18367266. SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION DEVICE, SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION METHOD, AND PROGRAM simplified abstract (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation)
SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION DEVICE, SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION METHOD, AND PROGRAM
Organization Name
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
Inventor(s)
Kimitaka Tsutsumi of Tokyo (JP)
Atsushi Nakadaira of Tokyo (JP)
SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION DEVICE, SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION METHOD, AND PROGRAM - A simplified explanation of the abstract
This abstract first appeared for US patent application 18367266 titled 'SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION DEVICE, SOUND IMAGE LOCALIZATION METHOD, AND PROGRAM
Simplified Explanation
The patent application describes a device that can localize sound images by controlling the directionality of the acoustic signals.
- The device includes a unit that designs a directivity control filter based on the desired directional characteristic of the sound.
- Another unit corrects the computed directivity control filter to improve its performance.
- A convolution operation unit then computes the output acoustic signal by convolving the input acoustic signal with the corrected directivity control filter.
- The device computes filters for each speaker in a speaker array to generate an acoustic beam with controlled directionality.
- The acoustic beam is reflected off a wall or ceiling to create a virtual sound source.
Potential Applications
- Surround sound systems for home theaters or gaming setups.
- Virtual reality or augmented reality audio systems.
- Conference room audio systems for improved sound localization during video conferences.
Problems Solved
- Traditional speaker systems may not provide accurate sound localization.
- Virtual sound sources are difficult to create without specialized equipment.
- Acoustic reflections can be challenging to control for accurate sound imaging.
Benefits
- Improved sound localization for a more immersive audio experience.
- Ability to create virtual sound sources for enhanced audio effects.
- Better control over acoustic reflections for accurate sound imaging.
Original Abstract Submitted
A sound image localizing device includes a directivity control filter design unit that computes a directivity control filter from a desired directional characteristic, a filter coefficient correction unit that corrects the directivity control filter computed by the directivity control filter design unit, and a convolution operation unit that computes an output acoustic signal by performing convolution of an input acoustic signal and the directivity control filter corrected by the filter coefficient correction unit. Filters that respectively correspond to speakers constituting a speaker array are computed by the directivity control filter design unit and the filter coefficient correction unit, an acoustic beam is generated using directivity control by the speaker array, and the acoustic beam is caused to be reflected from a wall surface or a ceiling to generate a virtual sound source.
