Electronic device for providing audio service, and operating method thereof

Abstract

According to one embodiment, an electronic device (101) comprises: a communication circuit (190); one or more processors (120) including processing circuitry; and a memory (130) including instructions, wherein, when individually or collectively executed by the one or more processors, the instructions cause the electronic device to establish, through the communication circuit, a connection with one or more external electronic devices (102, 104, 211, 212, 213, 214, 215, 216), determine, from among the one or more BISs included in a broadcast isochronous group (BIG), a broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) to be received by the one or more external electronic devices, and transmit, through the communication circuit, control information including an index of the one or more external electronic devices and an index of the determined BIS. Other embodiments are possible.

Description

Electronic device providing audio service and method of operation thereof

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

[0002] With recent advancements in information and communication technology, various wireless communication technologies and services are being developed. In particular, Bluetooth, a short-range communication method, is actively being used, and electronic devices utilizing Bluetooth are also widely used.

[0003] The Bluetooth method may include the Bluetooth legacy (or Bluetooth classic) method and / or the Bluetooth low energy (BLE) method. An electronic device (e.g., a smartphone) that provides an audio service based on the BLE method can independently establish a communication link (e.g., a connected isochronous stream (CIS)) with each external electronic device, and transmit and receive data with the external electronic devices through the established communication link (e.g., connection-based communication). The electronic device can establish a communication link (e.g., a broadcast isochronous stream (BIS)) and transmit and receive data with the external electronic devices through the established communication link (e.g., broadcast-based communication).

[0004] Audio services based on the BLE method can be provided through either connection-based CIS or non-connection-based BIS. When a multi-party audio service is provided through CIS, all electronic devices participating in the multi-party audio service establish BLE links with each other, and establish CISs based on the established BLE links. As the number of electronic devices participating in a CIS-based multi-party audio service increases, the number of links that need to be established between the electronic devices participating in the CIS-based multi-party audio service can increase exponentially. This exponential increase in the number of links can not only make it difficult to provide a CIS-based multi-party audio service, but can also make it impossible to provide a CIS-based multi-party audio service.

[0005] In contrast, when a multi-party audio service is provided via a BIS connection, there is no limit to the number of electronic devices participating in the multi-party audio service, and thus, the audio service can be provided normally even if the number of electronic devices participating in the multi-party audio service increases exponentially. However, in the current Bluetooth method, when a multi-party audio service is provided via a BIS connection, the method for receiving audio data via the BIS connection is not specifically defined, and therefore, it is not possible to define how the electronic devices participating in the multi-party audio service can receive the audio data, and thus, it may be difficult to provide the multi-party audio service efficiently.

[0006] One embodiment of the present disclosure provides an electronic device for providing audio service and a method of operating the same.

[0007] One embodiment of the present disclosure provides an electronic device for providing a multi-party audio service and a method of operating the same.

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device (101) includes a communication circuit (190), at least one processor (120) including processing circuitry, and a memory (130) including instructions.

[0009] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to establish a connection with at least one external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216) via the at least one communication circuit.

[0010] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to determine a broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) to be received by the at least one external electronic device from among at least one broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) included in a broadcast isochronous group (BIG).

[0011] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to transmit, via the at least one communication circuit, control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the determined BIS.

[0012] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216) includes a communication circuit (402), at least one processor (404) including a processing circuit, and a memory (406) including instructions.

[0013] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to establish a connection with an external electronic device (101) via the at least one communication circuit.

[0014] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to receive, through the communication circuit, control information including an index of the electronic device and a BIS index from the external electronic device.

[0015] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to receive, based on the control information, a BIS corresponding to the BIS index among at least one BIS included in the BIG.

[0016] According to one embodiment, a storage medium storing at least one computer-readable instruction may be provided.

[0017] According to one embodiment, the at least one instruction, when executed individually or collectively by at least one processor (120) including a processing circuit of the electronic device (101), may cause the electronic device (101) to perform at least one operation.

[0018] According to one embodiment, the at least one operation may include establishing a connection with at least one external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216).

[0019] In one embodiment, the at least one operation may include determining a broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) to be received by the at least one external electronic device from among at least one broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) included in a broadcast isochronous group (BIG).

[0020] In one embodiment, the at least one operation may include transmitting control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the determined BIS.

[0021] FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device within a network environment according to one embodiment.

[0022] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating connections between electronic devices based on the Bluetooth method in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0023] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating connections between electronic devices based on the Bluetooth method in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0024] FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an external electronic device in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0025] FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of BIG events and BIS events in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0026] FIG. 6 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0027] FIG. 7 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0028] FIG. 8 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a UI for selecting an audio channel output from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0029] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating audio channels output from a plurality of external electronic devices according to one embodiment.

[0030] FIG. 10 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0031] FIG. 11 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0032] FIG. 12 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0033] FIG. 13 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0034] FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0035] FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0036] FIG. 16 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0037] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0038] FIG. 18 is a diagram for explaining an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0039] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. In addition, when describing an embodiment of the present disclosure, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known function or configuration may unnecessarily obscure the gist of an embodiment of the present disclosure, such detailed description will be omitted. In addition, the terms described below are terms defined in consideration of the functions in an embodiment of the present disclosure, and these may vary depending on the intention or custom of the user or operator. Therefore, the definitions should be made based on the contents throughout this specification.

[0040] It should be noted that the technical terms used in this specification are merely used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present disclosure. Alternatively, unless specifically defined otherwise herein, the technical terms used in this specification should be interpreted as having a meaning generally understood by a person skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains, and should not be interpreted in an excessively broad or narrow sense. Alternatively, if a technical term used in this specification is an incorrect technical term that does not accurately express the spirit of the present disclosure, it should be replaced with a technical term that can be correctly understood by a person skilled in the art. Alternatively, general terms used in the embodiments of the present disclosure should be interpreted as defined in the dictionary or according to the context, and should not be interpreted in an excessively narrow sense.

[0041] Alternatively, the singular expressions used herein include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this application, terms such as "consist of" or "comprises" should not be construed to necessarily include all of the various components or various operations described in the specification, and should be construed to mean that some of the components or some of the operations may not be included, or that additional components or operations may be included.

[0042] Alternatively, terms including ordinal numbers, such as "first," "second," etc., used herein may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used solely to distinguish one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, a first component could be referred to as a "second component," and similarly, a second component could also be referred to as a "first component."

[0043] When a component is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another component, it may be directly connected or connected to that other component, but there may also be other components intervening. Conversely, when a component is referred to as being "directly connected" or "connected" to another component, it should be understood that there are no other components intervening.

[0044] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Regardless of the drawing numbers, identical or similar components will be given the same reference numbers and redundant descriptions thereof will be omitted. Alternatively, when describing an embodiment of the present disclosure, if a detailed description of a related known technology is determined to obscure the gist of the present disclosure, the detailed description thereof will be omitted. Alternatively, it should be noted that the attached drawings are only intended to facilitate easy understanding of the spirit of the present disclosure and should not be construed as limiting the spirit of the present disclosure by the attached drawings. The spirit of the present disclosure should be construed to extend to all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes other than the attached drawings.

[0045] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will describe an electronic device, but the electronic device may be referred to as a terminal, a mobile station, mobile equipment (ME), user equipment (UE), user terminal (UT), subscriber station (SS), wireless device, handheld device, or access terminal (AT). Alternatively, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, the electronic device may be a device having a communication function, such as a mobile phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a wireless MODEM, or a laptop.

[0046] Alternatively, in specifically describing one embodiment of the present disclosure, reference will be made to the Bluetooth standard defined by the Bluetooth SIG (special interest group), but the main gist of the present disclosure can be applied to other communication systems having similar technical backgrounds with slight modifications within a range that does not significantly deviate from the scope of the present disclosure, and this will be possible at the discretion of a person skilled in the art of the present disclosure.

[0047] FIG. 1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an electronic device (101) within a network environment (100) according to one embodiment.

[0048] Referring to FIG. 1, in a network environment (100), an electronic device (101) may communicate with an electronic device (102) via a first network (198) (e.g., a short-range wireless communication network), or may communicate with an electronic device (104) or a server (108) via a second network (199) (e.g., a long-range wireless communication network). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may communicate with the electronic device (104) via the server (108). According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may include a processor (120), a memory (130), an input module (150), an audio output module (155), a display module (160), an audio module (170), a sensor module (176), an interface (177), a connection terminal (178), a haptic module (179), a camera module (180), a power management module (188), a battery (189), a communication module (190), a subscriber identification module (196), or an antenna module (197). In some embodiments, the electronic device (101) may omit at least one of these components (e.g., the connection terminal (178)), or may have one or more other components added. In some embodiments, some of these components (e.g., the sensor module (176), the camera module (180), or the antenna module (197)) may be integrated into one component (e.g., the display module (160)).

[0049] The processor (120) may control at least one other component (e.g., a hardware or software component) of the electronic device (101) connected to the processor (120) by executing, for example, software (e.g., a program (140)), and may perform various data processing or calculations. According to one embodiment, as at least a part of the data processing or calculation, the processor (120) may store a command or data received from another component (e.g., a sensor module (176) or a communication module (190)) in a volatile memory (132), process the command or data stored in the volatile memory (132), and store the resulting data in a non-volatile memory (134). According to one embodiment, the processor (120) may include a main processor (121) (e.g., a central processing unit or an application processor) or a secondary processor (123) (e.g., a graphics processing unit, a neural processing unit (NPU), an image signal processor, a sensor hub processor, or a communication processor) that can operate independently or together therewith. For example, if the electronic device (101) includes a main processor (121) and a secondary processor (123), the secondary processor (123) may be configured to use less power than the main processor (121) or to be specialized for a specified function. The secondary processor (123) may be implemented separately from the main processor (121) or as a part thereof.

[0050] The auxiliary processor (123) may control at least a part of functions or states associated with at least one component (e.g., a display module (160), a sensor module (176), or a communication module (190)) of the electronic device (101), for example, on behalf of the main processor (121) while the main processor (121) is in an inactive (e.g., sleep) state, or together with the main processor (121) while the main processor (121) is in an active (e.g., application execution) state. In one embodiment, the auxiliary processor (123) (e.g., an image signal processor or a communication processor) may be implemented as a part of another functionally related component (e.g., a camera module (180) or a communication module (190)). In one embodiment, the auxiliary processor (123) (e.g., a neural network processing device) may include a hardware structure specialized for processing artificial intelligence models. The artificial intelligence models may be generated through machine learning. This learning can be performed, for example, in the electronic device (101) itself where artificial intelligence is performed, or can be performed through a separate server (e.g., server (108)). The learning algorithm can include, for example, supervised learning, unsupervised learning, semi-supervised learning, or reinforcement learning, but is not limited to the examples described above. The artificial intelligence model can include multiple artificial neural network layers.The artificial neural network may be one of a deep neural network (DNN), a convolutional neural network (CNN), a recurrent neural network (RNN), a restricted Boltzmann machine (RBM), a deep belief network (DBN), a bidirectional recurrent deep neural network (BRDNN), a deep Q-network, or a combination of two or more of the above, but is not limited to the examples described above. In addition to, or alternatively to, a hardware structure, an artificial intelligence model may include a software structure.

[0051] The memory (130) can store various data used by at least one component (e.g., processor (120) or sensor module (176)) of the electronic device (101). The data can include, for example, software (e.g., program (140)) and input data or output data for commands related thereto. The memory (130) can include volatile memory (132) or non-volatile memory (134).

[0052] The program (140) may be stored as software in memory (130) and may include, for example, an operating system (142), middleware (144), or an application (146).

[0053] The input module (150) can receive commands or data to be used in a component of the electronic device (101) (e.g., a processor (120)) from an external source (e.g., a user) of the electronic device (101). The input module (150) can include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, a keyboard, a key (e.g., a button), or a digital pen (e.g., a stylus pen).

[0054] The audio output module (155) can output audio signals to the outside of the electronic device (101). The audio output module (155) can include, for example, a speaker or a receiver. The speaker can be used for general purposes, such as multimedia playback or recording playback. The receiver can be used to receive incoming calls. According to one embodiment, the receiver can be implemented separately from the speaker or as part of the speaker.

[0055] The display module (160) can visually provide information to an external party (e.g., a user) of the electronic device (101). The display module (160) may include, for example, a display, a holographic device, or a projector and a control circuit for controlling the device. In one embodiment, the display module (160) may include a touch sensor configured to detect a touch, or a pressure sensor configured to measure the intensity of a force generated by the touch.

[0056] The audio module (170) can convert sound into an electrical signal, or vice versa, convert an electrical signal into sound. According to one embodiment, the audio module (170) can acquire sound through the input module (150), output sound through the sound output module (155), or an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102)) (e.g., speaker or headphone) directly or wirelessly connected to the electronic device (101).

[0057] The sensor module (176) can detect the operating status (e.g., power or temperature) of the electronic device (101) or the external environmental status (e.g., user status) and generate an electrical signal or data value corresponding to the detected status. According to one embodiment, the sensor module (176) can include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyro sensor, a barometric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an IR (infrared) sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illuminance sensor.

[0058] The interface (177) may support one or more designated protocols that may be used to directly or wirelessly connect the electronic device (101) with an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102)). In one embodiment, the interface (177) may include, for example, a high definition multimedia interface (HDMI), a universal serial bus (USB) interface, an SD card interface, or an audio interface.

[0059] The connection terminal (178) may include a connector through which the electronic device (101) may be physically connected to an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102)). According to one embodiment, the connection terminal (178) may include, for example, an HDMI connector, a USB connector, an SD card connector, or an audio connector (e.g., a headphone connector).

[0060] A haptic module (179) can convert electrical signals into mechanical stimuli (e.g., vibration or movement) or electrical stimuli that a user can perceive through tactile or kinesthetic sensations. According to one embodiment, the haptic module (179) can include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectric element, or an electrical stimulation device.

[0061] The camera module (180) can capture still images and videos. According to one embodiment, the camera module (180) may include one or more lenses, image sensors, image signal processors, or flashes.

[0062] The power management module (188) can manage power supplied to the electronic device (101). According to one embodiment, the power management module (188) can be implemented as, for example, at least a part of a power management integrated circuit (PMIC).

[0063] A battery (189) may power at least one component of the electronic device (101). In one embodiment, the battery (189) may include, for example, a non-rechargeable primary battery, a rechargeable secondary battery, or a fuel cell.

[0064] The communication module (190) may support the establishment (or establishment) of a direct (e.g., wired) communication channel or a wireless communication channel between the electronic device (101) and an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device (102), electronic device (104), or server (108)), and the performance of communication through the established communication channel. The communication module (190) may operate independently from the processor (120) (e.g., application processor) and may include one or more communication processors that support direct (e.g., wired) communication or wireless communication. According to one embodiment, the communication module (190) may include a wireless communication module (192) (e.g., a cellular communication module, a short-range wireless communication module, or a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communication module (194) (e.g., a local area network (LAN) communication module, or a power line communication module). Among these communication modules, the corresponding communication module can communicate with an external electronic device (104) via a first network (198) (e.g., a short-range communication network such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) direct, or IrDA (infrared data association)) or a second network (199) (e.g., a long-range communication network such as a legacy cellular network, a 5G network, a next-generation communication network, the Internet, or a computer network (e.g., a LAN or WAN)). These various types of communication modules can be integrated into a single component (e.g., a single chip) or implemented as a plurality of separate components (e.g., multiple chips). The wireless communication module (192) can verify or authenticate the electronic device (101) within a communication network such as the first network (198) or the second network (199) by using subscriber information (e.g., an international mobile subscriber identity (IMSI)) stored in the subscriber identification module (196).

[0065] The wireless communication module (192) can support 5G networks and next-generation communication technologies following the 4G network, such as NR access technology (new radio access technology). The NR access technology can support high-speed transmission of high-capacity data (eMBB (enhanced mobile broadband)), minimization of terminal power and connection of multiple terminals (mMTC (massive machine type communications)), or high reliability and low latency (URLLC (ultra-reliable and low-latency communications)). The wireless communication module (192) can support, for example, a high-frequency band (e.g., mmWave band) to achieve a high data transmission rate. The wireless communication module (192) can support various technologies for securing performance in a high-frequency band, such as beamforming, massive multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO), full dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antenna, analog beam-forming, or large scale antenna. The wireless communication module (192) can support various requirements specified in the electronic device (101), an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (104)), or a network system (e.g., the second network (199)). According to one embodiment, the wireless communication module (192) can support a peak data rate (e.g., 20 Gbps or more) for eMBB realization, a loss coverage (e.g., 164 dB or less) for mMTC realization, or a U-plane latency (e.g., 0.5 ms or less for downlink (DL) and uplink (UL), or 1 ms or less for round trip) for URLLC realization.

[0066] The antenna module (197) can transmit or receive signals or power to or from an external device (e.g., an external electronic device). According to one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may include an antenna including a radiator formed of a conductor or a conductive pattern formed on a substrate (e.g., a PCB). According to one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may include a plurality of antennas (e.g., an array antenna). In this case, at least one antenna suitable for a communication method used in a communication network, such as the first network (198) or the second network (199), may be selected from the plurality of antennas, for example, by the communication module (190). A signal or power may be transmitted or received between the communication module (190) and an external electronic device via the selected at least one antenna. According to some embodiments, in addition to the radiator, another component (e.g., a radio frequency integrated circuit (RFIC)) may be additionally formed as a part of the antenna module (197).

[0067] In one embodiment, the antenna module (197) may form a mmWave antenna module. In one embodiment, the mmWave antenna module may include a printed circuit board, an RFIC disposed on or adjacent a first side (e.g., a bottom side) of the printed circuit board and capable of supporting a designated high-frequency band (e.g., a mmWave band), and a plurality of antennas (e.g., an array antenna) disposed on or adjacent a second side (e.g., a top side or a side side) of the printed circuit board and capable of transmitting or receiving signals in the designated high-frequency band.

[0068] At least some of the above components can be interconnected and exchange signals (e.g., commands or data) with each other via a communication method between peripheral devices (e.g., a bus, GPIO (general purpose input and output), SPI (serial peripheral interface), or MIPI (mobile industry processor interface)).

[0069] According to one embodiment, commands or data may be transmitted or received between the electronic device (101) and an external electronic device (104) via a server (108) connected to a second network (199). Each of the external electronic devices (102 or 104) may be the same or a different type of device as the electronic device (101). According to one embodiment, all or part of the operations executed in the electronic device (101) may be executed in one or more of the external electronic devices (102, 104, or 108). For example, when the electronic device (101) is to perform a certain function or service automatically or in response to a request from a user or another device, the electronic device (101) may, instead of or in addition to executing the function or service itself, request one or more external electronic devices to perform the function or at least a part of the service. One or more external electronic devices that receive the request may execute at least a portion of the requested function or service, or an additional function or service related to the request, and transmit the result of the execution to the electronic device (101). The electronic device (101) may process the result as is or additionally and provide it as at least a portion of a response to the request. For this purpose, cloud computing, distributed computing, mobile edge computing (MEC), or client-server computing technology may be used, for example. The electronic device (101) may provide an ultra-low latency service by using distributed computing or mobile edge computing, for example. In one embodiment, the external electronic device (104) may include an Internet of Things (IoT) device. The server (108) may be an intelligent server using machine learning and / or a neural network. According to one embodiment, the external electronic device (104) or the server (108) may be included in the second network (199).The electronic device (101) can be applied to intelligent services (e.g., smart home, smart city, smart car, or healthcare) based on 5G communication technology and IoT-related technology.

[0070] Electronic devices according to embodiments disclosed herein may take various forms. Electronic devices may include, for example, portable communication devices (e.g., smartphones), computer devices, portable multimedia devices, portable medical devices, cameras, wearable devices, or home appliances. Electronic devices according to embodiments disclosed herein are not limited to the aforementioned devices.

[0071] The embodiments of this document and the terminology used herein are not intended to limit the technical features described in this document to specific embodiments, but should be understood to include various modifications, equivalents, or substitutes of the embodiments. In connection with the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals may be used for similar or related components. The singular form of a noun corresponding to an item may include one or more of the items, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this document, each of the phrases "A or B", "at least one of A and B", "at least one of A or B", "A, B, or C", "at least one of A, B, and C", and "at least one of A, B, or C" can include any one of the items listed together in the corresponding phrase among those phrases, or all possible combinations thereof. Terms such as "first," "second," or "first" or "second" may be used merely to distinguish one component from another, and do not limit the components in any other respect (e.g., importance or order). When a component (e.g., a first component) is referred to as "coupled" or "connected" to another (e.g., a second component), with or without the terms "functionally" or "communicatively," it means that the component can be connected to the other component directly (e.g., wired), wirelessly, or through a third component.

[0072] The term "module" used in one embodiment of this document may include a unit implemented in hardware, software, or firmware, and may be used interchangeably with terms such as logic, logic block, component, or circuit. A module may be an integral component, or a minimum unit or part of such a component that performs one or more functions. For example, according to one embodiment, a module may be implemented in the form of an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC).

[0073] An embodiment of the present document may be implemented as software (e.g., a program (140)) including one or more instructions stored in a storage medium (e.g., an internal memory (136) or an external memory (138)) readable by a machine (e.g., an electronic device (101)). For example, a processor (e.g., a processor (120)) of the machine (e.g., an electronic device (101)) may call at least one instruction among the one or more instructions stored from the storage medium and execute it. This enables the machine to operate to perform at least one function according to the at least one called instruction. The one or more instructions may include code generated by a compiler or code executable by an interpreter. The machine-readable storage medium may be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Here, 'non-transitory' simply means that the storage medium is a tangible device and does not contain signals (e.g., electromagnetic waves), and the term does not distinguish between cases where data is stored semi-permanently or temporarily on the storage medium.

[0074] According to one embodiment, the method according to one embodiment disclosed in the present document may be provided as a computer program product. The computer program product may be traded between sellers and buyers as a product. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a device-readable storage medium (e.g., compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)) or may be available through an application store (e.g., Play Store). TM ) or directly between two user devices (e.g., smartphones), online distribution (e.g., downloading or uploading). In the case of online distribution, at least a portion of the computer program product may be at least temporarily stored or temporarily created in a machine-readable storage medium, such as the memory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or an intermediary server.

[0075] According to one embodiment, each component (e.g., a module or a program) of the above-described components may include one or more entities, and some of the entities may be separated and placed in other components. According to one embodiment, one or more components or operations of the aforementioned components may be omitted, or one or more other components or operations may be added. Alternatively or additionally, a plurality of components (e.g., a module or a program) may be integrated into a single component. In such a case, the integrated component may perform one or more functions of each of the plurality of components identically or similarly to those performed by the corresponding component among the plurality of components prior to the integration. According to one embodiment, the operations performed by a module, program, or other component may be executed sequentially, in parallel, iteratively, or heuristically, or one or more of the operations may be executed in a different order, omitted, or one or more other operations may be added.

[0076] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating connections between electronic devices based on the Bluetooth method in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0077] Referring to FIG. 2, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1) may be connected wirelessly and / or wiredly to a plurality of external electronic devices. The electronic device (101) may be connected wirelessly to a plurality of external electronic devices based on a Bluetooth method. The electronic device (101) may be connected wiredly to a plurality of external electronic devices based on a separate protocol. The plurality of external electronic devices (e.g., the electronic device (102) of FIG. 1) may include a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216).

[0078] For example, the electronic device (101) may be a smartphone. Each of the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), and the fourth external electronic device (214) may be a Bluetooth speaker. The fifth external electronic device (215) may be a first earbud (e.g., a left earbud) included in an ear-wearable device, and the sixth external electronic device (216) may be a second earbud (e.g., a right earbud) included in the ear-wearable device.

[0079] In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may provide an audio service based on a Bluetooth method. In one embodiment, the Bluetooth method may include a Bluetooth legacy (or Bluetooth classic) method and / or a Bluetooth low energy (BLE) method.

[0080] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each other and transmit and / or receive data (e.g., audio data) with each other through the established connection. For example, each of the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) can establish a communication link based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method, but this does not mean that the method by which each of the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) establishes a communication link is limited to at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101), the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may be synchronized to a broadcast isochronous group (BIG).

[0081] In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can operate as a source device. In one embodiment, the source device can be a device that transmits (e.g., broadcasts) a broadcast isochronous stream (BIS). In one embodiment, the source device can generate a BIG including a plurality of (e.g., N) BISs. The source device can transmit a plurality of audio channel signals via the plurality of BISs. Each BIS is assigned a BIS index, and the plurality of audio channels can include a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel. For example, let's assume that the index of the BIS corresponding to the front left channel is "1", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front right channel is "2", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front center channel is "3", the index of the BIS corresponding to the back left channel is "4", and the index of the BIS corresponding to the back right channel is "5". The source device can advertise information related to the BISs included in the BIG. In one embodiment, the source device can advertise information related to the BISs through periodic advertising. The source device may also be referred to as a "BIS source device". It should be noted that in the detailed description below, the terms "BIS index" and "index of the BIS" may be used interchangeably.

[0082] The electronic device (101) can operate as a source device and also as an assistant device. In one embodiment, the assistant device can monitor information related to BISs transmitted from the source device. In one embodiment, the assistant device can determine a BIS to be received from at least one of a plurality of sink devices connected to the assistant device based on the monitored information. The assistant device can receive the BIS determined by the assistant device from the sink device and transmit the determined BIS index to the sink device so that audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS can be output. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) transmits control information including an index of the sink device and the BIS index determined for the sink device, and the sink device can receive the control information transmitted by the electronic device (101) and receive the BIS corresponding to the BIS index determined by the electronic device (101). It should be noted that in the detailed description below, the terms "index of the sink device" and "sink device index" may be used interchangeably. In one embodiment, the assistant device may transmit the determined BIS index to the sink device via a connection (e.g., a communication link) established between the assistant device and the sink device. In one embodiment, the assistant device may also change the determined BIS for at least one of the plurality of sink devices. The assistant device may receive the changed BIS from the sink device and transmit the changed BIS index to the sink device so that audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS can be output. The assistant device may also be referred to as a "BIS assistant device."

[0083] Each of the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may operate as a sink device. In one embodiment, the sink device may receive BISs transmitted from the source device. According to one embodiment, the sink device may receive a BIS determined by the assistant device among the BISs transmitted from the source device, regardless of the location information of the sink device itself, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. The sink device may receive a BIS index corresponding to the BIS to be received by the sink device from the assistant device through a connection (e.g., a communication link) established between the sink device and the assistant device. The sink device may receive a BIS corresponding to a BIS index received from the assistant device, and may determine from the assistant device that the BIS that the sink device should receive has changed while outputting audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. The sink device may receive a changed BIS index that the sink device should receive from the assistant device while outputting audio data, and may receive a BIS corresponding to the changed BIS index. The sink device may also be referred to as a "BIS sink device." The first external electronic device (211) may be a first sink device, the second external electronic device (212) may be a second sink device, the third external electronic device (213) may be a third sink device, the fourth external electronic device (214) may be a fourth sink device, the fifth external electronic device (215) may be a fifth sink device, and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may be a sixth sink device.

[0084] The communication link established between the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211) will be referred to as a “first communication link”, the communication link established between the electronic device (101) and the second external electronic device (212) will be referred to as a “second communication link”, the communication link established between the electronic device (101) and the third external electronic device (213) will be referred to as a “third communication link”, the communication link established between the electronic device (101) and the fourth external electronic device (214) will be referred to as a “fourth communication link”, the communication link established between the electronic device (101) and the fifth external electronic device (215) will be referred to as a “fifth communication link”, and the communication link established between the electronic device (101) and the sixth external electronic device (216) will be referred to as a “sixth communication link”.

[0085] In FIG. 2, it is assumed that the electronic device (101) operates as a source device and also operates as an assistant device. Since the electronic device (101) operates as a source device and also operates as an assistant device in FIG. 2, each of the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) can determine the BIS to be received. In FIG. 2, it is assumed that the electronic device (101) operating as an assistant device determines that the first external electronic device (211) and the fifth external electronic device (215) each receive a BIS corresponding to a front left channel, determines that the second external electronic device (212) and the sixth external electronic device (216) each receive a BIS corresponding to a front right channel, determines that the third external electronic device (213) receives a BIS corresponding to a back left channel, and determines that the fourth external electronic device (214) receives a BIS corresponding to a back right channel. As an example, it is assumed that the index of the BIS corresponding to the front left channel is "1", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front right channel is "2", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front center channel is "3", the index of the BIS corresponding to the back left channel is "4", and the index of the BIS corresponding to the back right channel is "5". The electronic device (101) can broadcast information indicating that the first external electronic device (211) and the fifth external electronic device (215) should receive a BIS of index 1, the second external electronic device (212) and the sixth external electronic device (216) should receive a BIS of index 2, the third external electronic device (213) should receive a BIS of index 4, and the fourth external electronic device (214) should receive a BIS of index 5.

[0086] Each of the first external electronic device (212), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) can receive a corresponding BIS based on information transmitted from the electronic device (101) and output audio data of the received BIS.

[0087] In FIG. 2, since the electronic device (101) operating as an assistant device determines that the first external electronic device (211) and the fifth external electronic device (215) each receive a BIS corresponding to a front left channel, determines that the second external electronic device (212) and the sixth external electronic device (216) each receive a BIS corresponding to a front right channel, determines that the third external electronic device (213) receives a BIS corresponding to a back left channel, and determines that the fourth external electronic device (214) receives a BIS corresponding to a back right channel, the electronic device (101) operating as a source device can confirm that there is no need to broadcast the front center channel among the five BISs included in the BIG, and thus can skip the generation of audio data corresponding to the front center channel. Here, skipping the generation of audio data can mean not generating audio data. The source device can identify BISs to broadcast based on the decision of the assistant device and generate audio data corresponding to the identified BISs.

[0088] In FIG. 2, a case in which an electronic device (101) establishes a connection with a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) is described as an example, but the electronic device (101) can establish a connection with not only the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216), but also with at least one other external electronic device. The electronic device (101), the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may be electronic devices participating in a multi-party audio service. In one embodiment, a server (e.g., server (108) of FIG. 1) may be connected to an electronic device (101), a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), a sixth external electronic device (216), and / or at least one other external electronic device, and may perform management and control operations for the electronic device (101), the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), the sixth external electronic device (216), and / or at least one other external electronic device.

[0089] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating connections between electronic devices based on the Bluetooth method in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0090] Referring to FIG. 3, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1 or FIG. 2) may be connected wirelessly and / or wiredly to a plurality of external electronic devices. The electronic device (101) may be connected wirelessly to a plurality of external electronic devices based on a Bluetooth method. The electronic device (101) may be connected wiredly to a plurality of external electronic devices based on a separate protocol. The plurality of external electronic devices (e.g., the electronic device (102) of FIG. 1) may include a first external electronic device (211) (e.g., the first external electronic device (211) of FIG. 2), a second external electronic device (212) (e.g., the second external electronic device (212) of FIG. 2), a third external electronic device (213) (e.g., the third external electronic device (213) of FIG. 2), a fourth external electronic device (214) (e.g., the fourth external electronic device (214) of FIG. 2), a fifth external electronic device (215) (e.g., the fifth external electronic device (215) of FIG. 2), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) (e.g., the sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2).

[0091] For example, the electronic device (101) may be a smartphone. Each of the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), and the fourth external electronic device (214) may be a Bluetooth speaker. The fifth external electronic device (215) may be a first earbud (e.g., a left earbud) included in an ear wearable device, and the sixth external electronic device (216) may be a second earbud (e.g., a light earbud) included in an ear wearable device. The seventh external electronic device (311) may be a TV or another smartphone.

[0092] In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), the sixth external electronic device (216), and / or the seventh external electronic device (311) can provide an audio service based on the Bluetooth method.

[0093] According to one embodiment, the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each other and transmit and / or receive data (e.g., audio data) with each other through the established connection. For example, each of the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) can establish a communication link based on at least one of the Wi-Fi method and / or the Bluetooth method, but this does not mean that the method by which each of the electronic device (101) and the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) establishes a communication link is limited to at least one of the Wi-Fi method and / or the Bluetooth method. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101), the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), the sixth external electronic device (216), and / or the seventh external electronic device (311) may be synchronized to the BIG.

[0094] In one embodiment, the seventh external electronic device (311) may operate as a source device. The source device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in FIG. 2, and thus a detailed description thereof is omitted herein.

[0095] In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can operate as an assistant device. The assistant device can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in FIG. 2 , and thus, a detailed description thereof is omitted herein. While FIG. 2 describes a case in which the electronic device (101) operates as both a source device and an assistant device, FIG. 3 illustrates that the electronic device (101) can operate only as an assistant device.

[0096] Each of the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) may operate as a sink device. The sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in FIG. 2, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0097] A first communication link may be established between the electronic device (101) and a first external electronic device (211), a second communication link may be established between the electronic device (101) and a second external electronic device (212), a third communication link may be established between the electronic device (101) and a third external electronic device (213), a fourth communication link may be established between the electronic device (101) and a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth communication link may be established between the electronic device (101) and a fifth external electronic device (215), and a sixth communication link may be established between the electronic device (101) and a sixth external electronic device (216).

[0098] In FIG. 3, it is assumed that the seventh external electronic device (311) operates as a source device and the electronic device (101) operates as an assistant device. Since the electronic device (101) operates as an assistant device in FIG. 3, each of the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) can determine the BIS to be received. In FIG. 3, it is assumed that the electronic device (101), which is an assistant device, determines that the first external electronic device (211) and the fifth external electronic device (215) each receive a BIS corresponding to a front left channel, determines that the second external electronic device (212) and the sixth external electronic device (216) each receive a BIS corresponding to a front right channel, determines that the third external electronic device (213) receives a BIS corresponding to a back left channel, and determines that the fourth external electronic device (214) receives a BIS corresponding to a back right channel. As an example, it is assumed that the index of the BIS corresponding to the front left channel is "1", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front right channel is "2", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front center channel is "3", the index of the BIS corresponding to the back left channel is "4", and the index of the BIS corresponding to the back right channel is "5". The electronic device (101) can transmit information indicating that the first external electronic device (211) and the fifth external electronic device (215) should receive a BIS of index 1, the second external electronic device (212) and the sixth external electronic device (216) should receive a BIS of index 2, the third external electronic device (213) should receive a BIS of index 4, and the fourth external electronic device (214) should receive a BIS of index 5.

[0099] Each of the first external electronic device (212), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) can synchronize with the BIS provided by the seventh external electronic device (311) based on information (e.g., BIG information (BIGInfo)) transmitted from the electronic device (101), receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data of the received BIS.

[0100] In one embodiment, BIGInfo may be included in an auxiliary synchronization indication (AUX_SYNC_IND) protocol data unit (PDU) transmitted (e.g., broadcast) by the seventh external electronic device (311), and a detailed description of the AUX_SYNC_IND PDU is specified in section 2.3.1.7 of the Bluetooth Core Specification v5.4 provided by the Core Specification Working Group, and therefore, a duplicate description is omitted here.

[0101] In one embodiment, BIGInfo may be as shown in Table 1 below.

[0102] Table 1

[0103]

[0104] In Table 1, BIGInfo can be included in the ACAD field of the AUX_SYNC_IND PDU transmitted during periodic advertising operation. The length of BIGInfo can be 33 octets for unencrypted BIG and 57 octets for encrypted BIG.

[0105] In Table 1, the BIG_Offset field may contain the time from the start of the packet containing BIGInfo to the BIG anchor point described by BIGInfo. The value of the BIG_Offset field is the time unit indicated by the BIG_Offset_Units bit, and the actual time offset can be determined by multiplying the value of BIG_Offset by the time unit indicated by the BIG_Offset_Units bit. The time offset may be greater than 600 μs.

[0106] In Table 1, when the BIG_Offset_Units bit is set, the time unit indicated by the BIG_Offset_Units bit may be 300 μs, and when the BIG_Offset_Units bit is not set, the time unit indicated by the BIG_Offset_Units bit may be 30 μs. The BIG_Offset_Units bit may not be set if the time offset is less than 491,460 μs.

[0107] In Table 1, the BIG anchor point may be no earlier than the time offset and no later than one unit after the start of the associated packet.

[0108] In Table 1, the ISO_Interval field can indicate the time between two adjacent BIG anchor points, and can be in units of 1.25 ms. The value of the ISO_Interval field can be a value between 4 and 3200 (i.e., 5 ms to 4 s).

[0109] In Table 1, the NSE (number of subevents) field can indicate the number of subevents per BIS for each BIG event. The value of the NSE field can be between 1 and 31, and can be an integer multiple of the BN.

[0110] In Table 1, the BN field, the PTO field, and the IRC field can control what data is transmitted in each BIG event. The BN field can have a value between 1 and 7, the PTO field can have a value between 0 and 15, and the IRC field can have a value between 1 and 15.

[0111] In Table 1, the Sub_Interval field may indicate the time between the start of two consecutive sub-events of each BIS, and may be in microseconds.

[0112] In Table 1, the BIS_Spacing field may indicate the time between the start of corresponding sub-events in adjacent BISs in the BIG, and may be in microseconds. Additionally, if a control sub-event exists, the BIS_Spacing field may indicate the time between the start of the first sub-event of the last BIS and the control sub-event, and may be in microseconds.

[0113] In Table 1, the Num_BIS field can indicate the number of BISs in BIG.

[0114] In Table 1, the Max_PDU field may indicate the maximum number of data octets (including a message integrity check (MIC) if required) that can be carried in each BIS data PDU in the BIG. The value of the Max_PDU field may be between 1 and 251 octets.

[0115] In Table 1, the SeedAccessAddress field may indicate a seed access address (SAA) for the BIG. The access address for the BIS may be derived from the SAA and may be a random number that satisfies the following conditions.

[0116]

[0117] For any pair of BIGs transmitted by the same device, SAA 15 to SSA 0 may differ by at least two bits.

[0118] In Table 1, the SDU_Interval field can be a value between 0x0000FF and 0x0FFFFF, in microseconds.

[0119] In Table 1, the Max_SDU field can indicate the maximum size of a service data unit (SDU) in BIG. The value of the Max_SDU field can be between 1 and 4095 octets.

[0120] In Table 1, the BaseCRCInit field can indicate a BaseCRCInit value. For every broadcast isochronous PDU, a shift register included in the cyclic redundancy check (CRC) generator can be preset with the BaseCRCInit value from the BIGInfo data of the most significant two octets and the BIS_Number for a specific BIS of the least significant octet.

[0121] In Table 1, the ChM field may include a channel map indicating used and unused data channels. Each channel is represented by bits arranged according to a data channel index, where the least significant bit (LSB) may indicate data channel index 0 and the bit at position 36 may indicate data channel index 36. A bit value of 0 may indicate that the channel is not used, and a bit value of 1 may indicate that the channel is used. Bits at positions 37, 38, and 39 may be reserved for future use.

[0122] In Table 1, the PHY field can indicate the physical layer (PHY) used by BIG, and the value of the PHY field can be specified as shown in Table 2 below.

[0123] Table 2

[0124]

[0125] In Table 1, the bisPayloadCount field can be used for the first sub-event of the BIG event indicated by the BIG_Offset field. For each BIS, payloads can be numbered in the order provided, starting from 0. This number can be used as the value of the bisPayloadCounter field for the PDU containing the corresponding payload, e.g., the bisPayloadCount field.

[0126] In Table 1, the Framing field can be set if BIG transmits framed data.

[0127] In Table 1, when BIG is encrypted, the GIV field can be a 64-bit parameter and the GSKD field can be a 128-bit parameter.

[0128] A detailed description of BIGInfo is given in section 4.4.6.11 BIGInfo of Bluetooth Core Specification v5.4, so the detailed description is omitted here.

[0129] In FIG. 3, a case in which an electronic device (101) establishes a connection with a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) is described as an example, but the electronic device (101) can establish a connection with not only the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216), but also with at least one other external electronic device. The electronic device (101), the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), the sixth external electronic device (216), and / or the seventh external electronic device (311) may be electronic devices participating in a multi-party audio service. In one embodiment, a server (e.g., server (108) of FIG. 1) may be connected to an electronic device (101), a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), a sixth external electronic device (216), a seventh external electronic device (311), and / or at least one other external electronic device, and may perform management and control operations for the electronic device (101), the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), the sixth external electronic device (216), the seventh external electronic device (311), and / or at least one other external electronic device.

[0130] In one embodiment, when a connection is established between the electronic device (101) and the seventh external electronic device (311), the number of BISs to be generated by the seventh external electronic device (311) can be determined. The electronic device (101) can determine the number of BISs to be generated by the seventh external electronic device (311) based on the number of external electronic devices that are establishing a connection with the electronic device (101).

[0131] In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can operate as both an assistant device and a source device. The electronic device (101) operating as both an assistant device and a source device can determine the number of BISs to generate based on the number of external electronic devices that have established a connection with the electronic device (101).

[0132] In one embodiment, the seventh external electronic device (311) may be a device that transmits (e.g., broadcasts) a BIS. In one embodiment, the seventh external electronic device (311) may generate a BIG including a plurality of (e.g., N) BISs. The seventh external electronic device (311) may transmit a plurality of audio channel signals through the plurality of BISs, and each BIS may be assigned a BIS index. The seventh external electronic device (311) may advertise information related to the BISs included in the BIG. In one embodiment, the seventh external electronic device (311) may advertise information related to the BIG and the BISs through periodic advertising.

[0133] The electronic device (101) can operate as an assistant device. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can monitor information related to BISs transmitted from a seventh external electronic device (311). In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine, based on the monitored information, a BIS to be received from at least one of a plurality of sink devices (e.g., a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216)) connected to the electronic device (101). The electronic device (101) can receive the BIS determined by the electronic device (101) from the sink device and transmit the determined BIS index to the sink device so as to output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) transmits control information including an index of a sink device and a BIS index determined for the sink device, and the sink device can receive the control information transmitted by the electronic device (101) and receive a BIS corresponding to the BIS index determined by the electronic device (101). In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can transmit the determined BIS index to the sink device through a connection (e.g., a communication link) established between the electronic device (101) and the sink device. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can also change the BIS determined for at least one of the plurality of sink devices. The electronic device (101) can receive the BIS changed by the electronic device (101) from the sink device and transmit the changed BIS index to the sink device so that audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS can be output.

[0134] FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating an external electronic device in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0135] Referring to FIG. 4, an external electronic device (400) (e.g., an electronic device (102) or an electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, a first external electronic device (211) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a second external electronic device (212) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a third external electronic device (213) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a fourth external electronic device (214) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a fifth external electronic device (215) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, and / or a seventh external electronic device (311) of FIG. 3) may be a device that implements a Bluetooth method (e.g., a Bluetooth legacy method, and / or a BLE method). The external electronic device (400) may include a communication circuit (402) that transmits and receives signals using one or more antennas (401) with another electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1 or FIG. 2, or the server (108) of FIG. 1), for example, a peer device.

[0136] The external electronic device (400) may include a processor (404) that may be implemented as one or more single-core processors or one or more multi-core processors, and a memory (406) that stores instructions for the operation of the external electronic device (400).

[0137] The external electronic device (400) may include an interface (408) that provides a wired and / or wireless interface for communicating with components outside the network.

[0138] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device (400) may include a plurality of communication circuits, one of the plurality of communication circuits may be a communication circuit based on a Wi-Fi method, and another of the plurality of communication circuits may be a communication circuit based on a Bluetooth method, for example, a BLE method. According to one embodiment, the plurality of communication circuits may include a communication circuit (402), and the communication circuit (402) may be a communication circuit based on a Wi-Fi method or a communication circuit based on a BLE method.

[0139] According to one embodiment, the external electronic device (400) may not separately include a communication circuit based on Wi-Fi and a communication circuit based on BLE, but may include a single communication circuit capable of supporting both Wi-Fi and BLE. According to one embodiment, the single communication circuit capable of supporting both Wi-Fi and BLE may be the communication circuit (402).

[0140] The Bluetooth mode may include Bluetooth legacy (or Bluetooth classic) mode and / or Bluetooth low energy (BLE) mode. An electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) (e.g., a smartphone) that provides an audio service based on the BLE method can independently establish a communication link (e.g., CIS) with each of external electronic devices (e.g., an electronic device (102) or an electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, a first external electronic device (211) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a second external electronic device (212) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a third external electronic device (213) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a fourth external electronic device (214) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, a fifth external electronic device (215) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) and transmit and receive data with the external electronic devices through the established communication link (e.g., connection-based communication). Electronic devices can establish a communication link (e.g., a Bluetooth Integrated Services Interface (BIS)) and transmit and receive data with external electronic devices through the established communication link (e.g., broadcast-based communication). Audio services based on BLE can be provided via either a connection-based CIS or a non-connection-based BIS.

[0141] The audio service provided in the BLE mode may be a next-generation Bluetooth audio service. While the Bluetooth legacy mode uses the Bluetooth basic rate / enhanced data rate (BR / EDR) mode and the advanced audio distribution profile (A2DP) or hands-free profile (HFP), the BLE mode uses multi-stream audio and broadcast audio for audio sharing. In the audio sharing mode, one or more audio packets can be provided to an unlimited number of audio sink devices. To support the audio sharing mode, BIG and BIS have been proposed. The audio sharing mode may require an isochronous broadcaster and a synchronized receiver.

[0142] A BIS may be a logical transport used to deliver one or more isochronous data streams to all devices within a BIS range. A BIS may include one or more sub-events for transmitting isochronous data packets. A sub-event may include time durations during which at least one synchronized receiver can receive a broadcast isochronous PDU. A BIS may support the transmission of multiple new isochronous data packets per BIS event. There is no acknowledgment protocol for a BIS, and therefore traffic is unidirectional from a broadcasting device.

[0143] A BIG can be generated by an isochronous broadcaster. A BIG can contain one or more BISs. Multiple BISs included in a BIG can have a common timing reference based on the broadcaster and can be synchronized in the time domain. For example, the left and right channels of an audio stereo stream received by separate devices need to be rendered simultaneously. Multiple BISs included in a BIG can be scheduled sequentially or in an interleaved arrangement.

[0144] FIG. 5 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of BIG events and BIS events in a wireless communication network according to one embodiment.

[0145] Referring to FIG. 5, each of the BIG events (e.g., BIG event x(501), BIG event x+1(503), BIG event x+2(505)) may include two BIS events. For example, BIG event x(501) may include BIS1 event x(511) and BIS2 event x(513), BIG event x+1(503) may include BIS1 event x+1(521) and BIS2 event x+1(523), and BIG event x+2(505) may include BIS1 event x+2(531) and BIS2 event x+2(533).

[0146] A BIG event may contain one or more BIS protocol data units (PDUs). The link layer may only transmit BIS PDUs in BIG events. The link layer may only transmit BIS PDUs as part of a BIG event. Each BIG event may be divided into Num_BIS BIS events and control sub-events (if any). Each BIS event may be divided into NSE sub-events. Each BIS event begins at a moment referred to as the BIS anchor point and ends after the last sub-event of the BIS event. Each BIG event begins at a moment referred to as the BIG anchor point and ends after a control sub-event, if one exists, or else ends at the end of the last constituent BIS event.

[0147] BIG anchor points can be spaced regularly by ISO_Interval. The BIS anchor points for a BIS n of a BIG can be (n - 1) X BIS_Spacing after the BIG anchor points, and thus spaced regularly by ISO_Interval. BIS_Spacing is the time between the start of sub-events contained in adjacent BISs contained in the BIG, and can also be the time between the start of the first sub-event and the control sub-event of the last BIS. For example, BIS_Spacing can be a time interval that includes the time interval corresponding to a BIS1 event x and the time interval corresponding to a BIS2 event x. The sub-events of each BIS can be spaced by Sub_Interval. An isochronous broadcaster may end each BIG event at least T_IFS before the BIG anchor point of the next BIG event. T_IFS represents the time inter frame space and can indicate the time interval between consecutive packets on the same channel index.

[0148] In BIS1 event x(511), broadcast isochronous PDU(541), broadcast isochronous PDU(543), and broadcast isochronous PDU(545) can be transmitted.

[0149] In BIS2 event x(513), broadcast isochronous PDU(551), broadcast isochronous PDU(553), and broadcast isochronous PDU(555) can be transmitted.

[0150] At BIS1 event x+1 (521), broadcast isochronous PDU (561), broadcast isochronous PDU (563), and broadcast isochronous PDU (565) can be transmitted.

[0151] At BIS2 event x+1 (523), broadcast isochronous PDU (571), broadcast isochronous PDU (573), and broadcast isochronous PDU (575) can be transmitted.

[0152] In BIS1 event x+2 (531), broadcast isochronous PDU (581), broadcast isochronous PDU (583), and broadcast isochronous PDU (585) can be transmitted.

[0153] In BIS2 event x+2(533), broadcast isochronous PDU(591), broadcast isochronous PDU(593), and broadcast isochronous PDU(595) can be transmitted.

[0154] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device (101) may include a communication circuit (190), at least one processor (120) including a processing circuit, and a memory (130) including instructions.

[0155] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to establish a connection with at least one external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216) via the communication circuit.

[0156] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to determine a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device from among the at least one BIS included in the BIG.

[0157] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to transmit, through the communication circuit, control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the determined BIS.

[0158] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to identify a user input selecting an audio channel to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS.

[0159] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to determine, based on the user input, a BIS corresponding to the audio channel among the at least one BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device.

[0160] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to obtain, through the communication circuit, information related to a location of the at least one external electronic device.

[0161] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to determine a relative location of the at least one external electronic device with respect to the electronic device based on information relating to the location of the at least one external electronic device.

[0162] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to determine which of the at least one BIS is to be received by the at least one external electronic device based on the relative location.

[0163] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to change the BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to another BIS after transmitting the control information.

[0164] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to transmit, through the communication circuit, other control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the other BIS.

[0165] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to, after transmitting the control information, confirm a user input to change an audio channel to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to another audio channel.

[0166] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to change a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS based on the user input to the other BIS corresponding to the other audio channel.

[0167] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to obtain, through the communication circuit, information related to a location of the at least one external electronic device after transmitting the control information.

[0168] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to determine a relative location of the at least one external electronic device with respect to the electronic device based on information relating to the location of the at least one external electronic device.

[0169] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to change the BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device from among the at least one BIS to another BIS based on determining that the relative position has changed.

[0170] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to skip generation of audio data corresponding to a BIS other than a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS.

[0171] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to establish a connection with at least one other external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216).

[0172] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to determine, after establishing a connection with the at least one other external electronic device, a first BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device and a second BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device.

[0173] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to transmit, through the communication circuit, other control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the first BIS, or an index of the at least one other external electronic device and an index of the second BIS.

[0174] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the relative position of the at least one external electronic device with respect to the electronic device can be determined based on at least one of a plurality of short-range communication methods including at least an ultra wide band (UWB) method or a global positioning system (GPS) method.

[0175] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216) may include a communication circuit (402), at least one processor (404) including a processing circuit, and a memory (406) including instructions.

[0176] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to establish a connection with an external electronic device (101) via the communication circuit.

[0177] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to receive, through the communication circuit, control information including an index of the electronic device and a BIS index from the external electronic device.

[0178] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to receive, based on the control information, a BIS corresponding to the BIS index among at least one BIS included in the BIG.

[0179] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the electronic device may further include an audio output circuit (410).

[0180] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the instructions, when executed individually or collectively by the at least one processor, may cause the electronic device to output audio data corresponding to the received BIS through the audio output circuit.

[0181] FIG. 6 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0182] Referring to FIG. 6, an electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) (e.g., a processor (120) of FIG. 1) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with at least one external electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (102) or an electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or 3) via at least one communication circuit (e.g., a communication module (190) of FIG. 1) at operation 611. In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate as a source device and may also operate as an assistant device. At least one external electronic device may operate as a sink device. The source device, the assistant device, and the sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In one embodiment, the electronic device may establish a connection with at least one external electronic device based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method. For example, if there are six external electronic devices (e.g., a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216)), the electronic device may establish a connection with each of the six external electronic devices.

[0183] An electronic device that has established a connection with at least one external electronic device may determine, in operation 613, a BIS to be received by at least one external electronic device among at least one BIS included in a BIG generated by the electronic device. In one embodiment, the electronic device may generate a BIG including N BISs, and each of the N BISs may correspond to an audio channel. In one embodiment, the electronic device may generate BISs corresponding to the number of external electronic devices that have established a connection with the electronic device, and thus, N may be the number of external electronic devices that have established a connection with the electronic device. For example, if the electronic device has established a connection with five external electronic devices, the electronic device may generate at least one BIS and at most five BISs. For example, the electronic device may generate a BIG including five BISs, and the five BISs may include five audio channels. For example, the five audio channels may include a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel. For example, the index of the BIS corresponding to the front left channel may be "1", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front right channel may be "2", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front center channel may be "3", the index of the BIS corresponding to the back left channel may be "4", and the index of the BIS corresponding to the back right channel may be "5". When the electronic device establishes a connection with each of a plurality of external electronic devices, the electronic devices may determine the BIS to be received by each of the plurality of external electronic devices. For example, when the electronic device establishes a connection with each of six external electronic devices, and the six external electronic devices receive an audio service (e.g., receive a BIS), the electronic device may determine the BIS to be received by each of the six external electronic devices.In FIG. 6, the case where the electronic device determines the BIS to be received by each of the external electronic devices is described as an example, but the external electronic devices may directly determine the BIS to be received by the external electronic devices. For example, if the index of the BIS is set to "0xFFFFFFFF: No preference", the external electronic devices may directly determine the BIS to be received by the external electronic devices. The electronic device that has determined the BIS to be received by at least one external electronic device among at least one BIS may, in operation 615, transmit control information including the index of the at least one external electronic device and the index of the determined BIS through at least one communication circuit. For example, if the electronic device has determined the BIS to be received for each of six external electronic devices, the electronic device may generate control information by mapping the indexes of each of the six external electronic devices (e.g., the sink device index) and the indexes of the BIS determined for each of the six external electronic devices, and transmit the generated control information through at least one communication circuit. In one embodiment, the control information may be transmitted over an established connection, or may be transmitted via a separate protocol or separate message.

[0184] While FIG. 6 illustrates an example where an electronic device establishes a connection with at least one external electronic device, the electronic device may operate in a non-connected manner without establishing a connection with at least one external electronic device. For example, the electronic device may transmit (e.g., broadcast) relevant information through periodic advertising, and at least one external electronic device may receive the relevant information through a scanning operation.

[0185] Meanwhile, although FIG. 6 illustrates a method of operating an electronic device according to one embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made to FIG. 6. For example, although FIG. 6 illustrates sequential operations, it is to be understood that the operations described in FIG. 6 may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times.

[0186] FIG. 7 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0187] Referring to FIG. 7, an electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102) or the electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) (e.g., the processor (404) of FIG. 4) may, in operation 711, establish a connection with an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) via at least one communication circuit (e.g., the communication circuit (402) of FIG. 4). In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate as a sink device. In one embodiment, the external electronic device may operate as a source device while also operating as an assistant device. The source device, the assistant device, and the sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 , and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In one embodiment, the electronic device may establish a connection with an external electronic device based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0188] An electronic device that has established a connection with an external electronic device may, in operation 713, receive control information including an index of the electronic device and a BIS index from the external electronic device via at least one communication circuit. In one embodiment, the control information may be information indicating an index of a BIS to be received by each of sink devices including an electronic device, from which the external electronic device is connected to the external electronic device and receives an audio service. In one embodiment, the control information may have a form in which an index of each of sink devices including an electronic device, from which the external electronic device is connected to the external electronic device and receives an audio service, and an index of a BIS to be received by each of sink devices including an electronic device, from which the external electronic device is connected to the external electronic device and receives an audio service are mapped. In one embodiment, the control information may be received via the established connection, or may be received via a separate protocol or a separate message.

[0189] An electronic device that receives control information from an external electronic device may, in operation 715, receive a BIS corresponding to a BIS index mapped to an index of the electronic device included in the control information among at least one BIS included in the BIG based on the control information. For example, the external electronic device may establish a connection not only with the electronic device but also with each of the other electronic devices, and when the other electronic devices also receive audio services through the BIS, the external electronic device may determine the BIS to be received by the electronic device and each of the other electronic devices. In this case, the external electronic device may generate control information in a form that maps the indexes of the electronic device and the corresponding BIS indexes of each of the other electronic devices. The electronic device may receive control information transmitted from the external electronic device, and when the control information includes an index of the electronic device (e.g., a sync index), the electronic device may receive a BIS corresponding to the BIS index mapped to the index of the electronic device, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS through an audio output circuit (e.g., an audio output circuit (410) of FIG. 4).

[0190] Meanwhile, although FIG. 7 illustrates a method of operating an electronic device according to one embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made to FIG. 7. For example, although FIG. 7 illustrates sequential operations, it is to be understood that the operations described in FIG. 7 may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times.

[0191] FIG. 8 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a UI for selecting an audio channel output from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0192] Referring to FIG. 8, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with a plurality of external electronic devices (e.g., electronic device (102) or electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3). In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate as an assistant device, and each of the plurality of external electronic devices may operate as a sink device.

[0193] An electronic device operating as an assistant device can perform a monitoring operation for periodic advertising to obtain information related to a plurality of BISs transmitted (e.g., broadcasted) from a source device. The electronic device can output a UI including information related to the plurality of BISs obtained through the monitoring operation for periodic advertising and information related to external electronic devices connected to the electronic device through a display (e.g., the display module (160) of FIG. 1). In one embodiment, the UI can be implemented in a form of selecting an audio channel to be received for each of the external electronic devices connected to the electronic device. When the electronic device operates as an assistant device while also operating as a source device, the electronic device can obtain information related to a plurality of BISs transmitted (e.g., broadcasted) from the source device without performing a monitoring operation for periodic advertising, and can output a UI including information related to the plurality of BISs and information related to external electronic devices connected to the electronic device.

[0194] For example, let us assume that six external electronic devices are connected to an electronic device, for example, a first external electronic device, a second external electronic device, a third external electronic device, a fourth external electronic device, a fifth external electronic device, and a sixth external electronic device, and the source device transmits five BISs, and the five BISs correspond to five audio channels, such as a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel. In this case, the electronic device may provide a menu for selecting an audio channel to be received by each of the first to sixth external electronic devices, respectively.

[0195] In FIG. 8, as an example, a UI is illustrated in which a list (811) of audio channels selectable by a first external electronic device is displayed, an audio channel is selected (813) to receive a front center channel by a fifth external electronic device, and an audio channel is selected (815) to receive a front center channel by a sixth external electronic device.

[0196] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating audio channels output from a plurality of external electronic devices according to one embodiment.

[0197] Referring to FIG. 9, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with a plurality of external electronic devices (e.g., the electronic device (102) or the electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3). In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) may operate as an assistant device, and each of the plurality of external electronic devices may operate as a sink device.

[0198] In one embodiment, six external electronic devices are connected to the electronic device (101), for example, a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and a sixth external electronic device (216), and the source device transmits five BISs, and the five BISs may correspond to five audio channels, such as a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel.

[0199] The electronic device (101) can output a UI including information related to a plurality of BISs acquired through a monitoring operation for periodic advertising and information related to external electronic devices connected to the electronic device (101) through a display (e.g., a display module (160) of FIG. 1), and can confirm a user input for selecting an audio channel to be received from each external electronic device through the UI.

[0200] In FIG. 9, the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device (211) is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device (212) is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device (213) is selected as the back left channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device (214) is selected as the back right channel, and the audio channels to be received by the fifth external electronic device (215) and the sixth external electronic device (216) are selected as the front center channel. However, the audio channels to be received by each external electronic device may not be limited thereto.

[0201] In FIG. 9, a case where a connection is established between an electronic device (101) and six external electronic devices is described as an example, but if additional external electronic devices are identified, a UI including information related to a plurality of BISs and information related to external electronic devices connected to the electronic device (101) can be output by considering the additional external electronic devices, and a user input for selecting an audio channel to be received from each external electronic device can be confirmed through the UI.

[0202] In FIG. 9, the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device (211) is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device (212) is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device (213) is selected as the back left channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device (214) is selected as the back right channel, and the audio channels to be received by the fifth external electronic device (215) and the sixth external electronic device (216) are selected as the front center channel. However, when the positions of the first external electronic device (211) to the sixth external electronic device (216) are changed, the audio channels received by the first external electronic device (211) to the sixth external electronic device (216) may vary depending on the positions of the first external electronic device (211) to the sixth external electronic device (216).

[0203] FIG. 10 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0204] Referring to FIG. 10, an electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) (e.g., a processor (120) of FIG. 1) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each of external electronic devices (e.g., an electronic device (102) or an electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) in operation 1011. In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate as a source device while also operating as an assistant device. Each of the external electronic devices may operate as a sink device. The source device, the assistant device, and the sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 , and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In one embodiment, the electronic device may establish a connection with at least one external electronic device based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0205] The electronic device that has established a connection with each of the external electronic devices may perform a periodic advertising operation in operation 1013. In one embodiment, the electronic device may transmit (e.g., broadcast) information related to BISs provided by the electronic device as a source device through the periodic advertising operation. The information related to BISs provided by the electronic device may be transmitted during the periodic advertising period.

[0206] An electronic device that has performed a periodic advertising operation may, in operation 1015, display information about audio channels transmitted from the electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device through a display (e.g., the display module (160) of FIG. 1). In one embodiment, the electronic device may configure a BIG including five BISs, and the five BISs may correspond to five audio channels, such as a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel. The electronic device may configure a UI including information about six external electronic devices connected to the electronic device and information about five audio channels transmitted from the electronic device, so as to select an audio channel to be output from each of the six external electronic devices. The UI including information about audio channels transmitted from the electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device may be implemented similar to or substantially identical to that described in FIG. 8, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0207] The electronic device, which displays information about audio channels transmitted from the electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device, may, in operation 1017, confirm a first user input for selecting an audio channel to be output from each of the external electronic devices. For example, as described in FIG. 9, the electronic device may confirm a first user input for selecting an audio channel to be received by a first external electronic device as a front left channel, an audio channel to be received by a second external electronic device as a front right channel, an audio channel to be received by a third external electronic device as a back left channel, an audio channel to be received by a fourth external electronic device as a back right channel, and an audio channel to be received by a fifth external electronic device and a sixth external electronic device as a front center channel through the UI.

[0208] An electronic device that has confirmed a first user input for selecting an audio channel to be output from each of the external electronic devices may determine a BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the first user input in operation 1019. In one embodiment, a BIS index may be mapped to each of the BISs included in the BIG. For example, it is assumed that the index of the BIS corresponding to the front left channel is "1", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front right channel is "2", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front center channel is "3", the index of the BIS corresponding to the back left channel is "4", and the index of the BIS corresponding to the back right channel is "5".

[0209] Based on the first user input in operation 1017, since the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device is selected as the back left channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device is selected as the back right channel, and the audio channel to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices is selected as the front center channel, the electronic devices can determine the BIS to be received by the first external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "1", determine the BIS to be received by the second external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "2", determine the BIS to be received by the third external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "4", determine the BIS to be received by the fourth external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "5", and determine the BIS to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices as the BIS mapped to the index "3".

[0210] Based on the first user input, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices may transmit first control information including an index of each of the external electronic devices and an index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1021. Each of the external electronic devices that has received the first control information may synchronize to a BIS provided by a corresponding electronic device based on the first control information, receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, each of the external electronic devices may synchronize to the BIS provided by the electronic device based on BIGInfo included in an AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the electronic device broadcasts as it performs a PA operation. AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus, a detailed description thereof is omitted herein. The electronic device may transmit BISs corresponding to the first control information, and while transmitting the first control information, in operation 1023, may identify a second user input for changing an audio channel to be output from at least one of the external electronic devices. In one embodiment, the electronic device may identify the second user input for requesting to change an audio channel to be output from at least one of the external electronic devices through a UI that represents information about audio channels transmitted from the electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device.For example, in the first user input, it is assumed that the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device is selected as the back left channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device is selected as the back right channel, and the audio channel to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices is selected as the front center channel. However, in the second user input, the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device is selected as the back right channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device is selected as the back left channel, and the audio channel to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices is selected as the front center channel.

[0211] The electronic device that has confirmed the second user input can determine the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the second user input in operation 1025.

[0212] Based on the second user input in operation 1023, since the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device is selected as the back right channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device is selected as the back left channel, and the audio channel to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices is selected as the front center channel, the electronic devices can determine the BIS to be received by the first external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "2", determine the BIS to be received by the second external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "1", determine the BIS to be received by the third external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "5", determine the BIS to be received by the fourth external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "4", and determine the BIS to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices as the BIS mapped to the index "3".

[0213] Based on the second user input, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices may transmit second control information including an index of each of the external electronic devices and an index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1027. In one embodiment, the second control information may be generated according to a modify source operation, and the modify source operation may be used to request a sink device (e.g., an external electronic device) to add or update metadata for the source device (e.g., an electronic device), or to synchronize with or stop periodic advertising or synchronization with the BIS. In one embodiment, the second control information may include at least one of Source_ID, PA_Sync, PA_Interval, Num_Subgroups, BIS_Sync[i], Metadata_Length[i], or Metadata[i], and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices may be included in BIS_Sync[i]. A specific description of the source modification operation is specified in Broadcast Audio Scan Service Revision v1.0, a standard provided by the Generic Audio Working Group, and Source_ID, PA_Sync, PA_Interval, Num_Subgroups, BIS_Sync[i], Metadata_Length[i], or Metadata[i] may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that specified in Broadcast Audio Scan Service Revision v1.0, and therefore, a detailed description thereof is omitted herein.

[0214] Each of the external electronic devices that received the second control information can synchronize to a corresponding BIS based on the second control information, receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, each of the external electronic devices can synchronize to a BIS provided by the electronic device based on BIGInfo included in an AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the electronic device broadcasts as it performs a PA operation. The AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0215] The electronic device may transmit BISs corresponding to the second control information, and while transmitting the second control information, in operation 1029, determine that the connection relationship between the electronic device and external electronic devices has changed. In one embodiment, the change in the connection relationship between the electronic device and external electronic devices may indicate that at least one of the external electronic devices connected to the electronic device has disconnected from the electronic device, or that another external electronic device has additionally established a connection with the electronic device.

[0216] An electronic device that has confirmed that the connection relationship between the electronic device and external electronic devices has changed may display information about audio channels transmitted from the electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device through a display in operation 1031. Although not illustrated separately, if no additional user input is confirmed within a set time, the electronic device may terminate the operation. Alternatively, the electronic device that has displayed information about audio channels transmitted from the electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device may proceed to operation 1017 and repeat subsequent operations. In FIG. 10, an example in which an electronic device that has confirmed that the connection relationship between the electronic device and external electronic devices has changed, such as in operation 1031, displays information about audio channels transmitted from the electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device through a display is described, but operation 1031 may be omitted.

[0217] Meanwhile, although FIG. 10 illustrates a method of operating an electronic device according to one embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made to FIG. 10. For example, although FIG. 10 illustrates sequential operations, it is to be understood that the operations described in FIG. 10 may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times.

[0218] FIG. 11 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0219] Referring to FIG. 11, an electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) (e.g., a processor (120) of FIG. 1) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each of external electronic devices (e.g., an electronic device (102) or an electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) in operation 1111. In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate as a source device while also operating as an assistant device. Each of the external electronic devices may operate as a sink device. The source device, the assistant device, and the sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 , and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In one embodiment, the electronic device may establish a connection with at least one external electronic device based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0220] The electronic device that has established a connection with each of the external electronic devices may perform a periodic advertising operation in operation 1113. In one embodiment, the electronic device may transmit (e.g., broadcast) information related to BISs provided by the electronic device, which is the source device, through the periodic advertising operation. The information related to the BISs provided by the electronic device may be transmitted via a BLE ADV signal (e.g., a BLE ADV packet) during the periodic advertising period.

[0221] An electronic device that has performed a periodic advertising operation may determine, in operation 1117, the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device. The electronic device may determine the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device based on an ultra wide band (UWB) scheme and / or a global positioning system (GPS). In FIG. 11, an example in which the electronic device determines the relative positions of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device based on the UWB scheme and / or the GPS scheme is described, but the method for determining the relative positions of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device may not be limited to the UWB scheme and / or the GPS scheme.

[0222] The electronic device, which has determined the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device, may determine, in operation 1119, a BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the determined relative positions of each of the external electronic devices. In one embodiment, the electronic device may configure a BIG including five BISs, and the five BISs may correspond to five audio channels, such as a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel.

[0223] For example, when the relative position of the first external electronic device to the electronic device is a position corresponding to the front left channel, the electronic device selects the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device as the front left channel. When the relative position of the second external electronic device to the electronic device is a position corresponding to the front right channel, the electronic device selects the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device as the front right channel. When the relative position of the third external electronic device to the electronic device is a position corresponding to the back left channel, the electronic device selects the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device as the back left channel. When the relative position of the fourth external electronic device to the electronic device is a position corresponding to the back light channel, the electronic device selects the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device as the back light channel. When the relative positions of the fifth external electronic device and the sixth external electronic device to the electronic devices are positions corresponding to the front center channel, the fifth external electronic device and the sixth external electronic device can select the audio channel to be received by the front center channel.

[0224] After selecting an audio channel to be output from each of the external electronic devices, the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices can be determined based on the selected audio channel. In one embodiment, a BIS index can be mapped to each of the BISs included in the BIG. For example, the index of the BIS corresponding to the front left channel is assumed to be "1", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front right channel is assumed to be "2", the index of the BIS corresponding to the front center channel is assumed to be "3", the index of the BIS corresponding to the back left channel is assumed to be "4", and the index of the BIS corresponding to the back right channel is assumed to be "5".

[0225] Based on the decision in operation 1119, since the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device is selected as the back left channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device is selected as the back right channel, and the audio channel to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices is selected as the front center channel, the electronic devices can determine the BIS to be received by the first external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "1", determine the BIS to be received by the second external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "2", determine the BIS to be received by the third external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "4", determine the BIS to be received by the fourth external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "5", and determine the BIS to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices as the BIS mapped to the index "3".

[0226] Based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices may transmit first control information including the index of each of the external electronic devices and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1121. Each of the external electronic devices that has received the first control information may synchronize to a corresponding BIS based on the first control information, receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, each of the external electronic devices may synchronize to a BIS provided by the electronic device based on BIGInfo included in an AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the electronic device broadcasts as it performs a PA operation. The AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0227] The electronic device may transmit BISs corresponding to the first control information, and while transmitting the first control information, in operation 1123, determine that the relative position of at least one of the external electronic devices has changed. In one embodiment, while transmitting the first control information, the electronic device may determine the relative position of the external electronic device with respect to the electronic device based on the UWB method and / or the GPS method, and determine that the relative position of at least one of the external electronic devices has changed. For example, in operation 1117, it is assumed that the relative position of the first external electronic device corresponds to the front left channel, the relative position of the second external electronic device corresponds to the front right channel, the relative position of the third external electronic device corresponds to the back left channel, the relative position of the fourth external electronic device corresponds to the back right channel, and the relative positions of each of the fifth external electronic device and the sixth external electronic device correspond to the front center channel. However, in operation 1123, it is assumed that the relative position of the first external electronic device corresponds to the front right channel, the relative position of the second external electronic device corresponds to the front left channel, the relative position of the third external electronic device corresponds to the back right channel, the relative position of the fourth external electronic device corresponds to the back left channel, and the relative positions of each of the fifth external electronic device and the sixth external electronic device correspond to the front center channel.

[0228] An electronic device that determines that the relative position of at least one of the external electronic devices has changed can determine a BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the relative position of each of the external electronic devices in operation 1125. Based on the relative positions in operation 1123, since the audio channel to be received by the first external electronic device is selected as the front right channel, the audio channel to be received by the second external electronic device is selected as the front left channel, the audio channel to be received by the third external electronic device is selected as the back right channel, the audio channel to be received by the fourth external electronic device is selected as the back left channel, and the audio channel to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices is selected as the front center channel, the electronic devices can determine the BIS to be received by the first external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "2", determine the BIS to be received by the second external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "1", determine the BIS to be received by the third external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "5", determine the BIS to be received by the fourth external electronic device as the BIS mapped to the index "4", and determine the BIS to be received by the fifth and sixth external electronic devices as the BIS mapped to the index "3".

[0229] According to one embodiment, the electronic device may periodically monitor the location of a first external electronic device, a second external electronic device, a third external electronic device, a fourth external electronic device, a fifth external electronic device, and / or a sixth external electronic device, or receive information about a location change (or a location movement) from the first external electronic device, the second external electronic device, the third external electronic device, the fourth external electronic device, the fifth external electronic device, and / or the sixth external electronic device. For example, the electronic device may perform operation 1125 when the location of the first external electronic device, the second external electronic device, the third external electronic device, the fourth external electronic device, the fifth external electronic device, and / or the sixth external electronic device changes beyond a specified range.

[0230] In FIG. 11, an example is described in which an electronic device determines a BIS to be received by each external electronic device. However, the external electronic devices may directly determine the BIS to be received by the external electronic devices. According to one embodiment, when a connection is established between external electronic devices and the index of the BIS is set to "0xFFFFFFFF: No preference," the external electronic devices may directly determine the BIS to be received by the external electronic devices.

[0231] Based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices may transmit second control information including the index of each of the external electronic devices and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1127. Each of the external electronic devices that has received the second control information may synchronize to a corresponding BIS based on the second control information, receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, each of the external electronic devices may synchronize to a BIS provided by the electronic device based on BIGInfo included in an AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the electronic device broadcasts as it performs a PA operation. The AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0232] Although not illustrated separately in FIG. 11, the electronic device may transmit BISs corresponding to the second control information, and may determine that a connection relationship between the electronic device and external electronic devices has changed while transmitting the second control information. In one embodiment, a change in the connection relationship between the electronic device and external electronic devices may indicate that at least one of the external electronic devices connected to the electronic device has disconnected from the electronic device, or that another external electronic device has additionally established a connection with the electronic device. Although not illustrated separately in FIG. 11, the electronic device that has determined that a connection relationship between the electronic device and external electronic devices has changed may proceed to operation 1115 and repeat subsequent operations.

[0233] Meanwhile, although FIG. 11 illustrates a method of operating an electronic device according to one embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made to FIG. 11. For example, although FIG. 11 illustrates sequential operations, it is to be understood that the operations described in FIG. 11 may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times.

[0234] FIG. 12 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0235] Referring to FIG. 12, an electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) (e.g., a processor (120) of FIG. 1) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each of external electronic devices (e.g., an electronic device (102) or an electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or 3) in operation 1211. In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate only as an assistant device and may communicate with a separate source device (e.g., a seventh external electronic device (311) of FIG. 3). Each of the external electronic devices may operate as a sink device. The source device, the assistant device, and the sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 , and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In one embodiment, the electronic device may establish a connection with at least one external electronic device based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0236] An electronic device that has established a connection with each of the external electronic devices may perform a monitoring operation for periodic advertising in operation 1213. In one embodiment, a seventh external electronic device, which is a source device, may transmit (e.g., broadcast) information related to BISs provided by the seventh external electronic device, which is a source device, through a periodic advertising operation. The information related to BISs provided by the seventh external electronic device may be transmitted via a BLE ADV signal (e.g., a BLE ADV packet) during the periodic advertising period. In one embodiment, the electronic device may configure a BIG including five BISs, and the five BISs may correspond to five audio channels, such as a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel.

[0237] The electronic device that performed the monitoring operation for periodic advertising may, in operation 1215, display information about audio channels transmitted from the seventh external electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device through a display (e.g., display module (160) of FIG. 1). In one embodiment, the seventh external electronic device transmits (e.g., broadcasts) audio channel allocation information, and the electronic device may receive the audio channel allocation information and display information about audio channels transmitted from the seventh external electronic device. For example, the audio channel information may be implemented as follows: "Audio_Channel_Allocation Value: 0x000000003 = 0b000000000000000000000000000000011: Front left, Front right."

[0238] The electronic device may configure a UI to display information about six external electronic devices connected to the electronic device and information about five audio channels transmitted from a seventh external electronic device, thereby allowing selection of an audio channel to be output from each of the six external electronic devices. The UI including the audio channels transmitted from the seventh external electronic device and the information about the external electronic devices connected to the electronic device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in FIG. 8, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0239] The electronic device, which displays information about audio channels transmitted from the seventh external electronic device and external electronic devices connected to the electronic device, can, in operation 1217, confirm a first user input for selecting an audio channel to be output from each of the external electronic devices. The first user input can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1017 of FIG. 10, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0240] An electronic device that has confirmed a first user input for selecting an audio channel to be output from each of the external electronic devices may, in operation 1219, determine a BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the first user input. The operation of determining a BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the first user input may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1019 of FIG. 10, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0241] Based on the first user input, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices can transmit first control information including the index of each of the external electronic devices and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1221. The operation of transmitting the first control information can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1021 of FIG. 10, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0242] The electronic device may transmit BISs corresponding to the first control information, and while transmitting the first control information, at operation 1223, identify a second user input for changing an audio channel to be output from at least one of the external electronic devices. The second user input may be implemented in a manner similar to or substantially identical to that described in operation 1023 of FIG. 10, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0243] The electronic device that has confirmed the second user input can determine the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the second user input in operation 1225. The operation of determining the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the second user input can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1025 of FIG. 10, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0244] Based on the second user input, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices can transmit second control information including the index of each of the external electronic devices and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1227. The operation of transmitting the second control information including the index of each of the external electronic devices and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1027 of FIG. 10, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0245] Meanwhile, although FIG. 12 illustrates a method of operating an electronic device according to one embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made to FIG. 12. For example, although FIG. 12 illustrates sequential operations, it is to be understood that the operations described in FIG. 12 may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times.

[0246] FIG. 13 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0247] Referring to FIG. 13, an electronic device (e.g., an electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) (e.g., a processor (120) of FIG. 1) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with each of external electronic devices (e.g., an electronic device (102) or an electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or a first external electronic device (211), a second external electronic device (212), a third external electronic device (213), a fourth external electronic device (214), a fifth external electronic device (215), and / or a sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) in operation 1311. In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate only as an assistant device and may communicate with a separate source device (e.g., a seventh external electronic device (311) of FIG. 3). Each of the external electronic devices may operate as a sink device. The source device, the assistant device, and the sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 , and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In one embodiment, the electronic device may establish a connection with at least one external electronic device based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0248] The electronic device that has established a connection with each of the external electronic devices may perform a monitoring operation for periodic advertising in operation 1313. In one embodiment, the seventh external electronic device, which is a source device, may transmit (e.g., broadcast) information related to BISs provided by the seventh external electronic device, which is a source device, through the periodic advertising operation. The information related to the BISs provided by the seventh external electronic device may be transmitted via a BLE ADV signal (e.g., a BLE ADV packet) during the periodic advertising period. In one embodiment, the seventh external electronic device may configure a BIG including five BISs, and the five BISs may correspond to five audio channels, such as a front left channel, a front right channel, a front center channel, a back left channel, and / or a back right channel.

[0249] An electronic device that has performed a monitoring operation for periodic advertising may determine the relative positions of each external electronic device with respect to the electronic device in operation 1317. The relative positions of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device may be determined based on the UWB method and / or the GPS method. In FIG. 13, an example in which the electronic device determines the relative positions of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device based on the UWB method and / or the GPS method is described, but the method for determining the relative positions of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device may not be limited to the UWB method and / or the GPS method.

[0250] The electronic device, which has determined the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device, may determine the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the determined relative positions of each of the external electronic devices in operation 1319. The operation of determining the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1119 of FIG. 11, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In FIG. 13, the case where the electronic device determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices with respect to the electronic device is described as an example, but the electronic device may also determine the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices with respect to the seventh external electronic device. In this case, the electronic device is required to establish a connection with a seventh external electronic device, and the electronic device can receive information related to the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices with respect to the seventh external electronic device from the seventh external electronic device through the connection established between the electronic device and the seventh external electronic device.

[0251] Based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices may transmit first control information including the index of each of the external electronic devices and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1321. Each of the external electronic devices that has received the first control information may synchronize to a corresponding BIS based on the first control information, receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, each of the external electronic devices may synchronize to the BIS provided by the seventh external electronic device based on BIGInfo included in the AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the seventh external electronic device broadcasts as it performs the PA operation. The AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0252] The electronic device transmits BISs corresponding to the first control information, and while transmitting the first control information, in operation 1323, can determine that the relative position of at least one of the external electronic devices has changed. The operation of determining that the relative position of at least one of the external electronic devices has changed can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1123 of FIG. 11, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0253] An electronic device that has determined that the relative position of at least one of the external electronic devices has changed can determine a BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices in operation 1325. The operation of determining a BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to that described in operation 1125 of FIG. 11, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0254] Based on the relative positions of each of the external electronic devices, the electronic device that determines the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices may transmit second control information including the index of each of the external electronic devices and the index of the BIS to be output from each of the external electronic devices in operation 1327. Each of the external electronic devices that has received the second control information may synchronize to a corresponding BIS based on the second control information, receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data of an audio channel corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, each of the external electronic devices may synchronize to the BIS provided by the seventh external electronic device based on BIGInfo included in the AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the seventh external electronic device broadcasts as it performs the PA operation. The AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0255] Meanwhile, although FIG. 13 illustrates a method of operating an electronic device according to one embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made to FIG. 13. For example, although FIG. 13 illustrates sequential operations, it is to be understood that the operations described in FIG. 13 may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times.

[0256] FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0257] Referring to FIG. 14, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) may operate as a source device and may also operate as an assistant device. The electronic device (101) may determine whether an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102) or the electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) connected to the electronic device (101) will receive only one audio channel (e.g., whether to receive only one BIS, or to output only audio data corresponding to one audio channel) or output multiple audio channels (e.g., whether to receive multiple BISs, or to output audio data corresponding to multiple audio channels).

[0258] In FIG. 14, it is assumed that only one sink device (e.g., a first external electronic device (211)) is connected to an electronic device (101) and that the electronic device (101) broadcasts multiple audio channels (e.g., two audio channels) (e.g., a front left channel, a front right channel). When the electronic device (101) confirms that the number of sink devices connected to the electronic device (101) is one and that the corresponding sink device supports all audio positions corresponding to the audio channels broadcast by the electronic device (101), the electronic device (101) can transmit control information including an index of the sink device and indices of BISs so that the sink device can receive BISs corresponding to the audio channels broadcast by the electronic device (101) without any additional operation. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether the external electronic devices support only one of the front left channel or the front right channel, or both the front left channel and the front right channel, based on the Sink_Audio_Locations information defined in the Published Audio Capabilities Service. The electronic device (101) does not need to transmit only audio channel data for audio channels supported by the external electronic devices, and may also transmit audio channel data for audio channels other than the audio channels supported by the external electronic devices.

[0259] For example, in FIG. 14, it is assumed that only the first external electronic device (211) is connected to the electronic device (101), and that the first external electronic device (211) supports both an audio position corresponding to a front left channel and an audio position corresponding to a front right channel. As an example, it is assumed that the BIS index of the front left channel is "1" and the BIS index of the front right channel is "2". The electronic device (101) can transmit control information including the index of the first external electronic device, "BIS Sink 1", and the indices of the BISs, "1" and "2", so that the first external electronic device (211) can receive the front left channel and the front right channel broadcast by the electronic device (101). In this case, the first external electronic device (211) can receive the control information, receive the BISs based on the control information, and output audio data corresponding to the received BISs (e.g., audio data corresponding to the front left channel and audio data corresponding to the front right channel).

[0260] In this way, when one sink device (e.g., a first external electronic device (211)) is connected to an electronic device (101) and one sink device is playing back both of a plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel and a front right channel), if an external electronic device (e.g., a second external electronic device (212)) that acts as a sink device is additionally connected to the electronic device (101), the electronic device (101) can play back only one of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel) for the existing sink device, and play back only another of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front right channel) for the additionally connected sink device. For example, the electronic device (101) can transmit control information including an index of the first external electronic device (211) “BIS Sink 1” and an index of the BIS “1” and an index of the second external electronic device (212) “BIS Sink 2” and an index of the BIS “2”. This can be explained with reference to Figure 15 as follows.

[0261] FIG. 15 is a diagram for explaining an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0262] Referring to FIG. 15, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, or FIG. 3) may operate as a source device and may also operate as an assistant device. The electronic device (101) may determine whether an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102) or the electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2 or FIG. 3) connected to the electronic device (101) will receive only one audio channel (e.g., whether to receive only one BIS, or to output only audio data corresponding to one audio channel) or output multiple audio channels (e.g., whether to receive multiple BISs, or to output audio data corresponding to multiple audio channels).

[0263] As described in FIG. 14, when only one sink device (e.g., a first external electronic device (211)) is connected to the electronic device (101), and the one sink device receives all BISs corresponding to multiple (e.g., two) audio channels (e.g., a front left channel and a front right channel) broadcast by the electronic device (101), an additional sink device may be connected to the electronic device (101). In FIG. 14, it is assumed that the additional sink device connected to the electronic device (101) is a second external electronic device (212).

[0264] In this way, when one sink device (e.g., a first external electronic device (211)) is connected to an electronic device (101) and one sink device is playing back both of a plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel and a front right channel), and an external electronic device (e.g., a second external electronic device (212)) that acts as a sink device is additionally connected to the electronic device (101), the electronic device (101) may play back only one of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel) for the existing sink device, and may play back only another of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front right channel) for the additionally connected sink device. For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the first external electronic device (211) receives a BIS corresponding to the front left channel, and may determine that the second external electronic device (212) receives a BIS corresponding to the front right channel. The electronic device (101) can generate control information by mapping "BIS Sink 1", which is an index of the first external electronic device (211), to an index "1" of the BIS, and "BIS Sink 2", which is an index of the second external electronic device (212), to an index "2" of the BIS, so that the first external electronic device (211) can receive a front left channel broadcast by the electronic device (101), and the second external electronic device (212) can receive a front right channel broadcast by the electronic device (101), and can transmit the generated control information. Each of the first external electronic device (211) and the second external electronic device (212) can receive the control information, receive a corresponding BIS based on the control information, and output audio data corresponding to the received BIS. For example, the first external electronic device (211) can output audio data based on the index “1” of the BIS, and the second external electronic device (212) can output audio data based on the index “2” of the BIS.

[0265] FIG. 16 is a flowchart schematically illustrating an operating method of an electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0266] Before describing FIG. 16, the operating method of the electronic device illustrated in FIG. 16 (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 9, FIG. 14, or FIG. 15) may be an operating method in the case where the electronic device, which operates as a source device and also operates as an assistant device as described in FIG. 14, is connected to only one external electronic device (e.g., the first external electronic device (211) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 9, FIG. 14, or FIG. 15) to transmit BISs, and is then connected to an additional external electronic device (e.g., the second external electronic device (212) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 9, or FIG. 15) to transmit BISs.

[0267] Referring to FIG. 16, an electronic device (e.g., the processor (120) of FIG. 1) may establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with a first external electronic device in operation 1611. In one embodiment, the electronic device may operate as a source device and also as an assistant device. The first external electronic device may operate as a sink device. The source device, the assistant device, and the sink device may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein. In one embodiment, the electronic device may establish a connection with at least one external electronic device based on at least one of a Wi-Fi method and / or a Bluetooth method.

[0268] An electronic device that has established a connection with a first external electronic device may perform a periodic advertising operation in operation 1613. In one embodiment, the electronic device may transmit (e.g., broadcast) information related to BISs provided by the electronic device as a source device through the periodic advertising operation. The information related to BISs provided by the electronic device may be transmitted during the periodic advertising period. In FIG. 16, an example is described in which the electronic device operates as a source device and also operates as an assistant device. However, if the electronic device operates as an assistant device and a separate source device exists, the electronic device that has established a connection with the first external electronic device may perform a monitoring operation for periodic advertising for the source device and broadcast (e.g., transmit) information related to BISs provided by the source device.

[0269] The electronic device that performed the periodic advertising operation can, at operation 1615, determine that only the first external electronic device is connected to the electronic device as a sink device, and that the first external electronic device supports all audio positions corresponding to the audio channels broadcast by the electronic device. In this case, the electronic device can determine the BISs to be output from the first external electronic device as BISs corresponding to all audio channels broadcast by the electronic device.

[0270] The electronic device that has determined the BISs to be output from the first external electronic device may transmit, in operation 1617, first control information including an index of the first external electronic device and indices of the determined BISs. For example, assume that only the first external electronic device is connected to the electronic device, that the first external electronic device supports both an audio position corresponding to a front left channel and an audio position corresponding to a front right channel, and that the BIS index of the front left channel is "1" and the BIS index of the front right channel is "2". In this case, the electronic device may transmit first control information including "BIS Sink 1", which is an index of the first external electronic device, and indices "1" and "2" of the BISs so that the first external electronic device can receive the front left channel and the front right channel broadcast by the electronic device. In this case, the first external electronic device can receive the first control information, synchronize to the BISs based on the first control information, receive the synchronized BISs, and output audio data corresponding to the received BISs (e.g., audio data corresponding to a front left channel and audio data corresponding to a front right channel). In one embodiment, the first external electronic device can synchronize to the BISs provided by the electronic device based on BIGInfo included in the AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the electronic device broadcasts as it performs a PA operation. The AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0271] When only a first external electronic device is connected to the electronic device and the first external electronic device is receiving all BISs corresponding to audio channels (front left channel and front right channel) broadcast by the electronic device, the electronic device can establish a connection (e.g., a communication link) with a second external electronic device in operation 1619.

[0272] An electronic device that has additionally established a connection with a second external electronic device may determine, in operation 1621, a BIS to be output from each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device. For example, the electronic device may determine that the first external electronic device receives a BIS corresponding to a front left channel and may determine that the second external electronic device receives a BIS corresponding to a front right channel. In operation 1623, the electronic device may generate second control information by mapping "BIS Sink 1", which is an index of the first external electronic device, to an index "1" of the BIS, and "BIS Sink 2", which is an index of the second external electronic device, to an index "2" of the BIS, so that the first external electronic device may receive the front left channel broadcast by the electronic device and the second external electronic device may receive the front right channel broadcast by the electronic device, and may transmit the generated second control information. Each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device can receive second control information, synchronize to a corresponding BIS based on the second control information, receive the synchronized BIS, and output audio data corresponding to the received BIS. In one embodiment, each of the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device can synchronize to BISs provided by the electronic device based on BIGInfo included in an AUX_SYNC_IND PDU that the electronic device broadcasts as it performs a PA operation. The AUX_SYNC_IND PDU and BIGInfo can be implemented similarly or substantially identically to those described in FIG. 3 and Table 1, and thus, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0273] In this way, while audio services are being provided to the first external electronic device and the second external electronic device, the electronic device can disconnect from the second external electronic device in operation 1625.

[0274] The electronic device that has disconnected from the second external electronic device may determine the BISs to be output from the first external electronic device in operation 1627. In one embodiment, the electronic device may set the second external electronic device to no longer transmit the audio channel that was being received by the second external electronic device if another external electronic device (e.g., the first external electronic device) is not receiving the audio channel that was being received by the second external electronic device.

[0275] The electronic device that has determined the BISs to be output from the first external electronic device may transmit third control information including the index of the first external electronic device and the indices of the determined BISs in operation 1629. In one embodiment, the third control information may be implemented similarly or substantially identically to the first control information of operation 1617, and thus a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

[0276] Meanwhile, although FIG. 16 illustrates a method of operating an electronic device according to one embodiment, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made to FIG. 16. For example, although FIG. 16 illustrates sequential operations, it is to be understood that the operations described in FIG. 16 may overlap, occur in parallel, occur in a different order, or occur multiple times.

[0277] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0278] Referring to FIG. 17, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 9, FIG. 14, or FIG. 15) may operate as an assistant device. A seventh external electronic device (311) (e.g., the seventh external electronic device (711) of FIG. 3) may operate as a source device. The electronic device (101) can determine whether an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102) or the electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, or FIG. 9) connected to the electronic device (101) will receive only one audio channel (e.g., receive only one BIS, or output only audio data corresponding to one audio channel) or output multiple audio channels (e.g., receive multiple BISs, or output audio data corresponding to multiple audio channels).

[0279] In FIG. 17, it is assumed that only one sink device (e.g., the first external electronic device (211)) is connected to the electronic device (101) and the seventh external electronic device (311) broadcasts multiple audio channels (e.g., two audio channels) (e.g., a front left channel and a front right channel). When the electronic device (101) confirms that the number of sink devices connected to the electronic device (101) is one and that the corresponding sink device supports all audio positions corresponding to the audio channels broadcast by the seventh external electronic device (311), the electronic device can transmit control information including an index of the sink device and indices of BISs so that the sink device can receive BISs corresponding to the audio channels broadcast by the seventh external electronic device (311) without any additional operation. In one embodiment, the electronic device (101) can determine whether the external electronic devices support only one of the front left channel or the front right channel, or both the front left channel and the front right channel, based on the Sink_Audio_Locations information defined in the Published Audio Capabilities Service. The electronic device (101) does not need to transmit only audio channel data for audio channels supported by the external electronic devices, and may also transmit audio channel data for audio channels other than the audio channels supported by the external electronic devices.

[0280] For example, in FIG. 17, it is assumed that only a first external electronic device (211) is connected to the electronic device (101), and that the first external electronic device (211) supports both an audio position corresponding to a front left channel and an audio position corresponding to a front right channel. As an example, it is assumed that the BIS index of the front left channel is "1", and the BIS index of the front right channel is "2". The electronic device (101) can transmit control information including the index of the first external electronic device, "BIS Sink 1", and the indices of the BISs, "1" and "2", so that the first external electronic device (211) can receive the front left channel and the front right channel broadcast by the seventh external electronic device (311). In this case, the first external electronic device (211) can receive control information, receive BISs based on the control information, and output audio data corresponding to the received BISs (e.g., audio data corresponding to the front left channel and audio data corresponding to the front right channel).

[0281] In this way, when one sink device (e.g., a first external electronic device (211)) is connected to an electronic device (101) and one sink device is playing back both of a plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel and a front right channel), if an external electronic device (e.g., a second external electronic device (212)) that acts as a sink device is additionally connected to the electronic device (101), the electronic device (101) can play back only one of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel) for the existing sink device, and play back only another of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front right channel) for the additionally connected sink device. For example, the electronic device (101) can transmit control information including an index of the first external electronic device (211) “BIS Sink 1” and an index of the BIS “1” and an index of the second external electronic device (212) “BIS Sink 2” and an index of the BIS “2”. This can be explained with reference to Figure 18 as follows.

[0282] FIG. 18 is a diagram for explaining an operation of outputting audio channels from an external electronic device according to one embodiment.

[0283] Referring to FIG. 18, an electronic device (101) (e.g., the electronic device (101) of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 9, FIG. 14, FIG. 15, or FIG. 17) may operate as an assistant device. A seventh external electronic device (311) (e.g., the seventh external electronic device (711) of FIG. 3 or FIG. 17) may operate as a source device. The electronic device (101) can determine whether an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device (102) or the electronic device (104) of FIG. 1, or the first external electronic device (211), the second external electronic device (212), the third external electronic device (213), the fourth external electronic device (214), the fifth external electronic device (215), and / or the sixth external electronic device (216) of FIG. 2, FIG. 3, or FIG. 9) connected to the electronic device (101) will receive only one audio channel (e.g., receive only one BIS, or output only audio data corresponding to one audio channel) or output multiple audio channels (e.g., receive multiple BISs, or output audio data corresponding to multiple audio channels).

[0284] As described in FIG. 17, when only one sink device (e.g., a first external electronic device (211)) is connected to the electronic device (101), and the sink device receives all BISs corresponding to multiple (e.g., two) audio channels (e.g., a front left channel and a front right channel) broadcast by the electronic device (101), an additional sink device may be connected to the electronic device (101). In FIG. 17, it is assumed that the sink device additionally connected to the electronic device (101) is a second external electronic device (212).

[0285] In this way, when one sink device (e.g., a first external electronic device (211)) is connected to an electronic device (101) and one sink device is playing back both of a plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel and a front right channel), and an external electronic device (e.g., a second external electronic device (212)) that acts as a sink device is additionally connected to the electronic device (101), the electronic device (101) may play back only one of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front left channel) for the existing sink device, and may play back only another of the plurality of audio channels (e.g., a front right channel) for the additionally connected sink device. For example, the electronic device (101) may determine that the first external electronic device (211) receives a BIS corresponding to the front left channel, and may determine that the second external electronic device (212) receives a BIS corresponding to the front right channel. The electronic device (101) can generate control information by mapping "BIS Sink 1", which is an index of the first external electronic device (211), to an index "1" of the BIS, and "BIS Sink 2", which is an index of the second external electronic device (212), to an index "2" of the BIS, so that the first external electronic device (211) can receive a front left channel broadcast by the seventh external electronic device (311), and the second external electronic device (212) can receive a front right channel broadcast by the seventh external electronic device (311), and can transmit the generated control information. Each of the first external electronic device (211) and the second external electronic device (212) can receive the control information, receive a corresponding BIS based on the control information, and output audio data corresponding to the received BIS. For example, the first external electronic device (211) can output audio data based on the index “1” of the BIS, and the second external electronic device (212) can output audio data based on the index “2” of the BIS.

[0286] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, an electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 101 of FIG. 1, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 9, FIG. 14, FIG. 15, FIG. 17, or FIG. 18) may operate as a source device and also as an assistant device. The electronic device may adjust the number of BISs (e.g., audio channels) to be transmitted (e.g., broadcast) from the electronic device based on the number and locations of a plurality of external electronic devices connected to the electronic device. The electronic device as a source device may generate a BIG including at most N BISs and may allow the external electronic devices to receive at most N BISs included in the BIG. For example, if the electronic device generates a BIG including at most five BISs and provides an audio service to the external electronic devices through two BISs, and additional external electronic devices are connected to the electronic device, the electronic device may transmit up to five BISs, thereby providing the audio service by adding audio channels. For example, if an electronic device generates a BIG that can include five BISs and provides audio services to external electronic devices through the five BISs, and some of the external electronic devices are disconnected from the electronic device, the electronic device may provide audio services by adding audio channels corresponding to the number of disconnected connections. For another example, if an electronic device is providing audio channels corresponding to up to five BISs and an external electronic device receiving a specific audio channel is disconnected from the electronic device, the electronic device may no longer generate and / or transmit a BIS corresponding to the specific audio channel.

[0287] In one embodiment, the electronic device can generate a plurality of audio channels corresponding to the number of external electronic devices connected to the electronic device, and transmit the generated audio channels through corresponding BISs. While transmitting the BISs, if a new external electronic device is connected to the electronic device, the electronic device can determine whether to generate a new audio channel based on location information of the newly connected external electronic device. If it is determined to generate a new audio channel, the electronic device can generate a new audio channel and transmit the generated new audio channel through the BIS. If at least one of the external electronic devices connected to the electronic device is disconnected, the electronic device can determine whether there is another external electronic device receiving the audio channel that the disconnected external electronic device was receiving. If there is no other external electronic device receiving the audio channel that the disconnected external electronic device was receiving, the electronic device can no longer transmit the corresponding audio channel, thereby reducing the total amount of BIS data, thereby improving transmission efficiency.

[0288] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of establishing a connection with at least one external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216).

[0289] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of determining a BIS to be received by at least one external electronic device among at least one BIS included in the BIG.

[0290] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include transmitting control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the determined BIS.

[0291] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the operation of determining a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS included in the BIG may include the operation of confirming a user input of selecting an audio channel to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS.

[0292] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the operation of determining a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS included in the BIG may include an operation of determining a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device, among the at least one BIS, corresponding to the audio channel, based on the user input.

[0293] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the operation of determining a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS included in the BIG may include the operation of receiving information related to a location of the at least one external electronic device.

[0294] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the operation of determining a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS included in the BIG may include an operation of determining a relative position of the at least one external electronic device with respect to the electronic device (101) based on information related to a position of the at least one external electronic device.

[0295] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the operation of determining a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS included in the BIG may include an operation of determining a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS based on the relative position.

[0296] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of changing the BIS to be received by at least one external electronic device among the BISs to another BIS.

[0297] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include transmitting other control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the other BIS.

[0298] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include, after transmitting the control information, an operation of confirming a user input for changing an audio channel to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to another audio channel.

[0299] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of changing a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS based on the user input to the other BIS corresponding to the other audio channel.

[0300] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include, after transmitting the control information, an operation of receiving information related to a location of the at least one external electronic device.

[0301] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include, after transmitting the control information, an operation of receiving information related to a location of the at least one external electronic device.

[0302] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of determining a relative position of the at least one external electronic device with respect to the electronic device based on information related to the position of the at least one external electronic device.

[0303] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of changing a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to another BIS based on determining that the relative position has changed.

[0304] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include an operation of skipping generation of audio data corresponding to a BIS other than a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS.

[0305] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include establishing a connection with at least one other external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216).

[0306] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include, after establishing a connection with the at least one other external electronic device, determining a first BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device and a second BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device.

[0307] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may include transmitting other control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the first BIS, or an index of the at least one other external electronic device and an index of the second BIS.

[0308] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the relative location of the at least one external electronic device with respect to the electronic device can be determined based on at least one of a plurality of short-range communication methods including at least a UWB method or a GPS method.

[0309] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a storage medium storing at least one computer-readable instruction may be provided.

[0310] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one instruction, when executed individually or collectively by at least one processor (120) including a processing circuit of the electronic device (101), may cause the electronic device (101) to perform at least one operation.

[0311] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include establishing a connection with at least one external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216).

[0312] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include an operation of determining a broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) to be received by the at least one external electronic device among at least one broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) included in a broadcast isochronous group (BIG).

[0313] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, the at least one operation may include transmitting control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the determined BIS.

Claims

1. In an electronic device (101), Communication circuit (190); and At least one processor (120) comprising processing circuitry; and A memory (130) including instructions, wherein the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to: Through the above communication circuit, a connection is established with at least one external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216), determining at least one broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) to be received by at least one external electronic device among at least one broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) included in a broadcast isochronous group (BIG), and An electronic device causing said electronic device to transmit control information including an index of said at least one external electronic device and an index of said determined BIS through said communication circuit.

2. In paragraph 1, When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: Verifying a user input selecting an audio channel to be received by said at least one external electronic device among said at least one BIS, and An electronic device, based on said user input, causing said at least one external electronic device to determine a BIS corresponding to said audio channel among said at least one BIS.

3. In paragraph 1, When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: Through the above communication circuit, information related to the location of at least one external electronic device is obtained, determining a relative position of said at least one external electronic device with respect to said electronic device based on information relating to the position of said at least one external electronic device; and An electronic device causing said at least one BIS to be received by said at least one external electronic device based on said relative positions.

4. In any one of paragraphs 1 to 3, When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: After transmitting the above control information, changing the BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to another BIS, and An electronic device causing said electronic device to transmit, through said communication circuit, other control information including an index of said at least one external electronic device and an index of said other BIS.

5. In paragraph 4, When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: After transmitting the above control information, a user input is confirmed to change the audio channel to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to another audio channel, and An electronic device that causes said at least one BIS to be received by said at least one external electronic device based on said user input to change said at least one BIS to said other BIS corresponding to said other audio channel.

6. In paragraph 4, When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: After transmitting the above control information, information related to the location of the at least one external electronic device is obtained through the communication circuit, determining a relative position of said at least one external electronic device with respect to said electronic device based on information relating to the position of said at least one external electronic device; and An electronic device that causes the BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to be changed to the other BIS based on determining that the relative position has changed.

7. In any one of paragraphs 1 to 6, When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: An electronic device causing the generation of audio data corresponding to a BIS other than a BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS.

8. In any one of paragraphs 1 to 7, When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: Establishing a connection with at least one other external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216), After establishing a connection with at least one other external electronic device, determining a first BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device and a second BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device, and An electronic device causing the electronic device to transmit, through the communication circuit, other control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the first BIS, or an index of the at least one other external electronic device and an index of the second BIS.

9. In electronic devices (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216), Communication circuit (402); At least one processor (404) comprising processing circuitry; and A memory (406) comprising instructions, wherein the instructions, when individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, cause the electronic device to: Through the above communication circuit, a connection is established with an external electronic device (101), Through the communication circuit, control information including an index of the electronic device and a broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) index is received from the external electronic device, and An electronic device that causes, based on the above control information, to receive a BIS corresponding to the BIS index among at least one BIS included in a broadcast isochronous group (BIG).

10. In paragraph 9, It further includes an audio output circuit (410), When the above instructions are individually or collectively executed by the at least one processor, the electronic device: The electronic device causing the audio data corresponding to the received BIS to be output through the audio output circuit.

11. In the method, An act of establishing a connection with at least one external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216); An operation of determining at least one broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) to be received by at least one external electronic device among at least one broadcast isochronous stream (BIS) included in a broadcast isochronous group (BIG); and A method comprising the action of transmitting control information including an index of said at least one external electronic device and an index of said determined BIS.

12. In paragraph 11, An operation of determining a BIS to be received by said at least one external electronic device among at least one BIS included in said BIG is: An operation of confirming a user input selecting an audio channel to be received by said at least one external electronic device among said at least one BIS; and A method comprising: determining, based on said user input, a BIS corresponding to said audio channel among said at least one BIS to be received by said at least one external electronic device.

13. In paragraph 11, An operation of determining a BIS to be received by said at least one external electronic device among at least one BIS included in said BIG is: An action of receiving information relating to a location of at least one external electronic device; An operation of determining a relative position of said at least one external electronic device with respect to an electronic device (101), based on information related to the position of said at least one external electronic device; and A method comprising the action of determining which of said at least one BIS is to be received by said at least one external electronic device based on said relative location.

14. In any one of paragraphs 11 to 13, After transmitting the above control information, an operation of changing the BIS to be received by the at least one external electronic device among the at least one BIS to another BIS; and The method further comprising the action of transmitting other control information including an index of said at least one external electronic device and an index of said other BIS.

15. In any one of paragraphs 11 to 14, An act of establishing a connection with at least one other external electronic device (102; 104; 211; 212; 213; 214; 215; 216); After establishing a connection with at least one other external electronic device, the operation of determining a first BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device and a second BIS to be received by the at least one other external electronic device; and The method further comprising the action of transmitting other control information including an index of the at least one external electronic device and an index of the first BIS, or an index of the at least one other external electronic device and an index of the second BIS.

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