Daisy-Chained Tournament Audio Controllers for Self-Voice Cancellation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional headset networking methods fail to effectively cancel out a user's own microphone signal when mixing multiple microphone signals in gaming tournaments, leading to each player hearing themselves at a fixed level, which disrupts the chat environment.
Innovation Solution
The system employs a daisy-chaining method of tournament audio controllers (TACs) that sum and cancel out microphone signals by adding an out-of-phase signal, allowing users to adjust their own voice level, enabling clear communication among team members without self-noise interference.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If all microphone signals are mixed together in conventional headset networking, then all players can hear all voices, but each player hears their own voice which causes distraction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful effect of hearing one's own voice into a benefit by using out-of-phase signal cancellation. Each TAC receives the user's own microphone signal, inverts its phase, and adds it to the mixed chat signal, thereby canceling out the self-voice component and eliminating distraction while preserving other players' voices
Solution Approach 2:
The TAC acts as an intermediary device between the microphones and headsets. It receives all microphone signals, processes them through mixing and out-of-phase cancellation, and delivers the filtered chat signal to the headset, mediating the audio flow to eliminate self-voice while maintaining team communication
2Quantity of substance
If daisy-chaining multiple TACs is implemented, then more players can be supported, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the audio processing function into multiple independent TAC units that can be daisy-chained. Each TAC handles a portion of the player group independently, allowing the system to scale to support more players by simply adding more segmented TAC units rather than requiring a single complex centralized processor
Solution Approach 2:
Each TAC is designed as a universal unit capable of performing the complete audio processing function (receiving microphones, mixing signals, canceling self-voice, and outputting chat audio) independently. This multi-functional design allows any TAC in the daisy-chain to handle any group of players, making the system flexible and easy to expand
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution provides a clear and private chat environment for multiple users by effectively canceling out individual microphone signals, allowing users to hear only the combined chat audio from other team members without their own voice, enhancing communication during gaming tournaments.
Implementation Method 1
combining a chat signal received from a previous tournament audio controller (TAC) in a daisy-chain of TACs with an inverted version of a microphone signal
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system for daisy chaining tournament audio controllers, where the method comprises, in a headset coupled to a first audio controller, the first audio controller being in a daisy chain of audio controllers: receiving a chat signal from a second audio controller in the daisy chain of audio controllers, receiving a microphone signal from a microphone in the headset, summing the chat signal with the microphone signal, communicating the summed signal to a third audio controllers in the daisy chain, and communicating the chat signal to the headset. The microphone signal may be removed from the summed chat signal and microphone signal by adding a second microphone signal 180 degrees out of phase with the microphone signal. The chat signal may be summed with the microphone signal at an amplitude set by a user of the headset after the removal of the microphone signal.