Wireless Speaker Playback Detection Using Structured Audio Delay

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Solution Overview

Problem

Vehicle computing devices often fail to render initial portions of audio data transmitted by mobile devices due to delays or being in the wrong mode, leading to incomplete audio playback and wasteful retransmissions, particularly in vehicle environments.

Innovation Solution

Determine the audio delay between a computing device and vehicle speakers, append a delay audio segment to the audio stream, and adapt noise reduction techniques to ensure complete audio rendering and efficient transmission.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If audio data is transmitted to vehicle speakers, then audio playback is achieved, but initial portions of audio data are lost due to delay

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaudio playback completenessVSAvoidinitial audio data loss
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by detecting the audio delay between the computing device and vehicle speakers before transmitting audio data. Based on this detected delay, the system pre-adjusts the audio stream by skipping the corresponding number of initial audio frames, ensuring that the transmitted audio data aligns properly with the speakers' playback timing and prevents loss of critical initial audio information.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If audio data is retransmitted to ensure completeness, then audio playback completeness is improved, but computational resources are wasted

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveaudio playback completenessVSAvoidcomputational resource waste
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements feedback by detecting the actual audio delay between the computing device and vehicle speakers, using this feedback information to dynamically adjust the audio stream transmission parameters. This closed-loop approach ensures audio completeness without requiring wasteful retransmissions, as the initial transmission is optimized based on the detected delay characteristics.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

3Measurement precision

If noise reduction is applied to captured audio, then speech recognition accuracy is improved, but audio delay causes inaccurate noise cancellation

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvespeech recognition accuracyVSAvoidaudio timing accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary detection of the audio delay between captured audio and rendered audio before applying noise reduction algorithms. Using this pre-detected delay information, the system adjusts the timing alignment of audio frames, ensuring that noise cancellation operates on properly synchronized audio data, which significantly improves speech recognition accuracy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentEP3916722B1Using structured audio output to detect playback in wireless speakers
Publication Date: 2025.07.16 GOOGLE LLC
  • EP3916722B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3916722B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3916722B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Implementations are directed to determining an audio delay, of a computing device, by causing an audio data stream to be transmitted to the computing device via a wireless communication channel. The computing device causes audio output generated using the audio data stream to be rendered via speaker(s). The rendered audio output is captured via microphone(s), and the audio delay determined by comparing the captured audio output with the audio data stream. A delay audio segment can be appended to an additional audio data stream transmitted to the computing device, where the length of the delay audio segment is determined using the audio delay. A noise reduction technique can additionally or alternatively be adapted based on the audio delay. Implementations are additionally or alternatively directed to determining if an audio data stream transmitted to a computing device for rendering through speaker(s) driven by the computing device - is actually being rendered.