Frequency Lowering for Telephone Consonants
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Solution Overview
Problem
Hearing-impaired individuals face difficulties in identifying high-frequency sounds during telephone conversations due to traditional telephones and internet phones removing frequencies above 4,000 Hz, making it hard for them to distinguish consonant sounds and short vowel sounds.
Innovation Solution
A method that processes high-frequency consonants by lowering their frequency before transmission, allowing hearing-impaired listeners to better hear these sounds, especially in low-bandwidth phone transmissions, and adjusts processing based on the recipient's degree of hearing impairment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If traditional telephones remove frequencies above 4,000 Hz before transmission, then transmission bandwidth is reduced, but hearing-impaired listeners cannot identify high-frequency consonant sounds
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by processing and lowering the frequency of high-frequency consonants before transmission. The system identifies consonant sounds in the high-frequency range (above 4,000 Hz) and shifts them to lower frequency ranges prior to telephone transmission, ensuring these critical sounds are preserved through the limited bandwidth channel and can be properly perceived by hearing-impaired listeners
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by transforming the frequency parameter of consonant sounds. The system changes the frequency distribution of speech signals by lowering high-frequency consonant components (above 4,000 Hz) to lower frequency ranges, thereby adapting the sound parameters to match the reduced bandwidth capabilities of traditional telephone systems while maintaining intelligibility for hearing-impaired users
2Reliability
If hearing aid devices lower and amplify high-frequency sounds, then hearing-impaired listeners can perceive these sounds face-to-face, but telephone transmission still removes frequencies above 4,000 Hz before sending
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing frequency lowering processing on the transmitting end before telephone transmission occurs. This preliminary processing ensures that high-frequency consonant information is shifted to lower frequencies prior to entering the telephone network, so that hearing aid devices receive already-optimized signals that don't require complex post-processing to extract meaningful information from bandwidth-limited transmissions
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing system that acts as a mediator between the speech source and the hearing-impaired listener. This intermediary system performs automatic speech analysis and frequency transformation, converting high-frequency consonant information into lower frequency ranges that can pass through telephone networks and be effectively processed by hearing aid devices, thereby simplifying the overall system complexity
3Productivity
If Internet phones remove frequencies above 4,000 Hz, then network transmission is optimized, but hearing-impaired listeners lose ability to distinguish consonant sounds in monosyllabic languages
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by implementing frequency lowering processing before Internet phone transmission. The system identifies and processes consonant sounds above 4,000 Hz, shifting them to lower frequency ranges prior to network transmission. This ensures that even when Internet phones apply bandwidth limiting, the critical consonant information has already been transferred to frequencies that will survive the transmission process intact
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by modifying the frequency distribution parameters of speech signals. The system transforms the spectral characteristics of consonant sounds by lowering their frequency content, thereby adapting the sound parameters to be compatible with bandwidth-limited Internet phone transmission while preserving the intelligibility of consonant sounds essential for monosyllabic language comprehension
Data Source
AI summary
A method of processing telephone sound is disclosed. Before the telephone sound is transmitted, the frequencies of high frequency consonants are lowered. If the recipient has severe hearing impairment, the frequencies of the high frequency consonants are lowered again.