Personalized Audio Bandwidth Extension for Hearing Profiles
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bandwidth extension methods provide a sub-optimal user experience due to a one-size-fits-all approach, failing to cater to individual user preferences and hearing profiles, leading to inefficient processing power usage and suboptimal sound quality.
Innovation Solution
A method for personalized bandwidth extension in audio devices that utilizes a trained neural network based on user-specific parameters, such as hearing test results and physiological information, to generate an output signal tailored to the user's hearing capabilities, optimizing sound quality and processing efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a generalized bandwidth extension approach is used, then the implementation is simple and universal, but the user experience is sub-optimal and sound quality is not personalized
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by conducting a hearing test before the actual audio communication to obtain user-specific hearing parameters. These parameters are stored and used during the bandwidth extension process, allowing the system to be pre-configured with personalized information rather than requiring real-time adaptation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements parameter changes by using user-specific hearing parameters (such as hearing thresholds and frequency responses) to dynamically adjust the bandwidth extension model. Instead of using a fixed generalized model, the system modifies the extension parameters based on individual user characteristics obtained from hearing tests.
2Productivity
If bandwidth extension is performed on all frequency components, then complete frequency coverage is achieved, but processing power is wasted on perceptually irrelevant information
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating the treatment of different frequency components based on user-specific hearing capabilities. Instead of uniformly processing all frequencies, the system identifies and prioritizes extension of frequency components that are perceptually relevant to the specific user, while reducing or skipping processing of frequencies outside the user's hearing range.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts only the perceptually relevant frequency components for bandwidth extension by using user hearing parameters to identify which frequency ranges are important for that specific user. This extraction approach avoids processing unnecessary frequency components that would not contribute to the user's perception.
3Manufacturing precision
If a personalized bandwidth extension model is used, then sound quality is optimized for the user, but more processing power and complexity are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by performing bandwidth extension only on the frequency components that are perceptually relevant to the user, rather than excessively processing the entire frequency spectrum. This selective approach maintains sound quality optimization while reducing unnecessary processing power consumption.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for personalized bandwidth extension in an audio device. The method comprises obtaining an input microphone signal with a first bandwidth, obtaining a first user parameter indicative of one or more characteristics of a user of the audio device, determining, based on the first user parameter, a bandwidth extension model, and generating an output signal with a second bandwidth by applying the determined bandwidth extension model to the input microphone signal.