Sound adjustment device, sound adjustment method, and storage medium

Abstract

This sound adjustment device 1 comprises a sound receptivity recognition unit 11 that recognizes the receptivity of a user with respect to sound, and a sound customization unit 13 that customizes, in accordance with the receptivity, the sound to be provided to the user. The sound receptivity recognition unit 11 recognizes at least one among a hearing function of the user, an obstacle pertaining to the sound, and a preference pertaining to the sound. The user is a player P of a game and the sound is from said game. The sound customization unit 13 is provided to a game machine C that provides at least a portion of the game played by the player P and is present in the same local area as the player P.

Description

Sound adjustment device, sound adjustment method, and storage medium

[0001] The present disclosure relates to techniques for adjusting the sound provided to a user.

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a method for effectively utilizing sound to enhance the dramatic effects in racing games. Various sound data, such as dramatic sounds and sound effects, are prepared in advance, and appropriate sound data is selected according to the progress of the racing game and output from a speaker.

[0003] JP 2009-213828 A

[0004] In Patent Document 1, various sound data are prepared as variations, and a selected one is played as is. However, the selected and played sound data is not necessarily appropriate for the player of the game. For example, there is a risk that inappropriate sound data will be selected and played in light of the player's hearing function or preferences.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in light of these circumstances, and aims to provide a sound adjustment device and the like that can reproduce a sound that is appropriate for the user.

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, a sound adjustment device of one aspect of the present disclosure includes a sound acceptability recognition unit that recognizes a user's acceptability to sound, and a sound customization unit that customizes the sound provided to the user based on the acceptability.

[0007] According to this aspect, the sound provided to a user can be customized according to the user's receptivity to the sound.

[0008] Another aspect of the present disclosure is a sound adjustment method that recognizes a user's receptiveness to a sound and customizes the sound provided to the user according to the receptiveness.

[0009] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure is a storage medium storing a sound adjustment program that causes a computer to recognize a user's receptivity to sound and customize the sound provided to the user based on the receptivity.

[0010] Any combination of the above components, or any conversion of these expressions into methods, devices, systems, recording media, computer programs, etc., are also encompassed within the present disclosure.

[0011] FIG. 2 is a schematic functional block diagram of a sound adjustment device.

[0012] Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings, a detailed description of embodiments of the present disclosure (hereinafter also referred to as "embodiments") will be given. In the description and / or drawings, identical or equivalent components, members, processes, etc. will be designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted. The scale and shape of each part shown in the drawings are set for convenience to simplify the description and should not be interpreted as limiting unless otherwise specified. The embodiments are merely examples and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way. Not all features and combinations thereof presented in the embodiments are necessarily essential to the present disclosure. For convenience, the embodiments are presented broken down into components for each function and / or functional group that realizes the features. However, one component in an embodiment may actually be realized by a combination of multiple separate components, or multiple components in an embodiment may actually be realized by a single integrated component. Furthermore, although multiple embodiments and variants may be disclosed in parallel, any components of each embodiment and / or each variant may be combined in any manner as long as they do not interfere with each other's functions.

[0013] In this embodiment, sound adjustment or customization in a game or computer game is exemplified in detail. However, the sound adjustment device according to the present disclosure is equally applicable to sound adjustment in entertainment content other than games, such as movies and music. Furthermore, the sound adjustment device according to the present disclosure is not limited to entertainment content, but is also useful in any other application where output sound is adjusted or customized according to user acceptance (e.g., adjusting output sound in the distribution of online advertisements, news, articles, etc.).

[0014] FIG. 1 is a schematic functional block diagram of a sound adjustment device 1 according to one embodiment. The sound adjustment device 1 includes a sound input unit 10, a sound acceptability recognition unit 11, a sound acceptability setting unit 12, and a sound customization unit 13. Some of these functional blocks may be omitted as long as the sound adjustment device 1 can achieve at least some of the functions and / or effects described below. These functional blocks are realized by the cooperation of hardware resources, such as a computer's central processing unit, memory, input devices, output devices, and peripheral devices connected to the computer, and software executed using these resources. Regardless of the type of computer or its location, each of the above functional blocks may be realized by the hardware resources of a single computer or by combining hardware resources distributed across multiple computers.

[0015] The functions of the components in the sound adjusting device 1 may be realized by circuitry or processing circuitry, including a general-purpose processor, an application-specific processor, an integrated circuit, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), conventional circuitry, and / or a combination thereof, configured or programmed to implement the functions described herein. A processor is understood to mean circuitry or processing circuitry including transistors and other circuit elements. A processor may also be a programmed processor that executes a program stored in a memory.

[0016] The circuits, units, and means herein are hardware that is programmed or configured to perform the described functions, which may be any hardware disclosed herein or known hardware that is programmed or configured to perform the described functions.

[0017] If the hardware is a processor that is interpreted as a type of circuitry, the circuitry, means, or unit may be a combination of hardware and software used to configure the hardware and / or processor.

[0018] The sound adjustment device 1 according to the example of this embodiment adjusts or customizes the sound provided to a game player P as a user in accordance with the acceptability of the player P, which will be described later.

[0019] A player P plays a game through a remote controller R capable of communicating in real time with a game machine C and a game server (not shown). Game images are displayed on a television or the like, and game audio or sound is reproduced by a speaker SP or the like. The speaker SP may be integrated into the television or the like. Game audio also includes voices, such as voice chat, of one or more participants (which may include the player P himself) taking part in the game, which are reproduced for the player P by the speaker SP or the like.

[0020] The game machine C, either alone or in cooperation with a game server, provides at least a portion of the game played by the player P. The game machine C may provide the game by executing game software stored on a removable storage medium such as an optical disc, cartridge, or memory, or by executing game software downloaded to its built-in main body storage via a network, or may provide the game in approximately real time from a game server connected via a network. Note that, instead of a dedicated game machine C, general-purpose electronic devices such as personal computers, tablets, and smartphones may also be used for games, but in the context of this disclosure, these general-purpose electronic devices are also considered to be game machines as long as they are used for games.

[0021] The game machine C according to this embodiment is located in the same local area as the game player P. For example, the game machine C may be located in substantially the same place, room, building (which may be a different room or floor), facility, or site (which may be a different building) as the player P. Furthermore, the game machine C may be located on (or connected to) a local network such as a local area network (LAN) to which the player P can connect using his or her smartphone, remote controller R, or the like.

[0022] As described above, the "local" game machine C may be interpreted as the opposite concept to a "remote" game server, which typically exists in a location remote from the player P (or on a different LAN). The "local" game machine C is spatially close to the player P and has a small time delay, and therefore has the advantage of being able to quickly execute processing tailored to the player P (e.g., customization and personalization). In view of these characteristics, it is preferable that all or part of the functional blocks in the sound adjustment device 1 according to this embodiment (in particular, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 and / or the sound customization unit 13, which will be described later) be provided in the "local" game machine C. Note that functional blocks in the sound adjustment device 1 that are not provided in the "local" game machine C may be provided in the "remote" game server.

[0023] The sound input unit 10 may be realized by the game machine C or a game server, and inputs game sounds to be reproduced while the player P is playing the game to the sound adjustment device 1. Examples of game sounds include any auditory stimuli that may be reproduced in the game, such as any sound, voice, resonance, vibration, wave, or music. Such game sounds are typically stored in advance in a storage medium that stores the game software or in any other storage device, in a manner that allows them to be read or called up through game software executed on the game machine C or the game server. Note that at least a portion of the game sounds (e.g., variations of a reference game sound) may be generated by the sound input unit 10 in approximately real time while the player P is playing the game.

[0024] The game sounds thus prepared in association with the game software are selected by the sound input unit 10 in accordance with the in-game situation provided by the game machine C or the game server, and are ultimately played back by the speaker SP, etc. Examples of in-game situations include, but are not limited to, the time during the game (time zone, season, etc.), the location during the game, the scene or environment during the game, the progress or achievement of the game, the state or action of the game character or other in-game object, operations by the player P, and input from the game machine C or the game server, and include any event or state that may bring about a change in the game (or that may appear as a change in the game).

[0025] As described above, voice chat between game participants is also an example of game sound that can be input by the sound input unit 10. Voice chat by player P is captured by the sound input unit 10 via a microphone or the like built into the remote controller R or game machine C. Voice chat by other participants, such as players (not shown), is captured via a network into the game server or game machine C that constitutes the sound input unit 10.

[0026] The sound acceptability recognition unit 11 is configured by the game server and / or preferably the local game machine C, and recognizes the acceptability of a game player P as a user to sound.

[0027] The sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may recognize at least one of the player P's auditory function, sound-related disability, and sound preference as sound acceptability. Examples of the player P's auditory function include sensitivity to specific sound quality evaluation indices (e.g., loudness, sharpness, fluctuation intensity, roughness, etc.) and other specific sound attributes (e.g., duration, sound pressure (loudness), pitch (interval), timbre, frequency band, playback pattern, emotion, tone, etc.), audible range, and auditory cognitive function. Examples of the player P's sound-related disability include hearing impairment for specific sound quality evaluation indices and other specific sound attributes, and psychological or stress disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Examples of the player P's sound preference include personal or subjective likes and dislikes for specific sound quality evaluation indices and other specific sound attributes.

[0028] As described above, the sound receptivity of player P, which is personal and relatively fixed, is preferably set or stored in advance by a sound receptivity setting unit 12 configured as a storage medium or other storage provided on the game server and / or preferably the local game machine C. In particular, it is desirable for the sound adjustment device 1 according to this embodiment to efficiently adjust or customize sound in accordance with the personal receptivity of player P in the same local area as player P of the game. For this reason, the sound receptivity setting unit 12 is preferably configured as main storage of the game machine C in that local area. The sound receptivity recognition unit 11 recognizes player P playing a game on game machine C based on account information, etc., and reads and recognizes the sound receptivity of player P that has been set in advance in the sound receptivity setting unit 12.

[0029] In addition to or instead of the sound acceptability that is preset in the sound acceptability setting unit 12 as described above, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may recognize the acceptability to sounds that change while player P is playing the game.

[0030] Specifically, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may recognize the acceptability to sound that changes depending on the situation during the game being played by the player P. The situation during the game can be recognized by a game server or game machine C in which the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 itself can be provided.

[0031] For example, in a battle scene in which relatively loud and stimulating sounds are played, listening fatigue may occur as the battle continues, and the player P's receptivity to the battle sounds may decrease. In this case, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may, for example, monitor the duration of the battle or the player P's playing intensity during the battle (e.g., the amount of operation using the remote controller R, etc.), and recognize that the player P's receptivity to the battle sounds has decreased as these values ​​increase. Then, the sound customization unit 13, described below, may lower the volume, sharpness, fluctuation intensity, roughness, pitch, etc. of the battle sounds in response to the player P's decreased receptivity to the battle sounds, reduce the number or types of sound effects, etc. included in the battle sounds, or change the playback pattern, tone, cadence, etc. of the battle sounds to make them less tiring to listen to.

[0032] Furthermore, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may recognize sound acceptability that changes depending on the player P's game results and performance as a situation during the game. For example, if the player P achieves excellent results during the game, the player P's mood may become elevated, and their acceptability to sound may change positively. Conversely, if the player P achieves poor results during the game, the player P's mood may become depressed, and their acceptability to sound may change negatively. Therefore, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may monitor the player P's game results and performance, and recognize that the player P's acceptability to sound has changed accordingly. Then, the sound customization unit 13, which will be described later, may customize the reproduced sound input by the sound input unit 10 to match the player P's mood, depending on the change in the player P's acceptability to sound.

[0033] In addition to or instead of the sound acceptability of the player P that changes depending on the situation during the game as described above, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may recognize sound acceptability based on the actions, movements, behavior, appearance, state, attitude, etc. of the player P while playing the game. The actions, etc. of the player P can be recognized by the remote controller R operated by the player P, or any type of sensor such as a microphone (audio sensor), camera (image sensor), accelerometer, etc. that may be built into the remote controller R (or may be built into other devices such as a television set or game console C, or may be installed in the room where the player P is located). Furthermore, the actions and behavior of a character in the game operated by the player P through the remote controller R may be recognized as the actions of the player P himself (or may be recognized as the situation during the game as described above).

[0034] For example, the sound acceptability recognition unit 11 may estimate the emotions of the player P based on the player P's behavior while playing the game, and recognize the sound acceptability from the emotions. For example, if the player P is vigorously shaking the remote controller R (which can be detected by an accelerometer built into the remote controller R or a camera that captures the player P), if the player P is shouting while playing the game or the content of the voice chat is extreme (which can be detected by a microphone provided in the remote controller R or elsewhere), or if the in-game character controlled by the player P is behaving excessively aggressively, the player P may be overly excited and sensitive to sound. Therefore, the sound customization unit 13, which will be described later, may lower the volume, sharpness, fluctuation intensity, roughness, pitch, etc. of the sound so as not to irritate the player P, or may reduce the number or types of sound effects, etc. included in the sound, or may change the playback pattern, tone, cadence, etc. of the sound to a more gentle one.

[0035] The sound customization unit 13 is configured by a game server and / or preferably a local game machine C, and customizes the sound provided to the player P through the speaker SP or the like in accordance with the sound receptivity of the player P recognized by the sound receptivity recognition unit 11. Specifically, the sound customization unit 13 customizes game sounds to be played according to the situation during the game, which are input from the sound input unit 10, and real-time voice chat audio of the player P or the like in accordance with the sound receptivity of the player P, and outputs the customized sounds to the speaker SP or the like. In this way, the sound adjustment device 1 according to the present embodiment can appropriately adjust or customize the sound played for the player P in accordance with the sound receptivity of the player P of the game as a user.

[0036] The sound customization unit 13 preferably includes a sound element decomposition unit 131 and a sound element adjustment unit 132. The sound element decomposition unit 131 decomposes the sound provided to the player P (the sound input from the sound input unit 10) into sound elements as adjustment units. The sound element adjustment unit 132 adjusts each sound element decomposed by the sound element decomposition unit 131 in accordance with the acceptability of the player P.

[0037] The sound elements generated by the sound element decomposition unit 131 may be individual sounds (e.g., character voices, background music, sound effects, etc.) before being combined into the final reproduced sound. In this case, the sound element adjustment unit 132 adjusts each sound element individually according to the sound receptivity of the player P. For example, if it is known that the player P's sound receptivity means that he or she has difficulty distinguishing between multiple sounds in a crowded area, the sound element adjustment unit 132 may turn off or lower the volume of sounds that are less important to the progression of the game, or may emphasize sounds that are more important.

[0038] The importance of each sound may be determined by adding a tag indicating an attribute such as "dynamic" or "static." For example, sound effects and character voices that appear "dynamically" as the game progresses are often considered to be of high importance, while "static" background music that is constantly playing is often considered to be of low importance. Note that the sound input unit 10 may input the individual sounds before they are combined into the final playback sound to the sound customization unit 13, in which case the sound element decomposition unit 131 may not be provided.

[0039] The sound element decomposition unit 131 may decompose the sound input from the sound input unit 10 into sound elements for each frequency band. In this case, the sound element adjustment unit 132 adjusts the volume and the like of the sound elements for each frequency band individually according to the sound receptivity of the player P. For example, if it is known that the sound receptivity of the player P means that sounds in a specific frequency band are hard to hear, the sound element adjustment unit 132 may shift sounds in that frequency band to other frequency bands that are easier for the player P to hear. Furthermore, if it is known that the sound receptivity of the player P means that the player P is hypersensitive to sounds in a specific frequency band, the sound element adjustment unit 132 may lower the loudness and the like of that frequency band.

[0040] Such frequency decomposition of sounds may be performed on each individual sound before they are combined into the final reproduced sound. For example, if similar sounds are concentrated in a specific frequency band, the sound element adjustment unit 132 can reduce the loudness of some sounds that are less important in that frequency band, or emphasize some sounds that are more important, thereby alleviating the congestion or concentration of sounds in that specific frequency band.

[0041] The present disclosure has been described above based on the embodiments. Various modifications are possible to the combinations of the components and processes in the exemplary embodiments, and it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that such modifications are included within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0042] The configuration, operation, and function of each device and method described in the embodiments can be realized by hardware resources, software resources, or a combination of hardware and software resources. Examples of hardware resources include processors, ROM, RAM, and various integrated circuits. Examples of software resources include operating systems, applications, and other programs.

[0043] The present disclosure may be expressed as follows:

[0044] Item 1: A sound adjustment device comprising circuitry configured to recognize a user's receptivity to sound, and customize a sound provided to the player in accordance with the receptivity. Item 2: The sound adjustment device of item 1, wherein the recognizing the receptivity recognizes at least one of the user's hearing function, sound-related disabilities, and sound preferences. Item 3: The sound adjustment device of item 1 or 2, wherein the user is a player of a game, and the sound is a sound of the game. Item 4: The sound adjustment device of item 3, wherein the recognizing the receptivity recognizes the receptivity that changes while the player is playing the game. Item 5: The sound adjustment device of item 3 or 4, wherein the recognizing the receptivity recognizes the receptivity that changes depending on a situation in the game being played by the player. Item 6: The sound adjustment device of any of items 3 to 5, wherein the receptivity recognizes the receptivity based on the player's behavior while playing the game. Item 7: The sound adjustment device according to any one of items 3 to 6, wherein customizing the sound is executed on a game console that provides at least a part of the game played by the player and that is located in the same local area as the player. Item 8: The sound adjustment device according to any one of items 1 to 7, wherein customizing the sound executes: breaking down the sound to be provided to the user into sound elements as adjustment units; and adjusting each of the sound elements according to the user's receptivity. Item 9: A sound adjustment method that executes: recognizing a user's receptivity to sound; and customizing the sound to be provided to the user according to the receptivity. Item 10: A storage medium that stores a sound adjustment program that causes a computer to execute: recognizing a user's receptivity to sound; and customizing the sound to be provided to the user according to the receptivity.

[0045] The present disclosure relates to techniques for adjusting the sound provided to a user.

[0046] 1 sound adjustment device, 10 sound input unit, 11 sound acceptability recognition unit, 12 sound acceptability setting unit, 13 sound customization unit, 131 sound element decomposition unit, 132 sound element adjustment unit.

Claims

1. A sound adjustment device comprising: a sound acceptability recognition unit that recognizes a user's acceptability to sound; and a sound customization unit that customizes the sound provided to the user in accordance with the acceptability.

2. The sound adjustment device according to claim 1, wherein the sound receptivity recognition unit recognizes at least one of the user's hearing function, sound-related disabilities, and sound-related preferences.

3. The sound adjustment device according to claim 1, wherein the user is a player of a game, and the sound is a sound from the game.

4. The sound adjusting device according to claim 3, wherein the sound receptivity recognition unit recognizes the receptivity as it changes while the player is playing the game.

5. The sound adjustment device according to claim 4, wherein the sound receptivity recognition unit recognizes the receptivity, which changes depending on the situation during the game being played by the player.

6. The sound adjustment device according to claim 4, wherein the sound acceptability recognition unit recognizes the acceptability based on the player's behavior while playing a game.

7. A sound adjustment device according to any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein the sound customization unit is provided in a game machine that provides at least a part of the game played by the player and that is located in the same local area as the player.

8. A sound adjustment device as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the sound customization unit comprises: a sound element decomposition unit that decomposes the sound provided to the user into sound elements as adjustment units; and a sound element adjustment unit that adjusts each of the sound elements according to the user's acceptability.

9. A sound adjustment method comprising: recognizing a user's receptivity to sound; and customizing the sound provided to the user in response to said receptivity.

10. A storage medium storing a sound adjustment program that causes a computer to perform the following steps: recognize a user's receptivity to sound; and customize the sound provided to the user in accordance with the receptivity.

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