Wearable Audio Inner Microphone Adaptive Noise Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wearable audio devices, particularly in-ear devices, face challenges in accurately capturing user voice signals due to the microphone's location farther away from the mouth, leading to interference from external noise and compromised voice quality.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of an adaptive noise reduction system that combines signals from an external microphone and an inner microphone, using noise cancellation parameters calculated in response to speech detection and environmental noise, to generate a noise-reduced internal signal, which is then mixed with the external signal based on speech presence and noise levels, enhancing voice capture and quality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If an inner microphone is used in in-ear devices, then the device form factor is improved and user comfort is enhanced, but voice capture accuracy deteriorates due to distance from the mouth
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines signals from multiple microphones (inner microphone positioned in the ear canal and external microphones positioned away from the ear) to capture voice signals. By merging these signals through adaptive noise reduction processing, the system achieves both the compact in-ear form factor and accurate voice capture, as the external microphones compensate for the distance issue while the inner microphone provides proximity advantage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an adaptive noise reduction system as an intermediary between the microphones and the voice output. This system processes the signals from the inner and external microphones, using reference signals to identify and remove noise, thereby mediating the trade-off between microphone positioning and voice capture accuracy.
2Ease of operation
If the microphone is positioned farther from the mouth in in-ear devices, then device comfort is improved, but noise interference increases and voice quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs feedback mechanisms where the adaptive noise reduction system continuously monitors signals from both inner and external microphones, compares them against reference signals, and adjusts noise cancellation parameters in real-time. This feedback loop enables the system to maintain device comfort while dynamically combating noise interference.
Solution Approach 2:
The adaptive noise reduction system serves as an intermediary that processes signals between the microphones and the output, using reference signals to identify noise components and subtract them from the captured audio, thereby reducing noise interference while preserving voice quality.
3Measurement precision
If adaptive noise reduction processing is applied to internal signals, then voice quality is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary noise reduction processing to the internal signal from the inner microphone using adaptive algorithms. By performing this processing early in the signal chain and using pre-computed reference signals from external microphones, the system improves voice quality while managing complexity through efficient signal processing architecture.
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 approach effectively reduces external noise and enhances voice capture in wearable audio devices, improving voice quality and intelligibility, especially in windy or noisy environments, by selectively mixing processed internal and external signals, thereby addressing the limitations of traditional microphone systems.
Implementation Method 1
an adaptive noise cancelation system configured to process an internal signal captured by the inner microphone and generate a noise reduced internal signal, wherein the noise reduced internal signal is adaptively generated in response to an external signal captured by the external microphone
Data Source
AI summary
Various implementations include systems for processing inner microphone audio signals. In particular implementations, a system includes an external microphone configured to be acoustically coupled to an environment outside an ear canal of a user; an inner microphone configured to be acoustically coupled to an environment inside the ear canal of the user; and an adaptive noise cancelation system configured to process an internal signal captured by the inner microphone and generate a noise reduced internal signal, wherein the noise reduced internal signal is adaptively generated in response to an external signal captured by the external microphone.