Speaker Array Limiting That Preserves Relative Gain Balance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Audio systems with speaker arrays face challenges in limiting input signals to prevent overdriving while maintaining relative gains among speakers, as existing methods alter the gain differences between speakers when one limiter limits a signal, disrupting the array's balance.
Innovation Solution
The proposed audio system employs an approximating circuit to apply an approximated gain to the input signal, a limiter to reduce signal magnitude when it exceeds a threshold, and a filter to apply a filter gain, ensuring that each speaker receives a filtered signal that maintains the array's balance by uniformly reducing signal magnitude across all speakers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If individual limiters are applied to each speaker output, then overdriving of individual speakers is prevented, but the relative gains between speakers are altered, disrupting the array balance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a single limiter at the input signal stage before the signal is distributed to multiple speakers. This preliminary limiting action prevents any individual speaker from being overdriven while maintaining the relative gain relationships throughout the array, thus resolving the contradiction between protecting speakers and preserving array balance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges multiple individual limiter functions into a single unified limiter that operates on the master input signal. Instead of having separate limiters for each speaker that would independently alter gain relationships, one limiter collectively protects all speakers while preserving the intended array balance through unified control.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a single limiter is applied to the input signal, then the speaker array balance is maintained, but the ability to independently control individual speaker levels is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the audio system into two functional parts: a unified limiter for the input signal that maintains array balance, and separate gain control mechanisms for individual speakers that preserve adaptability. This segmentation allows independent speaker level control to coexist with overall array balance maintenance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different control characteristics to different parts of the system: a unified limiting characteristic at the input stage for overall protection and balance, and independent gain control characteristics at each speaker output for local adaptability. This local quality approach enables both array stability and individual speaker versatility.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution effectively limits input signals to prevent overdriving while preserving the relative gains of the speaker array, ensuring consistent audio output and maintaining the array's balance by uniformly reducing signal magnitude across all speakers.
Implementation Method 1
each speaker configured to receive a respective filtered signal of the plurality of filtered signals and to transduce the respective filtered signal to an audio signal
Data Source
AI summary
An audio system, including at least one approximating circuit, the at least one approximating circuit configured to apply an approximated gain to the input signal, the least one approximating circuit outputting an approximated signal; a limiter configured to reduce a magnitude of the input signal by a gain determined by an amount the magnitude of the approximated filtered signal exceeds a predetermined threshold, the limiter outputting a limited input signal; a filter being respectively configured to receive the limited input signal and to respectively apply a filter gain, the filters outputting a plurality of filtered signals, wherein the approximated gain is substantially similar to the filter gain of one of the plurality of equalization filters; and a speaker array comprising a plurality of speakers, each speaker configured to receive a respective filtered signal of the plurality of filtered signals and to transduce the filtered signal to an audio signal.