Natural Skip-Back Points for Noise-Interrupted Audio Playback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Environmental noises interfere with the enjoyment of spoken word audio content, causing listeners to miss or misunderstand important parts, and existing systems require manual intervention or restart from the beginning, which is cumbersome and disruptive.
Innovation Solution
An audio playback system that detects noise interference and adapts by determining a natural skip back point in the audio content using content features and AI models, allowing seamless continuation from a logical point in the audio playback.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual intervention or restart from the beginning is used to handle noise interference, then the system can resume playback, but the operation becomes cumbersome and disruptive
Solution Approach 1:
The audio playback system automatically detects noise interference and autonomously determines skip back points to resume playback without requiring manual user intervention. The system monitors audio content features (such as speech patterns, pauses, and transitions) to identify optimal restart points, thereby maintaining playback continuity while eliminating the need for users to manually pause or restart the audio.
2Reliability
If restart from the beginning is used to handle noise interference, then the system can resume playback, but time is lost and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary analysis of audio content features during normal playback to pre-identify potential skip back points. When noise interference is detected, the system uses this pre-analyzed information to quickly determine the optimal restart point without needing to rewind from the beginning, thereby minimizing time loss and maintaining productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of restarting from the beginning, the system skips directly to the determined skip back point in the audio content. This skipping mechanism allows the system to bypass unnecessary portions of the audio that were played before the noise interference occurred, significantly reducing the time required to resume playback and improving overall efficiency.
3Reliability
If audio is replayed from the beginning or arbitrary point, then the listener can hear the content again, but the transition is abrupt and the listener cannot follow the content smoothly
Solution Approach 1:
The system analyzes local characteristics of the audio content, such as speech patterns, pauses, and transitions, to determine optimal skip back points. By selecting restart points that align with natural content features (such as the end of a sentence or paragraph), the system ensures smooth transitions and maintains content comprehension, making the listener experience seamless despite the replay.
Data Source
AI summary
An audio playback system is provided to facilitate adaptive output of audio content, such as spoken word content, by an audio player in response to detecting noise interferences such as external noise outside of the playback system and/or a noise indicator that external noise is about to occur. The playback system utilizes a natural skip back point found in the audio content for playback when audio content is disrupted by external noise. Content features are used to determine the skip back point in the audio content. The audio content is replayed from such a skip back point in a manner that provides a smooth transition to pre-played content and enables a listener to follow the content. Detection of multiple interfering noises within a condensed period of time are addressed to limit redundant and time consuming playbacks.