Spatial Binaural Audio Alert for Personal Audio Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing personal audio devices limit users' awareness of their surroundings due to noise-cancelling effects, making them more vulnerable to accidents or dangers while engaging in activities like walking, cycling, or driving.
Innovation Solution
A method and electronic device that determine the head direction and detect audio events in the environment, calculate the direction of the audio event source, and generate a spatial binaural audio alert localized to the user's head direction, providing awareness of environmental sounds without interrupting audio content.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If noise-cancelling effects are used in personal audio devices, then audio quality and user comfort are improved, but user awareness of environmental sounds deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The audio output is segmented into two distinct channels: rendered audio content for personal listening and spatialized environmental audio alerts for safety awareness. The system processes and outputs these separately, allowing simultaneous delivery of music/audio content and environmental alerts through the same headphones without mutual interference
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary processing layer that captures environmental sounds, spatializes them using HRTF-based binaural rendering, and mixes them with the original audio content at appropriate volumes. This intermediary process allows environmental awareness to be integrated into the personal audio experience without compromising either function
2Loss of information
If spatial binaural audio alert is generated, then environmental awareness is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses universal HRTF (Head-Related Transfer Function) data that can be applied to any user without requiring personalized measurements. The same spatialization algorithms and processing pipeline handle both environmental audio capture and alert generation, reducing the need for separate specialized components
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a virtual copy of the environmental audio scene and renders it in stereo format using binaural processing. This virtual spatialized version is then mixed with the original audio content, allowing complex spatial effects to be achieved through software rendering rather than hardware modifications
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosure relates to a method for providing an environmental audio alert on a personal audio device. The method includes: determining head direction of a user in an environment in a time frame. The method includes detecting an audio event occurring in the environment in the time frame. The method includes determining direction of a source of the detected audio event. The method includes localizing a sound source with respect to the determined head direction of the user for generating a spatial binaural audio alert and providing the generated spatial binaural audio alert on the personal audio device.