Method and apparatus for playback of a higher-order ambisonics audio signal

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10299062-B2
Application number	US-201615220766-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 27, 2016
Priority date	Mar 6, 2012
Publication date	May 21, 2019
Grant date	May 21, 2019

Abstract

A method for generating loudspeaker signals associated with a target screen size is disclosed. The method includes receiving a bit stream containing encoded higher order ambisonics signals, the encoded higher order ambisonics signals describing a sound field associated with a production screen size. The method further includes decoding the encoded higher order ambisonics signals to obtain a first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals representing dominant components of the sound field and a second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals representing ambient components of the sound field. The method also includes combining the first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals and the second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals to produce a combined set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for generating loudspeaker signals associated with a target screen size, the method comprising:
receiving a bit stream containing encoded higher order ambisonics signals, the encoded higher order ambisonics signals describing a sound field associated with a production screen size;
decoding the encoded higher order ambisonics signals to obtain a first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals representing dominant components of the sound field and a second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals representing ambient components of the sound field;
combining the first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals and the second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals to produce a combined set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals; and
generating the loudspeaker signals by rendering the combined set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals, wherein the rendering adapts in response to the production screen size and the target screen size.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving the target screen size or the production screen size as an angle from a reference listening location, wherein the angle is related to a width of the target screen.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving the target screen size or the production screen size as an angle, wherein the angle is related to a height of the target screen.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising receiving the target screen size or the production screen size as a first angle and a second angle, wherein the first angle is related to a width of the target screen and the second angle is related to a height of the target screen.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the rendering adapts in response to a ratio of the target screen size and the production screen size.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the rendering is performed in the space domain.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals has an ambisonics order that is less than an ambisonics order of the first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals and the second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals have an ambisonics order (O) equal to (N+1) 2 where N is the number of higher order ambisonics signals in the first set and second set, respectively, and wherein the second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals has an ambisonics order that is less than an ambisonics order of the first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals.

9. An apparatus for generating loudspeaker signals associated with a target screen size, the apparatus comprising:
a receiver for obtaining a bit stream containing encoded higher order ambisonics signals, the encoded higher order ambisonics signals describing a sound field associated with a production screen size;
an audio decoder for decoding the encoded higher order ambisonics signals to obtain a first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals representing dominant components of the sound field and a second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals representing ambient components of the sound field;
a combiner for integrating the first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals and the second set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals to produce a combined set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals; and
a generator for producing the loudspeaker signals by rendering the combined set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals, wherein the rendering adapts in response to the production screen size and the target screen size.

10. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing instructions that when executed by a processor perform the method of claim 1 .

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein only the first set of decoded higher order ambisonics signals is adapted in response to the production screen size and the target screen size.

Assignees

• Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corp

Inventors

• Jax Peter
• Boehm Johannes
• Redmann William

Classifications

• H04R5/00

  Stereophonic arrangements (stereophonic pick-ups H04R9/16, H04R11/12, H04R17/08, H04R19/10) · CPC title

• H04S2420/11

  Application of ambisonics in stereophonic audio systems · CPC title

• H04S7/302 Primary

  Electronic adaptation of stereophonic sound system to listener position or orientation (H04S7/301 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G10L19/008

  Multichannel audio signal coding or decoding using interchannel correlation to reduce redundancy, e.g. joint-stereo, intensity-coding or matrixing · CPC title

• H04S7/305

  Electronic adaptation of stereophonic audio signals to reverberation of the listening space (H04S7/301 takes precedence) · CPC title