Clock rate adjustment in a multi-zone system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10157034-B2
Application number	US-201314058166-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 18, 2013
Priority date	Jul 28, 2003
Publication date	Dec 18, 2018
Grant date	Dec 18, 2018

Abstract

Clock rate adjustment methods and systems, including receiving, by a playback device from a source device, a plurality of frames, including a first frame and a second frame, each frame being associated with audio information and a time indicating when to play the audio information wherein the time is based on the clock of the source device; determining, by the playback device an expected time value for a third frame; comparing, by the playback device, the expected time value to the time indicating when to play the audio information associated with the third frame; and when the difference between the expected time value and the time indicating when to play the audio information is above a threshold level, adjusting, by the playback device, a rate of a digital to analog converter clock associated with the playback device.

First claim

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A method performed by a playback device, the method comprising:
receiving a plurality of frames from a source device, wherein the plurality of frames includes a first frame, wherein individual frames of the plurality of frames comprise audio information and a playback time indicating when to play the audio information of the individual frames, and wherein the playback time for individual frames is based on a device clock of the source device;
based on at least the first frame, determining an expected playback time for a second frame of the plurality of frames;
determining a difference between the expected playback time for the second frame to a playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device; and
when the difference between the expected playback time and the playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device is above a threshold, adjusting a rate of a digital to analog converter clock associated with the playback device without synchronizing a rate of a device clock associated with the playback device to a rate of the device clock of the source device.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises:
when the difference between the expected playback time and the playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device is below the threshold, maintaining the rate of the digital to analog converter clock.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the audio information in individual frames of the plurality of frames has a number of samples and is associated with a sampling rate, and wherein the expected playback time for the audio information in an individual frame is further determined by the playback device based on the sampling rate and the number of samples.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
periodically receiving a message from the source device, the message including clock timing information associated with the device clock of the source device; and
wherein the expected playback time for the audio information in an individual frame is further determined based on the clock timing information associated with the device clock of the source device included in the message.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the source device comprises a second playback device.

6. The method of claim 5 , further comprising:
using updated playback time to play the audio information in synchrony with the source device.

7. A tangible, non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause a playback device to:
receive a plurality of frames from a source device, wherein the plurality of frames includes a first frame, wherein individual frames of the plurality of frames comprise audio information and a playback time indicating when to play the audio information of the individual frames, wherein the playback time is based on a device clock of the source device;
based on the first frame, determine an expected playback time for a second frame of the plurality of frames;
determining a difference between the expected playback time for the second frame to the playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device; and
when the difference between the expected playback time and the playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device is above a threshold level, adjust a rate of a digital to analog converter clock associated with the playback device without synchronizing a rate of a device clock associated with the playback device to a rate of the device clock of the source device.

8. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the playback device to:
maintain the rate of the digital to analog converter clock when the difference between the expected playback time and the playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device is below the threshold level.

9. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7 , wherein the audio information in individual frames of the plurality of frames has a number of samples and is associated with a sampling rate, and wherein the expected playback time for the audio information in an individual frame is further determined by the playback device based on the sampling rate and the number of samples.

10. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 7 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the playback device to:
periodically receive a message from the source device, the message including clock timing information associated with the device clock of the source device; and
wherein the expected playback time for the audio information in an individual frame is further determined based on the clock timing information associated with the device clock of the source device included in the message.

11. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10 , wherein the source device comprises a playback device.

12. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the playback device to:
compute a time differential between the device clock of the source device and the digital to analog converter clock of the playback device, wherein the digital to analog converter clock of the playback device is independent from the device clock of the source device; and
generating an updated playback time for an individual frame based on the playback time of the individual frame and the time differential.

13. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the playback device to:
use the updated playback time to play the audio information in synchrony with the source device.

14. A playback device comprising:
one or more processors; and
tangible, non-transitory computer-readable memory comprising instructions encoded therein, wherein the instructions, when executed cause the playback device to perform a method comprising:
receiving a plurality of frames from a source device, wherein the plurality of frames includes a first frame, wherein individual frames of the plurality of frames comprise audio information and a playback time indicating when to play the audio information of the individual frames, and wherein the playback time for individual frames is based on a device clock of the source device;
based on at least the first frame, determining an expected playback time for a second frame of the plurality of frames;
determining a difference between the expected playback time for the second frame to a playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device; and
when the difference between the expected playback time and the playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source device is above a threshold level, adjusting a rate of a digital to analog converter clock associated with the playback device without synchronizing a rate of a device clock associated with the playback device to a rate of the device clock of the source device.

15. The playback device of claim 14 , wherein the method further comprises:
when the difference between the expected playback time and the playback time for the audio information of the second frame received from the source de

Assignees

• Sonos Inc

Inventors

• Millington Nicholas A J

Classifications

• G11B2020/10592

  specifically adapted for recording or reproducing multichannel signals · CPC title

• H04L69/28

  Timers or timing mechanisms used in protocols · CPC title

• G06F3/0482

  Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus · CPC title

• H04N5/04

  Synchronising (for television systems using pulse code modulation H04N7/56) · CPC title

• H04W84/20

  Leader-follower arrangements · CPC title