Online Conference Audio Equalization for Speech Intelligibility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing online conferencing systems face challenges in maintaining high audio quality due to variations in microphone placement, quality, background noise, and the presence of face masks, which affect the intelligibility of speech.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of automatic audio equalization within online conferencing systems, which adjusts the energy values for multiple frequency bands in real-time to match a target ideal frequency response, thereby enhancing audio quality and intelligibility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If automatic audio equalization is implemented to improve speech intelligibility, then audio quality is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The audio spectrum is divided into multiple frequency bands (e.g., 8 bands from 125Hz to 8kHz), with each band processed independently through separate filters. This segmentation allows targeted adjustment of specific frequency ranges affected by different adverse conditions (low frequencies for mask noise, mid frequencies for background noise, high frequencies for microphone placement issues), improving speech intelligibility while keeping each processing module relatively simple
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts energy values and filter parameters for each frequency band based on real-time analysis of adverse conditions. By changing parameters such as gain values, filter coefficients, and energy thresholds, the system adapts to varying acoustic environments without requiring complex hardware modifications, thus improving reliability while managing device complexity
2Reliability
If per-band equalization is applied to compensate for adverse conditions, then audio quality is improved, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-calculates and stores ideal energy values for each frequency band based on target frequency responses. During real-time processing, it only needs to compare current energy values against these pre-established targets and apply predetermined filter settings, significantly reducing processing time while maintaining high audio quality
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies equalization selectively to only those frequency bands where adverse conditions are detected (e.g., only adjusting low frequencies when mask noise is present, or only adjusting high frequencies when microphone placement is poor). This partial action approach reduces overall processing time compared to processing all bands uniformly, while still achieving sufficient audio quality improvement
Data Source
AI summary
Example methods and systems provide automatic audio equalization for online conferences. A target, ideal, audio frequency response for use in online conferencing audio can be designed and preset for reference, and the equalizer can operate in real time to reach the target frequency response for any input. The equalizer can selectively apply per-band equalization to the audio signal as needed to adjust an energy value for each of multiple frequency bands to produce an output audio signal that that can be, as an example, routed through meeting servers or other infrastructure to other conference participants. The equalization can compensate for conditions local to a speaker that would otherwise adversely affect audio quality.