Vehicle Interior Impact Sound Analysis for Hands-Free Drum Playback

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing vehicle infotainment systems lack the ability to enhance user experience by allowing users to easily add sounds to music without distraction, particularly during long drives.

Innovation Solution

A method and computer program that captures user-generated sounds within the vehicle interior, analyzes them, and plays corresponding drum sounds over the vehicle speakers, utilizing a software application connected to the vehicle network and equipped with a trained sound model to identify and assign sounds to recorded drum sounds.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If users manually control audio functions through traditional infotainment systems, then audio playback is basic and simple, but user entertainment experience is limited and lacks personalization

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveentertainment experienceVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system automatically captures user-generated sounds, analyzes them using a trained sound model, and triggers corresponding drum sounds without requiring manual user input. The software application autonomously monitors vehicle interior sounds, identifies drum-like patterns, and plays enhanced audio through vehicle speakers, allowing the system to serve itself rather than requiring complex user controls

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces manual mechanical interaction with acoustic field-based detection. Instead of requiring users to physically select or control audio functions through buttons or touchscreens, the system uses microphones to capture sound waves, processes them through digital signal analysis, and automatically triggers audio responses, substituting mechanical control with acoustic sensing and digital processing

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Adaptability or versatility

If users add sounds to music during driving, then entertainment value increases, but driver distraction and safety risks increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaudio customizationVSAvoiddriver distraction

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system automatically detects and processes user-generated sounds without requiring driver intervention. The software application continuously monitors the vehicle interior acoustic environment, automatically identifies drum-like sounds, and triggers corresponding audio effects, eliminating the need for drivers to manually control audio functions while still providing entertainment enhancement

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as an entertainment system by adding drum sounds to music, while also serving as a passive driver assistance system by automatically filtering and processing sounds to ensure only relevant audio enhancements are triggered, thereby maintaining safety while providing entertainment

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Measurement precision

If the system captures and processes all vehicle interior sounds, then sound detection capability is comprehensive, but processing time and computational resources increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesound detection accuracyVSAvoidprocessing time

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system employs a pre-trained sound model that has been previously trained to recognize drum-like sound patterns. This preliminary training allows the system to quickly classify new sounds during operation without requiring extensive real-time analysis, reducing processing time while maintaining detection accuracy

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

Instead of analyzing all captured sounds in equal detail, the system uses a trained model to quickly filter and identify only those sounds that match drum-like patterns. The model performs partial analysis focused specifically on characteristic drum sound features, avoiding exhaustive analysis of all audio frequencies and patterns, thereby reducing computational overhead while maintaining detection precision

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS20250266031A1Method for analyzing sounds within vehicle interior and transmitting corresponding drumkit sounds over speakers of vehicle

Publication Date: 2025.08.21 DR ING H C F PORSCHE AG

AI summary

A computer-implemented method and computer program product for capturing sounds caused by a user of a vehicle and transmitting corresponding sounds over speakers of the vehicle. The method includes the steps of: (a) connecting a software application to a vehicle network; (b) capturing a user-generated sound caused by an impact of the user on a component of a vehicle interior; (c) analyzing the captured user-generated sound and associating the user-generated sound with a recorded drum sound; and (d) playing the recorded drum sound over the speakers of the vehicle. The computer program is configured to perform the aforementioned steps.