Game Audio Volume Adjustment by Sound Category Recognition

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing technologies for video games struggle to automatically adjust sound volumes effectively, particularly for specific sound categories like gunfire or explosions, which can impact player experience and reaction time.

Innovation Solution

An electronic device equipped with an audio recognition module and an audio adjustment module that recognizes predetermined sound categories in audio data and adjusts the volume accordingly, using a volume gain determined by the identified sound category.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If manual volume adjustment is used for different sound categories, then players can control specific sound volumes, but the operation complexity increases and automatic adaptation is lost

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveautomatic volume adjustmentVSAvoidaudio processing system
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The audio processing system automatically identifies sound categories and adjusts their volumes without requiring manual player intervention. The system serves itself by autonomously analyzing audio data, categorizing sounds, and applying volume adjustments based on game context and player position, eliminating the need for complex manual controls while maintaining adaptability

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically changes audio parameters (volume gains) based on detected sound categories and game context. By automatically modifying volume parameters for different sound types such as gunfire, explosions, and footsteps, the system achieves adaptive audio adjustment without increasing operational complexity for the player

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If all sounds are played at equal volume, then the audio system is simple, but important game sounds may be overwhelmed and player reaction time increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesound detection accuracyVSAvoidgame response efficiency
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies different volume adjustments to different sound categories based on their importance and player position. Critical sounds like gunfire and explosions near the player are amplified with higher volume gains, while less important sounds maintain lower volumes, ensuring reliable detection of important game events without uniformly increasing all sound volumes

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously monitors audio data and game context to dynamically adjust sound volumes. By providing real-time feedback about player position, sound category, and game state, the system optimizes volume levels to ensure important sounds are always detectable, improving both reliability and response efficiency

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

3Manufacturing precision

If volume adjustment processing is applied to all audio data, then all sounds are optimized, but the processing time and computational resources increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaudio processing precisionVSAvoidaudio processing time
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The audio processing system divides audio data into distinct categories (gunfire, explosions, footsteps, etc.) and applies volume adjustment processing selectively to each category. By segmenting the audio stream and processing only relevant sound categories with appropriate volume gains, the system maintains high processing precision while reducing overall computational time and resources required

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP3821962B1Electronic device and automatic volume-adjustment method
Publication Date: 2025.06.04 ACER INC
  • EP3821962B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3821962B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3821962B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

An automatic adjustment method includes: recognizing whether one of a plurality of predetermined sound categories is included in audio data of current game; when one of the predetermined sound categories is included in the audio data, determining volume gain based on the predetermined sound category included in the audio data; and adjusting the volume of the audio data according to the volume gain.