Networked Audio Clock Synchronization With Low-Cost Oscillators
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-performance audio systems with low latency and professional quality audio come at a high cost due to complex circuitry, expensive parts, and high network bandwidth utilization, making them unsuitable for market segments requiring lower audio quality and latency, such as audio-conferencing, where off-the-shelf solutions like VoIP do not meet user expectations for fidelity.
Innovation Solution
Implementing local asynchronous media clocks in audio devices using less precise oscillators like crystal-based, MEMS, ceramic resonators, or SAW oscillators, eliminating the need for precision clocking hardware modules, and synchronizing network clocks with a master clock for packetization and de-packetization, while maintaining audio quality and latency expectations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If precision clocking hardware modules are used to achieve low latency and high performance audio, then audio quality and latency are improved, but implementation cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive precision clocking hardware modules with inexpensive software-based clock synchronization mechanisms. The system uses standard network clocks and software algorithms to achieve adequate timing synchronization without requiring costly dedicated hardware clock modules, thereby reducing implementation cost and device complexity while maintaining acceptable audio quality for teleconferencing applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent substitutes mechanical/physical precision clocking hardware with software-based timing synchronization. Instead of relying on physical hardware modules to generate and synchronize clocks, the system uses software to coordinate timing between devices over the network, replacing the mechanical approach with a software-based solution that reduces hardware complexity.
2Loss of time
If precision clocking hardware modules are used to achieve low latency and high performance audio, then latency is improved, but implementation cost and device complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive precision clocking hardware modules with inexpensive software-based clock synchronization mechanisms. The system uses standard network clocks and software algorithms to achieve adequate timing synchronization without requiring costly dedicated hardware clock modules, thereby reducing implementation cost and device complexity while maintaining acceptable audio quality for teleconferencing applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent substitutes mechanical/physical precision clocking hardware with software-based timing synchronization. Instead of relying on physical hardware modules to generate and synchronize clocks, the system uses software to coordinate timing between devices over the network, replacing the mechanical approach with a software-based solution that reduces hardware complexity.
3Manufacturing precision
If high network bandwidth utilization is used to transmit professional quality audio, then audio quality is improved, but implementation cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent adjusts audio transmission parameters to match the actual requirements of teleconferencing applications. Instead of transmitting full professional quality audio at high bitrates, the system modifies parameters such as sample rate, bit depth, and compression to achieve adequate quality at lower bandwidth consumption, thereby reducing implementation cost while maintaining acceptable audio quality.
Data Source
AI summary
An audio device may be connected to a communication network. The audio device may send or receive audio data via a network, based on a network clock that may be synchronized with other audio device connected to the network. The audio device may buffer, convert between digital audio signals and analog audio signals, encrypt, decrypt, packetize, depacketize, compress, and/or decompress audio data using a local asynchronous media clock using a relatively lower precision clocking technology such as a crystal-based oscillator.