Audio Format Transcoding via Attachment Server
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable electronic devices can only play a limited number of audio formats due to insufficient power or high licensing costs, and supported formats often consume excessive bandwidth, making it difficult to play audio files received as email attachments.
Innovation Solution
A method where a portable electronic device requests a transcoded audio file from an attachment server, converting the file into a format supported by the device, using an attachment viewer and media player, thereby minimizing the need for multiple codecs and optimizing bandwidth.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the portable electronic device supports multiple audio formats natively, then the device can play more audio files, but the power consumption increases and licensing costs rise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a server as an intermediary between the email system and the portable device. The server handles audio format conversion, allowing the device to play various audio formats without natively supporting them. The device only needs to support one format (e.g., MP3), while the server transcodes other formats to the device's supported format, thus resolving the contradiction between format compatibility and power consumption.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the portable electronic device supports multiple audio formats natively, then the device can play more audio files, but the licensing costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The server acts as a mediator that handles the complexity of supporting multiple audio formats. Instead of licensing multiple codecs for the portable device, the system licenses codecs at the server level. The server performs format conversion and sends the converted audio to the device in a single supported format, eliminating the need for the device to license multiple audio formats.
3Loss of energy
If the device uses highly compressed audio formats, then bandwidth usage decreases, but the audio quality may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The server dynamically adjusts audio parameters during transcoding. It can select different compression levels and quality settings based on the specific audio file and device capabilities. The server optimizes the balance between compression ratio and audio quality by adjusting parameters such as bitrate, sample rate, and encoding presets, ensuring acceptable quality while minimizing bandwidth usage.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method of playing an audio file on a portable electronic device includes receiving the audio file as an email attachment, sending a request including a supported audio format of the portable electronic device from an attachment viewer of the portable electronic device to an attachment server to play the audio file and returning a transcoded audio file to the attachment viewer, the transcoded audio file corresponding to the audio file and having the supported audio format. The transcoded audio file may then be played by a media player of the portable electronic device.