Patents by Inventor S. Spencer Hooks

S. Spencer Hooks 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: 10959033
    Abstract: Embodiments are described for a system of rendering object-based audio content through a system that includes individually addressable drivers, including at least one driver that is configured to project sound waves toward one or more surfaces within a listening environment for reflection to a listening area within the listening environment; a renderer configured to receive and process audio streams and one or more metadata sets associated with each of the audio streams and specifying a playback location of a respective audio stream; and a playback system coupled to the renderer and configured to render the audio streams to a plurality of audio feeds corresponding to the array of audio drivers in accordance with the one or more metadata sets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 23, 2021
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: Sripal S Mehta, Brett G Crockett, S. Spencer Hooks, Alan Seefeldt, Christophe Chabanne, C. Phillip Brown, Joshua B Lando, Brad Basler, Stewart Murrie
  • Patent number: 10412523
    Abstract: Embodiments are described for a system of rendering object-based audio content through a system that includes individually addressable drivers, including at least one driver that is configured to project sound waves toward one or more surfaces within a listening environment for reflection to a listening area within the listening environment; a renderer configured to receive and process audio streams and one or more metadata sets associated with each of the audio streams and specifying a playback location of a respective audio stream; and a playback system coupled to the renderer and configured to render the audio streams to a plurality of audio feeds corresponding to the array of audio drivers in accordance with the one or more metadata sets.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 10, 2019
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: Sripal S. Mehta, Brett G. Crockett, S. Spencer Hooks, Alan Seefeldt, Christophe Chabanne, C. Phillip Brown, Joshua B. Lando, Brad Basler, Stewart Murrie
  • Patent number: 9622010
    Abstract: Embodiments are directed to an interconnect for coupling components in an object-based rendering system comprising: a first network channel coupling a renderer to an array of individually addressable drivers projecting sound in a listening environment and transmitting audio signals and control data from the renderer to the array, and a second network channel coupling a microphone placed in the listening environment to a calibration component of the renderer and transmitting calibration control signals for acoustic information generated by the microphone to the calibration component. The interconnect is suitable for use in a system for rendering spatial audio content comprising channel-based and object-based audio components.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: S. Spencer Hooks, Joshua Brandon Lando, Sripal S. Mehta, Matthew Fellers, Stewart Murrie, Brad Basler
  • Patent number: 9489954
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a method (typically performed by a game console) for generating an object based audio program indicative of game audio content (audio content pertaining to play of or events in a game, and optionally also other information regarding the game), and including at least one audio object channel and at least one speaker channel. In other embodiments, a game console configured to generate such an object based audio program. Some embodiments implement object clustering in which audio content of input objects is mixed to generate at least one clustered audio object, or audio content of at least one input object is mixed with speaker channel audio. In response to the program, a spatial rendering system (e.g., external to the game console) may operate with knowledge of playback speaker configuration to generate speaker feeds indicative of a spatial mix of the program's speaker and object channel content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 6, 2013
    Date of Patent: November 8, 2016
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: S. Spencer Hooks, Nicolas R. Tsingos
  • Patent number: 9483228
    Abstract: Non-media data relating to real-world objects or persons are collected from a scene while media data from the same scene are collected. The media data comprise audio data only or audiovisual data, whereas the non-media data comprise telemetry data and/or non-telemetry data. Based at least in part on the non-media data relating to the real-world objects or persons in the scene, emitter-listener relationships between a listener and some or all of the real-world objects or persons are determined. Audio objects comprising audio content portions and non-audio data portions are generated. At least one audio object is generated based at least in part on the emitter-listener relationships.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 1, 2016
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: Prinyar Saungsomboon, S. Spencer Hooks, Joshua Brandon Lando, Stewart Murrie, Eric Whelan Yeargan
  • Patent number: 9373335
    Abstract: Methods and apparatuses are disclosed that can combine audio content from two encoded input signals into a new encoded output signal without requiring a decode or re-encode of audio content in either encoded input signal. Encoded data representing audio content and spatial location of audio objects in two different input encoded signals are combined to generate an encoded output signal that has encoded data representing audio objects from both of the input encoded signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 21, 2016
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: S. Spencer Hooks, Freddie Sanchez
  • Publication number: 20150235645
    Abstract: In some embodiments, a method (typically performed by a game console) for generating an object based audio program indicative of game audio content (audio content pertaining to play of or events in a game, and optionally also other information regarding the game), and including at least one audio object channel and at least one speaker channel. In other embodiments, a game console configured to generate such an object based audio program. Some embodiments implement object clustering in which audio content of input objects is mixed to generate at least one clustered audio object, or audio content of at least one input object is mixed with speaker channel audio. In response to the program, a spatial rendering system (e.g., external to the game console) may operate with knowledge of playback speaker configuration to generate speaker feeds indicative of a spatial mix of the program's speaker and object channel content.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 6, 2013
    Publication date: August 20, 2015
    Applicant: DOLBY LABORATORIES LICENSING CORPORATION
    Inventors: S. Spencer Hooks, Nicolas R. Tsingos
  • Publication number: 20150228286
    Abstract: Methods and apparatuses are disclosed that can combine audio content from two encoded input signals into a new encoded output signal without requiring a decode or re-encode of audio content in either encoded input signal. Encoded data representing audio content and spatial location of audio objects in two different input encoded signals are combined to generate an encoded output signal that has encoded data representing audio objects from both of the input encoded signals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 26, 2013
    Publication date: August 13, 2015
    Applicant: DOLBY LABORATORIES LICENSING CORPORATION
    Inventors: S. Spencer Hooks, Freddie Sanchez
  • Publication number: 20150057779
    Abstract: Non-media data relating to real-world objects or persons are collected from a scene while media data from the same scene are collected. The media data comprise audio data only or audiovisual data, whereas the non-media data comprise telemetry data and/or non-telemetry data. Based at least in part on the non-media data relating to the real-world objects or persons in the scene, emitter-listener relationships between a listener and some or all of the real-world objects or persons are determined Audio objects comprising audio content portions and non-audio data portions are generated. At least one audio object is generated based at least in part on the emitter-listener relationships.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 16, 2014
    Publication date: February 26, 2015
    Applicant: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: Prinyar Saungsomboon, S. Spencer Hooks, Joshua Brandon Lando, Stewart Murrie, Eric Whelan Yeargan