Hearing system beamformer
US7206421B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 14, 2000 |
| Grant date | Apr 17, 2007 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 18, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04R2430/20
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The present invention, generally speaking, picks up a voice or other sound signal of interest and creates a higher voice-to-background-noise ratio in the output signal so that a user enjoys higher intelligibility of the voice signal. In particular, beamforming techniques are used to provide optimized signals to the user for further increasing the understanding of speech in noisy environments and for reducing user listening fatigue. In one embodiment, signal-to-noise performance is optimized even if some of the binaural cues are sacrificed. In this embodiment, an optimum mix ratio or weighting ratio is determined in accordance with the ratio of noise power in the binaural signals. Enhancement circuitry is easily implemented in either analog or digital form and is compatible with existing sound processing methods, e.g., noise reduction algorithms and compression/expansion processing. The sound enhancement approach is compatible with, and additive to, any microphone directionality or noise canceling technology.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.