Distributed Cross Mute Controller for Dispatch Console Echo Cancellation
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Solution Overview
Problem
In dispatch communications, echo cancellation is challenging due to the proximity of consoles in dispatch centers, leading to acoustic feedback and distractions as dispatchers hear their own voice from adjacent consoles, especially in hybrid systems with different manufacturers and types of radio communications, where a single cross mute controller is impossible to implement effectively.
Innovation Solution
A distributed approach to cross muting is adopted, where each dispatch console includes a local cross mute controller that duplicates and shares media signals, using identification values to determine whether to mute audio, eliminating the need for a remote cross mute controller and addressing compatibility issues across different communication systems.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If echo cancellation is implemented in dispatch centers with multiple consoles in proximity, then acoustic feedback and distractions are reduced, but device complexity increases due to the need for distributed cross mute controllers in hybrid systems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the echo cancellation function into distributed cross mute controllers located at each individual console rather than using a centralized controller. Each controller independently manages audio signals for its associated console, segmenting the overall system into autonomous units that can operate independently in hybrid configurations with different manufacturers and radio types.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces identification values as intermediaries that enable cross mute controllers to distinguish between local and remote audio signals. These identification values are embedded in audio data and used by controllers to determine whether to mute incoming signals, facilitating echo cancellation without requiring complex inter-controller communication protocols.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a single remote cross mute controller is used, then system control is centralized, but compatibility issues arise in hybrid systems with different manufacturers and types of radio communications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the cross mute control function across multiple independent controllers distributed at each console, allowing each controller to handle its own audio signals without requiring coordination with a centralized controller. This segmentation enables compatibility across hybrid systems with different manufacturers and radio types while avoiding the complexity of centralized control in heterogeneous environments.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements universal cross mute controllers that can operate independently in any console regardless of manufacturer or radio type. Each controller uses identification values to universally identify and manage audio signals from any source, enabling the system to accommodate diverse communication technologies without requiring manufacturer-specific control mechanisms.
3Ease of operation
If audio is transmitted across communication networks with slight delay, then consoles can communicate remotely, but echo occurs as delivered sound is heard in real time in the dispatch center
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by having cross mute controllers proactively mute local audio outputs before the delayed remote audio can be heard and re-transmitted. When a console transmits audio, the transmitting controller identifies the audio stream and pre-mutes the corresponding output at the receiving console, preventing the echo from occurring in the first place rather than attempting to cancel it after it has been generated.
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 effectively reduces acoustic feedback by selectively muting audio between consoles based on identification values, improving communication clarity and reducing distractions in dispatch centers, even in hybrid systems with diverse communication technologies.
Implementation Method 1
The echo canceler receives a media signal from a forwarding device. The media signal includes data from a second console mixed with one or more other sources. Also received at first console is an echo signal from the second console and subtracting the echo signal from the media signal to generate an output signal.
Data Source
AI summary
In one implementation, systems and processes are provide for local cross muting between two or more dispatch consoles in a dispatch center. Sound is received from a microphone of a first console. The first console generates an outgoing media signal from the received sound and a supplementary outgoing data. The supplementary outgoing data may be an identification number for the first console or a duplicate media signal from the first console. The first console sends the outgoing media signal to a forwarding device and sends the supplementary outgoing signal to a second console.