System and method for enhancing vehicle telephone audio using background sound

Abstract

The present invention relates to systems and methods for enhancing vehicle telephone audio using background sounds. A vehicle infotainment system that adds background sounds to outgoing calls on a mobile device. The infotainment system includes: i) a database of optional enhanced audio signals; and ii) an audio processing circuit configured to receive an uplink signal from the infotainment system at a first input and a selected enhanced audio signal at a second input. The audio processing circuit adapts the spectrum of the first selected enhanced audio signal to prevent the selected enhanced audio signal from masking the uplink signal and combines the adapted selected enhanced audio signal and the uplink signal to produce an enhanced uplink signal at the output.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The information provided in this section is for the purpose of presenting the background of the present disclosure in general. To the extent that the work of the presently named inventors described in this section, and aspects of the description that may not otherwise be considered prior art at the time of filing, are neither expressly nor implicitly admitted to be prior art against the present disclosure.

[0002] The present disclosure relates to vehicle audio systems, and in particular, to vehicle audio systems that insert background sound into mobile phone calls. Background Art

[0003] Conventional vehicle infotainment systems can be linked to a mobile phone via a short-range transceiver (such as a Bluetooth transceiver), enabling phone users to operate in a "hands-free" mode. In the hands-free mode, a microphone in the infotainment system receives the user's voice (i.e., the uplink signal) and wirelessly transmits the voice stream to the mobile phone, which transmits the uplink signal to the wireless mobile network. In the hands-free mode, the infotainment system receives the downlink voice stream from the mobile phone and plays the downlink voice stream through the audio speakers of the infotainment system. Thus, the vehicle driver or other users in the vehicle can speak and listen without using his or her hands to control the mobile phone. Summary of the Invention

[0004] An object of the present invention is to provide an infotainment system for use in a vehicle, which is configured to add background sound to outgoing calls on a mobile device. The vehicle infotainment system includes: i) a database of optional enhanced audio signals; and an audio processing circuit. The audio processing circuit is configured to receive an uplink signal from the infotainment system at a first input and a selected enhanced audio signal at a second input. The audio processing circuit adapts the spectrum of the first selected enhanced audio signal to prevent the selected enhanced audio signal from masking the uplink signal, and combines the adapted selected enhanced audio signal and the uplink signal to produce an enhanced uplink signal at the output.

[0005] In one embodiment, the audio processing circuit includes a scaling level module, which is configured to receive the uplink signal and the selected enhanced audio signal and produce a scaled enhanced audio signal. The scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is sufficiently lower than the uplink signal such that the selected enhanced audio signal does not create significant interference.

[0006] In another embodiment, the scaling level module uses a fixed criterion to scale the selected enhanced audio signal.

[0007] In yet another embodiment, the scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is at least 5 dB lower than the uplink signal.

[0008] In yet another embodiment, the audio processing circuit further includes an adaptive spectrum module configured to receive the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module and adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal.

[0009] In a further embodiment, the audio processing circuit further includes a masking metric module configured to receive the uplink signal and the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module, identify spectral masking locations, and generate a masking metric.

[0010] In yet a further embodiment, the adaptive spectrum module is further configured to receive the masking metric from the masking metric module and use the masking metric to adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal.

[0011] In yet a further embodiment, the audio processing circuit further includes an intelligibility metric module configured to receive the enhanced uplink signal from the output and the uplink signal from the first input and generate an intelligibility metric therefrom.

[0012] In one embodiment, the intelligibility metric module is configured to compare the uplink signal and the enhanced uplink signal and score the intelligibility of the enhanced uplink signal to produce an intelligibility metric.

[0013] In another embodiment, the audio processing circuit further includes an adaptation level module configured to receive the equalized enhanced audio signal from the adaptive spectrum module and adapt the level of the equalized enhanced audio signal according to the intelligibility metric.

[0014] In yet another embodiment, the audio processing circuit further includes an adder circuit configured to receive the uplink signal and combine the uplink signal with the level-adapted, equalized enhanced audio signal from the adaptation level module to produce an enhanced uplink signal.

[0015] Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for adding background sound to an outgoing call on a mobile device in a vehicle infotainment system. The method includes: i) selecting an enhanced audio signal from a database; ii) receiving an uplink signal from the mobile device at a first input; iii) receiving the selected enhanced audio signal at a second input; iv) adapting the spectrum of the first selected enhanced audio signal to prevent the selected enhanced audio signal from masking the uplink signal; and v) combining the adapted selected enhanced audio signal and the uplink signal to generate an enhanced uplink signal at an output.

[0016] In one embodiment, adapting the spectrum further includes receiving the uplink signal and the selected enhanced audio signal in a scaling level module and generating a scaled enhanced audio signal. The scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is sufficiently lower than the uplink signal such that the selected enhanced audio signal does not create a significant amount of interference.

[0017] According to the present invention, it further includes the following technical solutions:

[0018] 1. A vehicle infotainment system configured to add background sound to an outgoing call on a mobile device, the vehicle infotainment system comprising:

[0019] A database of selectable enhanced audio signals; and

[0020] An audio processing circuit configured to:

[0021] Receive an uplink signal from the infotainment system at a first input and receive the selected enhanced audio signal at a second input;

[0022] Adapt the spectrum of the first selected enhanced audio signal to prevent the selected enhanced audio signal from masking the uplink signal; and

[0023] Combine the adapted selected enhanced audio signal and the indicated uplink signal to generate an enhanced uplink signal at an output.

[0024] 2. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 1, wherein the audio processing circuit includes a scaling level module configured to receive the uplink signal and the selected enhanced audio signal and generate a scaled enhanced audio signal, wherein the scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is sufficiently lower than the uplink signal such that the selected enhanced audio signal does not create a significant amount of interference.

[0025] 3. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 2, wherein the scaling level module uses a fixed criterion to scale the selected enhanced audio signal.

[0026] 4. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 3, wherein the scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is at least 5 dB lower than the uplink signal.

[0027] 5. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 2, wherein the audio processing circuit further comprises an adapted spectrum module, the adapted spectrum module being configured to receive the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module and adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal.

[0028] 6. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 5, wherein the audio processing circuit further comprises a masking metric module, the masking metric module being configured to:

[0029] Receive the uplink signal and the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module;

[0030] Identify the spectral masking positions; and

[0031] Generate a masking metric.

[0032] 7. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 6, wherein the adapted spectrum module is further configured to receive the masking metric from the masking metric module and use the masking metric to adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal.

[0033] 8. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 7, wherein the audio processing circuit further comprises an intelligibility metric module, the intelligibility metric module being configured to receive the enhanced uplink signal from the output and the uplink signal from the first input and generate an intelligibility metric therefrom.

[0034] 9. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 8, wherein the intelligibility metric module is configured to compare the uplink signal and the enhanced uplink signal and score the intelligibility of the enhanced uplink signal to produce an intelligibility metric.

[0035] 10. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 8, wherein the audio processing circuit further comprises an adaptation level module, the adaptation level module being configured to receive the equalized enhanced audio signal from the adapted spectrum module and adapt the level of the equalized enhanced audio signal according to the intelligibility metric.

[0036] 11. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 10, wherein the audio processing circuit further comprises an adder circuit configured to receive an uplink signal and combine the uplink signal with a horizontally adapted and equalized enhanced audio signal from the adaptation level module to generate an enhanced uplink signal.

[0037] 12. A method for adding background sound to an outgoing call on a mobile device in a vehicle infotainment system, the method comprising:

[0038] Selecting an enhanced audio signal from a database;

[0039] Receiving an uplink signal from the infotainment system at a first input;

[0040] Receiving the selected enhanced audio signal at a second input;

[0041] Adapting the spectrum of the first selected enhanced audio signal to prevent the selected enhanced audio signal from masking the uplink signal; and

[0042] Combining the adapted selected enhanced audio signal and the uplink signal to generate an enhanced uplink signal at an output.

[0043] 13. The method according to claim 12, wherein adapting the spectrum further comprises:

[0044] Receiving the uplink signal and the selected enhanced audio signal in a scaling level module and generating a scaled enhanced audio signal,

[0045] wherein the scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is sufficiently lower than the uplink signal such that the selected enhanced audio signal does not create a significant amount of interference.

[0046] 14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the scaling level module uses a fixed criterion to scale the selected enhanced audio signal.

[0047] 15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is at least 5 dB lower than the uplink signal.

[0048] 16. The method according to claim 13, wherein adapting the spectrum further comprises:

[0049] In an adaptation spectrum module, receiving the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module and adapting the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to generate an equalized enhanced audio signal.

[0050] 17. The method according to claim 16, wherein adapting the spectrum further comprises:

[0051] In a masking metric module, receiving an uplink signal and a scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module, identifying spectrum masking positions, and generating a masking metric.

[0052] 18. The method according to claim 17, wherein adapting the spectrum further comprises:

[0053] In the adapting spectrum module, receiving the masking metric from the masking metric module and using the masking metric to adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal.

[0054] 19. The method according to claim 18, wherein adapting the spectrum further comprises:

[0055] In an intelligibility metric module, receiving an enhanced uplink signal from an output and an uplink signal from a first input and generating an intelligibility metric therefrom.

[0056] 20. The method according to claim 19, wherein the intelligibility metric module compares the uplink signal and the enhanced uplink signal and scores the intelligibility of the enhanced uplink signal to produce an intelligibility metric.

[0057] Further application areas of the present disclosure will become apparent from the detailed description, claims, and drawings. The detailed description and specific examples are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0058] The present disclosure will be more fully understood from the detailed description and the drawings, wherein:

[0059] Figure 1 Illustrates an exemplary vehicle system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, which includes an infotainment module that enhances vehicle phone audio with background sound.

[0060] Figure 2 Illustrates a background sound enhancement system of an exemplary infotainment module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0061] Figure 3 Is a frequency plot of a masking envelope implemented by a background sound enhancement system of an exemplary infotainment module according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0062] Figure 4 Is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a background sound enhancement system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0063] In the accompanying drawings, reference numerals may be repeated to identify similar and / or identical elements. Detailed Description

[0064] The present disclosure describes a system and method for enhancing existing noise cancellation techniques by intentionally adding selected background sounds to outgoing calls (including voice calls and video calls) on a mobile phone or other communication device. For the purposes of the present disclosure, a mobile phone is defined to include an actual mobile phone and any phone device that may be embedded in a vehicle, such as the OnStar® phone in a General Motors® vehicle. The background sounds allow a driver or passenger to express himself or herself while also improving intelligibility and masking other sounds within the vehicle. The added background sounds can cause the person on the other end of the phone call to hear the driver or passenger (i.e., the user) as if the user were in a different location or situation (e.g., at a beach, concert hall, sports stadium, or with selected background music).

[0065] While existing noise cancellation techniques are able to remove background noise, there can be unexpected background sounds that are very difficult to predict and remove. By intentionally adding background sounds that are concentrated at specific frequencies, it may be possible to even completely mask these unexpected sounds. For example, the disclosed system and method can reduce the effect of a crying baby in the background by adding music with similar frequency content.

[0066] The disclosed system and method can characterize existing background noise and potential noise based on historical data about similar contexts, and modify the generated background sounds in order to effectively mask such noise. Modifying the background noise in this way maintains or improves intelligibility.

[0067] In some applications, the user may not hear the background sounds added to the vehicle system, and only the person on the receiving end of the call will hear it. In some applications, when the driver is in a high-workload driving situation (e.g., driving in adverse weather or on a windy road), the person on the other end of the line may not hear the driver's voice audio, and the disclosed system can use the background sounds to manipulate the phone conversation.

[0068] The disclosed system and method can enhance existing noise cancellation methods by intentionally adding selected background sounds, with the background sounds being selected by the user from a sound database associated with the infotainment system (or module) of the vehicle system. Additionally, the disclosed system and method can adjust the sound level based on feedback, and can adjust the masking based on an intelligibility score.

[0069] Figure 1FIG. 0 illustrates an exemplary vehicle system 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure, which includes an infotainment system 190 that enhances vehicle telephone audio with background sounds. Although the present disclosure shows and describes the vehicle system 10 as a hybrid vehicle with a driver, the present disclosure is also applicable to non-hybrid vehicles that incorporate only an internal combustion engine, pure electric vehicles (EVs), and driverless autonomous vehicles (AVs). Although the present disclosure uses a vehicle as an exemplary embodiment, the present disclosure is also applicable to non-automotive implementations, such as boats and airplanes.

[0070] The engine 102 combusts an air / fuel mixture to generate drive torque. The engine control module (ECM) 106 controls the engine 102 based on one or more driver inputs. For example, the ECM 106 can control the actuation of engine actuators, such as an electronically controlled throttle valve, one or more spark plugs, one or more fuel injectors, valve actuators, camshaft phasers, exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valves, one or more intake air flow boosting devices, and other suitable engine actuators.

[0071] The engine 102 can output torque to the transmission 110. The transmission control module (TCM) 114 controls the operation of the transmission 110. For example, the TCM 114 can control the gear selection within the transmission 110 and one or more torque transfer devices (e.g., torque converters, one or more clutches, etc.).

[0072] The vehicle system 10 can include one or more electric motors. For example, the electric motor 118 can be implemented within the transmission 110, as shown in the example of Figure 1 At a given time, the electric motor is capable of either acting as a generator or as a motor. When acting as a generator, the electric motor converts mechanical energy into electrical energy. The electrical energy can be used to charge the battery 126 via a power control device (PCD) 130. When acting as a motor, the electric motor generates torque that supplements or replaces the torque output by the engine 102. Although an example of one electric motor is provided, the vehicle can include zero or more than one electric motor.

[0073] The power inverter control module (PIM) 134 can control the electric motor 118 and the PCD 130. The PCD 130 applies power from the battery 126 (e.g., direct current) to the electric motor 118 (e.g., alternating current) based on a signal from the PIM 134, and the PCD 130 provides the power output by the electric motor 118 to, for example, the battery 126. In various implementations, the PIM 134 can be referred to as a power inverter module (PIM).

[0074] The steering control module 140 controls the steering / rotation of the vehicle wheels, for example, based on the driver's rotation of the steering wheel within the vehicle and / or a steering command from one or more vehicle control modules. A steering wheel angle sensor (SWA) monitors the rotational position of the steering wheel and generates an SWA 142 based on the position of the steering wheel. As an example, the steering control module 140 may control vehicle steering via an EPS motor 144 based on the SWA 142. However, the vehicle may include other types of steering systems. The electronic brake control module (EBCM) 150 may selectively control the vehicle's brakes 154.

[0075] Modules of the vehicle may share parameters via a controller area network (CAN) 162. The CAN 162 may also be referred to as an automotive local area network. For example, the CAN 162 may include one or more data buses. A given control module may make various parameters available to other control modules via the CAN 162.

[0076] Driver inputs may include, for example, an accelerator pedal position (APP) 166, which may be provided to the ECM 106. A brake pedal position (BPP) 170 may be provided to the EBCM 150. A park, reverse, neutral, drive, low (PRNDL) position 174 may be provided to the TCM 114. An ignition state 178 may be provided to the body control module (BCM) 180. For example, the ignition state 178 may be input by the driver via an ignition key, button, or switch. At a given time, the ignition state 178 may be one of off, accessory, run, or crank.

[0077] In the vehicle system 10, an embedded microprocessor that executes program instructions in an associated embedded memory controls the operation of each electronic vehicle subsystem. Thereafter, the microprocessors and memories in each subsystem may be collectively referred to as an electronic control unit (ECU) module. The steering control module 140, the engine control module 106, and the electronic brake control module 150 are all examples of vehicle subsystems. A dedicated embedded ECU module controls each of these vehicle subsystems. Each ECU module in a vehicle subsystem executes a kernel program that controls the overall operation of a specific vehicle subsystem in the vehicle system 10. The critical code of the kernel is typically loaded into a separate memory area that is protected from access by third-party applications and other less critical parts of the vehicle system 10.

[0078] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the vehicle system 10 further includes an advanced computing module 185. The advanced computing module 185 includes a high-performance computing platform that controls many higher-order and lower-order functions of the vehicle system 10. In a typical implementation, the advanced computing module 185 can be implemented as a microprocessor and associated memory. Similar to the ECU modules in the vehicle subsystems, the advanced computing module 185 also executes a kernel program that controls the overall operation of the advanced computing module 185.

[0079] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the vehicle system 10 further includes an infotainment module 190 and a wireless transceiver (XCVR) module 195. In an exemplary embodiment, the wireless transceiver module 195 can include a Bluetooth transceiver that communicates with a wireless device (such as a mobile phone 5) used by a driver or passenger in the vehicle via a wireless link 15.

[0080] According to the principles of the present disclosure, when a driver or passenger operates the mobile phone 5 in hands-free mode, a microphone (not shown) in the infotainment module 190 receives the user's voice (i.e., the uplink signal). The infotainment module 190 then enhances the voice audio stream with background audio and wirelessly transmits the enhanced voice stream (enhanced uplink signal) to the mobile phone 5 via the Bluetooth transceiver 195. The mobile phone 5 then transmits the enhanced uplink signal to a wireless mobile network (not shown).

[0081] In hands-free mode, the infotainment module 190 also receives a downlink voice stream from the mobile phone 5 via the Bluetooth transceiver 195 and plays the downlink voice stream through an audio speaker (not shown) of the infotainment module 190. Thus, the vehicle driver or another user in the vehicle can speak and listen without using his or her hands to control the mobile phone 5.

[0082] Figure 2 An exemplary background sound enhancement system of the infotainment module 190 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is illustrated. The components of the background sound enhancement system include a select sound module 210, an audio database (DB) module 215, a scaling level module 220, an adapt spectrum module 240, a masking metric module 250, an adapt level module 260, an intelligibility metric module 270, and an adder circuit 280. Optionally, the components of the background sound enhancement system of the infotainment module 190 may further include a driving workload adapter module 230 (shown in dashed lines). According to the principles of the present disclosure, the background sound enhancement system receives an incoming uplink signal (e.g., a voice audio stream) from a microphone (not shown) of the infotainment module 190 and enhances the incoming uplink signal with background sound. The infotainment module 190 outputs the enhanced uplink signal, which is transmitted to the mobile phone 5 via the Bluetooth transceiver 195.

[0083] Figure 3 is a frequency plot of a masking envelope that can be detected by the exemplary infotainment module 190 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The dashed line 310 represents the sound energy in decibels (dB) required for human hearing. At very low and very high frequencies, increased sound energy is required to hear a sound. Figure 3 Includes an exemplary music spectral line 330 centered at approximately 250 Hz and an exemplary voice spectral line 340 centered at approximately 400 Hz.

[0084] However, the music spectral line 330 imposes a masking envelope 320 that has more energy at 400 Hz than the voice spectral line 340. This means that the music audio will drown out the voice audio. According to the principles of the present disclosure, the background sound enhancement system ensures that the energy of the added music signal does not mask the energy of the original incoming voice signal. Thus, the disclosed background sound enhancement system achieves frequency-specific equalization that reduces certain frequency bands of the music background sound such that the voice signal is not masked. In Figure 3 the example of, reducing the energy of the music by 10 dB in the range of 400 Hz will not mask the voice signal represented by the voice spectral line 340.

[0085] Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a background sound enhancement system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In 410, the user selects an enhanced audio stream from a database. As Figure 2 shown, the infotainment module 190 receives an input command from the user to select a background sound, such as a favorite music track, beach noise, or entertainment venue noise. In response, the infotainment module 190 generates an enhanced signal identifier (ID). The select sound module 210 receives the enhanced signal ID and retrieves the selected background sound from the audio database module 215 in the form of a streaming audio signal.

[0086] Next, in 420, the scaling level module 220 performs a coarse scaling. The scaling level module 220 receives an uplink signal from a microphone and a streaming audio signal (or enhanced audio signal) from the audio database module 215. The scaling level module 220 then compares the two input signals and performs a coarse scaling of the enhanced audio signal using a fixed criterion to ensure that the enhanced audio signal is sufficiently lower than the uplink signal such that the enhanced audio signal does not create a significant amount of interference. For example, the scaling level module 220 can ensure that the enhanced audio signal from the audio database module 215 is at least 10 dB lower than the uplink signal.

[0087] Next, in 430, the masking metric module 250 generates a masking metric for the scaled enhanced audio signal. The masking metric module 250 receives and compares the uplink signal and the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module 220. The masking metric module 250 analyzes the signal energy of the two signals at specific frequencies and identifies the spectral masking positions and scaling degrees according to the principles described in the example shown in Figure 3 The spectral masking positions and scaling degrees are identified according to the principles described in the example shown in

[0088] Next, in 440, the adaptive spectrum module 240 adapts the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal according to the masking metric generated by the masking metric module 250 to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal. The masking metric module 250 outputs the spectral masking positions and signal energy to the adaptive spectrum module 240, and the adaptive spectrum module 240 performs frequency-specific equalization, which reduces certain frequency bands of the music background sound so that the voice signal is not masked.

[0089] Next, in 450, the adaptation level module 260 adapts the level of the equalized enhanced audio signal according to the intelligibility metric. The equalization output of the adaptive spectrum module 240 is applied to the input of the adaptation level module 260, and the adaptation level module 260 is controlled by the intelligibility metric module 270. The adaptation level output of the adaptive spectrum module 240 and the uplink signal are combined by the adder circuit 280 to produce an enhanced uplink signal.

[0090] However, the enhanced uplink signal is fed back to one input of the intelligibility metric module 270, and the intelligibility metric module 270 also receives the uplink signal as a second input. The intelligibility metric module 270 compares the uplink signal and the enhanced uplink signal and scores the intelligibility of the enhanced uplink signal to produce a final scaling signal that controls the adaptation level module 260. If the intelligibility of the enhanced uplink signal is low, the adaptation level module 260 will reduce its energy before the equalization output of the adaptive spectrum module 240 is input to the adder circuit 280.

[0091] Finally, in 460, the adder circuit 280 combines the level-adapted, equalized enhanced audio signal with the uplink signal to produce an enhanced uplink signal.

[0092] The foregoing description is merely illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit the present disclosure, its application, or uses. The broad teachings of the present disclosure can be implemented in a variety of forms. Thus, while the present disclosure includes specific examples, the true scope of the present disclosure should not be so limited since other modifications will become apparent upon study of the drawings, the specification, and the appended claims. It should be understood that one or more steps within a method can be executed in a different order (or concurrently) without altering the principles of the present disclosure. Further, although each embodiment is described above as having certain features, any one or more of those features described with respect to any embodiment of the present disclosure can be implemented in and / or combined with the features of any other embodiment, even if the combination is not explicitly described. In other words, the described embodiments are not mutually exclusive, and a permutation of one or more of the embodiments is still within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0093] Various terms are used to describe spatial and functional relationships between elements (e.g., between modules, circuit elements, semiconductor layers, etc.), including "connected," "engaged," "coupled," "adjacent," "next to," "on top," "above," "below," and "disposed." Unless explicitly described as "direct," when describing the relationship between a first and a second element in the foregoing disclosure, the relationship can be a direct relationship where no other intervening elements exist between the first and second elements, but can also be an indirect relationship where one or more intervening elements (spatially or functionally) exist between the first and second elements. As used herein, the phrase "at least one of A, B, and C" should be construed to mean a logic (A or B or C) using non-exclusive logical "OR" and should not be construed to mean "at least one of A, at least one of B, and at least one of C."

[0094] In the various figures, the direction of an arrow as indicated generally represents the information flow (such as data or instructions) associated with the illustration. For example, when elements A and B exchange various information, but the information transmitted from element A to element B is relevant to the illustration, the arrow can point from element A to element B. This one-way arrow does not imply that no other information is transmitted from element B to element A. Further, for information sent from element A to element B, element B can send a request for that information or receive an acknowledgement.

[0095] In this application, including the following definitions, the term "module" or the term "controller" may be replaced with the term "circuit". The term "module" may refer to, be part of, or include the following: application specific integrated circuit (ASIC); digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital discrete circuits; digital, analog, or mixed analog / digital integrated circuits; combinational logic circuits; field programmable gate arrays (FPGA); processor circuits that execute code (shared, dedicated, or group); memory circuits that store code executed by the processor circuits (shared, dedicated, or group); other suitable hardware components that provide the described functionality; or some or all of the combinations of the above, such as in a system on a chip.

[0096] A module may include one or more interface circuits. In some examples, the interface circuit may include a wired or wireless interface connected to a local area network (LAN), the Internet, a wide area network (WAN), or a combination thereof. The functionality of any given module of the present disclosure may be distributed among a plurality of modules connected via the interface circuits. For example, a plurality of modules may implement load balancing. In another example, a server (also referred to as remote or cloud) module may perform some functionality on behalf of a client module.

[0097] As used above, the term code may include software, firmware, and / or microcode, and may refer to programs, routines, functions, classes, data structures, and / or objects. The term shared processor circuit encompasses a single processor circuit that executes some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term group processor circuit encompasses a processor circuit that, in combination with additional processor circuits, executes some or all of the code from one or more modules. References to multiple processor circuits encompass multiple processor circuits on separate die, multiple processor circuits on a single die, multiple cores of a single processor circuit, multiple threads of a single processor circuit, or combinations of the above. The term shared memory circuit encompasses a single memory circuit that stores some or all of the code from multiple modules. The term group memory circuit encompasses a memory circuit that, in combination with additional memory, stores some or all of the code from one or more modules.

[0098] The term memory circuit is a subset of the term computer-readable medium. As used herein, the term computer-readable medium does not encompass transitory electrical or electromagnetic signals propagated through a medium (such as on a carrier wave); thus, the term computer-readable medium may be considered tangible and non-transitory. Non-limiting examples of non-transitory tangible computer-readable media are non-volatile memory circuits (such as flash memory circuits, erasable programmable read-only memory circuits, or mask read-only memory circuits), volatile memory circuits (such as static random access memory circuits or dynamic random access memory circuits), magnetic storage media (such as analog or digital magnetic tape or hard disk drives), and optical storage media (such as CDs, DVDs, or Blu-ray discs).

[0099] The devices and methods described in this application can be implemented in part or in whole by a special-purpose computer created by configuring a general-purpose computer to execute one or more specific functions embodied in a computer program. The functional blocks, flowchart components, and other elements described above serve as software specifications, which can be transformed into computer programs through the routine work of skilled technicians or programmers.

[0100] The computer program includes processor-executable instructions stored on at least one non-transitory tangible computer-readable medium. The computer program may also include or rely on stored data. The computer program may cover the basic input / output system (BIOS) that interacts with the hardware of the special-purpose computer, device drivers that interact with specific devices of the special-purpose computer, one or more operating systems, user applications, background services, background applications, etc.

[0101] The computer program may include: (i) descriptive text to be parsed, such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language), XML (eXtensible Markup Language), or JSON (JavaScript Object Notation); (ii) assembly code; (iii) object code generated from source code by a compiler; (iv) source code for execution by an interpreter; (v) source code for compilation and execution by a just-in-time compiler, etc. By way of example only, the source code may be written using the syntax of languages including C, C++, C#, ObjectiveC, Swift, Haskell, Go, SQL, R, Lisp, Java®, Fortran, Perl, Pascal, Curl, OCaml, Javascript®, HTML5 (Fifth Revision of the HyperText Markup Language), Ada, ASP (Active Server Pages), PHP (PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor), Scala, Eiffel, Smalltalk, Erlang, Ruby, Flash®, Visual Basic®, Lua, MATLAB, SIMULINK, and Python®.

Claims

1. A vehicle infotainment system configured to add background sound to an outgoing call on a mobile device, the vehicle infotainment system comprising: A database of optional enhanced audio signals; and an audio processing circuit configured to: receive an uplink signal from the infotainment system at a first input and receive a selected enhanced audio signal at a second input; adapt the spectrum of the first selected enhanced audio signal to prevent the selected enhanced audio signal from masking the uplink signal; and combine the adapted selected enhanced audio signal and the indicated uplink signal to produce an enhanced uplink signal at an output, wherein the audio processing circuit further includes a scaling level module, an adapted spectrum module, an intelligibility metric module, and an adapted level module, the scaling level module being configured to receive the uplink signal and the selected enhanced audio signal and produce a scaled enhanced audio signal; the adapted spectrum module being configured to receive the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module and adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal; the intelligibility metric module being configured to receive the enhanced uplink signal from the output and the uplink signal from the first input and generate an intelligibility metric therefrom; and the adapted level module being configured to receive the equalized enhanced audio signal from the adapted spectrum module and adapt the level of the equalized enhanced audio signal according to the intelligibility metric.

2. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 1, wherein, The scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is sufficiently lower than the uplink signal such that the selected enhanced audio signal does not create a significant amount of interference.

3. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 2, wherein, The scaling level module uses a fixed criterion to scale the selected enhanced audio signal.

4. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 3, wherein, The scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is at least 5 dB lower than the uplink signal.

5. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 1, wherein, The audio processing circuit further includes a masking metric module configured to: receive the uplink signal and the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module; identify spectral masking locations; and generate a masking metric.

6. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 5, wherein, The adapted spectrum module is further configured to receive the masking metric from the masking metric module and use the masking metric to adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal.

7. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 1, wherein, The intelligibility metric module is configured to compare the uplink signal and the enhanced uplink signal and score the intelligibility of the enhanced uplink signal to produce an intelligibility metric.

8. The vehicle infotainment system according to claim 1, wherein, The audio processing circuit further includes an adder circuit configured to receive the uplink signal and combine the uplink signal with the level-adapted, equalized enhanced audio signal from the adapted level module to produce an enhanced uplink signal.

9. A method for adding background sound to an outgoing call on a mobile device in a vehicle infotainment system, the method comprising: Select an enhanced audio signal from the database; receive an uplink signal from the infotainment system at a first input; receive the selected enhanced audio signal at a second input; adapt the spectrum of the first selected enhanced audio signal to prevent the selected enhanced audio signal from masking the uplink signal; and Combine the adapted selected enhanced audio signal and the uplink signal to produce an enhanced uplink signal at the output; Wherein, the adapted spectrum further includes: Receive the uplink signal and the selected enhanced audio signal in a scaling level module and produce a scaled enhanced audio signal; In an adapted spectrum module, receive the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module and adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal; In an intelligibility metric module, receive the enhanced uplink signal from the output and the uplink signal from the first input and generate an intelligibility metric therefrom; and In an adaptation level module, receive the equalized enhanced audio signal from the adapted spectrum module and adapt the level of the equalized enhanced audio signal according to the intelligibility metric.

10. According to the method of claim 9, wherein, The scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is sufficiently lower than the uplink signal so that the selected enhanced audio signal does not cause a large amount of interference.

11. According to the method of claim 10, wherein, The scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal using a fixed criterion.

12. According to the method of claim 11, wherein, The scaling level module scales the selected enhanced audio signal to ensure that the selected enhanced audio signal is at least 5 dB lower than the uplink signal.

13. According to the method of claim 9, wherein, The adapted spectrum further includes: In a masking metric module, receive the uplink signal and the scaled enhanced audio signal from the scaling level module, identify the spectral masking positions, and generate a masking metric.

14. According to the method of claim 13, wherein, The adapted spectrum further includes: In the adapted spectrum module, receive the masking metric from the masking metric module and use the masking metric to adapt the spectrum of the scaled enhanced audio signal to produce an equalized enhanced audio signal.

15. According to the method of claim 9, wherein, The intelligibility metric module compares the uplink signal and the enhanced uplink signal and scores the intelligibility of the enhanced uplink signal to produce an intelligibility metric.

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