Binaural audio capture using untethered wireless headset

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10419853-B2
Application number	US-201815901624-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 21, 2018
Priority date	Feb 21, 2018
Publication date	Sep 17, 2019
Grant date	Sep 17, 2019

Abstract

A wireless headset includes first and second wireless earphone devices, each including a microphone. The first earphone device assembles a first group of audio packets, each of which includes a first low-resolution clock value, a first high-resolution clock value, and a sequence of first microphone samples, and transmits the first plurality of audio packets to the second wireless earphone device, as a slave device of a first wireless network. The second earphone device receives the first group of audio packets from the first wireless earphone device, assembles a second group of audio packets, each of which includes a second low-resolution clock value, a second high-resolution clock value, and a sequence of second microphone samples, and transmits the first and second groups of audio packets to an external device. Other aspects are also described and claimed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A wireless headset comprising:
a first wireless earphone device that includes a first microphone; and
a second wireless earphone device that includes a second microphone;
wherein the first wireless earphone device is configured to
assemble a first plurality of audio packets, each of which includes a first low-resolution clock value, a first high-resolution clock value, and a plurality of first microphone samples, and
transmit, as a slave device of a first wireless network, the first plurality of audio packets to the second wireless earphone device;

wherein the second wireless earphone device is configured to
receive, as a master device of the first wireless network, the first plurality of audio packets from the first wireless earphone device,
assemble a second plurality of audio packets, each of which includes a second low-resolution clock value, a second high-resolution clock value, and a plurality of second microphone samples, and
transmit, as a slave device of a second wireless network, the first plurality of audio packets and the second plurality of audio packets to an external device.

2. The wireless headset of claim 1 , wherein the second low-resolution clock value is based on a second low-resolution clock that controls packet transmissions by a second wireless transceiver, and the first low-resolution clock value is based on a first low-resolution clock that i) is periodically synchronized with the second low-resolution clock and ii) controls packet transmissions by a first wireless transceiver.

3. The wireless headset of claim 2 , wherein the second low-resolution clock is periodically synchronized with an external low-resolution clock that controls packet transmissions by an external wireless transceiver included in the external device.

4. The wireless headset of claim 2 , wherein:
the first wireless earphone device further includes a first audio encoder that receives a signal from the first microphone and produces the plurality of first microphone samples at a rate controlled by a first audio clock; and
the second wireless earphone device further includes a second audio encoder that receives a signal from the second microphone and produces the plurality of second microphone samples at a rate controlled by a second audio clock;
wherein the first high-resolution clock value is based on the first audio clock and the second high-resolution clock value is based on the second audio clock.

5. The wireless headset of claim 4 , wherein the first audio clock is periodically synchronized with the first low-resolution clock, and the second audio clock is periodically synchronized with the second low-resolution clock.

6. The wireless headset of claim 2 , wherein:
the first wireless earphone device further includes a first wireless transceiver that is configured as the slave device of the first wireless network to transmit the first plurality of audio packets to the second wireless earphone device;
the second wireless earphone device further includes a second wireless transceiver that is configured as the master device of the first wireless network to receive the first plurality of audio packets from the first wireless earphone device, and that is configured as the slave device of the second wireless network to transmit the first plurality of audio packets and the second plurality of audio packets to the external device.

7. The wireless headset of claim 1 , wherein the first wireless earphone device is configured to be worn in a first ear of a user, and the second wireless earphone device is configured to be worn in a second ear of the user, such that the first microphone produces a first audio signal based on sound arriving at the first ear, and the second microphone produces a second audio signal based on sound arriving at the second ear.

8. A method of transmitting audio from microphones in a wireless headset, the method comprising:
assembling a first plurality of audio packets, each of which includes a first low-resolution clock value, a first high-resolution clock value, and a plurality of first microphone samples from a first microphone in a first wireless earphone device;
transmitting, as a slave device of a first wireless network, the first plurality of audio packets to a second wireless earphone device;
receiving the first plurality of audio packets from the first wireless earphone device by a second wireless earphone device acting as a master device of the first wireless network;
assembling a second plurality of audio packets, each of which includes a second low-resolution clock value, a second high-resolution clock value, and a plurality of second microphone samples from a second microphone in the second wireless earphone device; and
transmitting the first plurality of audio packets and the second plurality of audio packets to an external device by the second wireless earphone device acting as a slave device of a second wireless network.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the second low-resolution clock value is based on a second low-resolution clock that controls packet transmissions by a second wireless transceiver included in the second wireless earphone device, and the first low-resolution clock value is based on a first low-resolution clock included in the first wireless earphone device that is periodically synchronized with the second low-resolution clock and which controls packet transmissions by the first wireless transceiver.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein second low-resolution clock is periodically synchronized with an external low-resolution clock that controls packet transmissions by an external wireless transceiver included in the external device.

11. The method of claim 9 , further comprising:
encoding a signal from the first microphone to produce the plurality of first microphone samples at a rate controlled by a first audio clock; and
encoding a signal from the second microphone to produce the plurality of second microphone samples at a rate controlled by a second audio clock;
wherein the first high-resolution clock value is based on the first audio clock and the second high-resolution clock value is based on the second audio clock.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:
periodically synchronizing the first audio clock with the first low-resolution clock; and
periodically synchronizing the second audio clock with the second low-resolution clock.

13. A wireless headset comprising:
a first processor to assemble a first plurality of audio packets, each of which includes a first low-resolution clock value, a first high-resolution clock value, and a plurality of first microphone samples from a first microphone in a first wireless earphone device;
a first wireless transceiver to transmit, as a slave device of a first wireless network, the first plurality of audio packets to a second wireless earphone device;
a second wireless transceiver to receive, in a second wireless earphone device and while acting as a master of the first wireless network, the first plurality of audio packets from the first wireless earphone device; and
a second processor to assemble a second plurality of audio packets, each of which includes a second low-resolution clock value, a second high-resolution clock value, and a plurality of second microphone samples from a second microphone in the second wireless earphone device,
wherein the second wireless transceiver is to transmit, while acting as a slave device of a second wireless network, the first plurality of audio packets and the second plurality of audio packets to an external device.

14. The wireless headset of claim 13 ,

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Hariharan Sriram
• Paquier Baptiste P
• Allamanche Eric A
• Paycher Alon

Classifications

• H04R1/1008

  Earpieces of the supra-aural or circum-aural type · CPC title

• H04S2400/15

  Aspects of sound capture and related signal processing for recording or reproduction · CPC title

• H04R2420/07

  Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones · CPC title

• H04R5/027

  Spatial or constructional arrangements of microphones, e.g. in dummy heads · CPC title

• H04R3/005 Primary

  for combining the signals of two or more microphones (specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407) · CPC title