Virtual Studio Plugin Personalized Spatial Audio
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current virtual studio plugins using head-related transfer functions (HRTFs) and generic room measurements often result in unnatural sound coloration and spatial imaging when mixing and auditioning music on headphones, failing to accurately replicate the high-fidelity sound experience of professional studios.
Innovation Solution
A virtual studio plugin system that combines studio-specific acoustic characteristics with user-specific aural characteristics, utilizing a binaural HRTF processor to generate personalized spatial audio profiles, allowing users to replicate the immersive experience of various studio environments on headphones by processing audio signals with both studio and user-specific data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If generic room measurements and HRTFs are used in virtual studio plugins, then the system complexity is reduced and ease of manufacture is improved, but the sound fidelity and naturalness deteriorate due to tonal coloration and unnatural spatial imaging
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by capturing user-specific aural characteristics (ear geometry, head shape) in advance through image scanning or measurement, and pre-processing acoustic data for different listening positions. This allows the virtual studio to deliver personalized high-fidelity spatial audio without requiring complex real-time measurements during actual use, thus maintaining ease of manufacture while achieving superior sound fidelity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the audio processing into distinct components: user-specific aural characteristic extraction, studio acoustic impulse response generation, and personalized spatial audio rendering. By dividing the system into modular segments that can be independently processed and stored, the patent achieves high-fidelity personalized audio while keeping the overall system manageable and manufacturable.
2Manufacturing precision
If personalized user-specific aural characteristics are captured and processed, then the sound fidelity and naturalness are improved, but the device complexity and data processing requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates simplified copies of the user's aural characteristics through image scanning and geometric modeling, rather than requiring complex physical measurements or detailed anatomical data. This copying approach captures the essential acoustic properties needed for personalized spatial audio while significantly reducing device complexity and data processing requirements compared to full 3D scanning or physical measurement systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms complex aural characteristic data into optimized parameter sets that can be efficiently stored and processed. By converting detailed geometric and acoustic measurements into condensed parameter representations (such as impulse responses and transfer functions), the system maintains high sound fidelity while reducing computational complexity and device requirements.
3Adaptability or versatility
If high-fidelity acoustic data from multiple studios is replicated, then the adaptability and versatility are improved, but the loss of information and data management complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the essential acoustic characteristics from studio environments (such as impulse responses, reverberation properties, and spatial characteristics) rather than attempting to replicate entire studio acoustic fields. This extraction approach captures the critical information needed for accurate studio simulation while minimizing data volume and management complexity, enabling versatile multi-studio adaptability without information loss.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and program products for generating a virtual studio are disclosed. In one embodiment a method includes processing image information for at least one pinna of a user to generate a head-related transfer function (HRTF) profile of the user. A studio model that includes a studio-specific acoustic profile is accessed such as by a virtual studio client application executing on a laptop. An audio configuration of the studio model is selected based on the studio-specific acoustic profile. An audio media source is activated and the audio configuration is applied in combination with the HRTF profile of the user to audio generated by the audio media source.