Sonos, Inc.

International Business Machines Corporation

Jeffrey M Peters

Hrishikesh Gossain

Nicholas A J Millington

Steven R Beckhardt

Gary Fox

Michael Agerbak

Jose Graziani

Jeff Derderian

Ted M Lin

William Shoesmith

Timothy W Sheen

Jason Yore

Joseph H Allen

Steven Bechardt

Heather D Achilles

Ryan Kitson

David Zachary Maze

Won So

Moshe M E Matsa

Cameron Scott

Michael Sheldon

David J Hoeweler

Cheng Lu

Nicholas Aj Millington

Brandon Wright

Zhaoyun Huang

James Babu

Bryan Cox

Andi Rusu

Nicholas AJ Millington

Example techniques relate to re-establishing connectivity of playback devices. In an example implementation, a first playback device determines that a first access point has been replaced with a second access point, wherein the first playback device previously established a valid network connection over the first WLAN using first network parameters. The first playback device connects to the second access point, the second access point providing a second WLAN. The first playback device requests, via the wireless network interface from the second access point, an IP address in a second subnet, the second subnet covering a different range of IP addresses than the first subnet and establishes a network connection over the second WLAN using second network parameters stored in the data storage of the first playback device.

Re-establishing player connectivity

An example first playback device is configured to: while the first playback device is in a synchrony group with a second playback device, play back a first version of audio content in synchrony with the second playback device; in response to identifying that a quality of a connection between the second playback device and a network device is below a threshold criterion, cause the second playback device to play back a second version of the audio content in synchrony with the first version of the audio content playing back by the first playback device; and in response to detecting a change in the quality of the connection between the second playback device and the network device such that the quality of the connection meets the threshold criterion, cause the second playback device to play back the first version of the audio content in synchrony with the first playback device.

Managing content quality and related characteristics of a media playback system

A playback device comprising a first spectrum radio for communication via a first wireless spectrum and a second spectrum radio for communication via a second wireless spectrum operates in a first mode in which the first spectrum radio is enabled and the second spectrum radio is disabled. While operating in the first mode, the playback device receives a command to join a synchrony group with a display device. Based on the command, the playback device begins to operate in a second mode in which the second spectrum radio is enabled. The playback device receives audio content for playback, wherein the audio content corresponds to video content being displayed at a display device. Using the second spectrum radio, the playback device coordinates with the display device for playing back the audio content in synchrony with the video content.

Wireless radio switching

Disclosed herein are playback devices, groups of playback devices, and methods of operating playback devices and groupings thereof, wherein individual playback devices are configured to detect and correct clock rate drift by synchronizing a clock rate and perhaps clock time of a local clock to a remote time source.

Techniques for clock rate synchronization

An example playback device includes programming for executing functions including, while connected to both (i) a local area network and (ii) an audio playback network configured separately from the local area network and arranged for playback of media content via at least the playback device, receiving from a network device via the local area network, a request for the network device to connect to the audio playback network. The functions also include, in response to the request, transmitting to the network device via the local area network, a message indicating an identifier of the audio playback network and a password for accessing the audio playback network. The functions also include exchanging one or more messages with the network device via the audio playback network to authenticate the network device for the audio playback network and receiving an audio playback command from the network device via the audio playback network.

Audio playback network joining

A first playback device is configured to (1) determine, based on a group configuration of a synchrony group including the first playback device and a second playback device, that the first playback device, and not the second playback device, is to operate as a group coordinator for the synchrony group, wherein the group coordinator transmits audio content and playback timing information, (2) begin to operate as the group coordinator, (3) while operating as the group coordinator, determine respective battery state variable values for the first and second playback devices, (4) based on the respective battery state variable values, determine that a computing device other than the first playback device is to operate as the group coordinator, and (5) based on the determining, (i) discontinue operating as the group coordinator and (ii) cause the computing device to operate as the group coordinator instead of the first playback device.

Group coordinator selection

An example computing device is configured to (i) establish a connection to a secure wireless network (ii) determine that one or more playback devices of a media playback system are not connected to the secure wireless network (iii) receive, via a graphical display, a user input indicating a request to update the one or more playback devices with network configuration parameters for the secure wireless network, (iv) retrieve, from storage, a list of the one or more playback devices, (v) receive an input indicating a first playback device to be updated from the list, (vi) establish an initial communication path with the first playback device, (vii) transmit a set of one or more messages to the first computing device collectively comprising the network configuration parameters for the secure wireless network, and (viii) receive an indication that the first computing device has established a connection to the secure wireless network.

Updating network configuration parameters

A playback device includes programming for connecting to a first wireless local area network (WLAN) and storing a first set of network configuration parameters including an identifier of the first WLAN and a first security parameter for the first WLAN. The functions also include disconnecting from the first WLAN, receiving a second set of network configuration parameters including an identifier of a second WLAN and a second security parameter for the second WLAN, and storing the second set of network configuration parameters. The functions also include reconnecting to the first WLAN using the stored first set of network configuration parameters and, after reconnecting to the first WLAN, transmitting, absent user request, the second set of network configuration parameters to at least one other playback device that is connected to the first WLAN for storage on the at least one other playback device that is connected to the first WLAN.

Multi-network playback devices

Disclosed herein are playback devices, groups of playback devices, and methods of operating playback devices and groupings thereof to cause the playback devices in a mixed-mode configuration to play audio content in synchrony with each other.

Mixed-mode synchronous playback

Examples are provided for establishing a bonded zone comprising a first playback device comprising a respective first wireless radio and a second playback device comprising a second respective wireless radio. The first and second playback devices may establish a bonded zone comprising at least the first and second playback device. While in the established bonded zone, the first playback device may determine that the first playback device is in the established bonded zone and that the first playback device is not currently playing audio in synchrony with the second playback device. Responsive to determining that the first playback device is not playing audio in synchrony, the first playback device may disable communicating via the first wireless radio of the first playback device and send a message to the second playback device to disable communicating via the first wireless radio of the second playback device.

A computing device may broadcast a first message via a wireless interface while operating according to a first network topology. After broadcasting the first message, the computing device may receive the first message via a wired interface. Based on receiving the first message via the wired interface, the computing device may broadcast a second message indicating a second network topology via the wireless interface. Based on receiving the first message via the wired interface, the computing device may operate according to the second network topology.

Transition between network connections

A first playback device may include at least one battery, a network interface, at least one processor, a non-transitory computer-readable medium, and program instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium. The program instructions may be executable by the at least one processor such that the first playback device is configured to (i) receive an instruction to operate as a group coordinator of a synchrony group, (ii) determine a value of a battery state variable of the at least one battery, (iii) based on the value of the battery state variable of the at least one battery, select a second playback device from one or more other members of the synchrony group to operate as the group coordinator of the synchrony group, and (iv) cause the second playback device to operate as the group coordinator of the synchrony group.

A network interface of a first computing device is configured to operate according to a bridge table. The bridge table defines a spanning tree protocol for a mesh network and identifies one or more reachable nodes. A communication characteristic between the first computing device and a second computing device of the one or more reachable nodes is determined to exceed a quality threshold. Based on the determination that the communication characteristic exceeds the quality threshold, the spanning tree protocol is overridden and the data is transmitted directly to the second computing device via a direct communication route.

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Leominster, MA, United States of America

Jeffrey M Peters