The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 08, 2004
Filed:
Oct. 19, 2000
Saligrama R. Venkatesh, Jersey City, NJ (US);
Alan M. Finn, Hebron, CT (US);
Lear Corporation, Southfield, MI (US);
Abstract
A cabin communication system for improving clarity of a voice spoken within an interior cabin uses a microphone array including a first microphone, positioned at a first location within the cabin, for receiving the spoken voice primarily in a first direction and for converting the spoken voice into a first audio signal, and a second microphone, positioned at a second location within the cabin, for receiving the spoken voice primarily in the first direction and for converting the spoken voice into a second audio signal. A sound source, such as the speaker of an entertainment system, inputs sound into the cabin such that the input sound approaches the microphone array primarily in a second direction different from the first direction. A processor combines the first and second audio signals to provide a resultant audio signal, wherein the combining of the first and second audio signals defines a beampattern of the microphone array that includes a plurality of lobes and a plurality of nulls such that the spoken voice is primarily received by the microphone array along the first direction at a first one of the plurality of lobes and such that the input sound is primarily received by the microphone array along the second direction at a first one of the plurality of nulls, whereby any component in the resultant audio signals indicative of the input sound is substantially minimal. The cabin communication system further includes a loudspeaker for converting the resultant audio signal into an output reproduced voice within the cabin, and advantageously the beampattern is such that the output reproduced voice is also received at a null of the beampattern.