U.S. Philips Corporation

Patrick A Timmermans

Cornelis Pieter Janse

Paulo M Castello Da Costa

A signal amplification system wherein a signal coming from a microphone is applied to a loudspeaker via a signal processing system. The signal processing system includes an estimator for estimating the transfer function from the loudspeaker to the microphone. The equalizer is set to a transfer function that is reciprocal to the transfer function from the loudspeaker to the microphone to equalize the transfer function from the microphone to the listeners. The estimator may include an adaptive filter which has a transfer function that approaches the transfer function from the loudspeaker to the microphone.

Signal amplification system with automatic equalizer

In a signal amplifier system, a microphone (2) is connected to an echo canceller (16) via a decorrelator (6). The output signal of the echo canceller (16) is amplified by an amplifier (14) and fed to a loudspeaker (18). The echo canceller (16) is included to avoid instability caused by undesired feedback of the signal coming from the loudspeaker (18) through a feedback path (11). To improve the stabilizing effect of the echo canceller (16), the decorrelator (6) is included for decorrelating the signal coming from the microphone (2) and the signal transmitted by the loudspeaker (18).

Signal amplifier system with improved echo cancellation

A known cross-coupled adaptive noise cancelling arrangement uses an adaptive noise filter and an adaptive cross-talk filter in a feedback loop for cancelling correlated noise at a primary signal input and reference input. This known cross-coupled ANC does not operate satisfactorily, particularly not for acoustic noise cancellation. This leads to reverberant-like sound signals, in particular in a typical office room with remote noise sources. A different configuration of a cross-coupled adaptive noise cancelling arrangement gives rise to a better performance. The adaptive cross-talk filter is now split into a pre-filter section and an adaptive filter section, the sections using different input signals. The pre-filter section estimates the desired signal from the input signal of the noise cancelling arrangement, and the adaptive filter section has its input coupled to the output of the noise cancelling arrangement, a delay section being provided between the input and the output of the noise cancelling arrangement. In an embodiment, the pre-filter section and the adaptive filter section are separate filters.

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Eindhoven, Netherlands

Patrick A Timmermans