Adaptive Microphone Array Beam Steering for Background Noise Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional voice communication microphones are uncomfortable for prolonged use and prone to picking up background noise, especially in noisy environments, due to the need for manual positioning and increased pickup area.
Innovation Solution
An integrated array of microphones utilizing an adaptive beam forming algorithm with digital signal processing, including averaging and adaptive filters, to electronically steer the microphone's beam and reduce background noise, allowing for high fidelity far-field noise cancellation without the need for headset use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional microphones are positioned farther from the user to allow freedom of movement, then user comfort and freedom of movement are improved, but background noise pickup increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the audio capture function into multiple independent microphone channels (at least two microphones), each capturing audio from different spatial positions. This segmentation allows the system to process and combine signals to achieve directional sensitivity while maintaining physical distance from the user.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical solution of physically positioning a single microphone close to the user with an electronic signal processing system. By using adaptive beam forming algorithms and digital signal processing, the system achieves directional noise cancellation without requiring physical proximity or mechanical adjustment of the microphone array.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a single close-talking microphone is used to reduce background noise, then noise cancellation is improved, but user comfort deteriorates due to prolonged headset wear
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses multiple microphones (at least two) positioned in different locations, allowing the audio capture function to be distributed. This eliminates the need for a single close-talking microphone that requires headset wear, while still achieving noise cancellation through signal processing of the distributed microphone array.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces digital signal processing and adaptive beam forming algorithms as intermediaries between the microphones and the audio output. This intermediary processing layer enables the system to achieve close-talking performance characteristics using far-field microphones, effectively decoupling the physical microphone position from the acoustic performance.
3Measurement precision
If manual positioning of microphones is required to optimize performance, then noise cancellation precision is improved, but device complexity and ease of operation worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements dynamic, adaptive beam forming where the microphone array's sensitivity pattern automatically adjusts in real-time based on the acoustic environment. The adaptive algorithms continuously update the beam forming weights to track speech sources and cancel noise, eliminating the need for static manual positioning while maintaining optimal performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The microphone array system performs self-adjustment through automatic speaker tracking and adaptive noise cancellation algorithms. The system autonomously identifies speech sources, adjusts beam directions, and optimizes noise cancellation without requiring manual intervention or user positioning, thereby maintaining high precision while reducing operational complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a steerable sensor array that receives input from a target and applies an averaging filter. An adaptive filter is then used if the SNR of the output of the averaging filter reaches a threshold.