Audio reproduction system and method for reproducing audio data of at least one audio object

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9807533-B2
Application number	US-201414893738-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 26, 2014
Priority date	May 30, 2013
Publication date	Oct 31, 2017
Grant date	Oct 31, 2017

Abstract

An audio reproduction system for reproducing audio data of at least one audio object and/or at least one sound source of an acoustic scene in a given environment comprising:
at least two audio systems acting distantly apart from each other, wherein one of the audio systems is adapted to reproduce the audio object and/or the sound source in a first distance range to a listener and another of the audio systems is adapted to reproduce the audio object and/or the sound source in a second distance range to the listener, wherein the first and second distance ranges are different and possibly spaced apart from each other or placed adjacent to each other; and a panning information provider adapted to process at least one input to generate at least one panning information for each audio system to drive the at least two audio systems.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for reproducing audio data of at least one audio object and/or at least one sound source of an acoustic scene in a given environment by at least two audio systems acting distantly apart from each other comprising the following steps:
reproducing by one of the audio systems audio signals corresponding to the audio object and/or the sound source arranged in at least one first distance range to a listener and
reproducing by another of the audio systems audio signals corresponding to the audio object and/or the sound source arranged in at least one second distant range to the listener, wherein the first and second distant ranges are different and possibly spaced apart from each other or placed adjacent to each other; and
processing by a panning information provider of at least one input to generate at least one panning information for each audio system to differently drive the at least two audio systems, in particular to differently generate audio signals,
wherein as an input a position data of the position of the audio object and/or of the sound source in the acoustic scene are provided; and
wherein as the panning information at least one parameter, in particular a signal intensity and/or an angular position for the same audio object and/or the same sound source are generated for each audio system to differently drive the at least two audio systems, in particular to differently generate audio signals in such a manner that the same audio object and/or the same sound source is panned within at least one distance range and/or between two of the distance ranges of the audio systems; and
wherein the panning information is determined by at least one given distance effect function which represents the distance effect functions of the respective audio object and/or the respective sound source in a transfer range between the at least two distance ranges of the audio systems and/or within one of the distance ranges.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein as another input at least a metadata of the acoustic scene, of the environment, the audio object, the sound source and/or an effect slider are provided.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein at least one parameter of the panning information, in particular the signal intensity and/or an angular position of the same audio object and/or the same sound source for the at least two audio systems, are extracted from the metadata and/or the configuration settings of the audio systems and/or the audio data.

4. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the panning information are extracted from the metadata of the respective audio object and/or a time and/or a spot in the environment, in particular in a game scenario or in a room.

5. The method for reproducing audio data according to claim 1 , wherein the audio data corresponds to interactive gaming scenarios, software scenarios, theatre scenarios, music scenarios, concert scenarios, movie scenarios, process monitoring scenarios and/or manufacturing scenarios.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the angular position of the same audio object and/or the same sound source for the at least two audio systems are equal.

7. A method for reproducing audio data of at least one audio object and/or at least one sound source of an acoustic scene in a given environment by at least two audio systems acting distantly apart from each other comprising the following steps:
reproducing by one of the audio systems audio signals corresponding to the audio object and/or the sound source arranged in at least one first distance range to a listener and
reproducing by another of the audio systems audio signals corresponding to the audio object and/or the sound source arranged in at least one second distant range to the listener, wherein the first and second distant ranges are different and possibly spaced apart from each other or placed adjacent to each other; and
processing by a panning information provider of at least one input to generate at least one panning information for each audio system to differently drive the at least two audio systems, in particular to differently generate audio signals,
wherein as an input a position data of the position of the audio object and/or of the sound source in the acoustic scene are provided;
wherein as the panning information at least one parameter, in particular a signal intensity and/or an angular position for the same audio object and/or the same sound source are generated for each audio system to differently drive the at least two audio systems, in particular to differently generate audio signals in such a manner that the same audio object and/or the same sound source is panned within at least one distance range and/or between two of the distance ranges of the audio systems;
wherein as another input at least a metadata of the acoustic scene, of the environment, the audio object, the sound source and/or an effect slider are provided and
wherein number and/or dimensions of the distant ranges and/or transfer ranges are extracted from the configuration settings, distance ranges definitions and/or from the metadata.

8. The method for reproducing audio data according to claim 7 , wherein the audio data corresponds to interactive gaming scenarios, software scenarios, theatre scenarios, music scenarios, concert scenarios, movie scenarios, process monitoring scenarios and/or manufacturing scenarios.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having a computer program for executing the method according to claim 7 .

Assignees

• Barco Nv

Inventors

• Mehnert Markus
• Steffens Robert
• Döring Marko

Classifications

• H04S2420/01

  Enhancing the perception of the sound image or of the spatial distribution using head related transfer functions [HRTF's] or equivalents thereof, e.g. interaural time difference [ITD] or interaural level difference [ILD] · CPC title

• H04S2420/11

  Application of ambisonics in stereophonic audio systems · CPC title

• H04S3/002 Primary

  Non-adaptive circuits, e.g. manually adjustable or static, for enhancing the sound image or the spatial distribution (control circuits for electronic adaptation of the sound field H04S7/30) · CPC title

• H04S7/30

  Control circuits for electronic adaptation of the sound field · CPC title

• H04S2400/11

  Positioning of individual sound objects, e.g. moving airplane, within a sound field (H04S2420/13 takes precedence) · CPC title