Vehicle Audio Integrator Prioritizing Critical Signals
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Solution Overview
Problem
The cluttered audio environment in truck cabs, with multiple independent audio devices, often results in missed directional instructions and poor voice recognition due to ambient noise and interference from multiple voices, particularly from CB radios.
Innovation Solution
An audio integrator that monitors and prioritizes multiple audio sources, delaying lower-priority audio signals and introducing a unique tone before switching to higher-priority sources to ensure clear delivery of critical information, using an active audio detection circuit, controller, audio multiplexer, and time delay buffer.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple independent audio devices are used in the truck cab, then drivers can access various audio sources (radio, CB radio, personal audio players, navigation system), but the audio environment becomes cluttered and drivers miss critical directional instructions due to interference from multiple voices and ambient noise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple independent audio devices into a unified audio system with a single output. The audio integrator consolidates audio sources including radio, CB radio, personal audio players, and navigation system into one integrated architecture, allowing centralized control and prioritization of audio signals to prevent information loss while maintaining access to diverse audio sources.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements dynamic audio source prioritization where the priority of different audio sources can change based on operational context. The audio integrator dynamically adjusts which audio source is active and at what volume level, allowing critical navigation instructions to take precedence over entertainment audio while maintaining flexibility in audio source selection.
2Ease of operation
If voice recognition functionality is added to allow hands-free operation, then driver safety is improved, but recognition accuracy suffers badly in the presence of multiple voices and ambient noise from CB radio and other audio sources
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary audio source management by preemptively silencing or reducing volume of lower-priority audio sources before voice recognition is needed. The audio integrator proactively creates a quieter audio environment for voice commands by suppressing interfering audio sources, thereby improving voice recognition accuracy before the recognition process begins.
3Speed
If audio sources are switched abruptly when higher priority sources become active, then critical information can be delivered promptly, but the beginning of messages may be lost during the switching transition
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-loads higher-priority audio sources into a buffer before they need to be played. When a high-priority audio source becomes active, the buffered audio is already ready for immediate output, eliminating the transition delay that would otherwise cause loss of message beginning while still allowing rapid switching when needed.
4Measurement precision
If noise-cancelling microphones and voice recognition system training are used, then ambient noise effects are reduced, but the system cannot be trained to ignore voices coming in over CB radio during voice commands
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts and removes interfering audio sources from the voice recognition environment rather than trying to train the system to ignore them. The audio integrator identifies CB radio and other interfering voices as separate audio sources and selectively mutes or reduces their volume during voice command periods, eliminating the need for complex training to ignore specific voice patterns.
Data Source
AI summary
An audio integrator monitors the outputs of a plurality of audio sources, and a controller prioritizes the audio sources. An active audio detection circuit determines when one or more of the audio sources become active. When the two or more audio sources are active simultaneously, the controller directs the highest priority audio source to one or more speakers. If a lower priority audio signal is currently playing, newly active voice communication audio, such as communications or directional information, is delayed to preserve the beginning of the message during an audio switch-over. A currently-playing, lower-priority audio signal may be decreased in volume, and a tone unique to the new audio source sounded, prior to the switching the audio to the higher-priority source. During audio input (e.g., while actuating a push-to-talk button on a microphone), all active audio sources are quieted.