France Telecom

Jean-Pascal Jullien

Jean-Marc Jot

Georges Buchner

Yannick Mahieux

Christian Wipliez

Olivier Warusfel

A video-conferencing system between participants located at distant sites, each site featuring a viewing screen. The viewing screen is a large screen of the projection, overhead projection, or direct projection type which has one or more viewing systems forming an image wall to simultaneously view all the distant participants within a space reproduced on the image wall formed by the screen. The system includes devices for each site that spatially distribute the sound to match the sound generated by each distant participant and the image of the participant projected on the screen at the site considered.

Videoconference system

A method for the simulation of the acoustical quality produced by a virtual sound source and for the localizing of this source with respect to one or more listeners, and one or more original sound sources. This method consists in: 1) fixing values of perceptual parameters defining the acoustical quality to be simulated and values of parameters defining the localization of a virtual source, 2) converting these values into a pulse response described by its energy distribution as a function of the time and the frequency, 3) carrying out a context compensation so as to take account of an existing room effect, 4) obtaining an artificial reverberation from elementary signals so as to achieve a virtual acoustic environment in real time and control the localizing of the virtual source. This method can be used to modify sound signals coming from a real source, or to create sound effects on recording media. An acoustic virtual processor which enables implementation of this method comprises a signal processing 'room' module that enables the obtaining of an artificial reverberation and a signal processing 'pan' module enabling the controlling of the localization and the movement of the sound source and that carries out a format conversion into another reproduction mode. The acoustic virtual processor can be used to fit out all types of entertainment halls or games halls.

Growing community of inventors

Paris, France

Jean-Pascal Jullien