Personalized Audio Processing Across Different Playback Devices

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current audio customization techniques require repeated setup for each user in different audio environments, making it time-consuming and impractical to apply personalized audio preferences and hearing adjustments, especially in shared or public spaces.

Innovation Solution

A method that accesses user-specific and device-specific audio processing information to generate a customized audio signal, allowing personalized audio experiences to follow users seamlessly across various environments, including smart and non-smart devices, using a combination of mobile computing devices, software applications, and cloud services.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If audio environment is customized for a specific user, then audio experience quality is improved, but the customization must be repeated for each new user entering the environment, increasing time consumption and operational complexity

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaudio experience qualityVSAvoidcustomization setup time
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a portable audio profile that copies user preferences, hearing adjustments, and audio settings from one device to another. This profile acts as a replicable template that can be instantly applied across different audio environments, eliminating the need to recreate customization for each new user or device combination.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary audio customization and hearing adjustments in advance, storing them in a portable profile. When a user enters a new audio environment, the pre-prepared profile is automatically applied, eliminating the need for real-time customization setup and ensuring immediate optimal audio experience.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Ease of operation

If audio environment is customized for a specific user, then personal audio preferences are satisfied, but the customization is tied to a specific audio environment, reducing adaptability to different environments

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvepersonal audio preferences implementationVSAvoidcross-environment adaptability
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a universal audio profile that can be applied across multiple audio environments and devices. The profile contains user preferences and hearing adjustments that are not tied to any specific audio environment, enabling the same personalized audio experience to be reproduced in cars, homes, offices, and other diverse settings.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The system transitions audio customization from a location-specific dimension to a user-specific dimension by creating portable profiles associated with individual users rather than specific environments. This allows the customization to follow the user across different spatial contexts, adding the dimension of user portability to the audio experience.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

3Ease of operation

If hearing deficiency compensation is applied, then audio accessibility is improved, but repeated hearing tests are required for each customization session, increasing complexity and time consumption

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvehearing deficiency compensationVSAvoidhearing test procedure
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs hearing tests and determines hearing deficiency compensation parameters in advance, storing the results in a portable audio profile. This preliminary action eliminates the need to conduct hearing tests repeatedly during each customization session, as the hearing profile is already established and can be instantly applied to new audio environments.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system enables hearing deficiency compensation to be automatically applied based on stored profile information without requiring the user to undergo repeated hearing tests. The portable profile contains pre-determined compensation parameters that the system automatically implements, reducing the burden on the user and eliminating complex repeated testing procedures.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentUS11134353B2Customized audio processing based on user-specific and hardware-specific audio information
Publication Date: 2021.09.28 HARMAN INT IND INC
  • US11134353B2 patent drawing
  • US11134353B2 patent drawing
  • US11134353B2 patent drawing

AI summary

A method of audio signal processing, the method comprising: accessing user-specific audio processing information for a particular user; determining identity information of an audio device for producing sound output from an audio signal; based on the identity information of the audio device, accessing device-specific audio processing information for the audio device; generating a customized audio-processing procedure for the audio signal based on the user-specific audio processing information and the device-specific audio processing information; and generating a customized audio signal by processing the audio signal with the customized audio-processing procedure.