Multi-Driver Audio Playback for Wider Directional Sound Coverage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing media playback systems with multi-channel audio capabilities often provide a balanced directional effect only at limited locations due to inherent radiation patterns of audio drivers, leading to uneven sound perception across different listening positions.
Innovation Solution
A media playback system processes audio data frequency-dependently for each audio driver to produce target radiation patterns, compensating for the inherent patterns of individual drivers, thereby expanding the area where a balanced directional effect is perceivable by adjusting signal amplitudes and adding phase offsets.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If audio content is played back using multiple audio drivers with inherent radiation patterns, then the directional effect is achieved at limited locations, but the listening area coverage is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by determining individual transfer functions for each audio driver based on its specific radiation pattern characteristics. Each driver's signal is processed independently with customized amplitude adjustments and phase offsets tailored to its local acoustic properties, enabling the collective system to achieve wide-area balanced directional effect while accounting for each driver's inherent limitations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements parameter changes by dynamically adjusting signal amplitudes and adding phase offsets to each audio driver's output based on its radiation pattern. These parameter modifications compensate for the inherent directional limitations of individual drivers, transforming the overall system response to achieve uniform balanced directional effect across an expanded listening area
2Area of stationary object
If signal amplitudes are adjusted and phase offsets are added to compensate for radiation patterns, then the balanced directional effect area is expanded, but the processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-determining transfer functions for each audio driver based on their known radiation patterns before actual playback. These pre-calculated transfer functions encapsulate the necessary amplitude adjustments and phase offsets, allowing the system to achieve expanded balanced directional effect area without complex real-time processing during playback
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses copying by creating transfer function models that represent the radiation characteristics of each audio driver. These mathematical models serve as simplified copies of the complex physical radiation patterns, enabling the system to compensate for inherent limitations through straightforward signal processing rather than complex physical adjustments
Data Source
AI summary
An example method is performed by a media playback system comprising a plurality of audio drivers having a first radiation pattern. The method includes receiving data representing audio content, where each datum of the data indicates (i) a frequency and (ii) an amplitude corresponding to the frequency. The method further includes, for each audio driver of the plurality of audio drivers, determining a transfer function; processing each datum of the data based on (i) the frequency indicated by the given datum and (ii) the determined transfer function; and providing, to the given audio driver, a respective signal representing the data processed for the given audio driver, thereby causing the plurality of audio drivers to play back the audio content according to a second radiation pattern that is different from the first radiation pattern. An example media playback system and an example non-transitory computer-readable medium related to the example method is also disclosed herein.