Venue Audio Re-Mixing to Reduce Comb Filtering and Latency
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Solution Overview
Problem
The comb filtering effect and audio latency issues in real-world venues cause undesirable audio phenomena such as metallic sounds, echoes, and synchronization problems, which are not effectively managed by existing technologies.
Innovation Solution
An audio de-mixing tool deconstructs a composite audio program into multiple audio sounds, analyzes their characteristics, and constructs a playback presentation to minimize comb filtering and latency, using pattern recognition and audio re-mixing tools to optimize sound distribution across real-world loudspeakers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If audio sounds are played back through multiple loudspeakers in a real-world venue, then the audio coverage and immersion are improved, but comb filtering effects and audio latency cause metallic sounds, echoes, and synchronization problems
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the composite audio program into multiple individual audio sounds using audio de-mixing technology. This allows each audio sound to be processed and routed to specific loudspeaker groups independently, enabling precise control over audio playback timing and spatial distribution to minimize comb filtering effects while maintaining broad audio coverage.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary analysis of the real-world venue's acoustic characteristics and loudspeaker configuration before audio playback. Audio control signals are pre-configured with timing adjustments and spatial routing information to compensate for anticipated comb filtering and latency issues, ensuring synchronized playback across multiple loudspeakers.
2Reliability
If the time delay between audio sound and its reflections is increased, then the human ear can perceive separate signals, but this creates noticeable echoes and degrades audio quality
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates feedback loops that continuously monitor audio playback and venue acoustic conditions. Real-time adjustments are made to audio control signals to compensate for reflections and prevent echo formation, maintaining reliable audio perception by dynamically adapting to changing acoustic environments.
3Loss of time
If audio latency between multiple audio sounds is reduced to below 10-12ms, then synchronization is improved, but this requires precise control and processing that increases system complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges audio de-mixing, spatial analysis, timing synchronization, and loudspeaker routing functions into an integrated audio control system. This unified approach reduces overall system complexity while achieving precise latency control below 10-12ms by coordinating all processing stages efficiently rather than treating them as separate complex subsystems.
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
The solution provides a seamless and immersive audio experience by reducing comb filtering and latency, ensuring synchronized and coherent sound playback in venues like music theaters and stadiums.
Implementation Method 1
The comb filtering effect represents a phenomenon within a real-world venue that occurs when an audio sound and its reflections arrive at a location within the real-world venue at different instances in time. Because the reflections travel a further distance than the audio sound, the reflection can arrive at the location later than the audio sound. Often times, specific frequencies of the audio sound are amplified or attenuated by the superposition its reflections onto itself causing the comb filtering effect.
Implementation Method 2
The audio sound can be reflected when it contacts hard surfaces, for example, a floor, a wall, a window, or the like within the real-world venue. Because the reflections travel a further distance than the audio sound, the reflection can arrive at the location later than the audio sound.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems, methods, and apparatuses can playback a composite audio program that is associated with an event being hosted by a real-world venue. These systems, methods, and apparatuses can seamlessly deconstruct the composite audio program into multiple audio sounds that can be collectively played back by the real-world venue. As part of this deconstruction, these systems, methods, and apparatuses can analyze the audio sounds to identify one or more characteristics, parameters, and/or attributes of these audio sounds. These systems, methods, and apparatuses can intelligently construct an audio presentation from these multiple audio sounds to playback the composite audio program within the real-world venue. As part of this construction, these systems, methods, and apparatuses construct the audio presentation based upon the one or more characteristics, parameters, and/or attributes of these audio sounds. After the constructing the audio presentation, these systems, methods, and apparatuses can configure the real-world venue as outlined in the audio presentation to playback the composite audio program within the real-world venue. As part of this constructing, these systems, methods, and apparatuses can identify audio control signals that configure the real-world venue to playback the audio presentation through real-world loudspeakers within the real-world venue.