Sony Corporation

Makoto Mitsuno

Hiroshi Suzuki

Kenzo Akagiri

Osamu Shimoyoshi

Masashi Ohta

Mamoru Tanaka

Mitsunori Tanaka

A signal processing apparatus may include a decoder that decodes a compressed audio stream encoded by a predetermined codec, a signal processing unit that applies predetermined signal processing to an audio stream obtained by decoding the compressed audio stream with the decoder, a first acquisition unit that acquires at least one of information described in a header of the compressed audio stream and management information for contents including the compressed audio stream, a setting unit that discriminates, on the basis of the information, a type of the codec used for the encode of the compressed audio stream and sets a codec used for encode of the audio stream, and an encoder that encodes, in accordance with the setting by the setting unit, the audio stream subjected to the signal processing by the signal processing unit and outputs the audio stream to an external apparatus that has a decoder.

Signal processing apparatus, signal processing method, and computer program

A data recording and reproducing apparatus is adapted to receive audio data created by encoding an original sound signal and to decode the audio data into the original sound signal to thereby reproduce the original sound signal. The data recording and reproducing apparatus includes a data storage unit operable to store the audio data; a feature point information creation unit operable to create information about feature points by extracting information about characteristics of sound indicated by the original sound signal from the stored audio data and to create feature point information based on the extracted information; and an altered-speed reproduction unit operable to reproduce the original sound signal at an altered speed by decoding the audio data and thinning out the decoded audio data based on the feature point information.

Data recording and reproducing apparatus, method of recording and reproducing data, and program therefor

A data recording and/or reproducing method and apparatus. The apparatus may include one or more buffer memories, a recorder, a controller, and/or a reproducing unit. Continuous picture and/or speech data may be stored, recorded, and/or reproduced. The size of a recording unit may be controlled such that it corresponds to the amount of picture and/or speech data recorded by the recorder.

Data recording apparatus and method, and data recording and/or reproducing apparatus and method

Disc recording method and device, and disc like recording medium

In a recording/reproducing or transmitting/receiving device for compressed data the temporal size of a processing block during the compression process is rendered variable responsive to larger amplitude changes in the input signals. The device includes power calculating circuits for calculating the masking effect on a processing block based on amplitude changes in the waveform on the time axis of various frequency bands of the processing block and based on the power of a processing block(s) other than the subject processing block. A primary block size decision circuit and a block size correction circuit are utilized to determine the temporal size of the subject processing block.

Length of a processing block is rendered variable responsive to input

A device for recording and/or reproducing or transmitting and/or receiving compressed data includes decoding circuits 31 to 33 for performing expansion during the compression process is disclosed. An error produced during the compression process is calculated by an input/output error calculating circuit 41 from the input data and data compressed by adaptive bit allocation encoding circuits 22 to 24 and expanded by the decoding circuits 31 to 33, and bit allocation is again calculated on the basis of the error produced during the compression process, with the input data remaining as it is. The bit allocation re-calculated in this manner is quantized by the encoding circuits 22 to 24. Besides, data annulling the error produced during the compression process is formulated by the input/output error calculating circuit 41 and summed to the input signals for subsequent quantization. Compressed signals suited to the input signals may be obtained even if the model for the auditory sense or constants occasionally employed are not suited to the input signals, or if the input signals are unanticipated signals.

Device for recording and /or reproducing or transmitting and/or

Information compacting method and apparatus, compacted information

A method for encoding audio signals includes dividing input audio signals into a two-dimensional block of time and frequency and quantizing the two-dimensional blocks based upon bit allocation as determined for each of the two-dimensional blocks. Scale factors are calculated indicating characteristics of signal components for each of the plural two-dimensional blocks, and bit allocations are determined for a pre-set one of the two-dimensional blocks based upon the scale factor of the pre-set two-dimensional block and plural scale factors of plural ones of the two-dimensional blocks neighboring to said pre-set two-dimensional block on the frequency axis.

Encoding method and apparatus for bit compressing digital audio signals

Methods and apparatus for recording, reproducing, transmitting and/or receiving compressed data, and a recording medium therefor, utilize frequency dividing filters for dividing the frequency range of digital signals into plural frequency bands, orthogonal transform circuits for producing signal components in plural two-dimensional blocks along time and frequency, an adaptive bit allocation and encoding circuit for quantizing and compressing the information for each two-dimensional block and a bit allocation and calculating circuit. When recording the information together with information compressing parameters for each two-dimensional block, the information compressing parameters for at least two two-dimensional blocks are recorded collectively to avoid complicacy in the structure of the sampling frequency signal generating circuits or the like otherwise caused in case of providing plural sampling frequencies as well as to prevent an increase in hardware scale.

Growing community of inventors

Kanagawa, Japan

Makoto Mitsuno