Avnera Corporation

Skyworks Solutions, Inc.

Other

Avnera Corpor Ation

Amit Kumar

Eric Sorensen

Shankar Rathoud

Michael Jon Wurtz

Jiajin An

Xudong Zhao

Thomas Irrgang

Wai Laing Lee

Jianping Wen

Eric P Etheridge

David B Wurtz

Manpreet Singh Khaira

Garry Link

Colin Doolittle

Mike Wurtz

Shawn O'Connor

James E Scanlan

Deepika Kumari

Evan Michael Albright

Thomas Lynn Kuntz

James McNames

Eric T King

Mark R Peting

Alexander C Stange

Meenakshi Barjatia

Wai Lang Lee

Sumit Kumar

Colin Michael Doolittle

David Lamb

Spencer David Leuenberger

Garry N Link

In some embodiments, a method for evaluating headphones during a manufacturing process can include generating a test sound and measuring a response to the test sound from a headphone being evaluated. The method can further include configuring and/or calibrating the headphone based on the measurement. In some embodiments, such a method can be implemented as part of a process for manufacturing of a large number of headphones having active noise cancellation functionality.

Systems, devices and methods related to design and production of active noise cancellation devices

A circumaural headset having a first earcup and a second earcup can include a first transducer disposed with the first earcup and configured to transmit a first non-audible signal with an audible signal, a second transducer disposed within the second earcup and configured to receive the first non-audible signal from the first transducer, and an off-ear detection processor configured to determine whether the headset has been removed from the user's head based on the second transducer receiving the first non-audible signal from the first transducer.

Crosstalk off ear detection for circumaural headset

In some embodiments, a calibration circuit for an audio amplification system can include a tone generator configured to provide a tone having a frequency to an input path of an audio amplifier, such that an input signal provided to the audio amplifier includes the tone, a a first sampling circuit configured to sample an output signal at an output node of the audio amplifier, and a second sampling circuit configured to sample the input signal at an input node of the audio amplifier. The calibration circuit can further include a gain adjustment circuit configured to generate a correction signal based on the sampled output signal and the sampled input signal to correct for a gain variation of the audio amplifier.

Gain calibration for audio amplifiers

An illustrated view of an exemplary nail and foot care apparatus for foot maintenance and treatment is presented. The footcare apparatuscomprises a support stand, a footrest, a tray, a storage box, one or more battery banks, a light, a fan, a mobile holder. The footrest, the tray, the storage box, the battery banks, the light, and the fan are configured to detachably coupled together and rest on the adjustable, foldable support stand. The footcare apparatus provides convenient access to foot and toes part, without the help of others. It can be used for treatment of the foot and leg of a patient at hospital and clinics. Enables easy cleaning of the clippings, treatment wastes with detachable tray. It is provided with number of storage options during and after use, to keep the pedicure tools, cosmetics and electronic gadgets.

Nail and foot care apparatus

Many headsets include automatic noise cancellation (ANC) which dramatically reduces perceived background noise and improves user listening experience. Unfortunately, the voice microphones in these devices often capture ambient noise that the headsets output during phone calls or other communication sessions to other users. In response, many headsets and communication devices provide manual muting circuitry, but users frequently forget to turn the muting on and/or off creating further problems as they communicate. To address this, the present inventors devised, among other things, an exemplary headset that detects the absence or presence of user speech, automatically muting and unmuting the voice microphone without user intervention. Some embodiments leverage relationships between feedback and feedforward signals in ANC circuitry to detect user speech, avoiding the addition of extra hardware to the headset. Other embodiments also leverage the speech detection function to activate and deactivate keyword detectors, and/or sidetone circuits, thus extending battery.

User voice activity detection

A method of operating a headphone configured to be removed from and placed in close proximity to a user's ear can include generating an input signal by an input signal generating device. The method can also include determining whether an insertion event has occurred based on the generated input signal and causing the headphone to operate in 5 a low power mode responsive to an absence of an insertion event determination after a first period of time. The method can also include causing the headphone to operate in an ultra-low power mode responsive to the absence of an insertion event determination after a second period of time that occurs after the first period of time, the ultra-low power mode having a lower power consumption than the low power mode.

Earbud operation during earbud insertion detection

A system includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing program instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the system to send an acoustic ranging transmitter signal between a plurality of calibration reference positions and at least one anchor point, receive an acoustic ranging receiver signal associated with the acoustic ranging transmitter signal and with distances between the plurality of calibration reference positions and the at least one anchor point, and estimate a speed of sound based on the acoustic ranging receiver signal.

Wideband acoustic positioning with precision calibration and joint parameter estimation

Headphone operation during headphone insertion detection

The disclosure includes a voice isolation system comprising an acoustic echo-cancelation subsystem configured to receive a plurality of input signals, subtract an interference component from the input signals, and provide a plurality of output signals. The system also includes an adaptive beamformer subsystem configured to receive the plurality of output signals from the acoustic echo-cancelation subsystem and compute a signal-to-noise ratio enhanced signal based on the received output signals. The system also includes a residual noise suppressor subsystem configured to attenuate at least one portion of the SNR enhanced signal received from the adaptive beamformer subsystem based on the at least one portion having an SNR below a predetermined SNR threshold. The system also includes an automatic gain control subsystem configured to process a signal outputted from the residual noise suppressor subsystem and transmit a resulting signal as an output signal.

Voice isolation system

Disclosed is a signal processor for headphone off-ear detection. The signal processor includes an audio output to transmit an audio signal toward a headphone speaker in a headphone cup. The signal processor also includes a feedback (FB) microphone input to receive a FB signal from a FB microphone in the headphone cup. The signal processor also includes an off-ear detection (OED) signal processor to determine an audio frequency response of the FB signal over an OED frame as a received frequency response. The OED processor also determines an audio frequency response of the audio signal times an off-ear transfer function between the headphone speaker and the FB microphone as an ideal off-ear response. A difference metric is generated comparing the received frequency response to the ideal off-ear frequency response. The difference metric is employed to detect when the headphone cup is disengaged from an ear.

Headphone off-ear detection

A method of operating a headphone configured to be removed from and placed in close proximity to a user's ear can include generating an input signal by an input signal generating device. The method can also include determining whether an insertion event has occurred based on the generated input signal and causing the headphone to operate in a low power mode responsive to an absence of an insertion event determination after a first period of time. The method can also include causing the headphone to operate in an ultra-low power mode responsive to the absence of an insertion event determination after a second period of time that occurs after the first period of time, the ultra-low power mode having a lower power consumption than the low power mode.

Disclosed is a signal processor for headphone off-ear detection. The signal processor includes an audio output to transmit an audio signal toward a headphone speaker in a headphone cup. The signal processor also includes a feedback (FB) microphone input to receive a FB signal from a FB microphone in the headphone cup. The signal processor also includes an off-ear detection (OED) signal processor to determine an audio frequency response of the FB signal over an OED frame as a received frequency response. The OED processor also determines an audio frequency response of the audio signal times an off-ear transfer function between the headphone speaker and the FB microphone as an ideal off-ear response. A difference metric si generated comparing the received frequency response to the ideal off-ear frequency response. The difference metric is employed to detect when the headphone cup is disengaged from an ear.

An audio processing system can include an Analog to Digital Converter structured to receive an analog input signal and convert the analog input signal to a digital input signal, a first processor coupled with the Analog to Digital Converter, the first processor including at least one programmable bi-quadratic filter chain structured to receive the digital input signal from the Analog to Digital Converter and perform audio processing on the received digital input signal at a first clock rate, and a second processor coupled with the first processor and the Analog to Digital Converter and structured to receive the digital input signal from the Analog to Digital Converter and perform audio processing on the received digital input signal at a second clock rate that is different from the first clock rate.

Acoustic processor having low latency

A system including an automatic noise canceling (ANC) headphone and a processor. The ANC headphone has a microphone configured to generate a microphone signal and at least two non-zero ANC gain levels. The processor is configured to receive the microphone signal, determine a characteristic of the microphone signal, and identify a revised ANC level from the ANC gain levels based on a comparison of the characteristic to at least one threshold. Methods are also disclosed.

Active noise cancelation with controllable levels

A headphone having a speaker, a feedforward microphone, a feedback microphone, and an OED processor. The speaker is configured to transmit an audio playback signal based on a headphone audio signal. The feedforward microphone is configured to sense an ambient noise signal and transmit a feedforward microphone signal based at least in part on the ambient noise signal. The feedback microphone is configured to sense a total audio signal and transmit a feedback microphone signal based at least in part on the total audio signal, in which the total audio signal is the sum of the audio playback signal and at least a portion of the ambient noise level. The OED processor is configured to determine whether the headphone is off ear or on ear, based at least in part on the headphone audio signal, the feedforward microphone signal, and the feedback microphone signal.

Growing community of inventors

Portland, OR, United States of America

Amit Kumar