Noise filtrations based on radar

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11810587-B2
Application number	US-201917419767-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 26, 2019
Priority date	Jul 26, 2019
Publication date	Nov 7, 2023
Grant date	Nov 7, 2023

Abstract

In example implementations, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes a microphone, a radar, a memory, and a processor in communication with the microphone, the radar, and the memory. The microphone is to receive audio signals. The radar is to collect data on users in a location. The memory is to store known body positions associated with having a side-conversation. The processor is to determine that a user is having a side-conversation based on the data collected by the radar compared to the known body positions associated with having a side-conversation and filter noise associated with the side-conversation received by the microphone from a direction associated with the user.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus, comprising:
a microphone to receive audio signals;
a radar to collect data on users in a location;
a memory to store known body positions associated with having a side-conversation; and
a processor in communication with the microphone, the radar, and the memory, wherein the processor is to:
determine that a user is having a side-conversation based on the data collected by the radar compared to the known body positions associated with having a side-conversation; and
filter noise associated with the side-conversation received by the microphone from a direction associated with the user.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the radar comprises a millimeter wave detection device that collect the data on the users in a 180 degree span.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the radar comprises two millimeter wave detection devices arranged back-to-back to collect the data on the users in a 360 degree span.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the data comprises an angle at which a user is sitting relative to the apparatus, a distance from the device, and a motion vector of the user.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the microphone comprises a plurality of microphones, wherein each one of the plurality of microphones is associated with an angular range.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is to filter out the noise by muting one of the plurality of microphones associated with the angular range that includes the direction associated with the user.

7. A method, comprising:
collecting radar data of users to determine positions of each one of the users;
comparing the positions of each one of the users to known body positions associated with having a side-conversation;
determining that a user is having a side-conversation; and
filtering noise associated with the side-conversation from an audio signal.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the filtering further comprises:
determining a direction of the user from the radar data; and
determining a microphone that is to receive audio signals in the direction of the user.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the filtering comprises removing the noise from the audio signal.

10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the filtering comprises muting the microphone.

11. The method of claim 7 , wherein the radar data comprises a plurality of signals associated with the user, wherein the plurality of signals provides an image of an approximate body position of the user.

12. The method of claim 7 , wherein the collecting comprises:
tracking a delta of the radar data of the users periodically; and
determining that the delta of the radar data for the user is below a threshold to begin the comparing.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium encoded with instructions executable by a processor, the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising:
instructions to determine when movement of users in a room are below a threshold;
instructions to collect radar data of users to determine positions of each one of the users in a room in response to the movement of the users being below the threshold;
instructions to determine that a user is having a side-conversation based on the position of the user matching a known body position associated with having a side-conversation; and
instructions to filter noise associated with the side-conversation from an audio signal.

14. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 13 , further comprising:
instructions to update the known body position associated with having a side-conversation over time from the radar data that is collected.

15. The non-transitory computer readable storage medium of claim 14 , wherein the known body position associated with having a side-conversation is stored in a remotely located server.

Assignees

• Hewlett Packard Development Co

Inventors

• Clark Alexander Wayne
• Lim Hui Leng
• So Chi

Classifications

• G10L21/0232 Primary

  Processing in the frequency domain · CPC title

• G01S13/726

  Multiple target tracking · CPC title

• G01S13/86

  Combinations of radar systems with non-radar systems, e.g. sonar, direction finder · CPC title

• G06F3/165

  Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path · CPC title

• H04M3/568

  audio processing specific to telephonic conferencing, e.g. spatial distribution, mixing of participants (echo suppression in two-way loud-speaking telephone systems H04M9/02; sound field processing per se H04S7/30) · CPC title