Voice processing device, voice processing method and program

Abstract

This voice processing device is provided with a volume control unit which, on the basis of the relationship between a voice signal indicating voice and an audio signal output from an audio sound-source, applies a volume-related operation from a user to the voice signal or the audio signal.

Description

Audio processing apparatus, audio processing method and program

[0001] The present invention relates to an audio processing apparatus, an audio processing method and a program.

[0002] Conventionally, in audio processing apparatuses such as in-vehicle apparatuses that simultaneously output audio signals and acoustic signals output from a plurality of sound sources from speakers, a technique for adjusting the volume for each audio from each sound source has been known.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which when signals from a plurality of sound sources are output simultaneously, information such as volume for each sound source is simultaneously displayed on a display screen, and a user can individually adjust the volume for each sound source.

[0004] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2007-329806

[0005] However, in the conventional art, a user needs to individually adjust the volume for each sound source, which requires complicated operations such as individually operating volume adjustment buttons prepared for each sound source, thereby impairing user convenience.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to provide an audio processing apparatus, an audio processing method and a program capable of improving user convenience.

[0007] In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the audio processing apparatus of the present invention includes a volume control unit that applies a volume-related operation from a user to the audio signal or the acoustic signal based on a relationship between the audio signal indicating audio and the acoustic signal output from an acoustic sound source.

[0008] The audio processing apparatus according to the present invention can improve user convenience.

[0009] Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the audio processing device according to Embodiment 1. Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart illustrating the control procedure performed by the audio processing device according to Embodiment 1. Figure 3 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the audio processing device according to a second modification of Embodiment 1. Figure 4 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart illustrating the control procedure performed by the audio processing device according to the second modification of Embodiment 1. Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the audio processing device according to a third modification of Embodiment 1. Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart illustrating the control procedure performed by the audio processing device according to the third modification of Embodiment 1. Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the audio processing device according to Embodiment 2. Figure 8 is a diagram showing an example of a flowchart illustrating the control procedure performed by the volume control unit of the audio processing device according to Embodiment 2. Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the control unit of the audio processing device according to the embodiment and modification.

[0010] The following describes in detail, with reference to the drawings, embodiments of the audio processing device, audio processing method, and program according to the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.

[0011] Figure 1 shows an example of the configuration of the audio processing device 1 according to Embodiment 1. As shown in Figure 1, the audio processing device 1 comprises an operation unit 10, an output unit 20, and a control unit 30.

[0012] The operation unit 10 receives user input and outputs operation information to the control unit 30. The operation information includes user operations related to volume. Operations related to volume include, for example, increasing or decreasing the volume output from the output device or muting it. The operation unit 10 is an input device such as a touch panel or a switch. The output unit 20 is an output device such as a speaker that outputs sound, etc.

[0013] The control unit 30 comprehensively controls the operation of the audio processing device 1. The functions of the control unit 30 will be described below.

[0014] As shown in Figure 1, the control unit 30 includes an audio volume processing unit 31, an acoustic volume processing unit 32, a synthesis unit 33, an audio detection unit 34, and a volume control unit 35. In the example in Figure 1, only the functions necessary for explaining the main parts of this embodiment are illustrated, but the functions of the control unit 30 are not limited to these. In this embodiment, the control unit 30 includes, as a hardware configuration, at least a processor and a memory in which programs and the like are stored, and the processor executes the program stored in the memory to realize the functions of each of the above parts. However, it is not limited to this, and some or all of these functions may be realized by dedicated hardware circuits (semiconductor integrated circuits, etc.).

[0015] The audio volume processing unit 31 acquires an audio signal representing the voice from a call, processes the volume of the audio signal based on volume instruction information from the volume control unit 35 (described later), and outputs it to the synthesis unit 33.

[0016] The sound volume processing unit 32 acquires the sound signal output from the sound source, processes the volume of the sound signal based on volume instruction information from the volume control unit 35 (described later), and outputs it to the synthesis unit 33. The sound source is, as an example, music stored in an external device connected to the audio processing device 1.

[0017] The synthesis unit 33 synthesizes the audio signal processed by the audio volume processing unit 31 and the acoustic signal processed by the acoustic volume processing unit 32, and outputs the synthesized signal to the output unit 20.

[0018] The audio detection unit 34 detects the presence or absence of the audio signal and outputs the detection result to the volume control unit 35.

[0019] The volume control unit 35 applies volume-related operations from the user via the operation unit 10 to the audio signal or acoustic signal based on the relationship between the audio signal and the acoustic signal. Specifically, the volume control unit 35 outputs volume instruction information corresponding to the volume-related operations from the user to the audio volume processing unit 31 or acoustic volume processing unit 32, depending on whether or not there is an audio signal, and controls the volume of the audio signal or acoustic signal.

[0020] For example, when the volume control unit 35 detects an audio signal by the audio detection unit 34, it controls the volume of the audio signal in accordance with the user's volume control operation, but does not control the volume of the acoustic signal. Specifically, if the user's volume control operation is to increase the volume, the volume of the audio signal is increased while the volume of the acoustic signal is maintained. Similarly, if the user's volume control operation is to decrease the volume, the volume of the audio signal is decreased while the volume of the acoustic signal is maintained.

[0021] Furthermore, for example, if the audio detection unit 34 does not detect an audio signal, the volume control unit 35 controls the volume of the acoustic signal in accordance with the user's volume control operation, but does not control the volume of the audio signal. Specifically, if the user's volume control operation is to increase the volume, the volume of the acoustic signal is increased while the volume of the audio signal is maintained. Similarly, if the user's volume control operation is to decrease the volume, the volume of the acoustic signal is decreased while the volume of the audio signal is maintained.

[0022] Figure 2 is an example of a flowchart showing the control procedure performed by the audio processing device 1 according to Embodiment 1.

[0023] When the volume control unit 35 receives operation information regarding the volume from the user via the operation unit 10, the sound detection unit 34 determines whether or not it has detected a sound signal (step S11). If the sound detection unit 34 determines that it has detected a sound signal (step S11: Yes), the process proceeds to step S12. On the other hand, if the sound detection unit 34 determines that it has not detected a sound signal (step S11: No), the process proceeds to step S13.

[0024] In step S12, the volume control unit 35 outputs volume instruction information corresponding to the user's volume operation to the audio volume processing unit 31 and controls the volume of the audio signal (step S12). In step S13, the volume control unit 35 outputs volume instruction information corresponding to the user's volume operation to the sound volume processing unit 32 and controls the volume of the sound signal (step S13). The audio processing device 1 terminates this process when it has completed either step S12 or step S13.

[0025] As described above, the audio processing device 1 according to Embodiment 1 applies volume control from the user via the operation unit 10 to the audio signal or acoustic signal depending on the presence or absence of an audio signal, thus eliminating the need for individual volume adjustments for each sound source. For example, when a user is using an in-car device to play music and simultaneously make a call, the device can adjust the call volume when the other party is speaking and the music volume when the other party is not speaking, allowing for appropriate adjustment of each sound source using a single volume adjustment button. This enables volume adjustment from each sound source in an audio processing device 1 that simultaneously outputs audio and acoustic signals from multiple sound sources through a speaker. Therefore, the audio processing device 1 can improve user convenience.

[0026] The following describes a modified example of Example 1.

[0027] (First Modification of Example 1) In Example 1, the volume control unit 35 applies volume-related operations from the user via the operation unit 10 to the audio signal or acoustic signal based on the relationship between the audio signal and the acoustic signal, but is not limited to this. For example, the volume-related operations from the user applied by the volume control unit 35 may be operations performed by voice recognition.

[0028] For example, the control unit 30 further includes a voice recognition unit that recognizes voice commands from the user. The volume control unit 35 may apply volume control operations to the voice signal or acoustic signal based on the relationship between the voice signal and the acoustic signal, in response to the volume control commands from the user recognized by the voice recognition unit.

[0029] (Second modification of Embodiment 1) For example, the voice processing device 1 may further include a first detection unit that detects when a call has started. The volume control unit 35 may be configured to control the volume of the voice signal in response to volume operations from the user, even if no voice signal is detected within a predetermined time from the time the first detection unit detects the start of a call.

[0030] Figure 3 shows an example of the configuration of the voice processing device 1 in a second modification of Embodiment 1. As shown in Figure 3, the control unit 30 of the voice processing device 1 in this modification further includes a first detection unit 36 ​​for detecting when a call has started, in addition to the configuration of Embodiment 1 shown in Figure 1.

[0031] The first detection unit 36 ​​detects that a call has started using a known method and outputs the detection result to the volume control unit 35.

[0032] When the volume control unit 35 detects an audio signal by the audio detection unit 34, it controls the volume of the audio signal in accordance with the user's volume control operation, similar to the first embodiment described above, but does not control the volume of the sound signal.

[0033] If the voice detection unit 34 does not detect an audio signal, the volume control unit 35 controls the volume of the acoustic signal in response to volume-related operations from the user, but does not control the volume of the audio signal, if a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute) has elapsed since the first detection unit 36 ​​detected the start of a call, similar to Embodiment 1 described above. However, if the predetermined time has not elapsed since the first detection unit 36 ​​detected the start of a call, the volume control unit 35 controls the volume of the audio signal in response to the operation, but does not control the volume of the acoustic signal. Hereinafter, the explanation will take the example where the predetermined time is 1 minute. However, the predetermined time is not limited to this.

[0034] Figure 4 is an example of a flowchart showing the control procedure performed by the audio processing device 1 according to a second modified example of Embodiment 1.

[0035] When the volume control unit 35 receives operation information regarding the volume from the user via the operation unit 10, the sound detection unit 34 determines whether or not it has detected a sound signal (step S21). If the sound detection unit 34 determines that it has detected a sound signal (step S21: Yes), the process proceeds to step S22. On the other hand, if the sound detection unit 34 determines that it has not detected a sound signal (step S21: No), the process proceeds to step S23.

[0036] In step S22, the volume control unit 35 outputs volume instruction information corresponding to the user's volume operation to the audio volume processing unit 31 and controls the volume of the audio signal (step S22). When the audio processing device 1 has finished the processing in step S22, it terminates this process.

[0037] In step S23, the volume control unit 35 determines whether or not one minute has elapsed since the first detection unit 36 ​​detected the start of a call (step S23). If the volume control unit 35 determines that one minute has not elapsed since the first detection unit 36 ​​detected the start of a call (step S23: No), the process proceeds to step S22. On the other hand, if the volume control unit 35 determines that one minute has elapsed since the first detection unit 36 ​​detected the start of a call (step S23: Yes), the process proceeds to step S24.

[0038] In step S24, the volume control unit 35 outputs volume instruction information corresponding to the user's volume control operation to the sound volume processing unit 32 and controls the volume of the sound signal (step S24). When the sound processing device 1 has finished the processing in step S24, it terminates this process.

[0039] (Third Modification of Embodiment 1) For example, the audio processing device 1 may further include a second detection unit that detects when playback of any song has started. The volume control unit 35 may, within a predetermined time from the time the second detection unit detects the start of playback of any song, control the volume of the sound signal output from the sound source indicating the song in response to volume operations from the user, even if an audio signal is detected. The start of playback of any song includes, for example, when the audio processing device 1 starts playing a song from a state where it is not playing a song, when playback of one song ends and playback of the next song starts, or when, during playback of one song, the song being played is switched using the song skip function and playback of another song starts.

[0040] Figure 5 shows an example of the configuration of the audio processing device 1 in a third modified example of Embodiment 1. As shown in Figure 3, the control unit 30 of the audio processing device 1 in this modified example further includes a second detection unit 37 that detects when playback of any song has started, in addition to the configuration of Embodiment 1 shown in Figure 1.

[0041] The second detection unit 37 detects that playback of any song has started using a known method and outputs the detection result to the volume control unit 35.

[0042] When the volume control unit 35 detects an audio signal by the audio detection unit 34, if a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute) has elapsed since the second detection unit 37 detected the start of playback of any song, the volume control unit 35 controls the volume of the audio signal in response to the user's volume control operation, similar to Embodiment 1 described above, but does not control the volume of the sound signal. However, if the predetermined time has not elapsed since the second detection unit 37 detected the start of playback of any song, the volume control unit 35 controls the volume of the sound signal in response to the operation, but does not control the volume of the audio signal. Hereinafter, the explanation will take the example where the predetermined time is 1 minute. However, the predetermined time is not limited to this.

[0043] When no audio signal is detected by the audio detection unit 34, the volume control unit 35 controls the volume of the acoustic signal in accordance with a volume-related operation from a user in the same manner as in the first embodiment described above, while not controlling the volume of the audio signal.

[0044] FIG. 6 is an example of a flowchart illustrating a control procedure performed by an audio processing device 1 according to a third modification of the first embodiment.

[0045] When volume-related operation information from a user is input to the volume control unit 35 via the operation unit 10, the audio detection unit 34 determines whether an audio signal has been detected (step S31). If the audio detection unit 34 determines that an audio signal has been detected (step S31: Yes), the process proceeds to step S32. On the other hand, if the audio detection unit 34 determines that no audio signal has been detected (step S31: No), the process proceeds to step S34.

[0046] In step S32, the volume control unit 35 determines whether one minute has elapsed since the second detection unit 37 detected the start of playback of any piece of music (step S32). If the volume control unit 35 determines that one minute has elapsed since the second detection unit 37 detected the start of playback of any piece of music (step S32: Yes), the process proceeds to step S33. On the other hand, if the volume control unit 35 determines that one minute has not elapsed since the second detection unit 37 detected the start of playback of any piece of music (step S32: No), the process proceeds to step S34.

[0047] In step S33, the volume control unit 35 outputs volume instruction information according to the volume-related operation from the user to the audio volume processing unit 31, and controls the volume of the audio signal (step S33). After completing the process of step S33, the audio processing device 1 ends the present process.

[0048] In step S34, the volume control unit 35 outputs volume instruction information according to the volume-related operation from the user to the acoustic volume processing unit 32, and controls the volume of the acoustic signal (step S34). After completing the process of step S34, the audio processing device 1 ends the present process.

[0049] (Fourth Modification of Embodiment 1) For example, the audio processing device 1 may further include a third detection unit that detects when the chorus scene of the song is being played. The volume control unit 35 may be configured to control the volume of the audio signal in response to user input regarding volume, even when an audio signal is detected while the third detection unit has detected that the chorus scene of the song is being played.

[0050] In the fourth modified example of Embodiment 1, the third detection unit detects that the chorus of the song is being played using a known method and outputs the detection result to the volume control unit 35.

[0051] When the volume control unit 35 detects an audio signal by the audio detection unit 34, it controls the volume of the audio signal in response to user input regarding volume, as in the same manner as in Embodiment 1 described above, but does not control the volume of the sound signal, as long as the third detection unit has not detected that the chorus scene of the song is being played. However, while the third detection unit has detected that the chorus scene of the song is being played, the volume control unit 35 controls the volume of the sound signal in response to the input, but does not control the volume of the audio signal.

[0052] Furthermore, the control performed by the audio processing device 1 in the fourth modified example of Embodiment 1 is the same as the control described in the third modified example of Embodiment 1 described above. The part "within a predetermined time from the time the start of playback of any song (detected by the second detection unit) is detected" can be replaced with "during the playback time of the chorus scene of the song detected by the third detection unit," so a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0053] (Fifth Modification of Embodiment 1) For example, the volume control unit 35 may control the volume of the acoustic signal in response to the user's volume operation when an audio signal is detected, provided that the volume of the acoustic signal exceeds a predetermined threshold and the user's operation regarding the volume is to decrease the volume. For example, if the acoustic signal exceeds a predetermined threshold, the unit may perform a control to decrease the volume of the acoustic signal at the same time as a control to decrease the volume of the audio signal, or it may perform only a control to decrease the volume of the acoustic signal without controlling the volume of the audio signal.

[0054] (Sixth Modification of Embodiment 1) For example, the volume control unit 35 may continue to control the volume of the acoustic signal even when an audio signal is detected, while it is controlling the volume of the acoustic signal in response to a volume operation from the user. For example, if a user performs a volume operation and the volume control unit 35 starts a call while it is adjusting the volume of the acoustic signal, the volume control unit 35 may continue to adjust the volume of the acoustic signal even when the audio detection unit 34 detects an audio signal.

[0055] Next, we will describe Example 2. We will omit explanations of parts that are common to Example 1 described above.

[0056] Figure 7 shows an example of the configuration of the voice processing device 2 according to Embodiment 2. As shown in Figure 7, the voice processing device 2 comprises an operation unit 40, an output unit 50, and a control unit 60.

[0057] Since the operation unit 40 and the output unit 50 are the same as the operation unit 10 and the output unit 20 described in the above-described embodiment 1, a detailed explanation will be omitted.

[0058] The control unit 60 comprehensively controls the operation of the audio processing device 2. The functions of the control unit 60 will be described below.

[0059] As shown in Figure 7, the control unit 60 includes an audio volume processing unit 61, an acoustic volume processing unit 62, a synthesis unit 63, a volume level calculation unit 64, and a volume control unit 65. In the example in Figure 3, only the functions necessary for explaining the main parts of this embodiment are illustrated, but the functions of the control unit 60 are not limited to these. In this embodiment, the control unit 60 includes, as a hardware configuration, at least a processor and a memory in which programs and the like are stored, and the processor executes the program stored in the memory to realize the functions of each of the above parts. However, it is not limited to this, and some or all of these functions may be realized by dedicated hardware circuits (semiconductor integrated circuits, etc.).

[0060] The functions of the audio volume processing unit 61, the acoustic volume processing unit 62, and the synthesis unit 63 are the same as those of the audio volume processing unit 31, the acoustic volume processing unit 32, and the synthesis unit 33 described in the above-described embodiment 1, so a detailed explanation will be omitted.

[0061] The volume level calculation unit 64 sequentially calculates the average volume of the input audio signal and acoustic signal within a predetermined time period, such as one second, and outputs the calculated average volume as the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the acoustic signal. However, the predetermined time period for calculating the average volume is not limited to this.

[0062] The volume control unit 65 applies volume-related operations from the user to the audio signal or acoustic signal based on the relative magnitudes of the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the acoustic signal.

[0063] Specifically, the volume control unit 65 applies the user's volume control to the signal with the higher volume, between the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the acoustic signal. For example, if the volume of the audio signal is higher than the volume of the acoustic signal, the volume control unit 65 applies the user's volume control to the audio signal. Alternatively, for example, if the volume of the acoustic signal is higher than the volume of the audio signal, the volume control unit 65 applies the user's volume control to the acoustic signal.

[0064] Figure 8 is an example of a flowchart showing the control procedure performed by the volume control unit 65 of the audio processing device 2 according to Embodiment 2.

[0065] When the volume control unit 65 receives operation information regarding volume from the user via the operation unit 40, it refers to the latest values ​​of the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the acoustic signal calculated by the volume level calculation unit 64 and determines whether the volume of the audio signal is greater than the volume of the acoustic signal (step S41). If the volume control unit 65 determines that the volume of the audio signal is greater than the volume of the acoustic signal (step S41: Yes), the process proceeds to step S42. On the other hand, if the volume control unit 65 determines that the volume of the audio signal is less than (or the same as) the volume of the acoustic signal (step S41: No), the process proceeds to step S43.

[0066] In step S42, the volume control unit 65 outputs volume instruction information corresponding to the user's volume operation to the audio volume processing unit 61 and controls the volume of the audio signal (step S42). In step S43, the volume control unit 65 outputs volume instruction information corresponding to the user's volume operation to the sound volume processing unit 62 and controls the volume of the sound signal (step S43). The audio processing device 2 terminates this process when it has completed either step S42 or step S43.

[0067] As described above, the audio processing device 2 according to Embodiment 2 applies volume control from the user via the operation unit 40 to the signal with the higher volume, based on the relative volume levels of the audio signal and the acoustic signal. This eliminates the need for individual volume adjustments for each sound source. Therefore, similar to Embodiment 1 described above, it becomes possible to adjust each sound source to suit the situation using a single volume adjustment button, which is expected to improve user convenience.

[0068] The following describes a modified example of Example 2.

[0069] (First Modification of Embodiment 2) In Embodiment 2 described above, the volume control unit 65 applies the volume control operation from the user to the signal with the higher volume among the voice signal and the acoustic signal. However, the signal to which the volume control unit 65 applies the operation may be determined by another method.

[0070] For example, the volume control unit 65 may, if the user's operation regarding the volume is to increase the volume, increase the volume of the signal with the lower volume among the audio signal and the acoustic signal, and if the user's operation regarding the volume is to decrease the volume, decrease the volume of the signal with the higher volume among the audio signal and the acoustic signal.

[0071] (Second modification of Embodiment 2) For example, the volume control unit 65 may control the volume of the signal that has not reached a predetermined value if either the volume of the audio signal or the volume of the sound signal has reached a predetermined value for each signal.

[0072] For example, in the above-described embodiment 2, when a "maximum volume control value" is defined as a specified value for the volume of the audio signal, when the volume control unit 65 performs the above-described control, even if the volume of the audio signal exceeds the volume of the sound signal, if the volume of the audio signal reaches the above-mentioned maximum volume control value, the volume control unit 65 may apply the user's volume control to the sound signal.

[0073] Alternatively, for example, if a "maximum volume control value" is defined as a specified value for the volume of the acoustic signal, when the volume control unit 65 performs the above-mentioned control, even if the volume of the acoustic signal exceeds the volume of the voice signal, if the volume of the acoustic signal reaches the above-mentioned maximum volume control value, the volume control unit 65 may apply the user's volume control to the voice signal.

[0074] Furthermore, for example, in the first modified example of Embodiment 2 described above, when a "minimum volume control value" is defined as a specified value for the volume of the audio signal, if the volume of the audio signal exceeds the volume of the sound signal, and the user's operation regarding the volume is an operation to decrease the volume, the volume control unit 65 may apply the operation to the sound signal if the volume of the audio signal has reached the minimum volume control value.

[0075] Alternatively, for example, in the first modified example of Embodiment 2 described above, if a "minimum volume control value" is defined as a specified value for the volume of the acoustic signal, even if the volume of the acoustic signal exceeds the volume of the voice signal, and the user's operation regarding the volume is an operation to decrease the volume, if the volume of the acoustic signal reaches the minimum volume control value, the volume control unit 65 may apply the operation to the voice signal.

[0076] (Third Modification of Example 2) For example, in Example 2, as with the first modification of Example 1 described above, the volume control operation from the user applied to the volume control unit 65 may be an operation by voice recognition. The control performed by the volume control unit 65 in this modification is the same as the first modification of Example 1 described above, so a detailed explanation will be omitted.

[0077] (Fourth Modification of Embodiment 2) Similar to the second modification of Embodiment 1 described above, the control unit 60 may further include a first detection unit 36 ​​for detecting when a call has started. The volume control unit 65 may, for a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute) from the time the first detection unit 36 ​​detects the start of a call, apply volume control operations from the user to the voice signal, regardless of the relative magnitudes of the volume of the voice signal and the volume of the acoustic signal. The control performed by the volume control unit 65 in this modification is the same as that in the second modification of Embodiment 1 described above, so a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0078] (Fifth Modification of Embodiment 2) Similar to the third modification of Embodiment 1 described above, the control unit 60 may further include a second detection unit 37 that detects when playback of any song has started. The volume control unit 65 may, for a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute) from the time the second detection unit 37 detects the start of playback of any song, apply the user's volume control to the sound signal output from the sound source indicating the song, regardless of the relative magnitudes of the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the sound signal. The control performed by the volume control unit 65 in this modification is the same as that in the third modification of Embodiment 1 described above, so a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0079] (Sixth Modification of Embodiment 2) Similar to the fourth modification of Embodiment 1 described above, the control unit 60 may further include a third detection unit that detects when the chorus scene of the song is being played. The volume control unit 65 may, while the third detection unit detects that the chorus scene of the song is being played, apply the volume control from the user to the sound signal, regardless of the relative magnitudes of the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the sound signal. The control performed by the volume control unit 65 in this modification is the same as that of the fourth modification of Embodiment 1 described above, so a detailed explanation is omitted.

[0080] (Hardware Configuration) Figure 9 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the control unit 30 or control unit 60 of the voice processing device according to the embodiment and modified examples. The control unit 30 or control unit 60 shown in Figure 9 has a CPU 101, memory 102, storage device 103, communication IF (interface) 104 and connection IF 105. Each part is interconnected via a bus.

[0081] The CPU 101 is a Central Processing Unit (CPU) that executes predetermined programs stored in memory 102 to control and process each part. Memory 102 is either ROM (Read Only Memory) or RAM (Random Access Memory). Memory 102 stores predetermined programs and data. It also has a work area used by the CPU 101 for processing.

[0082] The storage device 103 is a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SSD (Solid State Drive).

[0083] Communication IF 104 is a communication interface for communicating with external devices. For example, communication IF 104 connects to a predetermined network (such as the Internet) via wireless communication. Connection IF 105 is an interface for wired or wireless connection with external devices. Connection IF 105 is, for example, an interface such as Bluetooth. External devices such as microphones and speakers are connected to connection IF 105 so that they can communicate with each other.

[0084] The CPU 101 may execute a predetermined program stored in the memory 102 to realize some or all of the functions of each processing block shown in the embodiment and modified examples.

[0085] Furthermore, the programs executed by the audio processing device 1 and audio processing device 2 according to this embodiment are provided as installable or executable files recorded on a computer-readable recording medium such as a CD-ROM, flexible disk (FD), CD-R, or DVD (Digital Versatile Disk).

[0086] Furthermore, the programs executed by the voice processing device 1 and voice processing device 2 of this embodiment may be stored on a computer connected to a network such as the Internet and provided by being downloaded via the network. Alternatively, the programs executed by the voice processing device 1 and voice processing device 2 of this embodiment may be provided or distributed via a network such as the Internet.

[0087] According to at least one embodiment described above, it is possible to provide a voice processing device, a voice processing method, and a program that can improve user convenience.

[0088] Although Examples 1, 2 and modified examples relating to this disclosure have been described above, this disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described above, and the components can be modified and implemented in practice without departing from the gist of the disclosure. Furthermore, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining the multiple components disclosed in the embodiments described above. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiments. Furthermore, components from different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

[0089] 1. Audio processing device 2. Audio processing device 10. Operation unit 20. Output unit 30. Control unit 31. Audio volume processing unit 32. Acoustic volume processing unit 33. Synthesis unit 34. Audio detection unit 35. Volume control unit 36. First detection unit 37. Second detection unit 40. Operation unit 50. Output unit 60. Control unit 61. Audio volume processing unit 62. Acoustic volume processing unit 63. Synthesis unit 64. Volume level calculation unit 65. Volume control unit 101. CPU 102. Memory 103. Storage device 104. Communication IF (Interface) 105. Connection IF

Claims

1. A voice processing device comprising a volume control unit that applies volume control operations from the user to the voice signal or the sound signal based on the relationship between the voice signal representing voice during a call and the sound signal output from the sound source.

2. When the audio signal is detected, the volume control unit controls the volume of the audio signal in accordance with the volume operation from the user, but does not control the volume of the sound signal, as described in claim 1.

3. If no audio signal is detected, the volume control unit controls the volume of the acoustic signal in response to volume-related operations from the user, but does not control the volume of the audio signal, as described in claim 1.

4. The voice processing device comprises a first detection unit for detecting when a call has started, and the volume control unit controls the volume of the voice signal in response to volume operations from the user, even if the voice signal is not detected within a predetermined time from the time the first detection unit detects the start of a call. The voice processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The audio processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the sound signal is an sound signal output from an audio source indicating a song, the audio processing device includes a second detection unit that detects when playback of any song has started, and the volume control unit controls the volume of the sound signal in response to volume operations from the user, even if the audio signal is detected, within a predetermined time from the time the second detection unit detects the start of playback of the arbitrary song.

6. The audio processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein if the volume of the acoustic signal exceeds a predetermined threshold and the user's operation regarding the volume is an operation to decrease the volume, the volume control unit controls the volume of the acoustic signal in accordance with the user's operation regarding the volume, even when the audio signal is detected.

7. The audio processing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the volume control unit continues to control the volume of the acoustic signal in response to a volume operation from the user, even when an audio signal is detected.

8. The audio processing device according to claim 1, wherein the volume control unit applies volume operations from the user to the audio signal or the acoustic signal based on the relative magnitudes of the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the acoustic signal.

9. The audio processing device according to claim 8, wherein the volume control unit applies the volume control operation from the user to the signal with the higher volume among the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the sound signal.

10. The audio processing device according to claim 8, wherein, if the user's operation regarding volume is an operation to increase the volume, the volume control unit controls the volume of the audio signal and the sound signal, whichever signal has a lower volume.

11. The audio processing device according to claim 8, wherein, if the user's operation regarding the volume is an operation to decrease the volume, the volume control unit controls the volume of the signal with the higher volume among the audio signal and the acoustic signal to decrease the volume.

12. The voice processing device according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein the voice processing device comprises a first detection unit for detecting when a call has been started, and the volume control unit applies volume control operations from the user to the voice signal within a predetermined time from the time the first detection unit detects the start of a call, regardless of the relative magnitudes of the volume of the voice signal and the volume of the acoustic signal.

13. The audio processing device according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein the sound signal is an sound signal output from an audio source indicating a song, the audio processing device comprises a second detection unit that detects when playback of any song has started, and the volume control unit applies volume control operations from the user to the sound signal, regardless of the relative magnitudes of the volume of the audio signal and the volume of the sound signal, within a predetermined time from the time the second detection unit detects the start of playback of the arbitrary song.

14. A method performed by an audio processing device, wherein, based on the relationship between an audio signal representing speech and an acoustic signal output from an acoustic sound source, a volume control from a user is applied to the audio signal or the acoustic signal.

15. A program for causing an audio processing device to perform the step of applying a volume control from a user to the audio signal or the sound signal, based on the relationship between the audio signal representing speech and the sound signal output from the sound source.

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