclosed by the motor housing. A set of blades can extend from the motor housing and be operably coupled to the motor. The motor can include a rotor assembly and a stator assembly. The motor housing can include an upper housing and a lower housing.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 11, 2023Publication date: March 14, 2024Inventors: Charles William Botkin, Michael Paul Conti, Jason Matthew McPherson, Charles David McKee, Arvind G. Ramani, Douglas Troy Mason, Nicholas Dakota Vongprachanh
-
Patent number: 11894006Abstract: The processing of audio signals during playback is provided, so that audio signals that fall below a specified threshold loudness level are processed to avoid making unwanted background noise audible. N-channel audio is received from a playback volume controller/leveler (101). The level of the audio is compared with a threshold level. If the level is greater than the threshold level, the audio is processed with a first amount of gain in accordance with a first dynamic range control (DRC) compression curve that is tuned for professionally produced audio. If the level is less than or equal to the threshold level, the audio is processed with a second amount of gain in accordance with a second DRC compression curve that is designed to avoid boosting unwanted background noise. After applying the gain to the audio, the audio is sent to a downstream device.Type: GrantFiled: July 18, 2019Date of Patent: February 6, 2024Assignee: DOLBY LABORATORIES LICENSING CORPORATIONInventors: Zhongjin Wang, Andrew Peter Reilly, Michael William Mason
-
Patent number: 11594232Abstract: Systems, methods, and computer program products of audio processing based on Adaptive Intermediate Spatial Format (AISF) are described. The AISF is an extension to ISF that allows spatial resolution around an ISF ring to be adjusted dynamically with respect to content of incoming audio objects. An AISF encoder device adaptively warps each ISF ring during ISF encoding to adjust angular distance between objects, resulting in increase in uniformity of energy distribution around the ISF ring. At an AISF decoder device, matrices that decode sound positions to the output speaker take into account the warping that was performed at the AISF encoder device to reproduce the true positions of sound sources.Type: GrantFiled: November 11, 2020Date of Patent: February 28, 2023Assignee: DOLBY LABORATORIES LICENSING CORPORATIONInventors: Juan Felix Torres, David S. McGrath, Michael William Mason
-
Patent number: 11128978Abstract: The present document relates to methods and apparatus for rendering input audio for playback in a playback environment. The input audio includes at least one audio object and associated metadata, and the associated metadata indicates at least a location of the audio object. A method for rendering input audio including divergence metadata for playback in a playback environment comprises creating two additional audio objects associated with the audio object such that respective locations of the two additional audio objects are evenly spaced from the location of the audio object, on opposite sides of the location of the audio object when seen from an intended listener's position in the playback environment, determining respective weight factors for application to the audio object and the two additional audio objects, and rendering the audio object and the two additional audio objects to one or more speaker feeds in accordance with the determined weight factors.Type: GrantFiled: November 18, 2016Date of Patent: September 21, 2021Assignees: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation, Dolby International ABInventors: Michael William Mason, Juan Felix Torres, Antonio Mateos Sole, Daniel Arteaga, Adam J. Mills, Mark David deBurgh, Andrew Robert Owen
-
Publication number: 20210233548Abstract: The processing of audio signals during playback is provided, so that audio signals that fall below a specified threshold loudness level are processed to avoid making unwanted background noise audible. N-channel audio is received from a playback volume controller/leveler (101). The level of the audio is compared with a threshold level. If the level is greater than the threshold level, the audio is processed with a first amount of gain in accordance with a first dynamic range control (DRC) compression curve that is tuned for professionally produced audio. If the level is less than or equal to the threshold level, the audio is processed with a second amount of gain in accordance with a second DRC compression curve that is designed to avoid boosting unwanted background noise. After applying the gain to the audio, the audio is sent to a downstream device.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 18, 2019Publication date: July 29, 2021Applicant: DOLBY LABORATORIES LICENSING CORPORATIONInventors: Zhongjin WANG, Andrew Peter REILLY, Michael William MASON
-
Publication number: 20210235215Abstract: The present document relates to methods and apparatus for rendering input audio for playback in a playback environment. The input audio includes at least one audio object and associated metadata, and the associated metadata indicates at least a location of the audio object. A method for rendering input audio including divergence metadata for playback in a playback environment comprises creating two additional audio objects associated with the audio object such that respective locations of the two additional audio objects are evenly spaced from the location of the audio object, on opposite sides of the location of the audio object when seen from an intended listener's position in the playback environment, determining respective weight factors for application to the audio object and the two additional audio objects, and rendering the audio object and the two additional audio objects to one or more speaker feeds in accordance with the determined weight factors.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 28, 2021Publication date: July 29, 2021Applicants: DOLBY INTERNATIONAL AB, DOLBY LABORATORIES LICENSING CORPORATIONInventors: Michael William Mason, Juan Felix Torres, Antonio Mateos Sole, Daniel Arteaga, Adam J. Mills, Mark David de Burgh, Andrew Robert Owen
-
Publication number: 20210065724Abstract: Systems, methods, and computer program products of audio processing based on Adaptive Intermediate Spatial Format (AISF) are described. The AISF is an extension to ISF that allows spatial resolution around an ISF ring to be adjusted dynamically with respect to content of incoming audio objects. An AISF encoder device adaptively warps each ISF ring during ISF encoding to adjust angular distance between objects, resulting in increase in uniformity of energy distribution around the ISF ring. At an AISF decoder device, matrices that decode sound positions to the output speaker take into account the warping that was performed at the AISF encoder device to reproduce the true positions of sound sources.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 11, 2020Publication date: March 4, 2021Applicant: Dolby Laboratories Licensing CorporationInventors: Juan Felix TORRES, David S. MCGRATH, Michael William MASON
-
Patent number: 10861467Abstract: Systems, methods, and computer program products of audio processing based on Adaptive Intermediate Spatial Format (AISF) are described. The AISF is an extension to ISF that allows spatial resolution around an ISF ring to be adjusted dynamically with respect to content of incoming audio objects. An AISF encoder device adaptively warps each ISF ring during ISF encoding to adjust angular distance between objects, resulting in increase in uniformity of energy distribution around the ISF ring. At an AISF decoder device, matrices that decode sound positions to the output speaker take into account the warping that was performed at the AISF encoder device to reproduce the true positions of sound sources.Type: GrantFiled: February 22, 2018Date of Patent: December 8, 2020Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing CorporationInventors: Juan Felix Torres, David S. Mcgrath, Michael William Mason
-
Publication number: 20200275233Abstract: The present document relates to methods and apparatus for rendering input audio for playback in a playback environment. The input audio includes at least one audio object and associated metadata, and the associated metadata indicates at least a location of the audio object. A method for rendering input audio including divergence metadata for playback in a playback environment comprises creating two additional audio objects associated with the audio object such that respective locations of the two additional audio objects are evenly spaced from the location of the audio object, on opposite sides of the location of the audio object when seen from an intended listener's position in the playback environment, determining respective weight factors for application to the audio en.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 18, 2016Publication date: August 27, 2020Applicants: Dolby International AB, Dolby Laboratories Licensing CorporationInventors: Michael William Mason, Juan Felix TORRES, Antonio MATEOS SOLE, Daniel ARTEAGA, Adam J. MILLS, Mark David deBURGH, Andrew Robert OWEN
-
Patent number: 10582327Abstract: Systems and methods are described for providing an immersive listening area for one or more listeners. To improve the immersive experience a rear sound bar is placed behind the listeners and the input channels of the rear sound bar receive customized processing to create a virtual rear sound stage. The virtual rear sound stage and a front sound stage created by a front sound bar, combine to create an overall sound stage to encompass the listeners, providing the listeners with an immersive listening experience.Type: GrantFiled: October 11, 2018Date of Patent: March 3, 2020Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing CorporationInventors: Mark William Gerrard, Michael William Mason
-
Publication number: 20190116445Abstract: Systems and methods are described for providing an immersive listening area for one or more listeners. To improve the immersive experience a rear sound bar is placed behind the listeners and the input channels of the rear sound bar receive customized processing to create a virtual rear sound stage. The virtual rear sound stage and a front sound stage created by a front sound bar, combine to create an overall sound stage to encompass the listeners, providing the listeners with an immersive listening experience.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 11, 2018Publication date: April 18, 2019Applicant: DOLBY LABORATORIES LICENSING CORPORATIONInventors: Mark William GERRARD, Michael William MASON
-
Publication number: 20180308507Abstract: Example embodiments disclosed herein relate to audio signal processing with low latency. A method of processing an audio signal is disclosed. The method includes obtaining frequency parameters of a current frame of the audio signal. The method also includes generating intermediate frequency domain outputs for a set of predefined frequency bands based on the frequency parameters using predefined frequency band filter banks, a frequency band filter bank being specific to a respective frequency band in the set. The method further includes determining frequency band energies for the set of predefined frequency bands based on the intermediate frequency domain outputs, and processing the current frame based on the determined frequency band energies. Corresponding system, computer program product, and device for processing an audio signal are also disclosed.Type: ApplicationFiled: January 13, 2017Publication date: October 25, 2018Applicant: Dolby Laboratories Licensing CorporationInventors: Zhiwei SHUANG, David S. MCGRATH, Michael William MASON
-
Publication number: 20180254047Abstract: Systems, methods, and computer program products of audio processing based on Adaptive Intermediate Spatial Format (AISF) are described. The AISF is an extension to ISF that allows spatial resolution around an ISF ring to be adjusted dynamically with respect to content of incoming audio objects. An AISF encoder device adaptively warps each ISF ring during ISF encoding to adjust angular distance between objects, resulting in increase in uniformity of energy distribution around the ISF ring. At an AISF decoder device, matrices that decode sound positions to the output speaker take into account the warping that was performed at the AISF encoder device to reproduce the true positions of sound sources.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 22, 2018Publication date: September 6, 2018Applicant: Dolby Laboratories Licensing CorporationInventors: Juan Felix TORRES, David S. MCGRATH, Michael William MASON
-
Patent number: 6937723Abstract: Echo detection and monitoring systems and methods are provided. According to the invention, the outgoing and incoming voice bearer channels of a voice communication are monitored. The outgoing and incoming signals are time aligned, and measures are then taken to determine whether echo is present in the signal. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the outgoing signal is fed through an adaptive filter.Type: GrantFiled: October 25, 2002Date of Patent: August 30, 2005Assignee: Avaya Technology Corp.Inventors: Simon Daniel Boland, James D. Schreuder, Subramanian Sridharan, Michael William Mason, James Allen Cook
-
Publication number: 20040081315Abstract: Echo detection and monitoring systems and methods are provided. According to the invention, the outgoing and incoming voice bearer channels of a voice communication are monitored. The outgoing and incoming signals are time aligned, and measures are then taken to determine whether echo is present in the signal. In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the outgoing signal is fed through an adaptive filter.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 25, 2002Publication date: April 29, 2004Inventors: Simon Daniel Boland, James D. Schreuder, Subramanian Sridharan, Michael William Mason, James Allen Cook