Bone conduction microphone with resonance control based on determined audio context information

Abstract

Systems and techniques for processing audio data are provided. For example, a process can include determining audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), where the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information. The process can include generating a control signal indicating a resonance configuration of one or more resonators of a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, where the resonance configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments. The process can include sending the control signal to the multi-band BCM, where the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonance configuration.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates in its entirety to audio signal processing. For example, aspects of this disclosure relate to the resonance control of bone conduction microphones (BCMs) and / or voice accelerometers (VAs) for sensing bone conduction vibrations of the vocal cords. Background Technology

[0002] In some examples, when a user speaks (e.g., generates their own speech signal), the user's speech can propagate along two paths: an acoustic path and a bone conduction path. An acoustic microphone can be used to pick up the acoustic path-based input audio signal. The acoustic path-based input audio signal may include the user's own speech signal and may additionally include distortion patterns from external or background signals, noise, etc. A bone conduction microphone (BCM) can be used to pick up the bone conduction path-based input audio signal. The bone conduction path-based input audio signal may include the user's own speech signal at an improved signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). For example, the bone conduction path-based input audio signal may include small and / or negligible contributions from external or background signals, noise, etc.

[0003] A voice accelerometer (VA) is a device that can be used to sense or detect human speech (e.g., user speech) based on sensing bone conduction vibrations caused by the vocal cords. Both VA and BCM can be used to capture mechanical vibrations passing through the wearer's skin using bone conduction pathways and convert the captured mechanical vibrations into electrical signals that indicate or include the wearer's own speech signals. In some examples, the terms "VA" and "BCM" are used interchangeably. For example, a VA can also be referred to as a BCM, and vice versa; a VA can be used to implement a BCM, and vice versa. A BCM (e.g., a VA) is not designed to sense airborne sound like a conventional acoustic microphone. Instead, a BCM can be designed to sense bone conduction and / or soft tissue conduction vibrations caused and propagated by the user's vocal cords. To sense these bone conduction or soft tissue conduction vibrations, the BCM can be coupled to a part of the user's body (e.g., through direct or indirect physical contact). For example, a BCM can be placed directly on the skin, typically on (or near) the head or neck. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The following is a simplified summary of the invention relating to one or more aspects disclosed herein. Therefore, this summary should not be considered an exhaustive overview relating to all conceived aspects, nor should it be considered to identify key or decisive elements relating to all conceived aspects or to depict the scope associated with any particular aspect. Accordingly, the following summary presents certain concepts in a simplified form relating to one or more aspects of the mechanisms disclosed herein, preceding the detailed description presented below.

[0005] Systems, methods, apparatuses, and computer-readable media for processing audio data are disclosed. According to at least one exemplary example, a method for processing audio data is provided, the method comprising: determining audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; generating a control signal indicating a resonant configuration of one or more resonators among a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonant configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; and sending the control signal to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonant configuration.

[0006] In another example, an apparatus for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus includes at least one memory and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and configured to: determine audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; generate a control signal indicating a resonant configuration of one or more resonators among a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonant configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; and send the control signal to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonant configuration.

[0007] In another example, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, comprising instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the following operations: determine audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; generate a control signal indicating a resonance configuration of one or more resonators among a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonance configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; and send the control signal to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonance configuration.

[0008] In another example, an apparatus for wireless communication is provided. The apparatus includes: means for determining audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; means for generating a control signal indicating a resonant configuration of one or more resonators among a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonant configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; and means for sending the control signal to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonant configuration.

[0009] The features and technical advantages of the examples according to this disclosure have been summarized rather extensively above in order to better understand the detailed description below. Additional features and advantages will be described below. The disclosed concepts and specific examples can be readily utilized as the basis for modifying or designing other structures for achieving the same purpose of this disclosure. Such equivalent constructions do not depart from the scope of the appended claims. The characteristics of the concepts disclosed herein, in both their organization and manner of operation, and the associated advantages, will be better understood by considering the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Each drawing provided in the drawings is for illustrative and descriptive purposes and not as a limitation of the definitions in the claims.

[0010] While aspects are described herein by way of example, those skilled in the art will understand that such aspects can be implemented in many different arrangements and scenarios. The techniques described herein can be implemented using different platform types, devices, systems, shapes, sizes, and / or package arrangements. For example, some aspects may be implemented via integrated chip examples or specific implementations or other devices based on non-modular components (e.g., end-user equipment, vehicles, communication equipment, computing devices, industrial equipment, retail / shopping devices, medical devices, and / or artificial intelligence devices). Aspects may be implemented in chip-level components, modular components, non-modular components, non-chip-level components, device-level components, and / or system-level components. Devices incorporating the described aspects and features may include additional components and features for implementing and practicing the claimed and described aspects. For example, the transmission and reception of wireless signals may include one or more components for analog and digital purposes (e.g., hardware components including antennas, radio frequency (RF) chains, power amplifiers, modulators, buffers, processors, interleavers, adders, and / or summers). The aspects described herein are intended to be practiced in a wide variety of devices, components, systems, distributed arrangements, and / or end-user devices of various sizes, shapes, and configurations.

[0011] This summary is not intended to identify key or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used in isolation to define the scope of the claimed subject matter. This subject matter should be understood with reference to the appropriate portions of the entire specification, any or all drawings, and each claim.

[0012] Based on the accompanying drawings and detailed description, other objects and advantages associated with the aspects disclosed herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Attached Figure Description

[0013] The exemplary aspects of this application are described in detail below with reference to the following figures:

[0014] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating examples of audio signaling using one or more bone conduction sensors, bone conduction microphones (BCMs), and / or voice accelerometers (VAs) according to some examples;

[0015] Figure 2 This is an illustration of an example of a wearable device according to some examples, which can be used to perform audio signal processing using one or more BCMs to sense bone conduction speech or voice signals using one or more audio frequency bands in the speech vibration frequency range of human speech.

[0016] Figure 3 The diagram is based on some examples of an audio signal processing system, which includes a wearable device having one or more bone conduction speech or voice signals.

[0017] Figure 4 These are graphs illustrating example frequency responses of acoustic microphones and BCMs, based on some examples.

[0018] Figure 5A This is a diagram illustrating an example of a multi-band BCM, which includes multiple sensing elements (e.g., resonators) associated with different frequency bands and frequencies.

[0019] Figure 5B This is a diagram illustrating an example of a BCM with a multi-band resonant group, which can be configured and / or activated in various combinations based on context or use case information, according to some examples.

[0020] Figure 6 These are examples of the frequency responses of a multi-band MEMS resonator used to implement a BCM and an example of the frequency responses of a single-band MEMS resonator used to implement a BCM, based on some examples.

[0021] Figure 7This is a diagram illustrating an example system for context-aware resonance control for multi-band BCM, based on some examples;

[0022] Figure 8 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process for processing audio data, based on some examples; and

[0023] Figure 9 This is a block diagram illustrating an example of a computing system based on some examples. Detailed Implementation

[0024] Certain aspects and facets of this disclosure are provided below. Some of these aspects and facets may be applied independently, and some may be applied in combination, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. In the following description, specific details are set forth for purposes of explanation to provide a thorough understanding of the aspects of this application. However, it will be apparent, however, that various aspects may be practiced without these specific details. The accompanying drawings and descriptions are not intended to be limiting.

[0025] The following description provides only exemplary aspects and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of this disclosure. Rather, the following description of the exemplary aspects will provide those skilled in the art with descriptions that can be used to implement the exemplary aspects. It should be understood that various changes can be made to the function and arrangement of the elements without departing from the scope of this application as set forth in the appended claims.

[0026] A bone conduction microphone (BCM) is a device used to sense or detect human speech (e.g., voice) based on sensing bone conduction vibrations caused by the vocal cords. As used herein, a BCM may also be referred to as a speech accelerometer (VA), or vice versa. In some cases, one or more VAs may be used to implement a BCM. While an acoustic microphone is designed to generate an audio signal based on sensing air-conducted sound waves, a BCM is designed to sense vibrations caused and propagated by the user's vocal cords via bone conduction and / or soft tissue conduction. To sense these bone-conducted or soft-tissue conducted vibrations, the BCM may be coupled to a part of the user's body (e.g., through direct or indirect physical contact). For example, a BCM may be placed directly on the skin, typically on (or near) the user's head or neck.

[0027] In some examples, one or more BCMs may be included in various wearable devices and / or other audio and / or electronic devices. For example, one or more BCMs may be included in wearable devices such as a pair of true wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds, AR / VR headsets, smart glasses, etc., and may be used to acquire bone conduction audio signals that capture the user's voice (e.g., the wearer's voice) to prevent unwanted external sounds, etc. In another example, one or more BCMs may be used to provide covert communication based on a BCM having a lower threshold of audibility or detectability of the sound produced by the user. Unlike acoustic microphones, BCMs are not designed to sense airborne sound. In some examples, BCMs may be used for voice enhancement processing in mobile communications or various other use cases, such as based on the greater sensitivity of the BCM to bone conduction speech rather than airborne background noise and other unwanted external sounds. One or more BCMs included in earbuds or headphones may be used to capture the wearer's voice as vibrations rather than capturing any airborne external sounds (e.g., one or more BCMs may be used to capture the wearer's voice vibrations while rejecting airborne sound). In another example, one or more BCMs may be used to perform voice activity detection, such as for detecting wake-up activity to activate devices including one or more BCMs or associated with them (e.g., where improving the detection accuracy of the user’s pronunciation of the wake-up word can prevent false activation).

[0028] In some examples, the BCM (e.g., VA) may be implemented using a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) accelerometer and may be referred to as a "MEMS BCM". In some cases, the MEMS BCM may implement piezoelectric sensing, capacitive sensing, and / or a combination of both. As used herein, "piezoelectric MEMS BCM" or "piezoelectric BCM" may refer to a MEMS BCM that implements only piezoelectric sensing (e.g., without utilizing capacitive sensing) and / or may refer to a MEMS BCM that implements at least piezoelectric sensing (e.g., utilizing piezoelectric sensing and possibly additionally utilizing capacitive sensing). In an exemplary example, a piezoelectric MEMS BCM may include one or more cantilever, beam, or other sensing elements to sense and detect bone conduction vibrations corresponding to a user's voice. For example, Figure 5A and Figure 5B An example MEMS BCM including multiple cantilever sensing elements is illustrated, which can be used to realize multi-band resonance and / or multi-band signal processing of bone conduction speech signals (e.g., as will be described in more detail below).

[0029] The term "capacitive MEMS BCM" or "capacitive BCM" can refer to a MEMS BCM that implements only capacitive sensing (e.g., without utilizing piezoelectric sensing) and / or can refer to a MEMS BCM that at least implements capacitive sensing (e.g., utilizing capacitive sensing and possibly additionally utilizing piezoelectric sensing). In an exemplary example, a capacitive MEMS BCM may include one or more capacitive accelerometers or other capacitive vibration sensors. A capacitive accelerometer can be used to sense and detect bone conduction vibrations corresponding to a user's voice based on detecting changes in capacitance in response to acceleration. The accelerometer may utilize the properties of a plate capacitor for which the distance between the plates changes proportionally with the applied acceleration, thereby altering the capacitance. This variable (e.g., the change in capacitance, indicating a change in the distance between the plates) is used in the circuitry to ultimately provide an output voltage signal proportional to the measured acceleration. Bone conduction microphones can also be implemented as non-MEMS BCMs and / or can be implemented without using a MEMS accelerometer. For example, a microphone-based BCM can utilize microphone-based capacitive sensing, where vibrations caused by the user's vocal cords are coupled to a detected mass on the housing. The vibrations of the detected mass generate air-conducted sound, which is captured by a conventional acoustic microphone.

[0030] BCMs and / or speech accelerometers implemented using piezoelectric MEMS technology (e.g., existing piezoelectric MEMS BCM implementations) can have relatively high measurement noise floor. For example, noise floor represents a magnitude or threshold below which the piezoelectric MEMS BCM cannot distinguish bone conduction sound measurements from random or external noise. In some examples, existing piezoelectric MEMS BCM implementations can be associated with noise floor levels higher than those associated with various non-piezoelectric MEMS BCM implementations (e.g., capacitive MEMS BCMs, non-MEMS BCMs, acoustic microphone-based BCMs, etc.).

[0031] An additional challenge is associated with the frequency-dependent sensitivity characteristics of the MEMS BCM implementation relative to the bone conduction speech vibration frequency range (e.g., the bone conduction speech vibration frequency range may be above a detection threshold). In some examples, the bone conduction speech vibration frequency range may include frequencies from 100 Hz to 1 kHz. In some cases, the bone conduction speech vibration frequency range (e.g., also referred to as the “speech band”) may include frequencies below 100 Hz and / or frequencies above 1 kHz. For example, the bone conduction speech vibration frequency range may be based at least in part on the corresponding BCM and / or VA implementation used to sense or detect the bone conduction speech vibration frequency. In some examples, the bone conduction speech vibration range may be based on the location of the sensed vibration on the head (e.g., the location of the BCM or VA on the head or body). The bone conduction speech vibration range may additionally be based on the corresponding noise floor of the BCM or VA implementation used to sense or detect the bone conduction speech vibration frequency. In some cases, the bone conduction speech vibration range may correspond to the BCM or VA noise floor relative to the vibration amplitude (e.g., the amplitude of the bone conduction speech vibration). For example, in some examples of MEMS BCMs located at the ear, vibrational energy above 1 kHz falls into the sensor's background noise (e.g., MEMS BCM background noise) and may not be detectable. In some respects, the systems and techniques described herein can be used to detect bone conduction speech vibrations at frequencies greater than 1 kHz.

[0032] As noted above, bone conduction speech signals are generally limited to the relatively low frequencies of human speech (e.g., corresponding to frequencies within the bone conduction speech vibration range of approximately 100 Hz to 1 kHz). The bone conduction speech vibration range is narrower than the frequency range of human speech, which typically falls between 100 Hz and 8 kHz. Based on the bone conduction speech vibration range, which represents a subset of the wider frequency range of human speech, conventional BCM implementations may fail to capture the entire frequency range of the wearer's speech because it has already been captured by an acoustic microphone. For example, speech captured using a BCM may sound muffled (despite the absence of external air-conducted sounds) and / or may lack intelligibility. To compensate for reduced speech intelligibility, a BCM implementation is needed that can be configured to extend the bandwidth of the captureable bone conduction vibration energy, for example, by boosting the highest possible frequency range of bone conduction speech (e.g., approximately or slightly above 1 kHz), where very weak vibration energy may exist.

[0033] Some BCM implementations may have a frequency response with a single formant located outside the 100Hz to 1kHz speech vibration band (e.g., a formant greater than 1kHz). The formant of the BCM's frequency response indicates the resonant frequency at which the BCM exhibits the highest sensitivity. For example, a BCM with a formant of 4kHz has high sensitivity at frequencies close to the 4kHz resonant frequency and low sensitivity at frequencies far from the 4kHz resonant frequency. Some BCM implementations are highly sensitive in a fixed narrow band at higher frequencies (e.g., outside the 100Hz to 1kHz speech vibration band, such as a fixed narrow band at the 4kHz resonant frequency). In some examples, the BCM can be implemented with a formant close to 4kHz and a high Q factor. A formant at higher frequencies can be achieved with the aim of boosting the high frequencies of the measured speech signal to improve intelligibility. In at least some examples, a high magnitude of the formant can make the BCM sensitive to air-conducted sound over a narrow frequency range. Additionally, the frequency of the formant can be much higher than the frequency band of speech vibration, and the signal captured at the formant does not represent the actual bone conduction speech, but additionally includes the air conduction component along with any unwanted external noise that may be present.

[0034] Some BCM implementations utilize one or more low-pass filters (LPFs) to reduce sensitivity at higher frequencies and / or resonant frequencies outside the speech vibration band. Using a BCM with one or more LPFs can prevent the capture of external noise at high frequencies (such as where formants are typically located); however, speech intelligibility will still be lost.

[0035] Systems and techniques are needed to implement BCMs that address the challenges outlined above. For example, the challenges described above may limit the use of existing BCMs in speech enhancement and / or noise reduction audio signal processing techniques, as well as various other audio signal processing techniques where improved SNR and / or speech intelligibility are desired or required. Further, systems and techniques are needed to implement BCMs with multi-band resonance to provide higher sensitivity at multiple different frequencies or frequency ranges (e.g., higher sensitivity at or around each set of resonant frequencies associated with the BCM). Additionally, there is a need for BCMs with multi-band resonance that can be controlled to perform multi-band processing based on factors such as context, use case, and / or user speech characteristics.

[0036] This document describes systems, apparatus, processes (also referred to as methods), and computer-readable media (collectively, “Systems and Technologies”) and / or groups thereof that can be used to implement bone conduction microphones (BCMs) with multi-band resonance, having resonance control based on audio context information determined for the user (e.g., wearer) of the BCM. For example, a BCM may include multiple resonators (e.g., cantilever arms in the example of a piezoelectric MEMS BCM) associated with multiple different resonant frequencies. The individual outputs of the resonators may be added together and / or combined into a multi-band output, where different bands correspond to different resonant frequencies (or different groups of resonant frequencies). The multi-band resonance of the BCM can be used to provide improved capture of the mid- and high-frequency components of the wearer's speech (e.g., voice signals).

[0037] In one exemplary example, different combinations of multiple multiband resonators of the BCM can be activated or configured to measure the wearer's bone conduction speech signal. Different combinations of multiband resonators (or different combinations of groups of multiband resonators) can be used to implement different multiband processing techniques to provide speech intelligibility enhancement. In some aspects, the system and techniques can configure the multiband resonators of the multiband BCM based on determined audio context information associated with or corresponding to the wearer of the BCM (e.g., also referred to as the user or user of the BCM). In one exemplary example, the audio context information may also be referred to as user information or wearer information, and can be determined based on information obtained using one or more connected sensors located outside and / or separately from the multiband BCM.

[0038] For example, audio context information used to control and / or configure the resonance and multi-band processing configuration of a multi-band BCM can be determined based on information from connected sensors, including an acoustic microphone. The acoustic microphone can be an external microphone from an ear-worn or head-mounted shape-factor device worn by the wearer of the BCM. In some cases, the acoustic microphone (or other external and / or connected sensors) can be included on the same device as the BCM. In some examples, the acoustic microphone (or other external and / or connected sensors for audio context information) and the multi-band BCM can be associated with a separate device worn by the same user, such as a smartphone or various other mobile computing devices, wearable computing devices, etc. For example, the acoustic microphone and the multi-band BCM can communicate (wired or wirelessly) with the user's smartphone, and the smartphone can be used to implement resonance control for the multi-band BCM based on audio context information determined using external microphone signals from the acoustic microphone.

[0039] Further aspects of the system and technology will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0040] Figure 1This is a diagram illustrating an example of an audio signaling scenario 100 using one or more bone conduction sensors, bone conduction microphones (BCMs), and / or voice accelerometers (VAs) according to some examples. For example, audio signaling scenario 100 may be associated with a user 105 using a wearable device 115 to experience direct hearing features (e.g., in various other features and use cases that may be associated with and / or implemented using one or more BCMs or VAs).

[0041] For example, user 105 may use wearable device 115 (e.g., wireless communication device, wireless headset, earbuds, true wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds, speaker, hearing aid, etc.) which can be worn by user 105 in a hands-free manner. In some cases, wearable device 115 may also be referred to as a hearing device. In some examples, user 105 may wear wearable device 115 continuously, regardless of whether wearable device 115 is currently being used (e.g., inputting audio signals, outputting audio signals, or both at one or more microphones 120). In some examples, wearable device 115 may include multiple microphones 120. For example, wearable device 115 may include one or more external microphones 120, such as external microphone 120a and external microphone 120b. Wearable device 115 may also include one or more internal microphones 120, such as internal microphone 120c. Wearable device 115 may use microphones 120 for noise detection, audio signal output, active noise cancellation, etc. Wearable devices (such as wearable device 115) may include more or fewer microphones.

[0042] When user 105 speaks, user 105 may generate a unique audio signal (e.g., its own speech signal). For example, user 105 may generate a self-speech signal that can propagate along acoustic path 125 (e.g., from user 105's mouth to microphone 120 of the headset). User 105 may also generate a self-speech signal that can travel along sound conduction path 130 created by vibrations of bone conduction between user 105's vocal cords or mouth and microphone 120 of wearable device 115. In some examples, wearable device 115 may perform self-speech activity detection (SVAD) based on self-speech quality. For example, wearable device 115 may identify inter-channel phase and intensity differences (e.g., the interaction between external and internal microphones 120 of wearable device 115). In some cases, wearable device 115 may use the detected differences as defining features to compare its own speech signal with external signals. For example, if one or more differences between the channel phase and intensity of the internal microphone 120c and the external microphone 120a are detected, or if one or more differences between the channel phase and intensity of the internal microphone 120c and the external microphone 120a meet a threshold, the wearable device 115 can determine that its own voice signal is present in the input audio signal.

[0043] In some examples, wearable device 115 may provide a direct hearing feature for operation in a transparent mode. The direct hearing feature allows user 105 to hear the output audio signal from wearable device 115 as if wearable device 115 were not present. The direct hearing feature allows user 105 to wear wearable device 115 hands-free, regardless of the current usage of wearable device 115 (e.g., whether wearable device 115 is using one or more microphones 120 to output audio signals, input audio signals, or both). For example, audio source 110 (e.g., a person, audio from the surrounding environment, etc.) may generate an external audio signal 135. For example, a person may speak to user 105, thus creating an external audio signal 135. Without the direct hearing feature, the external audio signal 135 may be blocked, muted, or otherwise distorted by wearable device 115. The direct listening feature can utilize external microphone 120a, external microphone 120b, internal microphone 120c, or a combination thereof to receive input audio signals (e.g., external audio signal 135), process the input audio signals, and output (e.g., via internal microphone 120c) an audio signal that sounds natural to user 105 (e.g., sounds as if user 105 is not wearing a device).

[0044] The self-speech audio signal following acoustic path 125 and the external audio signal 135 can have different distortion modes. For example, the external audio signal 135, the self-speech audio signal following acoustic path 125, or both can have a first distortion mode. However, the self-speech following sound conduction path 130, the self-speech following acoustic path 125, or both can have a second distortion mode. The microphone 120 of the wearable device 115 can similarly detect the self-speech audio signal and the external audio signal 135. Therefore, without different processing for different signal types, the user 105 may not experience a natural-sounding input audio signal. That is, the wearable device 115 can detect input audio signals that include the external audio signal 135, self-speech via acoustic path 125, or a combination of self-speech via sound conduction path 130. The wearable device 115 can use the microphone 120 to detect the input audio signal.

[0045] In some examples, one or more (or all) microphones 120 may be implemented as bone conduction microphones (BCMs) and / or voice accelerometers (VAs). The BCM may include or utilize one or more VAs to detect the user's bone-conducted speech (e.g., bone conduction of its own speech signal). In some cases, the wearable device 115 may include one or more bone conduction sensors 140. The bone conduction sensors 140 may be the same as or similar to the microphones 120 implemented as BCMs or VAs. In some examples, one or more bone conduction sensors 140 may be different from one or more microphones in the microphones 120 and / or different from one or more BCMs or VAs used to implement the microphones 120. In some examples, one or more bone conduction sensors 140 may be both a BCM and / or a VA.

[0046] In some cases, user 105 may experience bone conduction while speaking using wearable device 115. For example, bone conduction can be the transmission of sound through the bones of the skull to the inner ear, allowing user 105 to perceive audio (e.g., speech or their own voice) using vibrations in the bones. In some examples, bones can transmit low-frequency sounds better than high-frequency sounds. Bone conduction sensor 140 may include a transducer that outputs a signal based on bone vibrations caused by audio. Additionally or alternatively, bone conduction sensor 140 may include any device (e.g., a sensor, etc.) that detects vibrations and outputs electronic signals.

[0047] In some examples, wearable device 115 may receive input audio signals from external microphone 120a, external microphone 120b, or both (e.g., external audio signal 135, user 105's own voice, or both) and from internal microphone 120c. Wearable device 115 may output audio signals (e.g., bone conduction signals) to speakers or other audio devices (e.g., various speakers or audio playback devices audible to user 105).

[0048] Figure 2 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a wearable device 205 according to some examples, which can be used to perform audio signal processing using one or more bone conduction microphones (BCMs) (e.g., VAs) to sense bone conduction speech or voice signals using one or more audio frequency bands in the speech vibration frequency range of approximately 100 Hz to 1 kHz. In some cases, wearable device 205 may be Figure 1 Examples of various aspects of wearable device 115. Wearable device 205 may include receiver 210, signal processing manager 215, and speaker 220. Wearable device 205 may also include processor. Each of these components may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0049] Receiver 210 can receive audio signals from the surrounding area (e.g., via a microphone array, including one or more BCMs for sensing bone conduction speech or voice signals). The detected audio signals can be transmitted to other components of wearable device 205. Receiver 210 can communicate wirelessly with other devices using a single antenna or a set of antennas and / or can communicate with other devices using one or more wired connections.

[0050] The signal processing manager 215 can receive one or more corresponding bone conduction audio signals at a wearable device 205, which includes at least one bone conduction audio sensor (BCM) for bone conduction audio sensing. The bone conduction audio signals may correspond to the voice or speech of the user of the wearable device 205. In some cases, the bone conduction audio signals may be received in one or more frequency bands and / or using one or more groups or subsets of frequency bands within the speech vibration frequency range of 100 Hz to 1 kHz.

[0051] Actions performed by the signal processing manager 215 described herein can be implemented to achieve one or more potential advantages. One specific implementation enables wearable devices (e.g., Figure 1 Wearable devices 115 Figure 2Wearable devices (such as 205) can use the signal output of a BCM (e.g., VA) or other bone conduction sensors to consider the user's own speech in an audio signal. The BCM can be used to acquire the user's bone conduction audio signal (e.g., bone conduction self-speech signal), which can be used for various downstream audio processing and / or audio output tasks, etc. For example, the bone conduction audio signal can be used to filter one or more acoustic audio signals (e.g., non-bone conduction audio signals obtained from an acoustic microphone) to provide a transparency mode to the user, allowing the user's own speech to sound natural as output from the wearable device, to perform various other speech enhancement audio signal processing operations, and / or to perform various other noise reduction operations, etc. Using one or more BCMs to generate or sense the user's, the wearable device's processor (e.g., a processor controlling receiver 210, signal processing manager 215, speaker 220, or a combination thereof) bone conduction self-speech signal can improve the user experience.

[0052] The signal processing manager 215 or its sub-components may be implemented in hardware, in code (e.g., software or firmware) executed by a processor, or any combination thereof. If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functionality of the signal processing manager 215 or its sub-components may be performed by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic unit, discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described in this disclosure.

[0053] The signal processing manager 215 or its subcomponents may be physically located in various locations, including distributed such that portions of the functionality are implemented by one or more physical components at different physical locations. In some examples, according to various aspects of this disclosure, the signal processing manager 215 or its subcomponents may be separate and distinct components. In some examples, according to various aspects of this disclosure, the signal processing manager 215 or its subcomponents may be combined with one or more other hardware components, including but not limited to input / output (I / O) components, transceivers, network servers, another computing device, one or more other components described in this disclosure, or combinations thereof.

[0054] Speaker 220 can provide output signals generated by other components of wearable device 205. In some examples, speaker 220 may co-located with one or more microphones of wearable device 205 (e.g., BCM, VA, and / or acoustic microphone).

[0055] Figure 3The figure shows an example audio signal processing system 300, which includes a wearable device 305 having one or more bone conduction speech or voice signals (BCMs, e.g., VAs) for sensing bone conduction speech or voice signals. For example, according to some examples, the example audio signal processing system 300 can be used to perform audio signal processing using one or more BCMs to sense bone conduction speech or voice signals using one or more audio frequency bands in the speech vibration frequency range of approximately 100 Hz to 1 kHz.

[0056] Wearable device 305 can be Figure 1 Wearable devices 115 Figure 2 Examples of wearable devices 205, etc., or components including such wearable devices. Wearable device 305 may include components for two-way voice and data communication, including components for transmitting and receiving communications, including signal processing manager 310, input / output (I / O) controller 315, transceiver 320, memory 330, and processor 340. These components may communicate electronically via one or more buses (e.g., bus 345).

[0057] The signal processing manager 310 may receive one or more corresponding bone conduction audio signals at a wearable device including at least one BCM 360 (e.g., or other bone conduction sensors for bone conduction audio sensing). The bone conduction audio signals may correspond to the voice or speech of a user of the wearable device 205. In some cases, the bone conduction audio signals may be received in one or more frequency bands and / or using one or more groups or subsets of frequency bands within the speech vibration frequency range between 100 Hz and 1 kHz. In some cases, the wearable device 305 may additionally include one or more microphones 350, which may be provided as acoustic (e.g., non-bone conduction) microphones. In some examples, the signal processing manager 310 may receive acoustic audio signals from one or more acoustic microphones 350 and may receive one or more bone conduction audio signals from one or more BCMs 360.

[0058] I / O controller 315 can manage the input and output signals of wearable device 305. I / O controller 315 can also manage peripheral devices not integrated into wearable device 305. In some cases, I / O controller 315 can represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral device. In some cases, I / O controller 315 can utilize an operating system, such as iOS. ® ANDROID ® MS-DOS ® MS-WINDOWS ® OS / 2 ® UNIX® LINUX ® Or other known operating systems. In some examples, the I / O controller 315 may represent or interact with a modem, keyboard, mouse, touchscreen, or similar device. In some cases, the I / O controller 315 may be implemented as part of a processor. In some cases, a user may interact with the wearable device 305 via the I / O controller 315 or via hardware components controlled by the I / O controller 315.

[0059] Transceiver 320 can communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas, a wired link, or a wireless link. For example, transceiver 320 may represent a wireless transceiver and can communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. Transceiver 320 may also include a modem for modulating packets and providing the modulated packets to the antenna for transmission, and for demodulating packets received from the antenna. In some examples, the direct hearing feature implemented using one or more BCMs 360 (e.g., VA) described above and the corresponding bone conduction audio signal (e.g., bone conduction self-speech signal) allows a user to experience a sounding natural interaction with their environment while performing wireless communication or receiving data via transceiver 320.

[0060] The speaker 325 may provide an output audio signal to the user (e.g., with or without direct hearing characteristics and / or with or without combining bone conduction audio signals from one or more BCMs 360 with acoustic audio signals from one or more acoustic microphones 350, if present).

[0061] Memory 330 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). Memory 330 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 335, including instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to perform the various functions described herein. In some cases, among other things, memory 330 may also include a basic I / O system (BIOS) that controls basic hardware or software operations, such as interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0062] Processor 340 may include intelligent hardware devices (e.g., general-purpose processors, DSPs, CPUs, microcontrollers, ASICs, FPGAs, programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic components, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof). In some cases, processor 340 may be configured to use a memory controller to operate a memory array. In other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into processor 340. Processor 340 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in memory (e.g., memory 330) to cause wearable device 305 to perform various functions (e.g., supporting ASVN functions or tasks using bone conduction sensors).

[0063] Code 335 may include instructions for implementing aspects of this disclosure, including instructions for supporting signal processing. In some cases, aspects of the signal processing manager 310, I / O controller 315, and / or transceiver 320 may be implemented by portions of code 335, which are executed by processor 340 or another device. Code 335 may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium, such as system memory or other types of memory. In some cases, code 335 may not be directly executable by processor 340, but may enable a computer (e.g., when compiled and executed) to perform the functions described herein.

[0064] As previously noted, this document describes systems and techniques for resonance control of multi-band BCMs. A multi-band BCM may include multiple resonators having multiple resonances (e.g., resonant peaks) and resonance control may be implemented based on audio context information determined for the wearer of the BCM. In an exemplary example, a multi-band BCM may be a multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM and / or a speech accelerometer (VA) comprising multiple sensing elements (e.g., resonators) for implementing multiple measurement bands (e.g., a frequency range for measuring bone conduction sound), each sensing element having a different resonant peak (e.g., resonant frequency) relative to one or more other sensing elements among the multiple sensing elements.

[0065] Figure 4 This is a diagram illustrating example frequency responses 400 corresponding to an acoustic microphone and a bone conduction microphone (BCM) according to some examples. A first example frequency response 405 may correspond to a BCM (e.g., a VA), and a second example frequency response 425 may correspond to an acoustic microphone. As previously noted, bone conduction speech signals (e.g., signals such as those measured by a BCM corresponding to BCM frequency response 405) may be limited to relatively low frequencies, where existing (e.g., single-band) BCMs cannot capture the entire frequency range of the wearer's speech because it would be captured by the acoustic microphone.

[0066] For example, the frequency response 405 of the BCM is approximately the same as the frequency response 425 of the acoustic microphone up to the frequency range 430. Within the frequency range 430, the user's voice begins to exhibit a loss of quality between the BCM signal (e.g., the BCM frequency response 405) and the acoustic microphone signal (e.g., the microphone signal associated with the frequency response 425). For example, in Figure 4 In the example shown, the value of the BCM frequency response 405 is lower than that of the acoustic microphone frequency response 425 across the entire frequency range 430, indicating a loss in the BCM signal relative to the acoustic microphone signal.

[0067] As previously noted, some BCM implementations may have a frequency response with a formant located outside the 100Hz to 1kHz speech vibration band (e.g., a formant greater than 1kHz). For example, the BCM frequency response 425 includes a formant 460 at or near 4kHz. The BCM exhibits maximum sensitivity at and around its 4kHz formant 460 relative to other frequency ranges within the BCM frequency response 405 and relative to the acoustic microphone frequency response 425 at the same frequency range 460. In some cases, the sensitivity of the BCM at its formant may be an order of magnitude greater (or more) than the corresponding sensitivity of the acoustic microphone at the BCM's resonant frequency.

[0068] The increased sensitivity of the BCM and BCM frequency response 405 associated with the 4kHz resonant peak 460 can be associated with unwanted external, background, or other air-conducted noise leakage within the resonant frequency region 460 captured by the BCM. In some examples, BCM implementations may utilize low-pass filtering to minimize or reduce the contribution of high-frequency components near the resonant band 460. Using one or more LPFs may result in a loss or reduction in speech intelligibility of the remaining BCM bone conduction speech signal.

[0069] For example, a BCM that loses the high-frequency components of its measured sound (e.g., a BCM configured to LPF or suppress higher frequencies near the formant 460) may not have external sounds that are not desired through air conduction, but may sound muffled based on relatively low speech intelligibility, such as the portion of the measured sound where relatively high-frequency components dominate.

[0070] A BCM configured to maintain the relative high-frequency components of the measured sound at, near, and / or within the resonance zone 460 may experience leakage of any air-conducted sound with the same or similar frequency components. For example, air-conducted sound or other unwanted noise with frequency components in the increased sensitivity region of the BCM resonance 460 will be amplified within the resonance region 460 and represent leakage within the measured sound obtained by the BCM.

[0071] Figure 5AThis is a diagram illustrating an example of a multi-band BCM 500, which includes multiple sensing elements (e.g., resonators) associated with multiple different frequency bands within the bone conduction speech vibration range. In some aspects, the multi-band BCM may be a multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM. In one illustrative example, the multiple sensing elements may be provided as multiple cantilever 550s with different sizes and / or masses. As will be described in more detail below, the resonant frequency of a particular cantilever 550 may be based on factors such as the physical size of the cantilever, the mass of the cantilever, or the test mass. In some aspects, the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM 500 can measure bone conduction sound for multiple frequency bands within the bone conduction speech vibration range, wherein each frequency band comprises a subset of the bone conduction speech vibration range. The multiple frequency bands may overlap or may not overlap.

[0072] For example, the speech vibration range from 100 Hz to 1 kHz can be divided into nine non-overlapping frequency bands, each with a width of 100 Hz. In another example, the speech vibration range from 100 Hz to 1 kHz can be divided into nine overlapping frequency bands with a width of 120 Hz (e.g., 10 Hz overlap between adjacent frequency bands).

[0073] Each frequency band implemented by the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM 500 can be associated with one or more sensing elements for measuring bone conduction vibrations or sound. For example, in an exemplary example, each frequency band implemented by the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM 500 can be associated with one or more cantilever arms 550. The cantilever arms 550 associated with a particular frequency band can have respective resonant frequencies located within that particular frequency band. For example, a frequency band corresponding to a subset of the speech vibration range of 200 Hz to 300 Hz may include one or more cantilever arms 550 having corresponding resonant frequencies between 200 Hz and 300 Hz.

[0074] In some cases, each of one or more cantilever 550s associated with a specific frequency band may have the same resonant frequency (e.g., one resonant peak per frequency band). For example, each cantilever 550 associated with a frequency band from 200 Hz to 300 Hz may have the same resonant frequency (e.g., such as 250 Hz). The individual cantilever 550s having the same resonant frequency may be identical or different from each other. Based on modifications to various physical properties of the cantilever, cantilevers with different physical properties but the same resonant frequency can be provided. For example, modifying a first physical property of the cantilever (e.g., length, cross-sectional area, etc.) may shift the resonant frequency in a first direction, and modifying a second physical property of the cantilever (e.g., mass or test mass) may shift the resonant frequency in a second direction opposite to the first direction. For example, a shorter cantilever may have a larger resonant frequency than a longer cantilever, etc.

[0075] In some examples, at least a portion of the cantilever 550 associated with a specific frequency band may have different resonant frequencies. For example, at least a portion of the cantilever associated with a 200Hz to 300Hz frequency band may be associated with different corresponding resonant frequencies between approximately 200Hz and 300Hz. In some aspects, each cantilever associated with a specific frequency band of the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM 500 may have different resonant frequencies (e.g., corresponding to multiple resonant peaks within the specific frequency band). In some aspects, the total frequency response or combined frequency response of one or more cantilever 550s associated with a specific frequency band may exhibit combined resonant peaks located within that specific frequency band.

[0076] In one exemplary example, the plurality of cantilever 550 includes a first group of cantilever 552-1, 552-2, 552-3, 552-4, ..., 552-n and a second group of cantilever 557-1, 557-2, 557-3, 557-4, ..., 557-n. In some aspects, both the first group of cantilever and the second group of cantilever may include the same number of cantilever sensing elements (e.g., n, where the plurality of cantilever 550 includes 2*n cantilever sensing elements).

[0077] In some cases, the first and second sets of cantilever arms may extend through a void volume (e.g., an air volume) 525 within the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM 500. As used herein, the void volume 525 may also be referred to as a “back cavity.” In some aspects, multiple cantilever arms 550 may divide the void volume (e.g., an air volume) 525 into a first portion and a second portion. For example, the first portion of the void volume 525 may be located below the multiple cantilever arms 550 (e.g., into…). Figure 5A (as shown in the example page), and the second part of the empty volume 525 may be located above multiple cantilever 550 (e.g., away from the page). Figure 5A (See the example page). In some examples, the first and second portions of the empty volume 525 are located on opposite sides of the plurality of cantilever 550s. In some cases, the "back cavity" volume may refer to the portion of the empty volume 525 located below the plurality of cantilever 550s. The "front cavity" volume may refer to the portion of the empty volume 525 located above the plurality of cantilever 550s. In some cases, the back cavity volume and the front cavity volume may be combined and may be collectively referred to as the "back cavity" or "back cavity volume".

[0078] Each of the plurality of cantilevers 550 may be coupled at a first distal end to a substrate 510 of the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM 500. In some examples, the substrate 510 may include a silicon grain framework (e.g., located at or around the periphery of the substrate 510). A second distal end of each respective cantilever may extend away from the substrate 510, into, and / or through the back cavity 525. Based on attaching one end of each cantilever 550 to the substrate 510, the remaining length of the cantilever (e.g., toward the second end of the cantilever) is free to vibrate or oscillate during operation in response to bone conduction sound coupled to the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM.

[0079] In some aspects, a first set of cantilevers (e.g., 552-1, ..., 552-n) may be attached to the substrate 510 along a first longitudinal edge of the back cavity 525, and a second set of cantilevers (e.g., 557-1, ..., 557-n) may be attached to the substrate 510 along a second longitudinal edge of the back cavity 525. The first and second longitudinal edges of the back cavity 525 may be opposite to each other, and the first set of cantilevers may extend across the back cavity 525 toward the second set of cantilevers, and vice versa.

[0080] In one exemplary example, the lengths of the multiple cantilever arms can be selected such that the length range (from shortest to longest) covers the entire speech vibration range (from 100 Hz to 1 kHz). In some aspects, the length, size, shape, mass, etc., of the multiple cantilever arms 550 can be selected and / or tuned to configure the multi-band piezoelectric MEMS BCM 500 to have multiple different resonants distributed across (e.g., within) the speech vibration frequency band from 100 Hz to 1 kHz. In some cases, the multiple cantilever arms 550 can be tuned to uniformly cover some (or all) of the speech vibration frequency bands with different resonants (e.g., the spacing between adjacent resonants can be equal). In some examples, the multiple cantilever arms 550 can be tuned to include a larger number of resonants and / or smaller spacing between adjacent resonants for portions of the speech vibration frequency band corresponding to a frequency range of interest or importance.

[0081] In some aspects, the multiple cantilever 550s can be tuned and / or configured as high-Q-factor bandpass filters at different frequencies (e.g., each bandpass filter has a passband centered on the resonant peak of a particular cantilever 550 of the MEMS BCM 500). For example, the resonant frequency (e.g., and corresponding resonant peak) of a particular cantilever (e.g., one or more of the multiple cantilever 550s) can be adjusted by one or more of the following: changing the length of the cantilever, changing the mass / test mass of the cantilever, changing the beam shape of the cantilever, etc. In some examples, the resonant frequency (e.g., and corresponding resonant peak) of a particular cantilever can be adjusted based on increasing or decreasing the thickness of the cantilever (e.g., the thickness of the respective cantilever among the multiple cantilever 550s enters / exits). Figure 5A (Measurements are made on the page in the view). In some respects, the resonant frequencies (e.g., and corresponding resonance peaks) of the corresponding cantilever can be adjusted based on the material composition used for the cantilever, so that cantilevers with the same or similar physical size and / or dimensions can be achieved with different resonant frequencies and / or arrangements. For example, increasing or decreasing the stiffness of the cantilever (e.g., by using different material compositions) can increase or decrease the resonant frequencies / resonant peaks of the cantilever.

[0082] In some examples, cantilever 552-1, having a greater length, may have a smaller resonant frequency than cantilever 557-1. Since cantilever 552-1 is the longest cantilever in the first group, it may have a smaller resonant frequency than each of the remaining cantilever arms 552-2, ..., 552-n in the first group. Similarly, since cantilever 557-1 is the shortest cantilever in the second group, it may have a larger resonant frequency than each of the remaining cantilever arms 557-2, ..., 557-n in the second group.

[0083] In some aspects, the first group of cantilever arms (e.g., 552-1, ..., 552-n) and the second group of cantilever arms (e.g., 557-1, ..., 557-n) may comprise the same number of cantilever arms having the same corresponding resonant frequency. For example, at least a portion of the cantilever arms included in the first group may have corresponding cantilever arms in the second group having the same resonant frequency. Figure 5A In the examples, cantilever 552-1 can be the same as or similar to cantilever 557-n, and both can share the same resonant frequency. Cantilever 552-2 and 557-(n-1) can be the same as or similar to each other and share a common resonant frequency, etc. Cantilever 557-1 and 552-n can be the same as or similar to each other and share a common resonant frequency, etc. Although Figure 5A The examples depict a multi-band MEMS BCM with two cantilever arms configured at each corresponding length or resonant frequency associated with the multi-band MEMS BCM 500, and may also provide more or fewer cantilever arms at each corresponding length and / or resonant frequency associated with the multi-band MEMS BCM 500 and multiple cantilever arms 550.

[0084] In some cases, altering the physical geometry and / or physical properties of the cantilever 550 can be used to tune the frequency response of the MEMS BCM 500 within the speech vibration band. For example, each cantilever can be used to implement a different frequency band (e.g., a sub-band of the 100Hz to 1kHz speech vibration band), where multiple cantilever 550s can be used to implement corresponding multiple frequency bands for capturing vocal cord vibrations using the MEMS BCM 500. Individual frequency bands can be tuned by changing the design of the corresponding cantilever. In an exemplary example, configuring multiple cantilever 550s with different formants (e.g., each cantilever corresponding to a different bandpass filter band or frequency range around the formant) can be used to implement multiple frequency bands for audio signal processing performed within the 100Hz to 1kHz speech vibration range. In some aspects, a multi-band MEMS BCM 500 can use multiple cantilevers to obtain a multi-band bone conduction sound signal that can be provided to various downstream or subsequent multi-band sound processing operations (e.g., to improve, equalize, etc., the output of the MEMS BCM 500). For example, the multi-band MEMS BCM 500 can provide multi-band audio data to DSPs and / or SoCs associated with downstream signal processing stages. As noted above, in some cases, each of the multiple cantilevers 550 may correspond to a different frequency band of the multi-band data. In another example, each frequency band of the multi-band data may correspond to a corresponding subset of the multiple cantilevers 550, etc.

[0085] In some examples, the physical shape, size, and / or geometry of the multiple cantilever 550 can be tuned or adjusted to provide a greater or lesser degree of overlap between the corresponding resonant peaks of adjacent cantilever arms. In some cases, the MEMS BCM 500 may include a larger percentage of cantilever arms associated with one or more frequencies of interest. For example, the MEMS BCM 500 may include a larger percentage of relatively short cantilever arms that have resonant peaks at higher frequencies. In such examples, the MEMS BCM 500 may be implemented with a relatively increased number of frequency bands at frequencies of interest (e.g., higher frequencies) within the speech vibration range. In another example, the separation distance (e.g., gap) between adjacent cantilever arms may vary along the longitudinal axis of the back cavity 525. For example, as the length of the cantilever arms becomes shorter and their respective resonant frequencies increase, the cantilever arms may be spaced closer together (e.g., the cantilever spacing or gap between adjacent cantilever arms is smaller). For example, the gap between cantilever 552-1 and cantilever 552-2 may be greater than the gap between cantilever 552-2 and cantilever 552-3; the gap between cantilever 552-2 and cantilever 552-3 may be greater than the gap between cantilever 552-3 and cantilever 552-4; and so on. In another example, the gap between cantilever 557-4 and cantilever 557-3 may be greater than the gap between cantilever 557-3 and cantilever 557-2; the gap between cantilever 557-3 and cantilever 557-2 may be greater than the gap between cantilever 557-2 and cantilever 557-1; and so on.

[0086] In some respects, the resonant characteristics of the cantilever 550 can also be tuned by adjusting the damping of the cantilever. For example, a cantilever with relatively small damping will exhibit a relatively sharp resonance peak (e.g., a rapid drop in sensitivity immediately to the left and right of the resonance peak, corresponding to frequencies below and above the resonance frequency). By increasing the damping of the cantilever, the sharpness of the resonance peak can be reduced, and the effective frequency band or bandwidth of the cantilever can be widened. For example, when approximating the cantilever as a high Q-factor bandpass filter, increasing the damping of the cantilever resonance will increase the width of the passband. The Q-factor (quality factor) is a dimensionless parameter describing the damping of an oscillator or resonator. For example, the Q-factor can be the ratio of the initial energy stored in the resonator to the energy lost during one oscillation cycle of the resonator. A low Q-factor indicates a large energy loss per oscillation cycle. A low Q-factor resonator is strongly damped, and the oscillation disappears quickly. A high Q-factor indicates a small energy loss per oscillation cycle. A high Q-factor resonator is weakly damped, and the oscillation disappears gradually.

[0087] In some cases, each of the multiple cantilever 550 can be operated independently of the remaining cantilever of the multiple cantilever 550. For example, cantilever 552-1 can be operated independently of any of cantilever 552-2, ..., 552-n and / or any of cantilever 557-1, ..., 557-n.

[0088] In an exemplary example, multiple cantilever 550 can be accessed via Figure 5A Back cavity air pressure coupling of the back cavity 525. For example, by carefully selecting the size of the back cavity 525 and the separation distance (e.g., gap) between adjacent MEMS cantilevers in the plurality of MEMS cantilevers 550, closely arranged cantilevers 550 can be coupled to each other using dynamic air pressure in the back cavity 525. For example, the separation distance or gap between adjacent cantilevers can be controlled so that oscillations of the cantilevers entering or leaving the back cavity 525 create an instantaneous pressure difference between the back cavity (e.g., below the cantilevers) and the front cavity (e.g., above the cantilevers). In some aspects, the pressure associated with the dynamic air pressure of the back cavity 525 can be used to couple the plurality of cantilevers 550 to each other. The coupling may be referred to herein as “back cavity coupling”. In some examples, the back cavity coupling of the plurality of cantilevers 550 can be associated with a corresponding damping force acting on each of the plurality of cantilevers 550, wherein the corresponding damping force of each cantilever is based on the same (instantaneous) dynamic air pressure in the back cavity 525. In one exemplary example, back cavity coupling can be used, for example, to achieve optimal damping of a respective cantilever among a plurality of cantilever 550 based on the interaction of back cavity airflow through (e.g., entering or leaving) the interval or gap between adjacent cantilever.

[0089] In an exemplary example, the oscillation of each of the plurality of cantilever 550 results in a corresponding change in the volume of the back cavity 525 (e.g., movement of a cantilever away from the bottom of the back cavity 525 temporarily increases the volume; movement of a cantilever toward the bottom of the back cavity 525 temporarily decreases the volume). This change in volume can be achieved by combining the plurality of cantilever 550s to obtain fluctuating instantaneous back cavity volumes, thereby driving corresponding fluctuations or changes in the back cavity pressure. The change in back cavity pressure corresponds to a change in back cavity pressure acting on each of the plurality of cantilever 550s, and the movement of each corresponding cantilever of the plurality of cantilever 550s is coupled to each corresponding remaining cantilever of the plurality of cantilever 550s.

[0090] Figure 5B This is an example of a multi-band BCM 570 based on some examples, and graph 580 shows corresponding example frequency responses based on different resonator groups of the activated multi-band BCM 570. In some examples, Figure 5B The multi-band BCM 570 can be used with Figure 5A The multi-band BCM 500 is the same as or similar to the multi-band BCM 500. For example, among various other example implementations, the example multi-band BCM 570 may be implemented as a piezoelectric MEMS BCM or VA. In an exemplary example, the piezoelectric MEMS BCM (e.g., BCM 570) may include one or more cantilever beams, beams, or other sensing elements configured to sense and / or detect bone conduction vibrations corresponding to a user's voice.

[0091] In some aspects, the multi-band BCM 570 may include multiple resonators tuned to (e.g., corresponding to) different corresponding resonant frequencies. In some aspects, the resonators (e.g., also referred to as cantilever or sensing element) may be configured in pairs. For example, a first pair includes resonators 571a and 571b. A second pair includes resonators 572a and 572b, a third pair includes resonators 573a and 573b, a fourth pair includes resonators 574a and 574b, a fifth pair includes resonators 575a and 575b, a sixth pair includes resonators 576a and 576b, a seventh pair includes resonators 577a and 577b, an eighth pair includes resonators 578a and 578b, a ninth pair includes resonators 579a and 579b, and so on.

[0092] In some respects, Figure 5B The resonators of the multi-band BCM 570 can provide cantilever structures for forming opposing sensing elements to detect vibrations induced by the wearer's vocal cords. Multiple resonators in the multi-band BCM 570 can be used to achieve multiple measurement bands (e.g., a frequency range for measuring bone conduction sound), wherein each resonator has a corresponding measurement band or frequency range based on its respective resonant frequency.

[0093] In one exemplary example, the systems and techniques described herein can be used for multi-band resonator BCMs (such as...) Figure 5B Multiband BCM 570 and / or Figure 5A Multiband BCM 500 and similar technologies provide resonance control. For example, a group of resonators can be configured to include corresponding cantilever (e.g., resonator) that corresponds to a resonance peak in a specific frequency band or frequency range configured for a particular group.

[0094] In an exemplary example, the first set of resonators 592-1 may include resonators 571a, 571b, 572a, 572b and may correspond to a first frequency band subset based on the respective resonances of resonators 571a to 572b. For example, an example combined frequency response of the first set of resonators 592-1 is shown in graph 580 (e.g., the bottommost combined frequency response, corresponding to “Band 1 to 16” in the legend of graph 580).

[0095] The second set of resonators 592-2 may include resonators 571a to 572b (e.g., the first set of resonators 592-1) and may additionally include resonators 573a, 573b, 574a, and 574b. The second set of resonators 592-2 may include resonators 571a to 574b in total. An example combined frequency response of the second set of resonators 592-2 is shown in graph 580 (e.g., the middle of the three combined frequency responses shown, corresponding to "Band 1 to 32" in the legend of graph 580).

[0096] The third group of resonators 592-3 may include resonators 571a to 574b (e.g., the second group of resonators 592-2) and may additionally include resonators 575a, 575b, 576a, 576b, 577a, 577b, 578a, 578b, 579a, and 579b. The third group of resonators 592-3 may include resonators 571a to 579b in total. An example combined frequency response of the third group of resonators 592-3 is shown in graph 580 (e.g., the top of the three combined frequency responses shown corresponds to "Band 1 to 64" in the legend of graph 580).

[0097] Example resonator groups 592-1, 592-2, and 592-3 are shown as overlapping resonator groups (e.g., resonator group 592-3 includes resonator group 592-2, and resonator group 592-2 includes resonator group 592-1). In some aspects, one or more (or all) of the respective resonator groups among the multiple resonator groups that can be configured for the multi-band BCM 570 can be non-intersecting (e.g., non-overlapping) groupings of various resonances and resonance peaks associated with the respective cantilever (e.g., resonator) included in the multi-band BCM 570.

[0098] In the example of graph 580 showing the simulated sensitivity of the corresponding resonator groups 592-1, 592-2, and 592-3, different combinations of resonators and resonances in each corresponding group correspond to different sensitivities or frequency responses across the measurement range of the multi-band BCM 570. In an illustrative example, by controlling the multi-band resonances of the multi-band BCM 570 and their configuration or grouping, the system and technology can configure the multi-band BCM 570 to measure bone conduction sound signals using resonance configurations corresponding to specific contexts, use cases, user voice characteristics, etc.

[0099] Figure 6 These are example speech response curves (Figure 610 and Figure 660) illustrating multi-band and single-band MEMS BCMs, respectively, and graphs illustrating example sensitivity of the configured resonance groups of the multi-band MEMS BCM shown in Figure 660. In some aspects, the multi-band MEMS BCM response 606 may correspond to... Figure 5ABCM 500, Figure 5B This refers to one or more multi-band BCMs, such as the BCM 570, that are identical or similar. In some cases, the single-band MEMS BCM response 602 can be compared with... Figure 4 The single-band BCM response is the same as or similar to that of the 405, exhibiting a sharp resonant peak and increased sensitivity at approximately 4 kHz.

[0100] In some cases, Figure 6 The sensitivity curve of Figure 660 can be compared with Figure 5B The sensitivity curves are the same as or similar to those in graph 580. For example, the first sensitivity (e.g., the top sensitivity among the three) corresponds to... Figure 5B The "band 1 to 64" and / or resonator group 592-3, the second sensitivity (e.g., the middle sensitivity of the three sensitivities) corresponds to Figure 5B The “band 1 to 32” and / or resonator group 592-2, and the third sensitivity (e.g., the lowest of the three sensitivities) corresponds to Figure 5B "Band 1 to 16" and / or resonator group 592-1.

[0101] In some examples, the single-band MEMS BCM response 602 included in example speech response graph 610 corresponds to a conventional BCM design characterized by a relatively flat frequency response to a resonant peak at or near 4 kHz. As noted above, the multi-band MEMS BCM response 606 corresponds to a multi-band BCM, such as... Figure 5A Multiband BCM 500 and / or Figure 5B The multi-band BCM 5780. In one exemplary example, the systems and techniques described herein can use multiple multi-band resonators placed (e.g., tuned) to different resonant frequencies to enhance and / or better capture the mid-frequency and / or high-frequency components of bone conduction speech signals.

[0102] For example, within the frequency range of 620 (e.g., in...) Figure 6 In the example centered at approximately 1 kHz, the multi-band BCM response 606 exhibits greater sensitivity and an improved frequency response 602 compared to the single-band BCM response. In an illustrative example, the multi-band resonator of the multi-band BCM can be configured to enhance speech intelligibility of bone conduction speech signals measured within a frequency range 620. For example, speech intelligibility can be enhanced (e.g., increased and / or improved) using the multi-band resonator of the multi-band BCM to obtain a frequency response with an increased magnitude within the frequency range 620 (e.g., the vertical difference 632 between the single-band BCM response 602 and the multi-band BCM response 606 along the magnitude axis of graph 610).

[0103] The frequency response enhancement 632 within a frequency range of 620 (e.g., mid-frequency speech frequencies around 1 kHz) can be used to flatten the multi-band BCM response 606 over a wider speech frequency range than the single-band BCM response 602.

[0104] The specific shape of the multi-band BCM response 606 within the frequency range of 620 can be achieved and / or controlled by a combination of multiple different resonators with different resonant frequencies implemented or included by the multi-band BCM. For example, Figure 6 The frequency response difference 625 (e.g., between the multi-band BCM response 606 and the single-band BCM response 602) can be based on different resonator combinations, groupings, and their configurations and / or controlled by the foregoing. The same selection or configuration of different resonator group combinations of the multi-band BCM can be associated with the difference 665 between different sensitivities shown in graph 660 and the difference 625 between the multi-band BCM response and the single-band BCM response shown in graph 610. In some aspects, when using different resonator groups and specific configurations of resonances to obtain and process bone conduction speech vibration signals, the differences 665 and 625 can be implemented to tune, modify, enhance, etc., various portions of the frequency response of the multi-band BCM. In some aspects, different resonator and resonance combinations for multi-band BCM activation to obtain a specific multi-band BCM response 606 can be configured to take into account various differences in the speech spectrum and provide corresponding frequency response adjustments (e.g., boosting or increasing the response value of one or more frequencies configured to enhance speech intelligibility).

[0105] The multi-band BCM configuration implemented by the systems and techniques described herein can be additionally used to perform low-pass filtering and / or at or near the high-frequency resonant peak of the BCM (e.g., Figure 6 The LPF effect is achieved (as shown in graph 610 at the 4kHz resonance). For example, resonators and resonance combinations or groups activated by a multi-band BCM can be selected and / or configured to provide an LPF effect based on reducing the magnitude of the multi-band BCM response 606 by a vertical difference 634 (e.g., along the magnitude axis of graph 610). In some aspects, the vertical difference 634 corresponding to the multi-band BCM LPF effect can be relative to the magnitude of the single-band BCM response 602 at the same frequency within or near the resonance peak (e.g., at or near 4kHz). In some examples, the multi-band BCM can be configured (e.g., based on resonance control information) to implement the LPF effect corresponding to the vertical difference 634 as an independent frequency response modification or as a frequency response modification in combination with one or more intermediate frequency adjustments (e.g., corresponding to differences 632, 625) within the intermediate frequency range 620.

[0106] Figure 7This is a diagram illustrating an example system 700 for context-aware resonance control of a multi-band BCM, based on some examples. For example, the BCM 755 can be a multi-band BCM and can be used with... Figure 5A Multiband BCM 500 Figure 5B Multi-band BCM570, and Figure 6 The multi-band BCM response 606 is the same as or similar to one or more of the associated multi-band BCMs.

[0107] In some respects, the multi-band resonance of the multi-band BCM 755 can be used to provide improved capture of the mid- and high-frequency components of the wearer's voice (e.g., bone conduction speech signals).

[0108] For example, in one exemplary example, different resonator combinations 790 of multiple multiband resonators of a multiband BCM 755 can be activated or configured for the multiband BCM 755 to measure the wearer's bone conduction speech signal. In some aspects, the resonator combination 790 can be activated based on the results of multiband processing analysis (performed by the multiband processing analysis engine 722) and a corresponding multiband processing configuration decision (determined by the multiband configuration engine 726) determined by the central or main processor 720 associated with the multiband BCM 755. The multiband configuration engine 726 may also be referred to herein as the multiband resonator control configuration engine 726.

[0109] The central processing unit 720 may be associated with, but separate from, the multi-band BCM 755. For example, the central processing unit 720 may be included in companion devices, smartphones, mobile computing devices, wearable devices, etc., that are associated with (e.g., communicate with) both the multi-band BCM 755 and the audio sensor 705. The central processing unit 720 may also be additionally separate from and distinct from the application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) integrated within and / or implemented by the multi-band BCM 755.

[0110] In one exemplary example, the audio sensor 705 may be an acoustic microphone or another audio sensor configured to generate an audio signal corresponding to external (e.g., airborne audio) measured in the same environment or near the multi-band BCM 755. In some aspects, the audio sensor 705 may be used to obtain external microphone signals from an ear-worn or head-mounted shape-factor audio device that includes the audio sensor 705. An audio device including the audio sensor 705 may additionally include the multi-band BCM 755, or the multi-band BCM 755 may be included in an audio device different from the audio sensor 705. In some aspects, a computing device including a central processing unit 720 may include one or more (or both) of the audio sensor 705 and / or the multi-band BCM 755. In some aspects, the audio sensor 705, the central processing unit 720, and the multi-band BCM 755 may be implemented using three different audio devices.

[0111] Different combinations of multiband resonators (or different combinations of multiband resonator groups) of the multiband BCM 755 can be determined by the central processing unit 720 and used to implement different multiband processing techniques to provide speech intelligibility enhancement, shaping, etc., for various frequencies of interest. For example, the central processing unit 720 can use external (e.g., air-conducted) audio signals from the audio sensor 705 to generate control signals that instruct the multiband processing configuration determined by the multiband configuration engine 726 for the multiband BCM 755. In some aspects, the multiband processing configuration determined by the multiband configuration engine 726 may also be referred to as resonant configuration, resonant control, or resonant control information and / or decisions, etc.

[0112] In some aspects, the central processing unit 720 may implement a multi-band processing analysis engine 722, which is configured to determine the required and shape of the desired sensitivity frequency characteristics for measuring speech signals using the multi-band BCM 755 (e.g., the central processing unit 720 may use the multi-band processing analysis engine 722 to determine the required and shape of the desired sensitivity frequency characteristics of the BCM output signal measured / generated by the multi-band BCM 755 when using a particular combination of BCM resonators in a plurality of BCM resonator combinations 790).

[0113] In an exemplary example, external audio signals from audio sensor 705 can be used by multi-band processing analysis engine 722 to determine audio context information associated with or corresponding to the wearer of multi-band BCM 755 (e.g., the wearer of audio sensor 705 and / or the user of a computing device including central processing unit 720). In some aspects, the audio context information may also be referred to as user information or wearer information and can be determined based on information obtained using one or more connected sensors (e.g., audio sensor 705 and / or one or more additional audio sensors, etc.) located outside and / or separate from the multi-band BCM.

[0114] For example, audio context information for controlling and / or configuring the resonant and multi-band processing configuration of the multi-band BCM 755 can be generated by the multi-band processing analysis engine 722 and mapped by the multi-band configuration engine 726 to corresponding resonator combinations among multiple resonator combinations 790. For example, different contexts determined by the multi-band configuration engine 726 can be mapped to corresponding resonator combinations 790 (e.g., also referred to as resonator modes). In some aspects, the mapping between different contexts and corresponding resonator modes 790 can be performed by the central processing unit 720 and / or the multi-band configuration engine 726, and control signals to the multi-band BCM 755 can indicate the specific resonator mode 790 to be implemented. In another example, the mapping between different contexts and corresponding resonator modes 790 can be performed by the BCM 755 and / or the ASIC associated with the BCM 755. For example, the control signals received by the BCM 755 from the central processing unit 720 can indicate the determined context, and the BCM 755 can determine the mapping between the determined context and the corresponding resonator mode 790. In both examples, the multi-band BCM 755 can be configured to generate a BCM output signal based on the switching between different resonator modes 790 based on the control signals received from the central processing unit 720.

[0115] In an exemplary example, a multi-band processing analysis engine 722 may analyze an external audio signal from an audio sensor 705 to determine noise profile information 732, voice profile information 734, and / or context or use case information 736. For example, noise profile information 732 may indicate the type of noise present in the external audio signal from the audio sensor 705 (e.g., noise present in the surrounding environment of the BCM 755). In some aspects, noise profile information may include identifying or selecting a specific noise profile type or value from a plurality of noise profile types or values. For example, an n1 noise profile determination may indicate that the external audio signal includes low-frequency dominant noise. An n2 noise profile determination may indicate that the external audio signal includes high-frequency dominant noise. An n3 noise profile determination may indicate that the external audio signal includes broadband noise (e.g., a combination of low-frequency noise components and high-frequency noise components, where neither is dominant). An n4 noise profile determination may indicate the level of noise detected in the external audio signal (e.g., indicated by decibel or numerical level values, discrete range identifiers such as high, medium, low, etc.). Various other noise profile indications or information associated with and / or indicating noise in the external audio signal from the audio sensor 705 may be included in the noise profile information 732 determined by the multi-band processing analysis engine 722.

[0116] In some aspects, the multi-band processing analysis engine 722 can analyze external audio signals from the audio sensor 705 to determine speech profile information 734. Speech profile information 734 can be determined based on analysis of speech components (e.g., user speech signals) within the external audio signal. In some aspects, speech profile information 734 can be determined based on separating speech and noise components within the external audio signal from the audio sensor 705 (e.g., where the components are separated at least in part based on the noise profile analysis or noise profile information 732 described above). For example, the speech profile information can indicate the type and / or characteristics of speech present in the external audio signal. In some aspects, speech profile information 734 can include the identification or selection of a specific speech profile type or value from a plurality of configured (e.g., predetermined) speech profile types or values. In an exemplary example, v1 speech profile determination can indicate that the speech is from a male, female, unknown, etc. v2 speech profile determination can indicate one or more frequency bands with low speech intelligibility or that may need to be enhanced by multi-band BCM 755 processing. The v3 voice profile determines speech intensity information (e.g., low, medium, high, etc.) that can indicate the level of the speech component detected within the external audio signal and / or indicate other speech intensity information. Various other voice profile indications or information associated with and / or indicating speech within the external audio signal from the audio sensor 705 may be included in the voice profile information 734 determined by the multi-band processing analysis engine 722.

[0117] In some aspects, the multi-band processing analysis engine 722 can analyze external audio signals from the audio sensor 705 to determine context or use case information 736, which is interchangeably referred to herein as "context information," "audio context information," and / or "use case information," etc. In an exemplary example, the context information 736 may correspond to and / or indicate a use case of the BCM output signal generated by the multi-band BCM 755. For example, c1 context determination may indicate a use case of voice activity detection context or BCM output signal. c2 context determination may indicate a use case of noise suppression in the communication context or BCM output signal, etc. In some aspects, the context information 736 may indicate user-specific information corresponding to the user or wearer of the audio sensor 705 and / or the multi-band BCM 755. For example, context determination may indicate that the wearer of the BCM 755 is commuting on the subway (and a corresponding subset of the multi-band processing profile or configuration is suitable for use by the BCM 755 in this scenario), or that the wearer or the BCM 755 is making a phone call in a crowded bar or other indoor location (and a corresponding subset of the multi-band processing profile or configuration is suitable for use by the BCM 755 in this scenario), etc. Various other context and / or use case information indications may be included in the context information 736 determined by the multi-band processing analysis engine 722.

[0118] In some respects, different combinations of determined values ​​or information for the corresponding noise profile 732, speech profile 734, and / or context information 736 can be mapped to different contexts or configurations within the multi-band configuration engine 726. For example, context A can correspond to n1 noise profile information 732 indicating low-frequency dominant noise and v1 speech profile information 734 indicating female speech. The multi-band configuration engine 726 can determine that context A information does not require resonant control and can send control signals to the BCM 755 to instruct or configure the BCM 755 to generate the BCM output signal using the mode A “default” resonator combination 790.

[0119] In another example, the context B determined for an external audio signal may correspond to a first example of n2 noise profile information 732 indicating high-frequency dominant noise and a second example of n4 noise profile information indicating high-level noise. In some aspects, multiple indications of a particular type (e.g., noise profile 732, speech profile 734, context / use case 736) may be included in a single context and / or otherwise used for mapping by the multi-band configuration engine 726 with a specific resonator combination or configuration 790. Context B determination may additionally correspond to v3 speech profile information 734 indicating low speech intensity. In summary, Figure 7The example context B shown can be identified as an indication of high-frequency dominant noise with a high level (e.g., magnitude) and low speech intensity.

[0120] Based on context B information or determination, the multi-band configuration engine 726 can generate a control signal that causes the BCM 755 to apply (e.g., activate) a resonator combination 790 that suppresses high-frequency noise components within the BCM output signal as much as possible. For example, the resonant control configuration engine 726 can use context B determination to generate a control signal for the BCM 755 that directly indicates the Mode B "LPF Mode" resonant control configuration 790. In some cases, the multi-band configuration engine 726 can use content B determination to generate a control signal for the BCM 755 that indicates context B information or determination but does not indicate a specific or selected resonant control configuration within the resonant control configuration 790 (e.g., the BCM 755 can use the control signal context information to locally perform the selection of the resonant control configuration 790 within the BCM 755).

[0121] In another example, the context C determined for an external audio signal from audio sensor 705 may correspond to n3 noise profile information 732 indicating the type of broadband noise, n4 noise profile information 732 indicating the level of medium noise, v2 speech profile information 734 indicating 900Hz as the target frequency band for speech intelligibility enhancement, and c1 context / use case 736 information indicating the intended use case for speech activity detection of the BCM output signal of BCM 755. In some aspects, the context C information or determination may be mapped to a resonance control configuration that enables BCM 755 to perform LPF and 900Hz frequency boost to generate the BCM output signal. For example, multi-band configuration engine 726 may map the context C information or determination to mode C "LPF and sensitivity filter shaper for 900Hz boost" resonance control configuration 790, and this mapping may be signaled or indicated using control signals sent to BCM 755.

[0122] In some aspects, the system and techniques can be used to analyze contextual information corresponding to external audio signals from audio sensor 705 (e.g., noise profile 732 indication, voice profile 734 indication, and / or context / use case indication 736). Based on the analyzed and / or generated contextual information of the external audio signal, the system and techniques can determine one or more frequency ranges to be boosted in the BCM output signal of BCM 755 and / or determine one or more frequency ranges to be suppressed in the BCM output signal of BCM 755. Different combinations of frequency suppression and frequency boosting can be implemented using a corresponding resonance control configuration 790. In some cases, a particular resonance control configuration 790 can be mapped to multiple different combinations of contextual information determined by the multi-band processing analysis engine 722.

[0123] The resonance control configuration 790 can indicate the specific resonator and / or resonant frequency or band that should be activated by the multi-band BCM 755 when measuring and generating the BCM output signal. For example, the resonance control configuration 790 can identify a subset of multiple resonators of the multi-band BCM 755 that should be activated or deactivated (e.g., a subset of multiple resonant frequencies or a subset of multiple resonant bands of the multi-band BCM 755, etc.). Activating a specific resonator or resonant frequency of the multi-band BCM 755 can include including the corresponding electrical output generated by the specific resonator in the BCM output signal. Deactivating a specific resonator or resonant frequency of the multi-band BCM 755 can include excluding the corresponding electrical output generated by the specific resonator from the BCM output signal. For example, a resonator can be activated to generate a BCM output signal by setting its output weight to equal to 1 (or a value equal to or greater than 0). A resonator can be deactivated to generate a BCM output signal by setting its output weight to equal to 0.

[0124] In some respects, the control signals generated by the central processing unit 720 and sent to the BCM 755 may include the corresponding weight value of each of the multiple resonators included in the BCM 755.

[0125] In some examples, control signals generated by the central processing unit 720 and sent to the BCM 755 may include indications of selection of a particular resonance control profile among multiple resonance control profiles stored in memory or otherwise locally available at the BCM 755. For example, the control signals may indicate that a profile or resonance mode X should be used, and the BCM 755 may access stored information for configuring or activating profile X (e.g., the BCM 755 may store a corresponding weight value for each of a plurality of resonators corresponding to one or more profiles).

[0126] In some cases, the multi-band BCM 755 may be a MEMS BCM associated with or including an ASIC. In some examples, one or more pins of the ASIC associated with the multi-band BCM 755 may be used to receive control signals from the central processing unit 720 and / or the multi-band configuration engine 726.

[0127] In some examples, the resonance control configuration 790 may be the same as or similar to an equalization (EQ) profile, which is applied by the BCM 755 to different frequency bands corresponding to different resonator groups or resonant frequencies available to the BCM 755. In one exemplary example, a control signal may be generated by the central processing unit 720 to enable the multi-band BCM 755 to perform real-time or field EQ of the bone conduction speech signal based on activating the resonance control configuration 790 corresponding to the control signal.

[0128] In some aspects, activating a resonator associated with a specific resonant frequency can enhance the frequency response of the multi-band BCM 755 at and / or near the specific resonant frequency associated with the activated resonator. In some examples, control signals and / or selected resonance control configurations 790 can enable the multi-band BCM 755 to activate the resonator and apply the opposite polarity. Activating the resonator with the opposite polarity (e.g., reversing the polarity of the resonator relative to normal activation) can suppress the frequency response of the multi-band BCM 755 at and / or near the specific resonant frequency associated with the resonator. By generating control signals and / or resonance control configurations 790 with different combinations of resonator weights, resonator polarities, etc., the systems and techniques described herein can be used to shape the frequency response of the multi-band BCM 755 to generate a BCM output signal using multi-band processing best suited to the detection environment conditions indicated in the context information determined by the multi-band processing analysis engine 722 (e.g., the noise profile 732, speech profile 734, and / or context / use case 736 indicated above).

[0129] In some respects, the central processing unit 720 may implement the multi-band processing analysis engine 722 and the multi-band configuration engine 726 based on external audio signals (e.g., representing air-conducted sound, etc.) received from one or more audio sensors 705 and further based on one or more feedback loops or feedback signals generated by the multi-band BCM 755.

[0130] For example, context information and resonance control configuration can be generated based on external audio signals and the BCM output signal itself. In an exemplary example, the BCM output signal from the multi-band BCM 755 can be provided to the central processing unit 720 as an additional control signal input. For example, a user may be making a telephone call in a subway or other noisy environment with relatively low SNR. Both the external audio signal from the acoustic microphone and the BCM output signal from the multi-band BCM 755 can be analyzed and used as control to determine the appropriate resonance control configuration 790 to perform multi-band processing and / or multi-band equalization at the BCM 755. In some aspects, the resonance control configuration 790 to be applied by the BCM 755 can be determined at least in part based on comparing the external audio signal with the most recently received BCM output signal from the BCM 755. In some examples, the resonance control configuration 790 can be dynamically adjusted based on changes detected in one or more (or both) specific frequency components or frequency ranges of one or more of the external audio signal from the audio sensor 705 and / or the BCM output signal from the multi-band BCM 755.

[0131] Figure 8 This is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process 800 for processing audio data. Process 800 may be performed by a computing device or apparatus. In one example, the process described herein may be performed by a wireless communication device. In one example, the process described herein may be performed by a hearing device and / or a wearable device including one or more multi-band BCMs (e.g., VAs) having multiple sensing elements (e.g., cantilever arms) with different resonant frequencies. For example, the hearing device and / or wearable device may be... Figure 1 Equipment 115 Figure 2 Equipment 205 and / or Figure 3 The audio signal processing system 300, etc., is the same as or similar to one or more of them. In another example, the process described herein may be performed by a system with... Figure 9 The computing device of the computing system 900 shown is used to perform the operation. For example, it has... Figure 9 The wireless communication device with the computing architecture shown may include components of a multi-band BCM and / or other audio devices and may implement the operation of the processes described herein.

[0132] At box 802, process 800 includes determining audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information. For example, a multi-band BCM may be associated with... Figure 1 Equipment 115 Figure 2 Equipment 205 and / or Figure 3The audio signal processing system 300 and others are the same as or similar to one or more of them. In some examples, the multi-band BCM may be similar to... Figure 5A BCM 500 and / or Figure 5B The BCM 570 is the same as or similar to it. In some cases, a multi-band BCM can be... Figure 7 It is the same as or similar to BCM 755.

[0133] In some cases, audio context information can be obtained from... Figure 7 The central or main processor 720 is determined to include, but is not limited to, the central or main processor. Figure 7 The processing and analysis engine 722 and / or decision engine 726 are shown. In some examples, determining audio context information includes obtaining audio signals from an audio sensor associated with the multi-band BCM, wherein the audio sensor is different from the multi-band BCM. For example, the audio signal may be compared with... Figure 7 The audio signal acquired by the audio sensor 705 is the same as or similar to that acquired by the other audio sensor. In some examples, the audio signal may be an air-conducted audio signal, and the audio sensor is an external acoustic microphone separate from the multi-band BCM (e.g., with...). Figure 7 The multi-band BCM 755 separates the audio sensor 705.

[0134] In some cases, audio context information can indicate use case information corresponding to a multi-band BCM. For example, audio context information can indicate information related to... Figure 6 Use case information 736 is the same or similar. In some examples, use case information includes at least one of a voice activity detection indication or a noise suppression indication.

[0135] In some cases, noise information can be compared with... Figure 7 The noise profile information 732 is the same as or similar to that of the other two. In some examples, the speech information may be the same as that of the other two. Figure 7 The voice profile information is the same as or similar to that of 734.

[0136] In some examples, noise information may be determined based on a first subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with background noise, and speech information may be determined based on a second subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with a user's speech or voice. For example, noise information may indicate one or more frequencies associated with background noise in the environment of a multi-band BCM. Speech information may indicate one or more speech or voice characteristics of a user corresponding to a multi-band BCM.

[0137] In some cases, noise information (e.g., Figure 7 The noise profile information 732) includes at least one of the following: a low-frequency dominance indicator (e.g., Figure 7The n1 noise profile 732), high-frequency dominance indication (e.g., Figure 7 n2 noise profile 732), broadband indication (e.g., Figure 7 (n3 noise profile 732), or magnitude or sound level information (e.g., Figure 7 (n4 noise profile 732).

[0138] In some examples, voice information (e.g., Figure 7 The voice profile information 734 includes at least one of the following: male or female indication (e.g., Figure 7 v1 male / female voice profile 734), voice intensity indicators (e.g., Figure 7 (v2 band speech profile 734), or an indication of a band with low speech intelligibility (e.g., Figure 7 (v3 voice intensity voice profile 734).

[0139] In some cases, determining audio context information is based on analyzing one or more control signals to generate noise or speech information. For example, one or more control signals may include acoustic microphones from outside the multi-band BCM (e.g., such as...). Figure 7 The audio signal obtained from the acoustic microphone of the audio sensor 705 (air-conducted audio signal), and / or may include BCM audio signals obtained from a multi-band BCM (e.g., Figure 7 (The BCM output signal of the BCM 755). In some cases, the BCM audio signal is the same as the BCM output signal, and the audio context information is determined based on the BCM output signal from the feedback loop of the multi-band BCM.

[0140] At block 804, process 800 includes generating a control signal that indicates the resonant configuration of one or more of the plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonant configuration is based on audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments.

[0141] For example, control signals can be used with Figure 7 The control signals generated by the central processing unit 720 are the same or similar. Multiple resonators can be... Figure 5B The multi-band BCM 570 uses multiple resonators 571a, 571b, ..., 579a, 579b that are identical or similar. These multiple resonators can be... Figure 5A The multiple resonators 552-1, 557-1, ..., 552-n, 557-n of the multi-band BCM 500 are the same or similar.

[0142] In some cases, the control signal can be configured to cause the multi-band BCM to perform one or more frequency response adjustments to generate the BCM output signal (e.g., by...). Figure 7 (The BCM output signal generated by the BCM 755). In some examples, the resonance configuration includes resonance control information for boosting or suppressing one or more frequency bands associated with multiple resonators included in a multi-band BCM.

[0143] In some examples, the resonance configuration indicates a corresponding weight value for each of the multiple resonators in a multi-band BCM. For example, the BCM output signal may include a combination of corresponding weighted output signals associated with each of the multiple resonators.

[0144] In some cases, the control signal indicates a specific resonant configuration selected from multiple predetermined resonant configurations for a multi-band BCM. In some examples, each of the multiple predetermined resonant configurations indicates a corresponding subset of active resonators among multiple resonators. Each active resonator in the corresponding subset of active resonators may be associated with a corresponding output weight value greater than zero.

[0145] At block 806, process 800 includes sending a control signal to a multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using a resonant configuration.

[0146] For example, Figure 7 Control signals can be sent from the central processing unit 720 to Figure 7 The BCM 755. The BCM 755 can generate based on control signals sent from the central processing unit 720. Figure 7 The BCM output signal.

[0147] In some cases, a multi-band BCM is configured to implement multiple resonant bands, each of which is associated with a different subset of multiple resonators. In some examples, the resonant configuration indicates a corresponding output weight value for each of the multiple resonant bands, and one or more frequency response adjustments are based on increasing or decreasing the corresponding output weight value of one or more resonant bands.

[0148] In some cases, a computing device or apparatus may include various components such as one or more input devices, one or more output devices, one or more processors, one or more microprocessors, one or more microcomputers, one or more cameras, one or more sensors, and / or other components configured to perform the steps of the processes described herein. In some examples, a computing device may include a display, one or more network interfaces configured to transmit and / or receive data, any combination thereof, and / or other components. One or more network interfaces may be configured to transmit and / or receive wired and / or wireless data, including data according to 3G, 4G, 5G, and / or other cellular standards, data according to the WiFi (802.11x) standard, and data according to Bluetooth.TM Standard data, data according to the Internet Protocol (IP) standard, and / or other types of data.

[0149] Components of a computing device may be implemented in circuitry. For example, components may include electronic circuitry or other electronic hardware, and / or may be implemented using electronic circuitry or other electronic hardware, which may include one or more programmable electronic circuits (e.g., a microprocessor, graphics processing unit (GPU), digital signal processor (DSP), central processing unit (CPU), and / or other suitable electronic circuitry), and / or may include computer software, firmware, or any combination thereof for performing the various operations described herein, and / or may be implemented using computer software, firmware, or any combination thereof for performing the various operations described herein.

[0150] The process described herein may include a sequence of operations that can be implemented by hardware, computer instructions, or a combination thereof. In the context of computer instructions, each operation represents a computer-executable instruction stored on one or more computer-readable storage media that, when executed by one or more processors, performs the described operation. Generally, computer-executable instructions include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc., that perform a particular function or implement a particular data type. The order in which the operations are described is not intended to be construed as limiting, and any number of the described operations may be combined in any order and / or in parallel to implement the process.

[0151] Additionally, the processes described herein can be executed under the control of one or more computer systems configured with executable instructions, and can be implemented as code (e.g., executable instructions, one or more computer programs, or one or more applications) that executes jointly on one or more processors, implemented in hardware, or a combination of the foregoing. As noted above, the code can be stored on a computer-readable or machine-readable storage medium, for example, in the form of a computer program comprising multiple instructions executable by one or more processors. The computer-readable or machine-readable storage medium can be non-transitory.

[0152] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a system used to implement certain aspects of this technology. Specifically, Figure 9 An example of a computing system 900 is illustrated. This computing system can be any computing device, such as constituting an internal computing system, a remote computing system, a camera, or any component thereof, wherein the components of the system communicate with each other using a connection 905. The connection 905 can be a physical connection using a bus, or a direct connection to a processor 910, such as in a chipset architecture. The connection 905 can also be a virtual connection, a networking connection, or a logical connection.

[0153] In some aspects, the computing system 900 is a distributed system in which the functions described in this disclosure can be distributed across a data center, multiple data centers, a peer-to-peer network, etc. In some aspects, one or more system components described represent a number of such components that each perform some or all of the functions described for that component. In some aspects, components can be physical or virtual devices.

[0154] Example system 900 includes at least one processing unit (CPU or processor) 910 and a connection 905 that communicatively couples various system components, including system memories 915 such as read-only memory (ROM) 920 and random access memory (RAM) 925, to processor 910. Computing system 900 may include a cache 912 of high-speed memory that is directly connected to, closely adjacent to, or integrated into processor 910.

[0155] Processor 910 may include any general-purpose processor and hardware or software services, such as services 932, 934, and 936 stored in storage device 930, which are configured to control processor 910 and dedicated processors in which software instructions are incorporated into the actual processor design. Processor 910 may be a substantially completely independent computing system containing multiple cores or processors, buses, memory controllers, caches, etc. Multi-core processors may be symmetric or asymmetric.

[0156] To enable user interaction, the computing system 900 includes an input device 945 that can represent any number of input mechanisms, such as a microphone for voice, a touch-sensitive screen for gesture or graphic input, a keyboard, a mouse, motion input, and voice input. The computing system 900 may also include an output device 935 that can be one or more of a plurality of output mechanisms. In some cases, a multimodal system allows the user to provide multiple types of input / output to communicate with the computing system 900.

[0157] The computing system 900 may include a communication interface 940, which typically controls and manages user input and system output. The communication interface may perform or facilitate the receiving and / or transmitting of wired or wireless communications using wired and / or wireless transceivers, including utilizing audio jacks / plugs, microphone jacks / plugs, Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports / plugs, Apple... ™ Lightning ™ Ports / plugs, Ethernet ports / plugs, fiber optic ports / plugs, dedicated wired ports / plugs, 3G, 4G, 5G and / or other cellular data network wireless signal transmission, Bluetooth ™ Wireless signal transmission, Bluetooth ™Low-power (BLE) wireless signal transmission, IBEACON ™ Wireless signal transmission, including radio frequency identification (RFID) wireless signal transmission, near field communication (NFC) wireless signal transmission, dedicated short range communication (DSRC) wireless signal transmission, 802.11 Wi-Fi wireless signal transmission, wireless local area network (WLAN) signal transmission, visible light communication (VLC), microwave access global interoperability (WiMAX), infrared (IR) wireless signal transmission, public switched telephone network (PSTN) signal transmission, integrated services digital network (ISDN) signal transmission, ad hoc network signal transmission, radio wave signal transmission, microwave signal transmission, infrared signal transmission, visible light signal transmission, ultraviolet light signal transmission, wireless signal transmission along the electromagnetic spectrum, or some combination thereof. The communication interface 940 may also include one or more Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers or transceivers used to determine the location of the computing system 900 based on one or more signals received from one or more satellites associated with one or more GNSS systems. GNSS systems include, but are not limited to, the U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS), Russia's Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), and Europe's Galileo GNSS. There are no limitations on operation on any particular hardware configuration, and therefore the underlying features here can be easily replaced to obtain improved hardware or firmware configurations as they are developed.

[0158] Storage device 930 may be a non-volatile and / or non-transitory and / or computer-readable storage device, and may be a hard disk or other type of computer-readable medium capable of storing data accessible by a computer, such as magnetic tape, flash memory cards, solid-state storage devices, digital multifunction discs, cartridges, floppy disks, hard disks, magnetic tapes, magnetic stripes, any other magnetic storage media, flash memory, memristor memory, any other solid-state storage, CD-ROM, rewritable CD, digital video disc (DVD), Blu-ray disc (BDD), holographic disc, another optical medium, secure digital card (SD card), micro secure digital card (microSD card), Memory Stick. ®Cards, smart card chips, EMV chips, Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) cards, mini / micro / nano / micro SIM cards, another integrated circuit (IC) chip / card, random access memory (RAM), static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash EPROM, cache memory (e.g., level 1 (L1) cache, level 2 (L2) cache, level 3 (L3) cache, level 4 (L4) cache, level 5 (L5) cache or other (L#) cache), resistive random access memory (RRAM / ReRAM), phase change memory (PCM), spin-transfer torque RAM (STT-RAM), another memory chip or cassette and / or combinations thereof.

[0159] Storage device 930 may include software services, servers, services, etc., which enable the system to perform functions when the code defining such software is executed by processor 910. In some aspects, hardware services performing specific functions may include software components stored in a computer-readable medium connected to necessary hardware components, such as processor 910, connection 905, output device 935, etc., to perform functions. The term "computer-readable medium" includes, but is not limited to, portable or non-portable storage devices, optical storage devices, and various other media capable of storing, containing, or carrying instructions and / or data. Computer-readable media may include non-transitory media in which data can be stored and which does not include carrier waves and / or transient electronic signals propagated wirelessly or via a wired connection. Examples of non-transitory media may include, but are not limited to, magnetic disks or magnetic tapes, optical storage media (such as compact discs (CDs) or digital versatile discs (DVDs)), flash memory, memory, or memory devices. Computer-readable media may store code and / or machine-executable instructions thereon, which may represent procedures, functions, subroutines, programs, routines, subroutines, modules, software packages, classes, or any combination of instructions, data structures, or program statements. A code segment may be coupled to another code segment or hardware circuitry by passing and / or receiving information, data, arguments, parameters, or memory contents. Information, arguments, parameters, data, etc., may be passed, forwarded, or transmitted via any suitable means, including memory sharing, message passing, token passing, network transmission, etc.

[0160] Specific details have been provided in the foregoing description to offer a thorough understanding of the aspects and examples presented herein, but those skilled in the art will recognize that this application is not limited thereto. Therefore, although illustrative aspects of this application have been described in detail herein, it is to be understood that the inventive concepts can be implemented and employed in a variety of other ways, and the appended claims are not intended to be construed as including such variations unless limited by prior art. The various features and aspects of the applications described above can be used individually or in combination. Furthermore, without departing from the broader scope of the specification, aspects can be utilized in any number of environments and applications beyond those described herein. Therefore, the specification and drawings should be considered illustrative rather than restrictive. For illustrative purposes, the methods are described in a particular order. It should be understood that, in alternative aspects, the methods may be performed in a different order than described.

[0161] For clarity, in some instances, this technology may be presented as comprising various functional blocks, which include devices, device components, steps, or routines embodied in a method, either in software or a combination of hardware and software. Additional components may be used in addition to those shown in the figures and / or described herein. For example, circuits, systems, networks, processes, and other components may be shown as components in block diagram form to avoid obscuring these aspects in unnecessary detail. In other cases, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques may be shown without unnecessary detail to avoid obscuring the aspects.

[0162] Furthermore, those skilled in the art will understand that the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability between hardware and software, various exemplary components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above in general terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints imposed on the overall system. Those skilled in the art may implement the described functionality in different ways for each specific application, but such specific implementation decisions should not be construed as departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[0163] The various aspects described above can be presented as processes or methods, depicted as flowcharts, diagrams, data flow graphs, structure diagrams, or block diagrams. While a flowchart may describe operations as a sequential process, many operations within an operation can be executed in parallel or concurrently. Furthermore, the order of operations can be rearranged. A process terminates when its operations are completed, but it may have additional steps not included in the diagrams. A process can correspond to a method, function, procedure, subroutine, subroutine, etc. When a process corresponds to a function, its termination may correspond to the function returning to the calling function or the main function.

[0164] The processes and methods described in the examples above can be implemented using stored computer-executable instructions or computer-executable instructions otherwise available from a computer-readable medium. Such instructions may include, for example, instructions and data that configure, or otherwise configure, a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or processing device to perform a function or group of functions. The portion may be accessible via a network of the computer resources used. The computer-executable instructions may be, for example, binary, intermediate format instructions such as assembly language, firmware, or source code. Examples of computer-readable media that can be used to store the instructions, the information used, and / or information created during the methods according to the described examples include disks or optical discs, flash memory, USB devices with non-volatile memory, networked storage devices, etc.

[0165] In some respects, computer-readable storage devices, media, and memories may include cables or wireless signals containing bit streams, etc. However, when referred to, non-transitory computer-readable storage media explicitly exclude media such as energy, carrier signals, electromagnetic waves, and the signals themselves.

[0166] Those skilled in the art will understand that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips that may be referred to throughout the above description may, in some cases, be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, light fields or light particles, or any combination thereof, depending in part on the specific application, in part on the desired design, in part on the corresponding technology, etc.

[0167] The various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented or executed using hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or any combination thereof, and can take any form factor of various form factors. When implemented in software, firmware, middleware, or microcode, program code or code segments (e.g., computer program products) for performing necessary tasks can be stored in a computer-readable or machine-readable medium. A processor can perform the necessary tasks. Examples of form factors include: laptop computers, smartphones, mobile phones, tablet devices, or other small form factor personal computers, personal digital assistants, rack-mounted devices, self-contained devices, etc. The functionality described herein can also be embodied in peripheral devices or interlocking cards. By further example, such functionality can also be implemented on circuit boards in different chips or different processes running on a single device.

[0168] Instructions, media for delivering such instructions, computing resources for executing them, and other structures for supporting such computing resources are example components for providing the functionality described in this disclosure.

[0169] The techniques described herein can also be implemented in electronic hardware, computer software, firmware, or any combination thereof. Such techniques can be implemented in any of a variety of devices, such as general-purpose computers, wireless communication devices (mobile phones), or integrated circuit devices with multiple uses, including applications in wireless communication devices (mobile phones) and other devices. Any feature described as a module or component can be implemented together in an integrated logic device or separately as discrete but interoperable logic devices. If implemented in software, the techniques can be implemented at least in part by a computer-readable data storage medium comprising program code including instructions that, when executed, perform one or more of the methods, algorithms, and / or operations described above. The computer-readable data storage medium can form part of a computer program product, which may include packaging materials. The computer-readable medium may include memory or data storage media, such as random access memory (RAM) (such as synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM)), read-only memory (ROM), non-volatile random access memory (NVRAM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, and magnetic or optical data storage media, etc. Additionally or alternatively, the technology may be implemented at least in part by a computer-readable communication medium that carries or conveys program code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed, read and / or executed by a computer, such as propagated signals or waves.

[0170] The program code can be executed by a processor, which may include one or more processors, such as one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), general-purpose microprocessors, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable arrays (FPGAs), or other equivalent integrated or discrete logic circuits. Such processors can be configured to perform any of the techniques described in this disclosure. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor; however, in alternatives, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. Therefore, as used herein, the term "processor" may refer to any of the foregoing structures, any combination of the foregoing structures, or any other structure or means suitable for implementing the techniques described herein.

[0171] Those skilled in the art will understand that, without departing from the scope of this description, the less than (“<”) and greater than (“>”) symbols or terms used herein may be represented by less than or equal to (“>”) respectively. ") symbol and greater than or equal to (" The symbol ) is used instead.

[0172] When a component is described as being “configured” to perform certain operations, such configuration can be achieved, for example, by designing electronic circuits or other hardware to perform the operations, by programming programmable electronic circuits (e.g., microprocessors or other suitable electronic circuits) to perform the operations, or any combination thereof.

[0173] The phrase “coupled to” or “communicatively coupled to” means that any component is physically connected directly or indirectly to another component, and / or that any component is in communication with another component directly or indirectly (e.g., connected to that other component via a wired or wireless connection and / or other suitable communication interface).

[0174] Claim language or other languages ​​that state "at least one of" and / or "one or more of" in a set indicate that one member of the set or multiple members of the set (in any combination) satisfy the claim. For example, claim language stating "at least one of A and B" or "at least one of A or B" means A, B, or A and B. In another example, claim language stating "at least one of A, B, and C" or "at least one of A, B, or C" means A, B, C, or A and B, or A and C, or B and C, A and B and C, or any repetition is information or data (e.g., A and A, B and B, C and C, A and A and B, etc.), or any other ordering, repetition, or combination of A, B, and C. The language "at least one of" and / or "one or more of" in a set does not limit the set to the items listed in the set. For example, the language of a claim stating "at least one of A and B" or "at least one of A or B" may refer to A, B, or A and B, and may additionally include items not listed in the set of A and B. The phrases "at least one" and "one or more" are used interchangeably herein.

[0175] Claim language or other languages ​​that state "at least one processor, at least one processor is configured to," "at least one processor is configured to," "one or more processors, one or more processors are configured to," "one or more processors are configured to," etc., indicate that one or more processors (in any combination) can perform associated operations. For example, claim language stating "at least one processor, at least one processor is configured to: X, Y, and Z" means that a single processor can be used to perform operations X, Y, and Z; or that multiple processors are each assigned a specific subset of tasks of operations X, Y, and Z, such that the multiple processors together perform X, Y, and Z; or that a group of multiple processors work together to perform operations X, Y, and Z. In another example, claim language stating "at least one processor, at least one processor is configured to: X, Y, and Z" could mean that any single processor can perform only at least one subset of operations X, Y, and Z.

[0176] When referring to one or more elements that perform functions (e.g., steps of a method), one element may perform all functions, or more than one element may jointly perform these functions. When more than one element jointly performs these functions, each function does not need to be performed by every single element (e.g., different functions may be performed by different elements), and / or each function does not need to be performed by only one element as a whole (e.g., different elements may perform different sub-functions of a function). Similarly, when referring to one or more elements configured to cause another element (e.g., a device) to perform functions, one element may be configured to cause another element to perform all functions, or more than one element may be jointly configured to cause another element to perform these functions.

[0177] When referring to an entity that performs or is configured to perform functions (e.g., steps of a method) (e.g., any entity or device described herein), the entity may be configured to cause one or more elements (individually or collectively) to perform those functions. One or more components of the entity may include at least one memory, at least one processor, at least one communication interface, another component configured to perform one or more of those functions, and / or any combination thereof. When referring to an entity that performs functions, the entity may be configured to cause one component to perform all functions, or to cause more than one component to perform those functions collectively. When the entity is configured to cause more than one component to perform those functions collectively, each function does not need to be performed by every single component (e.g., different functions may be performed by different components), and / or each function does not need to be performed by only one component as a whole (e.g., different components may perform different sub-functions of a function).

[0178] The exemplary aspects of this disclosure include:

[0179] Aspect 1. A method for processing audio, the method comprising: determining audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; generating a control signal indicating a resonance configuration of one or more resonators of a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonance configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; and sending the control signal to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonance configuration.

[0180] Aspect 2. The method according to aspect 1, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to perform the one or more frequency response adjustments to generate the BCM output signal.

[0181] Aspect 3. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 2, wherein determining the audio context information comprises: obtaining an audio signal from an audio sensor associated with the multi-band BCM, wherein the audio sensor is different from the multi-band BCM.

[0182] Aspect 4. The method according to aspect 3, the method further comprising: determining the noise information based on a first subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with background noise; and determining the speech information based on a second subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with the user's speech or voice.

[0183] Aspect 5. The method according to any one of Aspects 3 to 4, wherein the audio signal comprises an air-conducted audio signal, and wherein the audio sensor is an external acoustic microphone separate from the multi-band BCM.

[0184] Aspect 6. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 5, wherein: the noise information indicates one or more frequencies associated with background noise in the environment of the multi-band BCM; and the speech information indicates one or more speech or voice characteristics of a user corresponding to the multi-band BCM.

[0185] Aspect 7. The method according to aspect 6, wherein the noise information includes at least one of the following: low-frequency dominance indication; high-frequency dominance indication; broadband indication; or magnitude or sound level information.

[0186] Aspect 8. The method according to any one of Aspects 6 to 7, wherein the speech information includes at least one of: male or female indication; speech intensity indication; or indication of a frequency band with low speech intelligibility.

[0187] Aspect 9. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 8, wherein the audio context information indicates use case information corresponding to the multi-band BCM.

[0188] Aspect 10. The method according to aspect 9, wherein the use case information includes at least one of a voice activity detection indication or a noise suppression indication.

[0189] Aspect 11. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 10, wherein the resonance configuration includes resonance control information for boosting or suppressing one or more frequency bands associated with the plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM.

[0190] Aspect 12. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 11, wherein: the resonance configuration indication includes a corresponding weight value for each of the plurality of resonators in the multi-band BCM; and the BCM output signal includes a combination of corresponding weighted output signals associated with each of the plurality of resonators.

[0191] Aspect 13. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 12, wherein the control signal indicates a specific resonant configuration selected from a plurality of predetermined resonant configurations for the multi-band BCM.

[0192] Aspect 14. The method according to aspect 13, wherein: each of the plurality of predetermined resonance configurations indicates a corresponding subset of active resonators among the plurality of resonators; and each active resonator in the corresponding subset of active resonators is associated with a corresponding output weight value greater than zero.

[0193] Aspect 15. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 14, wherein the multi-band BCM is configured to implement a plurality of resonant bands, each of the plurality of resonant bands being associated with a different subset of the plurality of resonators.

[0194] Aspect 16. The method according to aspect 15, wherein the resonance configuration indicates a corresponding output weight value for each of the plurality of resonance bands, and wherein the one or more frequency response adjustments are based on increasing or decreasing the corresponding output weight value of one or more resonance bands.

[0195] Aspect 17. The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 16, wherein determining the audio context information is based on analyzing one or more control signals to generate the noise information or the speech information.

[0196] Aspect 18. The method according to aspect 17, wherein the one or more control signals include: an air-conducted audio signal obtained from an acoustic microphone outside the multi-band BCM; and a BCM audio signal obtained from the multi-band BCM.

[0197] Aspect 19. The method according to aspect 18, wherein the BCM audio signal is the same as the BCM output signal, and wherein the audio context information is determined based on the BCM output signal using a feedback loop from the multi-band BCM.

[0198] Aspect 20. An apparatus for processing audio, the apparatus comprising: a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory, wherein the processor is configured to: determine audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; generate a control signal indicating a resonance configuration of one or more resonators of a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonance configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; and send the control signal to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonance configuration.

[0199] Aspect 21. The apparatus according to aspect 20, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to perform the one or more frequency response adjustments to generate the BCM output signal.

[0200] Aspect 22. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 20 to 21, wherein, in order to determine the audio context information, the processor is configured to: obtain an audio signal from an audio sensor associated with the multi-band BCM, wherein the audio sensor is different from the multi-band BCM.

[0201] Aspect 23. The apparatus according to aspect 22, wherein the processor is further configured to: determine the noise information based on a first subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with background noise; and determine the speech information based on a second subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with the user's speech or voice.

[0202] Aspect 24. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 22 to 23, wherein the audio signal comprises an air-conducted audio signal, and wherein the audio sensor is an external acoustic microphone separate from the multi-band BCM.

[0203] Aspect 25. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 20 to 24, wherein: the noise information indicates one or more frequencies associated with background noise in the environment of the multi-band BCM; and the speech information indicates one or more speech or voice characteristics corresponding to a user of the multi-band BCM.

[0204] Aspect 26. The apparatus according to aspect 25, wherein the noise information includes at least one of: low-frequency dominance indication; high-frequency dominance indication; broadband indication; or magnitude or sound level information.

[0205] Aspect 27. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 25 to 26, wherein the voice information includes at least one of: male or female indication; voice intensity indication; or indication of a frequency band with low voice intelligibility.

[0206] Aspect 28. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 20 to 27, wherein the audio context information indicates use case information corresponding to the multi-band BCM.

[0207] Aspect 29. The apparatus according to aspect 28, wherein the use case information includes at least one of a voice activity detection indication or a noise suppression indication.

[0208] Aspect 30. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 20 to 29, wherein the resonance configuration includes resonance control information configured to cause the processor to boost or suppress one or more frequency bands associated with the plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM.

[0209] Aspect 31. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 20 to 30, wherein: the resonance configuration indication includes a corresponding weight value for each of the plurality of resonators in the multi-band BCM; and the BCM output signal includes a combination of corresponding weighted output signals associated with each of the plurality of resonators.

[0210] Aspect 32. The apparatus according to any one of aspects 20 to 31, wherein the control signal indicates a specific resonant configuration selected from a plurality of predetermined resonant configurations for the multi-band BCM.

[0211] Aspect 33. The apparatus according to aspect 32, wherein: each of the plurality of predetermined resonance configurations indicates a corresponding subset of active resonators among the plurality of resonators; and each active resonator in the corresponding subset of active resonators is associated with a corresponding output weight value greater than zero.

[0212] Aspect 34. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 20 to 33, wherein the multi-band BCM is configured to implement a plurality of resonant bands, each of the plurality of resonant bands being associated with a different subset of the plurality of resonators.

[0213] Aspect 35. The apparatus according to aspect 34, wherein the resonance configuration indicates a corresponding output weight value for each of the plurality of resonance bands, and wherein the one or more frequency response adjustments are based on increasing or decreasing the corresponding output weight value of one or more resonance bands.

[0214] Aspect 36. The apparatus according to any one of Aspects 20 to 35, wherein the processor is configured to determine audio context information based on analyzing one or more control signals to generate the noise information or the speech information.

[0215] Aspect 37. The apparatus according to aspect 36, wherein the one or more control signals include: an air-conducted audio signal obtained from an acoustic microphone outside the multi-band BCM; and a BCM audio signal obtained from the multi-band BCM.

[0216] Aspect 38. The apparatus according to aspect 37, wherein the BCM audio signal is the same as the BCM output signal, and wherein the processor is configured to determine audio context information based on the BCM output signal using a feedback loop from the multi-band BCM.

[0217] Aspect 39. A method for processing audio data, the method comprising performing operations according to any one of aspects 20 to 38.

[0218] Aspect 40. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon, the instructions causing the at least one processor, when executed by at least one processor, to perform any one of aspects 1 to 19.

[0219] Aspect 41. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions stored thereon, the instructions causing the at least one processor, when executed by at least one processor, to perform any one of aspects 20 to 38.

[0220] Aspect 42. An apparatus for processing audio data, the apparatus comprising one or more components for performing operations according to any one of aspects 1 to 19.

[0221] Aspect 43. An apparatus for processing audio data, the apparatus comprising one or more components for performing operations according to any one of aspects 20 to 38.

Claims

1. A method for processing audio, the method comprising: Determine audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; A control signal is generated that indicates the resonance configuration of one or more resonators among a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonance configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; as well as The control signal is sent to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonant configuration.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to perform the one or more frequency response adjustments to generate the BCM output signal.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the audio context information includes: Audio signals are obtained from an audio sensor associated with the multi-band BCM, wherein the audio sensor is different from the multi-band BCM.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising: The noise information is determined based on a first subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with background noise; as well as The voice information is determined based on a second frequency subset included in the audio signal and associated with the user's voice or speech.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the audio signal comprises an air-conducted audio signal, and wherein the audio sensor is an external acoustic microphone separate from the multi-band BCM.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The noise information indicates one or more frequencies associated with background noise within the environment of the multi-band BCM; and The voice information indicates one or more voice or speech characteristics of the user corresponding to the multi-band BCM.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the noise information comprises at least one of the following: Low-frequency dominance indicator; High-frequency dominant indicator; Broadband indication; or Quantity or sound level information.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the voice information comprises at least one of the following: Instructions for male or female; Voice intensity indicator; or Indication of frequency bands with low speech intelligibility.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the audio context information indicates use case information corresponding to the multi-band BCM.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the use case information includes at least one of a voice activity detection indication or a noise suppression indication.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the resonance configuration includes resonance control information for boosting or suppressing one or more frequency bands associated with the plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The resonance configuration indication includes a corresponding weight value for each of the plurality of resonators in the multi-band BCM; and The BCM output signal includes a combination of corresponding weighted output signals associated with each of the plurality of resonators.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the control signal indicates a specific resonant configuration selected from a plurality of predetermined resonant configurations for the multi-band BCM.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein: Each of the plurality of predetermined resonance configurations indicates a corresponding subset of active resonators among the plurality of resonators; and Each active resonator in the corresponding subset of active resonators is associated with a corresponding output weight value that is greater than zero.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the multi-band BCM is configured to implement a plurality of resonant bands, each of the plurality of resonant bands being associated with a different subset of the plurality of resonators.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the resonance configuration indicates a corresponding output weight value for each of the plurality of resonance bands, and wherein the one or more frequency response adjustments are based on increasing or decreasing the corresponding output weight value for one or more resonance bands.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the audio context information is based on analyzing one or more control signals to generate the noise information or the speech information.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the one or more control signals comprise: Air-conducted audio signals obtained from an acoustic microphone outside the multi-band BCM; as well as The BCM audio signal obtained from the multi-band BCM.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the BCM audio signal is the same as the BCM output signal, and wherein the audio context information is determined based on the BCM output signal using a feedback loop from the multi-band BCM.

20. An apparatus for processing audio, the apparatus comprising: Memory; and A processor, coupled to the memory, wherein the processor is configured to: Determine audio context information corresponding to a multi-band bone conduction microphone (BCM), wherein the audio context information indicates at least one of noise information or speech information; A control signal is generated that indicates the resonance configuration of one or more resonators among a plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM, wherein the resonance configuration is based on the audio context information and corresponds to one or more frequency response adjustments; as well as The control signal is sent to the multi-band BCM, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to generate a BCM output signal using the resonant configuration.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the control signal is configured to cause the multi-band BCM to perform the one or more frequency response adjustments to generate the BCM output signal.

22. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein, To determine the audio context information, the processor is configured to: Audio signals are obtained from an audio sensor associated with the multi-band BCM, wherein the audio sensor is different from the multi-band BCM.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the processor is further configured to: The noise information is determined based on a first subset of frequencies included in the audio signal and associated with background noise; and The voice information is determined based on a second frequency subset included in the audio signal and associated with the user's voice or speech.

24. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the audio signal comprises an air-conducted audio signal, and wherein the audio sensor is an external acoustic microphone separate from the multi-band BCM.

25. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein: The noise information indicates one or more frequencies associated with background noise within the environment of the multi-band BCM; and The voice information indicates one or more voice or speech characteristics of the user corresponding to the multi-band BCM.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the noise information comprises at least one of the following: Low-frequency dominance indicator; High-frequency dominant indicator; Broadband indication; or Quantity or sound level information.

27. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the voice information comprises at least one of the following: Instructions for male or female; Voice intensity indicator; or Indication of frequency bands with low speech intelligibility.

28. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the audio context information indicates use case information corresponding to the multi-band BCM.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the use case information includes at least one of a voice activity detection indication or a noise suppression indication.

30. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the resonance configuration includes resonance control information configured to cause the processor to boost or suppress one or more frequency bands associated with the plurality of resonators included in the multi-band BCM.

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