Personal Audio Device Wind Noise Reduction via Dynamic Microphone Selection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Personal audio devices struggle to effectively pick up a user's voice in windy conditions due to substantial low-frequency wind noise amplification in beamforming microphone arrays, leading to unacceptable levels of wind noise in microphone signals.
Innovation Solution
The device employs multiple microphones configured to provide separate microphone signals, with a processor that uses array processing techniques to compare and select signals based on energy levels, switching to microphones with lower energy when wind noise is detected, and blending signals to reduce noise contributions, utilizing an accelerometer for voice detection in extreme cases.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If beamforming microphone array is used to pick up user voice, then speech pickup capability is improved, but wind noise amplification occurs in windy conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically switches between beamforming mode and single microphone mode based on detected wind conditions. When wind noise is detected exceeding a threshold, the system transitions from the beamforming array (which amplifies wind noise) to a single microphone less susceptible to wind, thereby adaptively resolving the contradiction between speech pickup and wind noise rejection
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameters of the microphone system by switching between different configuration modes (beamforming vs. single microphone). This parameter change allows the system to optimize performance for different environmental conditions, selecting the appropriate mode based on real-time wind noise detection
2Object-affected harmful factors
If multiple microphones are used to reduce wind noise, then device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the microphone functionality into distinct operational modes: beamforming array mode for normal conditions and single microphone mode for windy conditions. This segmentation allows the system to use multiple microphones only when necessary, reducing the effective complexity during wind noise mitigation while maintaining the capability when needed
3Measurement precision
If beamforming is used to enhance voice pickup, then speech-to-noise ratio improves in calm conditions, but wind noise interference increases in windy conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs feedback through continuous monitoring of microphone signals for wind noise characteristics. When wind noise is detected, the system adjusts its operation by switching to a different microphone configuration, creating a closed-loop control system that maintains optimal speech-to-noise ratio by adapting to changing environmental conditions
Data Source
AI summary
A personal audio device configured to be worn on the head or body of a user and including a plurality of microphones configured to provide a plurality of separate microphone signals capturing audio from an environment external to the personal audio device, and a processor configured to process a first subset of the plurality of separate microphone signals using a first array processing technique to provide a first array signal, compare the first array signal to a microphone signal from the plurality of separate microphone signals, and select the first array signal or the microphone signal based on the comparison.