Amazon Technologies, Inc.

Christopher Evans

Sumit Garg

Ameya Agaskar

Zhengping Jin

Mohammad Edris Qarghah

Henry Michael D Souza

Cindy Angie Hou

Brendon Jude Wilson

Ravina Chopra

Described herein is a system for performing watermark detection using multiple time shifts to increase a resolution of watermark detection. Instead of decoding blocks of successive audio frames (e.g., 10 ms of audio) using a single watermark decoder, watermark verification can be performed by decoding overlapping frame shifts using multiple decoders in parallel, thereby increasing a chance that one of the watermark decoders will be synchronized with the embedded audio watermark. For example, watermark verification may split audio data into parallel streams and decode using two decoders (e.g., 2× shifts-per-frame), four decoders (e.g., 4× shifts-per-frame), or the like. Increasing resolution by performing overlapping detection increases an accuracy of the watermark detection without changing the embedded audio watermark.

Decoding audio watermarks using time shifts

Described herein is a system for encoding audio watermarks with time extensions to enable enhanced watermark detection. An extended audio watermark may include an existing audio watermark and a watermark extension, enabling backwards compatibility with existing watermark detection while also enabling enhanced watermark detection with increased accuracy. For example, embedding the extended acoustic watermark enables (i) limited devices to perform watermark detection to detect the existing audio watermark, and (ii) improved devices to perform enhanced watermark detection to detect the extended audio watermark. As the extended audio watermark has a longer time duration than the existing audio watermark, an accuracy of performing enhanced watermark detection is increased relative to detecting the existing audio watermark alone.

Extended audio watermarks

Described herein is a system for encoding audio watermarks with frequency extensions to enable enhanced watermark detection. An extended audio watermark may include an existing audio watermark and a duplicate audio watermark, enabling backwards compatibility with existing watermark detection while also enabling enhanced watermark detection with increased accuracy. For example, embedding the extended audio watermark enables (i) limited devices to perform watermark detection to detect the existing audio watermark, and (ii) improved devices to perform enhanced watermark detection to detect the extended audio watermark. As the extended audio watermark includes redundancy in the form of duplicate audio watermark(s), an accuracy of performing enhanced watermark detection is increased relative to detecting the existing audio watermark alone.

Techniques for performing audio-based device location determinations are described. A system may send, to a first device, a command to output audio requesting a location of the first device be determined. A second device may receive the audio and send, to the system, data representing the second device received the audio, where the received data includes spectral energy data representing a spectral energy of the audio as received by the second device. The system may, using the spectral energy data, determine attenuation data representing an attenuation experienced by the audio as it traveled from the first device to the second device. The system may generate, based on the attenuation data, spatial relationship data representing a spatial relationship between the first device and the second device, where the spatial relationship data is usable to determine a device for outputting a response to a subsequently received user input.

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Somerville, MA, United States of America

Christopher Evans