Object Detection Outside User Field-of-View via Spatial Audio
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic devices that detect objects in a physical environment often have a field-of-view that matches the user's field-of-view, limiting awareness of objects outside this range and requiring visual attention to detect notifications.
Innovation Solution
A device with image sensors, speakers, and processors that detect objects outside the user's field-of-view and plays audio notifications, expanding user awareness through spatialized audio cues, allowing for detection and notification of objects without visual attention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If the imaging system uses a field-of-view that matches the user's field-of-view, then the device complexity is reduced and the user interface is simplified, but the user awareness of objects outside the visual field is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a two-dimensional visual field (what the user can see) to a three-dimensional spatial awareness system that includes areas outside the user's direct line of sight. By adding imaging sensors positioned to capture peripheral and blind spot areas, and converting this data to spatial audio cues, the system expands the effective field-of-view beyond the user's natural visual constraints without requiring the user to physically turn their head or shift attention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces spatial audio cues as an intermediary medium between the object detection system and the user. Instead of directly displaying visual information from peripheral cameras (which would require the user to shift visual attention), the system converts detected objects into auditory signals that provide directional and spatial information, allowing the user to maintain natural head orientation while still becoming aware of objects in their blind spots.
2Loss of information
If the device provides visual feedback for object detection, then the information delivery is direct and clear, but the user must divert visual attention from primary tasks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the visual feedback mechanism (display screens, visual alerts) with an auditory feedback mechanism (spatial audio cues, directional sound signals). This substitution allows users to receive object detection notifications through their sense of hearing rather than sight, enabling them to maintain continuous visual attention on their primary tasks while still receiving timely alerts about objects in their environment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses spatial audio as an intermediary channel for information delivery. Instead of competing for the user's visual attention with on-screen notifications, the system delivers detection information through the auditory channel, which processes information independently of visual task engagement. This intermediary approach allows parallel processing of task-related visual information and safety-related auditory alerts.
3Area of stationary object
If the imaging system captures a wide field-of-view, then the coverage area is increased, but the image quality and detection precision in peripheral areas deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the monitoring field into multiple zones with different detection requirements. The central field-of-view (within user vision) uses high-precision imaging for detailed object identification, while peripheral fields (outside user vision) use lower-resolution sensors optimized for broad coverage and motion detection. This segmentation allows each sensor to be optimized for its specific functional requirement rather than attempting to achieve uniform high performance across all areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different quality standards to different spatial regions. Objects detected within the user's direct field-of-view receive high-resolution imaging and detailed analysis, while objects in peripheral blind spots are detected with lower resolution but still provide sufficient information for awareness and alerting. This local quality approach ensures that computational resources are allocated efficiently, providing high precision where needed while maintaining adequate detection capability across the entire field.
Data Source
AI summary
In one implementation, a method of playing an audio notification is performed at a device including one or more image sensors, one or more speakers, one or more processors, and non-transitory memory. The method includes receiving, from the one or more image sensors, an image of a physical environment having a device field-of-view different than a user field-of-view. The method includes detecting, in the image of the physical environment, an object at a location in the physical environment. The method includes determining that the location in the physical environment is outside an area of the user field-of-view. The method includes, in response to determining that the location in the physical environment is outside the area of the user field-of-view, playing, via the speaker, an audio notification of the detection.