Visual Audio Characteristic Representation for File Selection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face challenges in selecting appropriate audio files for ringtones or alerts on computing devices due to insufficient objective information, requiring them to play and listen to multiple files to assess audio characteristics like loudness and rhythm, which is time-consuming and often impractical.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that determine and visually represent audio characteristics such as loudness, rhythm, and signal bandwidth of audio files without playing them, allowing users to select audio files based on these characteristics directly from a display.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If users play and listen to multiple audio files to assess audio characteristics, then selection accuracy is improved, but time consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical action of playing audio files (acoustic evaluation) with visual display of audio characteristics (objective data presentation). Users select audio files by viewing displayed characteristics like loudness, rhythm, and signal bandwidth rather than listening to each file, thereby eliminating time-consuming playback while maintaining selection accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary system (display device and processing circuitry) that extracts and presents audio characteristics from audio files. This intermediary allows users to assess audio properties visually without direct interaction with the audio playback, resolving the contradiction between accurate assessment and time efficiency.
2Measurement precision
If users play audio files to evaluate audio characteristics, then informed decision making is improved, but disruption to environment increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent substitutes acoustic evaluation (playing audio files that create sound waves) with visual evaluation (displaying audio characteristics). This eliminates sound output entirely, allowing users to make informed decisions about audio files without creating environmental disruption from audio playback.
3Device complexity
If objective information such as file name and format is presented, then device complexity is reduced, but information sufficiency worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges simple objective information (file name, format) with additional audio characteristics (loudness, rhythm, signal bandwidth) into a unified display. This combination maintains the simplicity of basic metadata while enriching it with meaningful audio properties, thereby improving information sufficiency without significantly increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The display system is designed to present multiple types of information (metadata and audio characteristics) through a single interface. This multi-functional approach provides comprehensive information for audio file selection while maintaining a simple, unified presentation method that does not require separate complex systems for different information types.
Data Source
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AI summary
A method, apparatus and computer program product are provided to facilitate the review of audio files, such as in conjunction with the selection of one or more audio files. In the context of a method, one or more audio characteristics are determined for each of one or more audio files. The method may also include causing a visual representation of the one or more audio files to be presented for selection. The method may also include providing for at least one visual element representative of at least one of the one or more audio characteristics of the respective audio files to be displayed based on the determined one or more audio characteristics with the presentation of the visual representation of the one or more audio files.