Bass Sub-Band Boost and Soft Limiting for Small Speakers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Sound systems, including televisions and home audio systems, often have limited bass response due to speaker size constraints, which affect the production and perception of low-frequency sound frequencies.
Innovation Solution
A system that enhances bass energy by separating audio signals into sub-bands, applying a boost to compensate for speaker rolloff, using a limiter to prevent saturation, and combining the bands for optimal sound production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the speaker size is increased to improve bass response, then the low-frequency sound quality is improved, but the device size and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical solution of using larger speakers with an electronic signal processing system. By separating bass frequencies from the audio signal, applying amplification, and using a soft limiter to prevent distortion, the system achieves improved bass response without requiring physically larger speakers. This substitutes electronic processing for mechanical enlargement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a soft limiter as an intermediary component between the bass amplification stage and the speaker output. This intermediary prevents speaker saturation and distortion by smoothly limiting the bass signal amplitude, allowing the system to deliver enhanced bass without the harmful effects of overdriving the speakers.
2Manufacturing precision
If bass amplification is increased to compensate for speaker rolloff, then the perception of bass energy is improved, but speaker saturation and distortion occur
Solution Approach 1:
The soft limiter acts as an intermediary that mediates between the need for bass amplification and the risk of speaker saturation. It smoothly limits the bass signal amplitude, preventing distortion while maintaining the perceived bass energy. This resolves the contradiction by allowing amplification without the harmful saturation effects.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the potential harm of bass amplification (speaker saturation) into a benefit by using soft limiting. Instead of allowing hard clipping and distortion, the soft limiter gracefully controls the maximum amplitude, transforming what would be a harmful effect into a controlled feature that maintains bass presence without distortion.
3Reliability
If a hard limiter is used to prevent speaker saturation, then speaker protection is improved, but audio distortion increases
Solution Approach 1:
The soft limiter serves as a refined intermediary that provides speaker protection while minimizing distortion. Unlike hard limiters that abruptly clip signals, the soft limiter uses smooth amplitude control to prevent saturation, thereby protecting speakers without introducing significant audio distortion.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the limiting characteristic from hard (abrupt) to soft (gradual) by modifying the amplitude control parameter. This parameter change allows the limiter to protect speakers from saturation while maintaining signal fidelity, reducing distortion compared to traditional hard limiting approaches.
Data Source
AI summary
An aspect of the present disclosure is directed to systems, methods, and software products that enhance the sound and perception of bass energy in loudspeaker systems which have limited response in the low frequency spectrum. The systems, methods, and software products provide for (i) receiving one or more bass sub-bands of audio channel content, wherein each bass sub-band is separated from an audio program content spectrum including high-band energy; (ii) applying boost to each bass sub-band to compensate for rolloff of the speaker system; (iii) applying a limiter to prevent speaker saturation at low frequencies and/or high volume levels; and (iv) combining each bass sub-band along with the high band energy for sending as a recombined audio signal to the speaker system for rendition as physical sound.