Audio system with configurable zones

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11265653-B2
Application number	US-202016799440-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 24, 2020
Priority date	Sep 26, 2014
Publication date	Mar 1, 2022
Grant date	Mar 1, 2022

Abstract

An audio system is described that includes one or more speaker arrays that emit sound corresponding to one or more pieces of sound program content into associated zones within a listening area. Using parameters of the audio system (e.g., locations of the speaker arrays and the audio sources), the zones, the users, the pieces of sound program content, and the listening area, one or more beam pattern attributes may be generated. The beam pattern attributes define a set of beams that are used to generate audio beams for channels of sound program content to be played in each zone. The beam pattern attributes may be updated as changes are detected within the listening environment. By adapting to these changing conditions, the audio system is capable of reproducing sound that accurately represents each piece of sound program content in various zones.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
receiving a first sound program content and a second sound program content designated to be played by a plurality of speakers within a listening area;
defining a first seating zone and a second seating zone within the listening area based on relative positions between one or more users and one or more objects within the listening area;
driving the plurality of speakers with one or more sets of audio attributes to generate and focus audio beams corresponding to the first sound program content to a first user in the first seating zone and the second sound program content to a second user in the second seating zone;
redefining the first seating zone to include the second user; and
driving the plurality of speakers with one or more sets of updated audio attributes to generate and focus audio beams corresponding to the first sound program content to the first user and the second user in the first seating zone and the second sound program content to the second seating zone.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein driving the plurality of speakers includes driving first one or more speakers to drive the first program content and second one or more speakers to drive the second sound program content, and further comprising determining one or more parameters describing the relative positions between the one or more users and the one or more objects within the listening area.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein determining the one or more parameters describing the relative positions between the one or more users and the one or more objects within the listening area includes determining a position of a seat within the listening area.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein determining the one or more parameters describing the relative positions between the one or more users and the one or more objects within the listening area is based on sensor data generated by one or more sensors.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the one or more sensors include a camera.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising generating the one or more sets of audio attributes based on one or more parameters describing a content type of the first sound program content.

7. The method of claim 6 further comprising determining the one or more parameters describing the content type of the first sound program content, wherein determining the content type of the first sound program content includes determining whether the content type is music, dialogue, or sound effects.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein redefining the first seating zone is in response to detecting movement of a user within the listening area.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of speakers includes a first speaker array and a second speaker array, and further comprising:
determining a layout of the first speaker array and the second speaker array, wherein the first speaker array and the second speaker array have respective speaker cabinets and are movable relative to each other within the listening area;
generating the one or more sets of audio beam attributes based on the determined layout; and
driving the first speaker array and the second speaker array with the one or more sets of audio beam pattern attributes such that each speaker array directs respective audio beams corresponding to one or more channels of the first sound program content and the second sound program content to the first seating zone and the second seating zone within the listening area.

10. An audio device, comprising:
an interface for receiving a sound program content designated to be played by a plurality of speakers in a listening area;
a hardware processor; and
a memory unit for storing instructions, which when executed by the hardware processor, causes the audio device to:
define a first seating zone and a second seating zone within the listening area based on relative positions between one or more users and one or more objects within the listening area;
drive the plurality of speakers with one or more sets of audio attributes to generate and focus audio beams corresponding to the first sound program content to a first user in the first seating zone and the second sound program content to a second user in the second seating zone,
redefine the first seating zone to include the second user, and
drive the plurality of speakers with one or more sets of updated audio attributes to generate and focus audio beams corresponding to the first sound program content to the first user and the second user in the first seating zone and the second sound program content to the second seating zone.

11. The audio device of claim 10 , wherein driving the plurality of speakers includes driving first one or more speakers to drive the first program content and second one or more speakers to drive the second sound program content, and further comprising determining one or more parameters describing the relative positions between the one or more users and the one or more objects within the listening area.

12. The audio device of claim 11 , wherein determining the one or more parameters describing the relative positions between the one or more users and the one or more objects within the listening area includes determining a position of a seat within the listening area.

13. The audio device of claim 11 , wherein determining the one or more parameters describing the relative positions between the one or more users and the one or more objects within the listening area is based on sensor data generated by one or more sensors.

14. The audio device of claim 13 , wherein the one or more sensors include a camera.

15. The audio device of claim 11 further comprising generating the one or more sets of audio attributes based on one or more parameters describing a content type of the first sound program content.

16. The audio device of claim 15 further comprising determining the one or more parameters describing the content type of the sound program content, wherein determining the content type of the sound program content includes determining whether the content type is music, dialogue, or sound effects.

17. The audio device of claim 10 , wherein redefining the first seating zone is in response to detecting movement of a user within the listening area.

18. The audio device of claim 10 , wherein the plurality of speakers includes a first speaker array and a second speaker array, and further comprising:
determining a layout of the first speaker array and the second speaker array, wherein the first speaker array and the second speaker array have respective speaker cabinets and are movable relative to each other within the listening area;
generating the one or more sets of audio beam attributes based on the determined layout; and
driving the first speaker array and the second speaker array with the one or more sets of audio beam pattern attributes such that each speaker array directs respective audio beams corresponding to one or more channels of the first sound program content and the second sound program content to the first seating zone and the second seating zone within the listening area.

19. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions, which when executed by one or more processors of an audio device, cause the audio device to perform a method comprising:
receiving a first sound program content and a second sound program content designated to be played by a plurality of speakers within a listening area;
defining a first seating zone and a second seating zone within the listening area

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Family Afrooz
• Bidmead Anthony P
• Wang Erik L
• Geaves Gary P
• Johnson Martin E
• Brown Matthew I
• Howes Michael B
• Choisel Sylvain J
• Holman Tomlinson M

Classifications

• G10L19/008

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

• H04S7/303

  Tracking of listener position or orientation · CPC title

• H04S7/302

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

• H04R27/00

  Public address systems (circuits for preventing acoustic reaction H04R3/02; circuits for distributing signals to loudspeakers H04R3/12; {monitoring or testing arrangements for public address systems H04R29/007}; amplifiers H03F) · CPC title

• H04R3/12 Primary

  for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers {(specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407)} · CPC title