Wearable Audio Accessory Speech Interface Rolling Buffer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing audio accessories for smartphones primarily focus on music listening and phone calls, lacking the ability to access data stored on the device, and notifications are often unreliable and require network connectivity.
Innovation Solution
A wearable speech interface device that provides a hands-free, eye-free interface between the user and a computing device, using a speech-based interface for microtasks and notifications, with a continuous audio sensing channel and wireless communication link, and a tiered audio processing approach to optimize performance and power consumption.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a speech-based interface with continuous audio monitoring is implemented, then user interaction flexibility and notification reliability are improved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The audio processing system dynamically adjusts its operation between continuous monitoring mode and event-triggered mode. The tiered processing architecture allows the system to operate at different levels of intensity based on current needs, switching from low-power state to high-processing state only when speech or specific audio events are detected, thus resolving the contradiction between continuous interaction capability and power consumption
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary audio analysis using the continuous sensing channel to detect speech or relevant audio events before activating the full audio processing pipeline. This preliminary detection mechanism allows the system to remain in a low-power state most of the time while being ready to quickly transition to full processing mode when needed, balancing interaction flexibility with power efficiency
2Measurement precision
If complex audio processing is continuously performed, then speech detection accuracy is improved, but processing time and power consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The audio processing system is segmented into multiple tiers of increasing complexity. The first tier performs continuous low-complexity monitoring for basic audio presence and speech detection. Only when speech is detected does the system activate higher tiers that perform more complex processing. This segmentation allows the system to maintain high speech detection accuracy when needed while minimizing processing time and power consumption during non-speech periods
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies partial processing continuously (monitoring for audio presence) and reserves excessive/full processing (complex speech analysis) for when it is actually needed. This approach ensures that speech detection accuracy is maintained by having the processing capability ready, while avoiding the constant time and energy cost of running full complex processing continuously
3Adaptability or versatility
If network connectivity is required for notifications, then notification functionality is provided, but reliability decreases when network is unavailable
Solution Approach 1:
The wearable device implements self-service capabilities by using its onboard speech detection and audio processing to generate and manage notifications locally without requiring network connectivity. The device can detect speech commands, process them through the tiered audio processing pipeline, and execute corresponding actions or provide feedback independently, making the notification system reliable even when disconnected from the network
Data Source
AI summary
Wearable audio accessories for computing devices are described. In one embodiment the wearable audio accessory provides a speech based interface between the user and a nearby computing device for the performance of user-initiated or computing device initiated microtasks. Information is provided to the user via a loudspeaker and the user can provide input via a microphone. An audio sensing channel within the accessory continuously monitors the audio signal as detected by the microphone and in various embodiments will trigger more complex audio processing based on this monitoring. A wireless communication link is provided between the accessory and the nearby computing device. To mitigate any delay caused by the switching between audio processing techniques, the audio accessory may include a rolling buffer which continuously stores the audio signal and outputs a delayed audio signal to the audio processing engines.