Electronic device for providing audio service, and operating method thereof

Abstract

According to an embodiment, an electronic device (101) comprises: a communication circuit (190); one or more processors (120) including processing circuitry; and a memory (130) including instructions, wherein the instructions, when executed by the one or more processors individually or collectively, may cause the electronic device to: in a first section, receive a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and receive a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204) through the communication circuit; identify that a packet loss has occurred in the first channel; identify whether inter-channel similarity of the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value on the basis of identifying that the packet loss has occurred in the first channel; and on the basis of identifying that the inter-channel similarity is greater than the first threshold value, restore the signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to the signal of the second channel received in the first section. Other embodiments may be possible.

Description

Electronic device providing audio service and method of operation thereof

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an electronic device providing audio service and an operating method thereof.

[0002] With the recent advancement of information and communication technology, various wireless communication technologies and services are being developed. Bluetooth, a short-range communication method, is actively used, and electronic devices utilizing Bluetooth are also widely used. A pair of earbuds, each worn on the user's ear, are widely used as ear-wearable devices. Ear-wearable devices can provide various functions. For example, ear-wearable devices can input and identify the user's voice using a microphone, transmit audio data related to the user's voice to an electronic device (e.g., a smartphone), and output audio data received from the electronic device using a speaker.

[0003] One embodiment of the present disclosure may provide an electronic device for providing audio service and a method of operating the same.

[0004] One embodiment of the present disclosure may provide an electronic device and an operating method thereof that, when an RLF occurs in at least one of the communication links between electronic devices providing an audio service, restores data received through a communication link in which an RLF occurred based on data received through another communication link in which an RLF did not occur.

[0005] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device (101) is provided, which may include a communication circuit (190), one or more processors (120) including processing circuitry, and a memory (130) including instructions.

[0006] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors, may cause the electronic device to receive, in a first period, a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and to receive a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204) through the communication circuit.

[0007] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors, may cause the electronic device to determine that packet loss has occurred on the first channel.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors, may cause the electronic device to determine whether a channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that a packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors, may cause the electronic device to restore the signal of the first channel received in the first interval by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to the signal of the second channel received in the first interval based on determining that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method of operating an electronic device (101) is provided, the method including, in a first section, an operation of receiving a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and receiving a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204).

[0011] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of confirming that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of determining whether a channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0013] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to a signal of the second channel received in the first section based on determining that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a storage medium storing at least one computer-readable instruction may be provided.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one instruction, when executed by one or more processors (120) including processing circuitry of the electronic device (101), may cause the electronic device (101) to perform at least one operation.

[0016] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include, in the first section, receiving a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and receiving a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204).

[0017] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include an operation of confirming that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0018] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include an operation of determining whether a channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that a packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0019] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to a signal of the second channel received in the first section based on determining that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

[0020] FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device within a network environment according to one embodiment.

[0021] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of connections between electronic devices based on the Bluetooth method in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0022] FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a first external electronic device (202) in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0023] FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device (101) in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0024] Figure 5 is a drawing for explaining ILD.

[0025] Figure 6 is a drawing for explaining ITD.

[0026] Figure 7 is a drawing for explaining a transient signal detection method.

[0027] Fig. 8 is a diagram for explaining a method of restoring an audio signal based on a PLC method between channels.

[0028] Fig. 9 is a diagram for explaining a method of restoring an audio signal based on a PLC method within a channel.

[0029] FIG. 10 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device (101) and a first external electronic device (202) in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0030] FIG. 11 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operation method of an electronic device according to an embodiment when packet loss occurs.

[0031] FIG. 12 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0032] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. In addition, when describing an embodiment of the present disclosure, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known function or configuration may unnecessarily obscure the gist of an embodiment of the present disclosure, such detailed description will be omitted. In addition, the terms described below are terms defined in consideration of the functions in an embodiment of the present disclosure, and these may vary depending on the intention or custom of the user or operator. Therefore, the definitions should be made based on the contents throughout this specification.

[0033] It should be noted that the technical terms used in this specification are merely used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present disclosure. Alternatively, unless specifically defined otherwise herein, the technical terms used in this specification should be interpreted as having a meaning generally understood by a person skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains, and should not be interpreted in an excessively broad or narrow sense. Alternatively, if a technical term used in this specification is an incorrect technical term that does not accurately express the spirit of the present disclosure, it should be replaced with a technical term that can be correctly understood by a person skilled in the art. Alternatively, general terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure should be interpreted as defined in the dictionary or according to the context, and should not be interpreted in an excessively narrow sense.

[0034] Alternatively, the singular expressions used herein include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this application, terms such as "consist of" or "comprises" should not be construed to necessarily include all of the various components or various operations described in the specification, and should be construed to mean that some of the components or some of the operations may not be included, or that additional components or operations may be included.

[0035] Alternatively, terms including ordinal numbers, such as "first," "second," etc., used herein may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used solely to distinguish one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, a first component could be referred to as a "second component," and similarly, a second component could also be referred to as a "first component."

[0036] When a component is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another component, it may be directly connected or connected to that other component, but there may also be other components intervening. Conversely, when a component is referred to as being "directly connected" or "connected" to another component, it should be understood that there are no other components intervening.

[0037] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Regardless of the drawing numbers, identical or similar components will be given the same reference numbers and redundant descriptions thereof will be omitted. Alternatively, when describing an embodiment of the present disclosure, if a detailed description of a related known technology is determined to obscure the gist of the present disclosure, the detailed description thereof will be omitted. Alternatively, it should be noted that the attached drawings are only intended to facilitate easy understanding of the spirit of the present disclosure and should not be construed as limiting the spirit of the present disclosure by the attached drawings. The spirit of the present disclosure should be construed to extend to all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes other than the attached drawings.

[0038] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will describe an electronic device, but the electronic device may be referred to as a terminal, a mobile station, mobile equipment (ME), user equipment (UE), user terminal (UT), subscriber station (SS), wireless device, handheld device, or access terminal (AT). Alternatively, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the electronic device may be a device having a communication function, such as a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a wireless MODEM, or a laptop.

[0039] Alternatively, in specifically describing one embodiment of the present disclosure, reference will be made to the Bluetooth standard defined by the Bluetooth SIG (special interest group), but the main gist of the present disclosure can be applied to other communication systems having similar technical backgrounds with slight modifications within a range that does not significantly deviate from the scope of the present disclosure, and this will be possible at the discretion of a person skilled in the art of the present disclosure.

[0040] FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device (101) within a network environment (100) according to one embodiment.

[0041] Referring to FIG. 1, in a network environment (100), an electronic device (101) may communicate with an electronic device (102) via a first network (198) (e.g., a short-range wireless communication network), or may communicate with an electronic device (104) or a server (108) via a second network (199) (e.g., a long-range wireless communication network). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may communicate with the electronic device (104) via the server (108). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may include a processor (120), a memory (130), an input module (150), an audio output module (155), a display module (160), an audio module (170), a sensor module (176), an interface (177), a connection terminal (178), a haptic module (179), a camera module (180), a power management module (188), a battery (189), a communication module (190), a subscriber identification module (196), or an antenna module (197). In some embodiments, the electronic device (101) may omit at least one of these components (e.g., the connection terminal (178)), or may have one or more other components added. In some embodiments, some of these components (e.g., the sensor module (176), the camera module (180), or the antenna module (197)) may be integrated into one component (e.g., the display module (160)).

[0042] The processor (120) may control at least one other component (e.g., a hardware or software component) of the electronic device (101) connected to the processor (120) by executing, for example, software (e.g., a program (140)), and may perform various data processing or calculations. According to one embodiment, as at least a part of the data processing or calculation, the processor (120) may store a command or data received from another component (e.g., a sensor module (176) or a communication module (190)) in a volatile memory (132), process the command or data stored in the volatile memory (132), and store the resulting data in a non-volatile memory (134). According to one embodiment, the processor (120) may include a main processor (121) (e.g., a central processing unit or an application processor) or a secondary processor (123) (e.g., a graphics processing unit, a neural processing unit (NPU), an image signal processor, a sensor hub processor, or a communication processor) that can operate independently or together therewith. For example, if the electronic device (101) includes a main processor (121) and a secondary processor (123), the secondary processor (123) may be configured to use less power than the main processor (121) or to be specialized for a specified function. The secondary processor (123) may be implemented separately from the main processor (121) or as a part thereof.

[0043] The auxiliary processor (123) may control at least a part of functions or states associated with at least one component (e.g., a display module (160), a sensor module (176), or a communication module (190)) of the electronic device (101), for example, on behalf of the main processor (121) while the main processor (121) is in an inactive (e.g., sleep) state, or together with the main processor (121) while the main processor (121) is in an active (e.g., application execution) state. In one embodiment, the auxiliary processor (123) (e.g., an image signal processor or a communication processor) may be implemented as a part of another functionally related component (e.g., a camera module (180) or a communication module (190)). In one embodiment, the auxiliary processor (123) (e.g., a neural network processing device) may include a hardware structure specialized for processing an artificial intelligence model. The artificial intelligence model may be generated through machine learning. This learning can be performed, for example, in the electronic device (101) itself where artificial intelligence is performed, or can be performed through a separate server (e.g., server (108)). The learning algorithm can include, for example, supervised learning, unsupervised learning, semi-supervised learning, or reinforcement learning, but is not limited to the examples described above. The artificial intelligence model can include multiple artificial neural network layers.The artificial neural network may be one of a deep neural network (DNN), a convolutional neural network (CNN), a recurrent neural network (RNN), a restricted Boltzmann machine (RBM), a deep belief network (DBN), a bidirectional recurrent deep neural network (BRDNN), a deep Q-network, or a combination of two or more of the above, but is not limited to the examples described above. In addition to, or alternatively to, a hardware structure, an artificial intelligence model may include a software structure.

[0044] The memory (130) can store various data used by at least one component (e.g., processor (120) or sensor module (176)) of the electronic device (101). The data can include, for example, software (e.g., program (140)) and input data or output data for commands related thereto. The memory (130) can include volatile memory (132) or non-volatile memory (134).

[0045] The program (140) may be stored as software in memory (130) and may include, for example, an operating system (142), middleware (144), or an application (146).

[0046] The input module (150) can receive commands or data to be used in a component of the electronic device (101) (e.g., a processor (120)) from an external source (e.g., a user) of the electronic device (101). The input module (150) can include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, a keyboard, a key (e.g., a button), or a digital pen (e.g., a stylus pen).

[0047] The audio output module (155) can output audio signals to the outside of the electronic device (101). The audio output module (155) can include, for example, a speaker or a receiver. The speaker can be used for general purposes, such as multimedia playback or recording playback. The receiver can be used to receive incoming calls. According to one embodiment, the receiver can be implemented separately from the speaker or as part of the speaker.

[0048] The display module (160) can visually provide information to an external party (e.g., a user) of the electronic device (101). The display module (160) may include, for example, a display, a holographic device, or a projector and a control circuit for controlling the device. In one embodiment, the display module (160) may include a touch sensor configured to detect a touch, or a pressure sensor configured to measure the intensity of a force generated by the touch.

[0049] The audio module (170) can convert sound into an electrical signal, or vice versa, convert an electrical signal into sound. According to one embodiment, the audio module (170) can acquire sound through the input module (150), output sound through the sound output module (155), or an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102)) (e.g., speaker or headphone) directly or wirelessly connected to the electronic device (101).

[0050] The sensor module (176) can detect the operating status (e.g., power or temperature) of the electronic device (101) or the external environmental status (e.g., user status) and generate an electrical signal or data value corresponding to the detected status. According to one embodiment, the sensor module (176) can include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyro sensor, a barometric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an IR (infrared) sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illuminance sensor.

[0051] The interface (177) may support one or more designated protocols that may be used to directly or wirelessly connect the electronic device (101) with an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102)). In one embodiment, the interface (177) may include, for example, a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI), a universal serial bus (USB) interface, an SD card interface, or an audio interface.

[0052] The connection terminal (178) may include a connector through which the electronic device (101) may be physically connected to an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102)). According to one embodiment, the connection terminal (178) may include, for example, an HDMI connector, a USB connector, an SD card connector, or an audio connector (e.g., a headphone connector).

[0053] A haptic module (179) can convert electrical signals into mechanical stimuli (e.g., vibration or movement) or electrical stimuli that a user can perceive through tactile or kinesthetic sensations. According to one embodiment, the haptic module (179) can include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectric element, or an electrical stimulation device.

[0054] The camera module (180) can capture still images and videos. According to one embodiment, the camera module (180) may include one or more lenses, image sensors, image signal processors, or flashes.

[0055] The power management module (188) can manage power supplied to the electronic device (101). According to one embodiment, the power management module (188) can be implemented as, for example, at least a part of a power management integrated circuit (PMIC).

[0056] A battery (189) may power at least one component of the electronic device (101). In one embodiment, the battery (189) may include, for example, a non-rechargeable primary battery, a rechargeable secondary battery, or a fuel cell.

[0057] The communication module (190) may support the establishment of a direct (e.g., wired) communication channel or a wireless communication channel between the electronic device (101) and an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102), electronic device (104), or server (108)), and the performance of communication through the established communication channel. The communication module (190) may operate independently from the processor (120) (e.g., application processor) and may include one or more communication processors that support direct (e.g., wired) communication or wireless communication. According to one embodiment, the communication module (190) may include a wireless communication module (192) (e.g., a cellular communication module, a short-range wireless communication module, or a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communication module (194) (e.g., a local area network (LAN) communication module, or a power line communication module). Among these communication modules, the corresponding communication module can communicate with an external electronic device (104) via a first network (198) (e.g., a short-range communication network such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) direct, or IrDA (infrared data association)) or a second network (199) (e.g., a long-range communication network such as a legacy cellular network, a 5G network, a next-generation communication network, the Internet, or a computer network (e.g., a LAN or WAN)). These various types of communication modules can be integrated into a single component (e.g., a single chip) or implemented as a plurality of separate components (e.g., multiple chips). The wireless communication module (192) can verify or authenticate the electronic device (101) within a communication network such as the first network (198) or the second network (199) by using subscriber information (e.g., an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI)) stored in the subscriber identification module (196).

[0058] The wireless communication module (192) can support 5G networks and next-generation communication technologies following the 4G network, such as NR access technology (new radio access technology). The NR access technology can support high-speed transmission of high-capacity data (eMBB (enhanced mobile broadband)), minimization of terminal power and connection of multiple terminals (mMTC (massive machine type communications)), or high reliability and low latency (URLLC (ultra-reliable and low-latency communications)). The wireless communication module (192) can support, for example, a high-frequency band (e.g., mmWave band) to achieve a high data transmission rate. The wireless communication module (192) can support various technologies for securing performance in a high-frequency band, such as beamforming, massive multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO), full dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antenna, analog beam-forming, or large scale antenna. The wireless communication module (192) can support various requirements specified in the electronic device (101), an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (104)), or a network system (e.g., the second network (199)). According to one embodiment, the wireless communication module (192) can support a peak data rate (e.g., 20 Gbps or more) for eMBB realization, a loss coverage (e.g., 164 dB or less) for mMTC realization, or a U-plane latency (e.g., 0.5 ms or less for downlink (DL) and uplink (UL), or 1 ms or less for round trip) for URLLC realization.

[0059] The antenna module (197) can transmit or receive signals or power to or from an external device (e.g., an external electronic device). According to one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may include an antenna including a radiator formed of a conductor or a conductive pattern formed on a substrate (e.g., a PCB). According to one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may include a plurality of antennas (e.g., an array antenna). In this case, at least one antenna suitable for a communication method used in a communication network, such as the first network (198) or the second network (199), may be selected from the plurality of antennas, for example, by the communication module (190). A signal or power may be transmitted or received between the communication module (190) and an external electronic device via the selected at least one antenna. According to some embodiments, in addition to the radiator, another component (e.g., a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC)) may be additionally formed as a part of the antenna module (197).

[0060] In one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may form a mmWave antenna module. In one embodiment, the mmWave antenna module may include a printed circuit board, an RFIC disposed on or adjacent a first side (e.g., a bottom side) of the printed circuit board and capable of supporting a designated high-frequency band (e.g., a mmWave band), and a plurality of antennas (e.g., an array antenna) disposed on or adjacent a second side (e.g., a top side or a side side) of the printed circuit board and capable of transmitting or receiving signals in the designated high-frequency band.

[0061] At least some of the above components can be interconnected and exchange signals (e.g., commands or data) with each other via a communication method between peripheral devices (e.g., a bus, GPIO (general purpose input and output), SPI (serial peripheral interface), or MIPI (mobile industry processor interface)).

[0062] According to one embodiment, commands or data may be transmitted or received between the electronic device (101) and an external electronic device (104) via a server (108) connected to a second network (199). Each of the external electronic devices (102 or 104) may be the same or a different type of device as the electronic device (101). According to one embodiment, all or part of the operations executed in the electronic device (101) may be executed in one or more of the external electronic devices (102, 104, or 108). For example, when the electronic device (101) is to perform a certain function or service automatically or in response to a request from a user or another device, the electronic device (101) may, instead of or in addition to executing the function or service itself, request one or more external electronic devices to perform the function or at least a part of the service. One or more external electronic devices that receive the request may execute at least a portion of the requested function or service, or an additional function or service related to the request, and transmit the result of the execution to the electronic device (101). The electronic device (101) may process the result as is or additionally and provide it as at least a portion of a response to the request. For this purpose, cloud computing, distributed computing, mobile edge computing (MEC), or client-server computing technology may be used, for example. The electronic device (101) may provide an ultra-low latency service by using distributed computing or mobile edge computing, for example. In one embodiment, the external electronic device (104) may include an Internet of Things (IoT) device. The server (108) may be an intelligent server using machine learning and / or a neural network. According to one embodiment, the external electronic device (104) or the server (108) may be included in the second network (199).The electronic device (101) can be applied to intelligent services (e.g., smart home, smart city, smart car, or healthcare) based on 5G communication technology and IoT-related technology.

[0063] Electronic devices according to embodiments disclosed herein may take various forms. Electronic devices may include, for example, portable communication devices (e.g., smartphones), computer devices, portable multimedia devices, portable medical devices, cameras, wearable devices, or home appliances. Electronic devices according to embodiments disclosed herein are not limited to the aforementioned devices.

[0064] The embodiments of this document and the terminology used herein are not intended to limit the technical features described in this document to specific embodiments, but should be understood to include various modifications, equivalents, or substitutes of the embodiments. In connection with the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals may be used for similar or related components. The singular form of a noun corresponding to an item may include one or more of the items, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this document, each of the phrases "A or B", "at least one of A and B", "at least one of A or B", "A, B, or C", "at least one of A, B, and C", and "at least one of A, B, or C" can include any one of the items listed together in the corresponding phrase among those phrases, or all possible combinations thereof. Terms such as "first," "second," or "first" or "second" may be used merely to distinguish one component from another, and do not limit the components in any other respect (e.g., importance or order). When a component (e.g., a first component) is referred to as "coupled" or "connected" to another (e.g., a second component), with or without the terms "functionally" or "communicatively," it means that the component can be connected to the other component directly (e.g., wired), wirelessly, or through a third component.

[0065] The term "module" used in one embodiment of this document may include a unit implemented in hardware, software, or firmware, and may be used interchangeably with terms such as logic, logic block, component, or circuit. A module may be an integral component, or a minimum unit or part of such a component that performs one or more functions. For example, according to one embodiment, a module may be implemented in the form of an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

[0066] An embodiment of the present document may be implemented as software (e.g., a program (140)) including one or more instructions stored in a storage medium (e.g., an internal memory (136) or an external memory (138)) readable by a machine (e.g., an electronic device (101)). For example, a processor (e.g., a processor (120)) of the machine (e.g., an electronic device (101)) may call at least one instruction among the one or more instructions stored from the storage medium and execute it. This enables the machine to operate to perform at least one function according to the at least one called instruction. The one or more instructions may include code generated by a compiler or code executable by an interpreter. The machine-readable storage medium may be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Here, 'non-transitory' simply means that the storage medium is a tangible device and does not contain signals (e.g., electromagnetic waves), and the term does not distinguish between cases where data is stored semi-permanently or temporarily on the storage medium.

[0067] According to one embodiment, the method according to one embodiment disclosed in the present document may be provided as a computer program product. The computer program product may be traded between sellers and buyers as a product. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a device-readable storage medium (e.g., compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)) or may be provided through an application store (e.g., Play Store). TM ) or directly between two user devices (e.g., smartphones), online distribution (e.g., downloading or uploading). In the case of online distribution, at least a portion of the computer program product may be at least temporarily stored or temporarily created in a machine-readable storage medium, such as the memory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or an intermediary server.

[0068] According to one embodiment, each component (e.g., a module or a program) of the above-described components may include one or more entities, and some of the entities may be separated and placed in other components. According to one embodiment, one or more components or operations of the aforementioned components may be omitted, or one or more other components or operations may be added. Alternatively or additionally, a plurality of components (e.g., a module or a program) may be integrated into a single component. In such a case, the integrated component may perform one or more functions of each of the plurality of components identically or similarly to those performed by the corresponding component among the plurality of components prior to the integration. According to one embodiment, the operations performed by a module, program, or other component may be executed sequentially, in parallel, iteratively, or heuristically, or one or more of the operations may be executed in a different order, omitted, or one or more other operations may be added.

[0069] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of connections between electronic devices based on the Bluetooth method in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0070] Referring to FIG. 2, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1) may be wirelessly connected to an ear-wearable device (210) (e.g., the electronic device (102) of FIG. 1). In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may include a smart phone. The ear-wearable device (210) may include a first external electronic device (202) (e.g., a left ear bud) and a second external electronic device (204) (e.g., a right ear bud).

[0071] In one embodiment, it is assumed that the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) are included in the ear wearable device (210), but the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may include any electronic device that can operate as a pair, not just the ear wearable device (210). According to one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may be implemented to include identical or similar configurations.

[0072] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each other and transmit and / or receive data with each other. For example, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may establish a communication link based on a short-range communication method such as Wi-Fi and / or Bluetooth, but the method by which the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) establish a communication link is not limited to at least one of the Wi-Fi and / or Bluetooth methods.

[0073] In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may establish a communication link with only one of the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204), or may establish a communication link with each of the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204).

[0074] In one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) can establish a communication link based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method, but the method by which the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) establish a communication link is not limited to at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0075] In one embodiment, one of the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may be a central device (or primary device, or main device), and the other may be a peripheral device (or secondary device). The device operating as the central device may transmit data to the device operating as the peripheral device. For example, when the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) establish a communication link with each other, one of the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may be randomly selected as the central device, and the other may be selected as the peripheral device.

[0076] The first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may communicate directly or indirectly with the third external electronic device (200). In one embodiment, the third external electronic device (200) may be an ear buds case device that stores and charges the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204).

[0077] FIG. 3 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a first external electronic device (202) in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0078] Referring to FIG. 3, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1 or FIG. 2) may be wirelessly connected to an ear wearable device (e.g., the electronic device (102) of FIG. 1 or the ear wearable device (210) of FIG. 2). In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may be a smart phone, and the ear wearable device may include a first external electronic device (202) (e.g., the first external electronic device (202) of FIG. 2) (e.g., a left earbud) and a second external electronic device (204) (e.g., the second external electronic device (204) of FIG. 2) (e.g., a light earbud).

[0079] Although FIG. 3 illustrates a case where the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) are each implemented as earbuds, the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may also be implemented as various types of devices (e.g., a smart watch, a head-mounted display device, or devices for measuring biosignals (e.g., an electrocardiogram patch)) that may include at least one electrode and sensor device described below. According to an embodiment, when the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) are each implemented as earbuds, the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may form a pair. According to an embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may be implemented to include the same or similar configurations.

[0080] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each other and transmit and / or receive data with each other. For example, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) may establish a communication link using at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method, but the method by which the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) establish a communication link is not limited to at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0081] In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may establish a communication link with only one of the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) (e.g., a central earbud), or may establish communication links with both the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204).

[0082] In one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) can establish a communication link based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method, but the method by which the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204) establish a communication link is not limited to at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0083] In one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) may include components that are substantially identical to or similar to at least one of the components (e.g., modules) of the electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1 ). The first external electronic device (202) may include a communication circuit (320) (e.g., the communication module (190) of FIG. 1), an input device (330) (e.g., the input module (150) of FIG. 1), a sensor (340) (e.g., the sensor module (176) of FIG. 1), an audio processing module (350) (e.g., the audio module (170) of FIG. 1), a memory (390) (e.g., the memory (130) of FIG. 1), a power management module (360) (e.g., the power management module (188) of FIG. 1), a battery (370) (e.g., the battery (189) of FIG. 1), an interface (380) (e.g., the interface (177) of FIG. 1), and / or a processor (310) (e.g., the processor (120) of FIG. 1).

[0084] According to one embodiment, the communication circuit (320) may include at least one of a wireless communication module (e.g., a Bluetooth communication module, a cellular communication module, a wireless-fidelity (Wi-Fi) communication module, a near field communication (NFC) communication module, or a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communication module (e.g., a local area network (LAN) communication module, and / or a power line communication (PLC) communication module).

[0085] The communication circuit (320) can communicate directly or indirectly with at least one of the electronic device (101), the third electronic device (200), or the second external electronic device (204) through a first network (e.g., the first network (198) of FIG. 1) using at least one communication module included therein. The second external electronic device (204) can be configured as a pair with the first external electronic device (202). The communication circuit (320) can operate independently from the processor (310) and can include one or more communication processors that support wired or wireless communication.

[0086] According to one embodiment, the communication circuit (320) may be connected to one or more antennas capable of transmitting or receiving signals or information to or from another device (e.g., the electronic device (101), the second external electronic device (204), or the third external electronic device (200)). According to one embodiment, at least one antenna suitable for a communication method used in a communication network, such as a first network (e.g., the first network (198) of FIG. 1) or a second network (e.g., the second network (199) of FIG. 2), may be selected by the communication circuit (320) from the multiple antennas. The signal or information may be transmitted or received between the communication circuit (320) and the other device via the selected at least one antenna.

[0087] According to one embodiment, the input device (330) may be configured to generate various input signals that may be used in the operation of the first external electronic device (202). For example, the input device (330) may include at least one of a touch pad, a touch panel, or a button.

[0088] According to one embodiment, the input device (330) can generate a user input related to turning on or off the first external electronic device (202). According to one embodiment, the input device (330) can receive a user input for establishing a communication link between the first external electronic device (202) and the second external electronic device (204). According to one embodiment, the input device (330) can receive a user input related to audio data (or audio content). For example, the user input can be related to a function of starting playback, pausing playback, stopping playback, adjusting playback speed, adjusting playback volume, or muting audio data.

[0089] According to one embodiment, the sensor (340) can obtain the position or operating status of the first external electronic device (202). The sensor (340) can convert the obtained signal into an electrical signal. For example, the sensor (340) can include at least one of a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, a proximity sensor, a gesture sensor, a grip sensor, a biometric sensor, and / or an optical sensor.

[0090] According to one embodiment, the processor (310) may obtain data (e.g., audio data) from a data packet received from the electronic device (101), process the obtained data through the audio processing module (350), and output the data to the speaker (351). The audio processing module (350) may support an audio data collection function and may play the collected audio data.

[0091] According to one embodiment, the audio processing module (350) may include an audio decoder (not shown) and a D / A converter (not shown). The audio decoder may convert audio data stored in the memory (390) or received from the electronic device (101) through the communication circuit (320) into a digital audio signal. The D / A converter may convert the digital audio signal converted by the audio decoder into an analog audio signal. According to one embodiment, the audio decoder may convert audio data received from the electronic device (101) through the communication circuit (320) and stored in the memory (390) into a digital audio signal. The speaker (351) may output the analog audio signal converted by the D / A converter.

[0092] According to one embodiment, the audio processing module (350) may include an A / D converter (not shown). The A / D converter may convert an analog audio signal transmitted through a microphone (352) into a digital audio signal. For example, the microphone (352) may include at least one air conduction microphone and / or at least one bone conduction microphone for acquiring voice and / or sound.

[0093] According to one embodiment, the audio processing module (350) can reproduce various audio data set in the operating operation of the first external electronic device (202). For example, the processor (310) can determine through the sensor (340) that the first external electronic device (202) is connected to or disconnected from the user's ear, and can be designed to reproduce audio data related to sound effects or guidance sounds through the audio processing module (350). The output of the sound effects or guidance sounds can be omitted depending on the user's settings or the designer's intention.

[0094] According to one embodiment, the memory (390) may store various data used by at least one component (e.g., the processor (210) or the sensor (240)) of the first external electronic device (202). For example, the data may include input data or output data for software and instructions related thereto. The memory (390) may include volatile memory or non-volatile memory.

[0095] According to one embodiment, the power management module (360) can manage power supplied to the first external electronic device (202). According to one embodiment, the power management module (360) can be implemented as at least a part of a power management integrated circuit (PMIC). According to one embodiment, the power management module (360) can include a battery charging module. According to one embodiment, when another device (e.g., one of the electronic device (101), the second external electronic device (204), and / or the third external electronic device (200)) is electrically connected (wirelessly or by wire) to the first external electronic device (202), the power management module (360) can receive power from the other electronic device and charge the battery (370).

[0096] In one embodiment, the battery (370) can power at least one component of the first external electronic device (202). In one embodiment, the battery (370) can include a rechargeable battery. In one embodiment, when the first external electronic device (202) is mounted within the third external electronic device (200), the first external electronic device (202) can charge the battery (370) to a specified charge level and then turn on the power of the first external electronic device (202) or turn on at least a portion of the communication circuit (320).

[0097] According to one embodiment, the interface (380) may support one or more designated protocols that may be used to directly (e.g., via a wire) connect the first external electronic device (202) to the electronic device (101), the third external electronic device (200), the second external electronic device (204), or another device. According to one embodiment, the interface (380) may include a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI), a USB interface, an SD card interface, a power line communication (PLC) interface, or an audio interface. According to one embodiment, the interface (380) may include at least one connection port for forming a physical connection with the third external electronic device (200).

[0098] According to one embodiment, the processor (310) may execute software to control at least one other component (e.g., hardware or software component) of the first external electronic device (202) connected to the processor (310) and perform various data processing or operations. According to one embodiment, as at least a part of the data processing or operations, the processor (310) may load instructions or data received from another component (e.g., sensor (340) or communication circuit (320)) into the volatile memory (390), process the instructions or data stored in the volatile memory (390), and store the resulting data in the non-volatile memory.

[0099] According to one embodiment, the processor (310) may establish a communication link with the electronic device (101) through the communication circuit (320) and receive data (e.g., audio data) from the electronic device (101) through the established communication link. According to one embodiment, the processor (310) may transmit the data received from the electronic device (101) through the communication circuit (320) to the second external electronic device (204). According to one embodiment, the processor (310) may perform operations of the first external electronic device (202) to be described below.

[0100] According to one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) may further include various modules depending on its provision form. Although the modifications are so diverse in accordance with the convergence trend of digital devices that it is impossible to list them all, components equivalent to the components described above may be additionally included in the first external electronic device (202). In addition, according to one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) may exclude certain components among the components described in FIG. 3 depending on its provision form, or certain components may be replaced with other components.

[0101] According to one embodiment, a second external electronic device (204) configured as a pair with a first external electronic device (202) may include components identical to or similar to those included in the first external electronic device (202) and may perform all or part of the operations of the second external electronic device (204) described below.

[0102] FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device (101) in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0103] Referring to FIG. 4, the electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) may be a device implementing the BLE method. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may operate as a source device.

[0104] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may include a sound localization detector (410), a similarity detector (420), a first packet loss concealment (PLC) processor (430), and / or a second PLC processor (440).

[0105] In FIG. 4, the case where the sound location characteristic detector (410), the similarity detector (420), the first PLC processor (430), and / or the second PLC processor (440) are implemented as separate blocks is described as an example, but some of the sound location characteristic detector (410), the similarity detector (420), the first PLC processor (430), and / or the second PLC processor (440) may be integrated. For example, the sound location characteristic detector (410), the similarity detector (420), the first PLC processor (430), and / or the second PLC processor (440) may be implemented as at least one processor (e.g., the processor (120) of FIG. 1).

[0106] The Bluetooth method may include the Bluetooth legacy (or Bluetooth classic) method or the Bluetooth low energy (BLE) method. Each of the external electronic devices (e.g., a first external electronic device (e.g., a left earbud) and a second external electronic device (e.g., a right earbud)) that provide a BLE audio (AoBLE) service based on the BLE method can independently establish a communication link with an electronic device (e.g., a smartphone) and transmit and receive data with the electronic device through the established communication link.

[0107] When a first external electronic device, a second external electronic device, and an electronic device connected based on a BLE method provide a stereo audio service such as music play, each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device can operate as a (sink) device, and the electronic device can operate as a source device. The first external electronic device can perform a role of a first audio channel (e.g., a left audio channel), and the second electronic device can perform a role of a second audio channel (e.g., a right audio channel). Each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device can transmit a device capability identifier (ID) (e.g., a connected isochronous stream (CIS) ID) related to the audio channel role performed by each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device to the electronic device at a set time. For example, the setup time may be the time when each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device is connected to the electronic device, or the time when a service (e.g., a stereo audio service) is started. The electronic device may determine the audio channel role performed by each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device based on the device capability ID received from each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device, and may transmit and receive audio data to and from each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device based on the determined audio channel role.

[0108] The AoBLE service may include various services such as a multi-channel audio service, a binaural recording service, and / or a stereo call service, and when a first external electronic device, a second external electronic device, and an electronic device connected based on the BLE method provide a binaural recording service, each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device may transmit audio data input through a microphone of each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device to the external electronic device.

[0109] Since the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device each transmit and receive audio data through a communication link established based on the electronic device and the BLE method, if packet loss occurs in the communication link of either the first external electronic device or the second external electronic device while providing a binaural recording service, a degradation in service quality, such as distortion, loud noise, or silence, may occur on one side of a sound source recorded in stereo type.

[0110] Therefore, there is a need for a method that enables an electronic device to stably provide audio services even when packet loss occurs in the communication link of either the first external electronic device or the second external electronic device.

[0111] According to one embodiment, multiple sound sources recorded in stereo have common audio characteristics, and a three-dimensional sound can be implemented by reflecting the positional characteristics of the multiple sound sources. Accordingly, if it is possible to obtain sound positional characteristics, which are positional characteristics of a channel (e.g., an audio channel), it may be possible to predict a signal (e.g., an audio signal) of a second channel among the multiple channels by reflecting the positional characteristics of a first channel among the multiple channels.

[0112] In the present disclosure, based on the positional characteristics of the channels, when packet loss occurs in only one of a plurality of channels, a method is proposed to restore the audio signal of the channel in which packet loss occurred by reflecting the sound positional characteristics to the signal of the normally received channel (e.g., no packet loss occurred).

[0113] In one embodiment, the positional characteristics of a sound source (e.g., sound localization characteristics) may include interaural level difference (ILD) and / or interaural time difference (ITD). ILD may represent the difference between the levels (or intensities) of sound sources reaching both ears, and ITD may represent the difference between the times of sound sources reaching both ears. In FIG. 4, it is assumed that the plurality of audio channels include two audio channels, a left channel and a right channel.

[0114] The structure of the electronic device (101) illustrated in FIG. 4 may be a structure when an audio signal is transmitted from an ear wearable device (e.g., the electronic device (102) of FIG. 1 or the ear wearable device (210) of FIG. 2) to the electronic device (101). In this case, the structure of the electronic device (101) illustrated in FIG. 4 may be applied, for example, to binaural recording and stereo calls. In one embodiment, the ear wearable device may include a first external electronic device (e.g., the first external electronic device (202) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) (e.g., a left earbud) and a second external electronic device (e.g., the second external electronic device (204) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) (e.g., a light earbud).

[0115] In one embodiment, the sound localization characteristic detector (410) can detect sound localization characteristics from the received left channel and right channel. In one embodiment, the sound localization characteristic can include at least one of an ILD value between the left channel and the right channel and / or an ITD value between the left channel and the right channel. In one embodiment, the ILD value between the left channel and the right channel can represent a difference between the level of an audio signal of the left channel and the level of an audio signal of the right channel, as illustrated in FIG. 5.

[0116] Figure 5 is a drawing for explaining ILD.

[0117] Referring to FIG. 5, a graph (510) may represent a signal (e.g., an audio signal) of a first channel (e.g., a left channel), and a graph (520) may represent a signal (e.g., an audio signal) of a second channel (e.g., a right channel). ILD may represent the difference in levels (or sound pressure intensities) of sounds at both ears. Sounds from the right have a higher level in the right ear than in the left ear because the head shadows the left ear. These level differences can vary significantly depending on the frequency, and the higher the frequency, the higher the level differences. For example, when an audio signal is generated in a horizontal plane, the angle with respect to the head may be an azimuth, where an azimuth of 0° may be directly in front of a listener listening to the audio signal, an azimuth of 90° may be to the right of the listener, and an azimuth of 180° may be directly behind the listener. The graphs (510, 520) for explaining the ILD illustrated in FIG. 5 may be graphs for the case where the sound source is swept from a 90° azimuth (e.g., from the right).

[0118] In one embodiment, the ITD value between the left channel and the right channel may represent the difference between the arrival time of the audio signal of the left channel and the arrival time of the audio signal of the right channel, as illustrated in FIG. 6.

[0119] Figure 6 is a drawing for explaining ITD.

[0120] Referring to FIG. 6, graph (610) may represent a signal (e.g., an audio signal) of a second channel (e.g., a right channel), and graph (620) may represent a signal (e.g., an audio signal) of a first channel (e.g., a left channel). ITD may represent a difference in arrival times of sound at the two ears. When an audio signal arrives at the head from one side, the signal may have to travel farther to arrive at the far ear than the near ear. This difference in path length results in a difference between sound arrivals at the two ears, and this difference between sound arrivals can be used to identify the direction of the sound source. For example, when an audio signal is generated in a horizontal plane, the angle relative to the head may be an azimuth, where 0° azimuth may be directly in front of a listener listening to the audio signal, 90° azimuth may be to the right of the listener, and 180° azimuth may be directly behind the listener. The graphs (610, 620) for explaining the ITD illustrated in FIG. 6 may be graphs for the case where the sound source is 100 ms white noise from a 90° azimuth (e.g., from the right).

[0121] In one embodiment, the similarity detector (420) can detect inter-channel similarity and / or intra-channel similarity. The similarity detector (420) can detect inter-channel similarity between multiple channels (e.g., a first channel and a second channel). In one embodiment, the similarity between the channels can be detected based on the correlation between the channels. In one embodiment, the similarity between the channels can be detected based on the ITD value. For example, if the ITD value between the channels is less than or equal to a set threshold ITD value, the similarity between the channels can be determined to be high. In one embodiment, the similarity between the channels can be detected based on the ILD value. For example, if the ILD value between the channels is less than or equal to a set threshold ILD value, the similarity between the channels can be determined to be high.

[0122] In one embodiment, when the similarity detected by the similarity detector (420) is high, the first PLC processor (430) can restore the audio signal of the channel in which packet loss is detected based on the audio signal of the channel in which packets are normally received (e.g., no packet loss is detected) and the inter-channel position information (e.g., sound position characteristics). In one embodiment, when the similarity detected by the similarity detector (420) is low, the second PLC processor (440) can restore the lost audio signal based on the audio signal received in the section prior to the corresponding section in the channel in which packet loss is detected.

[0123] In one embodiment, the within-channel similarity may include the similarity between an audio signal (e.g., an audio frame) received in a first interval of the channel and an audio signal received in at least one interval prior to the first interval of the channel. In one embodiment, the within-channel similarity may be detected based on an auto-correlation method and / or a transient detection method. The transient detection method may detect the within-channel similarity based on a transient signal, as illustrated in FIG. 7 .

[0124] Figure 7 is a drawing for explaining a transient signal detection method.

[0125] Referring to FIG. 7, a transient signal section (700) may indicate a section in which the amplitude of a signal changes rapidly. For example, a transient signal section may indicate a section in which the amount of change in the amplitude of a signal exceeds a set threshold value. If packet loss is detected in a transient signal section (700), the characteristics of an audio signal received in the transient signal section (700) on the same channel may differ from the characteristics of an audio signal received in a section prior to that section.

[0126] In one embodiment, the similarity detector (420) may detect that the intra-channel similarity is low when a transient signal section is detected in the channel, and when the intra-channel similarity detected by the similarity detector (420) is low, the first PLC processor (430) may restore the audio signal of the channel in which packet loss is detected based on the audio signal of the channel in which packets are normally received (e.g., packet loss is not detected) and the inter-channel position information (e.g., sound position characteristics).

[0127] If the similarity within the channel detected by the similarity detector (420) is low, when restoring the lost audio signal based on the audio signal received in the section prior to the section in the channel where packet loss is detected, the restoration performance may not be good, and therefore, the audio signal of the channel where packet loss is detected can be restored based on the audio signal of the channel where packets are normally received and the inter-channel position information in the first PLC processor (430).

[0128] In one embodiment, the first PLC processor (430) may restore an audio signal of a channel in which packet loss is detected based on an audio signal of a normally received channel (e.g., in which no packet loss is detected) when the inter-channel similarity detected by the similarity detector (420) is greater than a threshold value (e.g., when the inter-channel similarity is high). In one embodiment, the first PLC processor (430) may be a PLC processor based on a channel-to-channel PLC scheme, and the first PLC processor (430) may restore an audio signal based on the channel-to-channel PLC scheme, as illustrated in FIG. 8.

[0129] Fig. 8 is a diagram for explaining a method of restoring an audio signal based on a PLC method between channels.

[0130] Referring to FIG. 8, when the similarity between channels detected by the similarity detector (420) is greater than a threshold value (e.g., when the similarity between channels is high), channel characteristics of a plurality of channels (e.g., a first channel and a second channel) may be similar, and thus, the first PLC processor (e.g., the first PLC processor (430) of FIG. 4) may reflect sound position characteristics to an audio signal received in a normally received channel (e.g., in which no packet loss was detected) to restore an audio signal lost in a channel in which packet loss was detected. In one embodiment, the sound position characteristics may include an ILD value and / or an ITD value.

[0131] As illustrated in FIG. 8, if an audio signal is normally received through both the left channel and the right channel in the first section (810), and a packet loss (830) is detected in the right channel in the second section (820), the first PLC processor can apply the ILD value and the ITD value between the left channel and the right channel to the audio signal normally received in the second section (820) (840) to restore the audio signal of the right channel that was lost in the third section (830) (850).

[0132] In one embodiment, the second PLC processor (440) may determine that it may be difficult to restore the audio signal of the channel in which packet loss was detected based on the audio signal of the normally received channel (e.g., in which no packet loss was detected) when the inter-channel similarity detected by the similarity detector (420) is less than or equal to a threshold value (e.g., in which the inter-channel similarity is low), and thus may restore the audio signal of the channel in which packet loss was detected based on the signal received in the section prior to the corresponding section of the same channel. In one embodiment, the second PLC processor (440) may be a PLC processor based on an intra-channel PLC scheme, and the second PLC processor (440) may restore the audio signal based on the intra-channel PLC scheme, as illustrated in FIG. 9.

[0133] Fig. 9 is a diagram for explaining a method of restoring an audio signal based on a PLC method within a channel.

[0134] Referring to FIG. 9, when the similarity between channels detected by the similarity detector (420) is less than or equal to the first threshold value (e.g., when the similarity between channels is low), channel characteristics of a plurality of channels (e.g., the first channel and the second channel) may not be similar, and therefore, the second PLC processor (e.g., the second PLC processor (440) of FIG. 4) may restore the audio signal lost in the corresponding section based on the audio signal received in the section prior to the corresponding section of the channel in which packet loss was detected.

[0135] As illustrated in FIG. 9, if an audio signal is normally received from a channel in the first section (910) and packet loss is detected in the second section (920), the second PLC processor can restore the audio signal of the channel lost in the second section (920) by applying (930) the audio signal normally received in the first section (910) prior to the second section (920) in which packet loss is detected (940).

[0136] FIG. 10 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device (101) and a first external electronic device (202) in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0137] Referring to FIG. 10, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, or FIG. 4) may be a device implementing the BLE method. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may operate as a source device. A first external electronic device (202) (e.g., the first external electronic device (202) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) may be a device implementing the BLE method. In one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) may operate as a sink device.

[0138] For example, the electronic device (101) may include a sound location characteristic detector (410) (e.g., the sound location characteristic detector (410) of FIG. 4) and / or a similarity detector (420) (e.g., the similarity detector (420) of FIG. 4).

[0139] For example, the first external electronic device (202) may include a first PLC processor (1010), and / or a second PLC processor (1020).

[0140] In FIG. 10, a case in which the sound location characteristic detector (410) and / or the similarity detector (420) are implemented as separate blocks is described as an example, but the sound location characteristic detector (410) and the similarity detector (420) may be integrated, and the sound location characteristic detector (410) and the similarity detector (420) may be implemented as at least one processor (e.g., the processor (120) of FIG. 1).

[0141] In FIG. 10, the first PLC processor (1010) and / or the second PLC processor (1020) are implemented as separate blocks as an example, but the first PLC processor (1010) and / or the second PLC processor (1020) may be integrated, and the first PLC processor (1010) and / or the second PLC processor (1020) may be implemented as at least one processor (e.g., the processor (310) of FIG. 3).

[0142] For example, multiple sound sources recorded in stereo have common audio characteristics, and a three-dimensional sound can be implemented by reflecting the positional characteristics of the multiple sound sources. Therefore, if it is possible to obtain a sound position, which is a positional characteristic of an audio channel, it may be possible to predict an audio signal of a second audio channel among the multiple audio channels by reflecting the positional characteristics of a first audio channel among the multiple audio channels. Various embodiments of the present disclosure propose a method for restoring an audio signal of an audio channel in which packet loss has occurred by reflecting the positional characteristics of the sound source of the audio channel in which packet loss has occurred to an audio signal of an audio channel that has been normally received (e.g., in which no packet loss has occurred) when packet loss occurs in only one of the multiple audio channels based on the positional characteristics of the audio channels. In one embodiment, the positional characteristics of the sound source may include an ILD and / or an ITD. In FIG. 10, it is assumed that the multiple audio channels include two audio channels, including a left channel and a right channel.

[0143] The structure of the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) illustrated in FIG. 10 may be a structure for transmitting audio signals from an ear wearable device (e.g., the electronic device (102) of FIG. 1 or the ear wearable device (210) of FIG. 2) to the electronic device (101). In this case, the structure of the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (202) illustrated in FIG. 10 may be applied, for example, to binaural recording and stereo calls. In one embodiment, the ear wearable device may include a first external electronic device (202) (e.g., a left earbud) and a second external electronic device (e.g., the second external electronic device (204) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) (e.g., a light earbud), and FIG. 10 illustrates an example structure of the first external electronic device (202), and the structure of the second external electronic device (204) may also be implemented to be similar to or substantially identical to the structure of the first external electronic device (202).

[0144] The sound location characteristic detector (410) and the similarity detector (420) can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 4, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0145] The first PLC processor (1010) and the second PLC processor (1020) may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to the first PLC processor (430) and the second PLC processor (440) described in FIG. 4, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted. However, in order for the first PLC processor (1010) and the second PLC processor (1020) to operate, it may be necessary to know the inter-channel similarity or the intra-channel similarity. Accordingly, the electronic device (101) may transmit information related to the inter-channel similarity and / or the intra-channel similarity detected by the similarity detector (420) to the first external electronic device (202), and the first external electronic device (202) may use the first PLC processor (1010) or the second PLC processor (1020) to restore the audio signal of the channel in which packet loss is detected based on the information related to the inter-channel similarity and / or the intra-channel similarity received from the electronic device (101).

[0146] According to one embodiment, the first external electronic device (202) may also include a sound location characteristic detector and a similarity detector. In this case, the electronic device (101) may not need to separately transmit inter-channel similarity and / or intra-channel similarity to the first external electronic device (202).

[0147] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 10) may include a communication circuit (190) (e.g., the communication module (190) of FIG. 1), one or more processors (120) including processing circuitry (e.g., the processor (120) of FIG. 1), and a memory (130) including instructions (e.g., the memory (130) of FIG. 1).

[0148] In one embodiment, the processor may be circuitry such as a CPU, MPU, AP, CP, SoC (System On Chip), IC (Integrated Circuit), etc. In one embodiment, the processor may be hardware, software, or anything capable of performing the operations and functions claimed in the claims.

[0149] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to, in a first section, receive a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) (e.g., the first external electronic device (202) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 10) and to receive a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204) (e.g., the second external electronic device (204) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3)).

[0150] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to determine that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0151] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to determine whether a channel similarity for the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that a packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0152] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to restore the signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to the signal of the second channel received in the first section based on determining that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

[0153] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to determine whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value.

[0154] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to restore a signal of the first channel received in the first interval based on a signal of the first channel received in a second interval immediately preceding the first interval among at least one interval prior to the first interval, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value.

[0155] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to determine whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value.

[0156] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to restore a signal of the first channel received in the first interval based on a signal of the first channel received in at least one interval prior to the first interval, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value.

[0157] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to receive, through the communication circuit, a signal of the first channel from the first external electronic device (202) and to receive a signal of the second channel from the second external electronic device (204) in at least one interval prior to the first interval.

[0158] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to detect the sound position characteristic based on the signal of the first channel and the signal of the second channel received in the at least one section.

[0159] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to detect at least one of the inter-channel similarity or the intra-channel similarity of the first channel based on the signal of the first channel and the signal of the second channel received in the at least one section.

[0160] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to determine whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value.

[0161] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors (120), may cause the electronic device (101) to restore a signal of the first channel received in the first interval based on a signal of the first channel received in a second interval immediately preceding the first interval among the at least one interval, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value.

[0162] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the sound location characteristic may include at least one of interaural level difference (ILD) or interaural time difference (ITD).

[0163] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the inter-channel similarity may be determined based on at least one of the value of the ILD or the value of the ITD.

[0164] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the intra-channel similarity of the first channel may be determined based on whether a signal of the first channel received in the at least one section includes a transient section.

[0165] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transient signal section may be a section in which the amount of change in the signal of the first channel received in at least one section is greater than a third threshold value.

[0166] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the sound location characteristic may include at least one of interaural level difference (ILD) or interaural time difference (ITD).

[0167] FIG. 11 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operation method of an electronic device according to an embodiment when packet loss occurs.

[0168] Referring to FIG. 11, an electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 10) (e.g., a processor (120) of FIG. 1) may, in operation 1111, receive a signal of a first channel (e.g., a light channel) from a first external electronic device (e.g., a first external electronic device (202) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 10) through at least one communication circuit (e.g., a communication module (190) of FIG. 1) in a first section, and receive a signal of a second channel (e.g., a light channel) from a second external electronic device (e.g., a second external electronic device (204) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3).

[0169] An electronic device that receives a signal of a first channel in a first section and a signal of a second channel can determine, in operation 1113, that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0170] An electronic device that has determined that packet loss has occurred in the first channel may, in operation 1115, determine whether the inter-channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value. In one embodiment, the inter-channel similarity may be determined based on at least one of the ILD value and the ITD value. In one embodiment, the inter-channel similarity may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in FIG. 4, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0171] If the inter-channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than the first threshold value (operation 1115 - Yes), the electronic device may, in operation 1117, restore the signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying the sound positional characteristic between the first channel and the second channel to the signal of the second channel received in the first section. In one embodiment, the sound positional characteristic may include at least one of an ILD or an ITD.

[0172] If the inter-channel similarity for the first channel and the second channel is less than or equal to a first threshold value (operation 1115-No), the electronic device may determine, in operation 1119, whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value. In one embodiment, the intra-channel similarity of the first channel may be determined based on whether the signal of the first channel received in the at least one interval includes a transient signal interval. In one embodiment, the transient signal interval may be an interval in which the amount of change of the signal of the first channel received in the at least one interval is greater than a third threshold value.

[0173] If the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value (operation 1119-Yes), the electronic device can, in operation 1121, restore the signal of the first channel received in the first interval based on the signal of the first channel received in the second interval immediately before the first interval among at least one interval prior to the first interval.

[0174] If the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value (operation 1119-No), the electronic device may, in operation 1123, restore the signal of the first channel received in the first interval based on the signal of the first channel received in at least one interval prior to the first interval.

[0175] For example, the interval used for recovery in operation 1123 may be an interval earlier than the second interval used for recovery in operation 1121.

[0176] FIG. 12 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0177] Referring to FIG. 12, an electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 10) (e.g., a processor (120) of FIG. 1) may receive a signal of a first channel (e.g., a light channel) from a first external electronic device (e.g., a first external electronic device (202) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 4, or FIG. 10) and receive a signal of a second channel (e.g., a light channel) from a second external electronic device (e.g., a second external electronic device (204) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3)) through at least one communication circuit (e.g., a communication module (190) of FIG. 1) in a first section in operation 1211.

[0178] An electronic device that receives a signal of a first channel and a signal of a second channel in a first section may determine whether packet loss has occurred in operation 1213. If packet loss has not occurred (operation 1213-No), the electronic device may store the received signal of the first channel and the signal of the second channel in a buffer in operation 1215. The electronic device that has stored the received signal of the first channel and the signal of the second channel may detect sound position characteristics in operation 1217. In one embodiment, the sound position characteristics may include an ILD value between the first channel (e.g., the left channel) and the second channel (e.g., the right channel) and / or an ITD value between the first channel and the second channel. The operation of detecting sound position characteristics may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in FIG. 4, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0179] An electronic device detecting sound location characteristics may detect inter-channel similarity and intra-channel similarity in operation 1219. In one embodiment, the intra-channel similarity may include intra-channel similarity for a first channel and / or intra-channel similarity for a second channel. The operations of detecting inter-channel similarity and intra-channel similarity may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 4, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0180] If packet loss occurs as a result of the check in operation 1213 (operation 1213 - Yes), the electronic device can check whether packet loss occurs in both the first channel and the second channel in operation 1221. If packet loss occurs in both the first channel and the second channel (operation 1221 - Yes), the electronic device can read the signals of the first channel and the signals of the second channel stored in the buffer in operation 1223. The occurrence of packet loss in both the first channel and the second channel may indicate that it may be difficult to use the inter-channel PLC scheme, and thus the electronic device may decide to apply the intra-channel PLC scheme. Accordingly, the electronic device may decide to restore the signals of the first channel and the signals of the second channel by applying the intra-channel PLC scheme to the signals of the first channel and the signals of the second channel, respectively, stored in the buffer.

[0181] An electronic device that reads the signals of the first channel and the signals of the second channel stored in a buffer can, in operation 1225, restore the signals of the first channel and the signals of the second channel received in the first section based on the intra-channel PLC method. The operation of restoring the signals of the first channel and the signals of the second channel based on the intra-channel PLC method can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in FIGS. 4 and 9, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0182] If no packet loss occurs in both the first channel and the second channel (e.g., if packet loss occurs in one of the first channel and the second channel) (operation 1221-No), the electronic device may determine in operation 1227 whether the inter-channel similarity for the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold. In FIG. 12, it is assumed that packet loss occurred in the first channel. An inter-channel similarity greater than the set first threshold may indicate that the inter-channel similarity is high. An inter-channel similarity less than or equal to the first threshold may indicate that the inter-channel similarity is low.

[0183] If the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold (operation 1227-No), the electronic device may determine in operation 1229 whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold. The intra-channel similarity of the first channel being greater than the second threshold may indicate that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is high. The intra-channel similarity of the first channel being less than or equal to the second threshold may indicate that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is low.

[0184] If the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value (operation 1229 - Yes), the electronic device can perform operations 1223 and 1225 to restore the signal of the first channel where packet loss occurred.

[0185] If the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value (operation 1229-No), the electronic device may, in operation 1231, read the signal of the first channel received in the second interval immediately before the first interval, which is stored in the buffer. For example, if the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value, since the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is low, which indicates that the difference between the signals of the first channel received in intervals prior to the first interval and the signals of the first channel received in the first interval is large, the electronic device may decide to apply the intra-channel PLC method to the signal of the first channel that is read, rather than reading all of the signals of the first channel received in intervals prior to the first interval, which are stored in the buffer, and reading only the signals of the first channel received in the second interval immediately before the first interval.

[0186] An electronic device that reads the signal of the first channel received in the second interval immediately before the first interval from the buffer can perform operation 1225 to restore the signal of the first channel in which packet loss occurred.

[0187] If the similarity between channels is greater than the first threshold value (operation 1227 - Yes), the electronic device can read the signal of the second channel received in the first section in operation 1233. The electronic device that reads the signal of the second channel received in the first section can restore the signal of the first channel received in the first section, in which packet loss occurred, by applying the inter-channel PLC method to the signal of the second channel received in the first section based on the sound position characteristic in operation 1235. The operation of restoring the signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying the inter-channel PLC method to the signal of the second channel received in the first section based on the sound position characteristic can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 8, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0188] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method of operating an electronic device (101) may include, in a first section, receiving a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and receiving a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204).

[0189] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of confirming that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0190] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of determining whether a channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0191] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to a signal of the second channel received in the first section based on determining that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

[0192] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of determining whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value.

[0193] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first section based on a signal of the first channel received in a second section immediately before the first section among at least one section prior to the first section, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value.

[0194] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of determining whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value.

[0195] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first interval based on a signal of the first channel received in at least one interval prior to the first interval, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value.

[0196] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include, in at least one section prior to the first section, receiving a signal of the first channel from the first external electronic device and receiving a signal of the second channel from the second external electronic device.

[0197] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of detecting the sound position characteristic based on a signal of the first channel and a signal of the second channel received in the at least one section.

[0198] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of detecting at least one of inter-channel similarity or intra-channel similarity of the first channel based on a signal of the first channel and a signal of the second channel received in the at least one section.

[0199] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of determining whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value.

[0200] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first section based on a signal of the first channel received in a second section immediately before the first section among the at least one section, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value.

[0201] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the sound location characteristic may include at least one of interaural level difference (ILD) or interaural time difference (ITD).

[0202] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the inter-channel similarity may be determined based on at least one of the value of the ILD or the value of the ITD.

[0203] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the intra-channel similarity of the first channel may be determined based on whether a signal of the first channel received in the at least one section includes a transient section.

[0204] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the transient signal section may be a section in which the amount of change in the signal of the first channel received in at least one section is greater than a third threshold value.

[0205] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the sound location characteristic may include at least one of interaural level difference (ILD) or interaural time difference (ITD).

[0206] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a storage medium storing at least one computer-readable instruction may be provided.

[0207] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one instruction, when executed by one or more processors (120) including processing circuitry, may cause the electronic device (101) to perform at least one operation.

[0208] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include, in the first section, receiving a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and receiving a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204).

[0209] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include an operation of confirming that packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0210] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include an operation of determining whether a channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that a packet loss has occurred in the first channel.

[0211] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to a signal of the second channel received in the first section based on determining that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

Claims

1. In an electronic device (101), Communication circuit (190); One or more processors (120) including processing circuitry; and A memory (130) including instructions, wherein the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by one or more processors, cause the electronic device to: In the first section, a signal of a first channel is received from a first external electronic device (202) through the communication circuit, and a signal of a second channel is received from a second external electronic device (204). Confirm that packet loss occurs in the above first channel, Based on the confirmation that packet loss occurs in the first channel, it is confirmed whether the channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value, and The electronic device causes the signal of the first channel received in the first section to be restored by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to the signal of the second channel received in the first section based on verifying that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

2. In paragraph 1, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by one or more processors, cause the electronic device to: Based on verifying that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value, verifying whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value, and An electronic device that causes a signal of the first channel received in the first interval to be restored based on a signal of the first channel received in a second interval immediately before the first interval among at least one interval prior to the first interval, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value.

3. In paragraph 1, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by one or more processors, cause the electronic device to: Based on verifying that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value, verifying whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value, and An electronic device that causes a signal of the first channel received in the first interval to be restored based on a signal of the first channel received in at least one interval prior to the first interval, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value.

4. In paragraph 1, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by one or more processors, cause the electronic device to: Through the communication circuit, in at least one section prior to the first section, a signal of the first channel is received from the first external electronic device, and a signal of the second channel is received from the second external electronic device, and The electronic device causing the sound position characteristic to be detected based on the signal of the first channel and the signal of the second channel received in the at least one section.

5. In paragraph 4, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by one or more processors, cause the electronic device to: The electronic device causing at least one of inter-channel similarity or intra-channel similarity of the first channel to be detected based on a signal of the first channel and a signal of the second channel received in the at least one section.

6. In either paragraph 4 or paragraph 5, The above instructions, when individually or collectively executed by one or more processors, cause the electronic device to: Based on verifying that the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value, verifying whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value, and An electronic device that causes a signal of the first channel received in the first section to be restored based on a signal of the first channel received in a second section immediately before the first section among the at least one section, based on determining that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value.

7. In any one of paragraphs 1 to 6, The electronic device wherein the sound location characteristic includes at least one of interaural level difference (ILD) or interaural time difference (ITD).

8. In paragraph 7, The electronic device wherein the similarity between the channels is determined based on at least one of the value of the ILD or the value of the ITD.

9. In any one of paragraphs 2, 3, 5, and 6, The intra-channel similarity of the first channel is determined based on whether a signal of the first channel received in the at least one section includes a transient section, and The electronic device wherein the above transient signal section is a section in which the amount of change in the signal of the first channel received in at least one section is greater than a third threshold value.

10. In paragraph 9, The electronic device wherein the sound location characteristic includes at least one of interaural level difference (ILD) or interaural time difference (ITD).

11. In a method of operating an electronic device (101), In the first section, an operation of receiving a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and receiving a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204); An action to confirm that packet loss has occurred in the first channel; An operation of determining whether the inter-channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that packet loss has occurred in the first channel; and A method comprising: applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to a signal of the second channel received in the first section, based on determining that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value; and restoring the signal of the first channel received in the first section.

12. In paragraph 11, An operation of determining whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining whether the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value; and The method further comprising an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first section based on a signal of the first channel received in a second section immediately before the first section among at least one section prior to the first section, based on verifying that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is less than or equal to the second threshold value.

13. In paragraph 11, An operation of determining whether the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than a second threshold value based on determining whether the inter-channel similarity is less than or equal to the first threshold value; and The method further comprising an operation of restoring a signal of the first channel received in the first interval based on a signal of the first channel received in at least one interval prior to the first interval, based on verifying that the intra-channel similarity of the first channel is greater than the second threshold value.

14. In paragraph 11, An operation of receiving a signal of the first channel from the first external electronic device and receiving a signal of the second channel from the second external electronic device in at least one section prior to the first section; and The method further comprising an operation of detecting the sound position characteristic based on a signal of the first channel and a signal of the second channel received in the at least one section.

15. In a storage medium storing at least one computer-readable instruction, The at least one instruction, when executed by one or more processors (120) including processing circuitry of the electronic device (101), causes the electronic device (101) to perform at least one operation; At least one of the above actions: In the first section, an operation of receiving a signal of a first channel from a first external electronic device (202) and receiving a signal of a second channel from a second external electronic device (204); An action to confirm that packet loss has occurred in the first channel; An operation of determining whether the inter-channel similarity between the first channel and the second channel is greater than a first threshold value based on determining that packet loss has occurred in the first channel; and The storage medium including an operation of restoring the signal of the first channel received in the first section by applying sound localization between the first channel and the second channel to the signal of the second channel received in the first section based on verifying that the similarity between the channels is greater than a first threshold value.

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