Multi-Microphone Signal Weighting for Mobile Voice Quality
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile devices face challenges in maintaining optimal voice or sound quality due to varied user positions and orientations, which affect the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and lead to degradation in sound reception.
Innovation Solution
A method that involves obtaining sound signals from multiple microphones positioned on different surfaces of a mobile device, analyzing their signal characteristics, and weighing them based on SNR or signal power to combine them effectively, with additional signal processing for echo cancellation, noise reduction, and coding before transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single microphone is used for sound reception, then the device structure is simple, but the sound quality and signal-to-noise ratio deteriorate when users position the device in different orientations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the sound reception function across multiple microphones positioned at different locations on the device. Each microphone captures sound from its specific orientation, and the system segments the reception task by selecting or combining signals from these distributed microphones based on device orientation, thereby maintaining reliable sound quality regardless of how the device is held.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal sound reception system that functions effectively across all device orientations. By equipping the device with multiple microphones and implementing intelligent selection/combination logic, the system achieves multi-functional adaptability, ensuring high-quality sound reception whether the device is held horizontally, vertically, or at any intermediate angle.
2Reliability
If multiple microphones are used to capture sound signals from different orientations, then sound quality improves, but the device complexity and signal processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a dynamic signal processing system that adapts in real-time to device orientation. The system continuously monitors orientation data and dynamically selects or combines microphone signals accordingly, allowing the processing complexity to vary with usage conditions rather than operating at maximum complexity in all cases.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the operational parameters of the signal processing system based on device orientation. By adjusting which microphones are active and how their signals are weighted or combined, the system optimizes sound reception for each orientation while managing processing complexity through parameter adjustment rather than structural complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the system dynamically selects or combines signals from multiple microphones, then adaptability to different user positions improves, but the processing time and computational requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary actions by pre-establishing the microphone selection and combination logic for different device orientations. The system has predetermined strategies ready for various orientation scenarios, allowing it to quickly switch between pre-planned signal processing approaches rather than computing optimal solutions from scratch in real-time.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements feedback mechanisms where the system continuously monitors device orientation and signal quality, then adjusts microphone selection and combination parameters accordingly. This closed-loop feedback enables the system to adapt to changing user positions in real-time while maintaining efficient processing by building on previous state information rather than reprocessing everything.
Data Source
AI summary
Sound signal reception is improved by utilizing a plurality of microphones to capture sound signals which are then weighed to dynamically adjust signal quality. A first sound signal and a second sound signal are obtained from first and second microphones, respectively, where the first and second sound signals originate from one or more sound sources. A first signal characteristic (e.g., signal power, signal signal-to-noise ratio, etc.) is obtained for the first sound signal and a second signal characteristic is obtained for the second sound signal. The first and second sound signals are weighed or scaled based on their respective first and second signal characteristics. The weighed first and second sound signals are then combined to obtain an output sound signal.