Wireless Headphone Audio Relay Using Snoop Reception and ECC
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wireless headphones with true wireless stereo (TWS) technology face issues of high power consumption and data transmission quality due to the primary headphone forwarding data to the secondary headphone, and physical obstructions affecting signal latency.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system where one wireless headphone works in a snoop mode to receive data directly from the audio source, reducing the primary headphone's power consumption and improving data transmission quality by using error correcting codes to correct errors without re-transmitting data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the primary wireless headphone forwards audio data to the secondary wireless headphone, then the secondary headphone can receive audio information, but the power consumption of the primary headphone increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the data forwarding function from the primary headphone by introducing a snoop-mode secondary headphone that directly receives audio data from the audio source. This eliminates the need for the primary headphone to forward data, thereby reducing its power consumption while maintaining data transmission quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces error correcting codes as an intermediary mechanism to improve data transmission reliability. The primary headphone generates error correcting codes based on the audio data and transmits them to the secondary headphone, enabling the secondary headphone to correct transmission errors without requiring re-transmission of the original audio data.
2Reliability
If the primary headphone forwards data to the secondary headphone, then the secondary headphone can receive audio information, but data transmission latency increases due to physical obstructions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the audio data reception path from the primary headphone by enabling the secondary headphone to directly receive audio data from the audio source in snoop mode. This parallel reception path eliminates the forwarding delay through the primary headphone, reducing signal latency caused by physical obstructions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies error correcting codes in advance to the audio data transmitted from the audio source. This preliminary encoding allows the secondary headphone to correct transmission errors immediately upon reception without waiting for re-transmission, thereby reducing latency.
3Reliability
If error correcting codes are generated and transmitted, then data transmission quality improves, but the communication overhead increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies error correcting codes selectively based on the specific transmission conditions. The primary headphone generates error correcting codes only when needed, and the secondary headphone processes these codes locally to correct errors. This localized approach improves data transmission quality without adding excessive communication overhead across the entire system.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of wireless audio systems and methods for wirelessly communicating audio information are disclosed herein. In one example, a wireless audio system includes a first wireless headphone and a second wireless headphone. The first wireless headphone is configured to receive, from an audio source, audio information using a first type of short-range wireless communication; and in response to successfully receiving the audio information from the audio source, transmit an audio information message including the audio information using a second type of short-range wireless communication different from the first type of short-range wireless communication. The second wireless headphone is configured to receive, from the audio source, the audio information using the first type of short-range wireless communication; receive, from the first wireless headphone, the audio information message using the second type of short-range wireless communication; and in response to at least one of (i) successfully receiving the audio information from the audio source and the first wireless headphone successfully receiving the audio information from the audio source, or (ii) successfully receiving the audio information message from the first wireless headphone, transmit an acknowledgement message to the audio source.