# US 11,996,076 B2 · Active noise reduction device, vehicle, and anomaly determination method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,996,076 B2 - Document ID: US11996076B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/752,356 - Filed: 2022-05-24 - Published: 2022-09-08 - Granted: 2024-05-28 - Earliest claimed: 2019-11-29 - Assignees: Panasonic Automotive Systems Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Kazuhisa Kotegawa - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11996076B2 ## CPC - G10K 11/17823: {Reference signals, e.g. ambient acoustic environment} - H04R 29/001: {for loudspeakers (H04R29/007 takes precedence)} - G10K 11/17817: {between the output signals and the error signals, i.e. secondary path} - G10K 11/17835: {using detection of abnormal input signals} - G10K 11/17854: {the filter being an adaptive filter} - G10K 11/17879: {using both a reference signal and an error signal} - H04R 3/00: Circuits for transducers (arrangements for producing a reverberation or echo sound G10K15/08; amplifiers H03F) - H04R 29/00: Monitoring arrangements; Testing arrangements {(for hearing aids H04R25/30; detection of loudspeaker connection H04R5/04; sound-field adaptation dependent on speaker detection H04S7/308)} - G10K 2210/1282: Automobiles - G10K 2210/12821: Rolling noise; Wind and body noise - G10K 2210/30232: Transfer functions, e.g. impulse response - G10K 2210/3033: Information contained in memory, e.g. stored signals or transfer functions - G10K 2210/3057: Variation of parameters to test for optimisation - G10K 2210/501: Acceleration, e.g. for accelerometers - G10K 2210/504: Calibration - H04R 2499/13: Acoustic transducers and sound field adaptation in vehicles - G10K: SOUND-PRODUCING DEVICES; METHODS OR DEVICES FOR PROTECTING AGAINST, OR FOR DAMPING, NOISE OR OTHER ACOUSTIC WAVES IN GENERAL; ACOUSTICS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - H04R: LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; ELECTRIC HEARING AIDS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS (producing sounds with frequency not determined by supply frequency G10K) ## Abstract An active noise reduction device includes: a reference signal input terminal that receives a reference signal outputted by a reference signal source and having a correlation with noise in a space in an automobile, the reference signal source being attached to the automobile; a test signal source that outputs a test signal to a loudspeaker attached to the automobile, the loudspeaker being used to output a canceling sound for reducing the noise; and an anomaly determiner that determines whether the reference signal source has an anomaly, based on the reference signal inputted from the reference signal source to the reference signal input terminal when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An active noise reduction device, comprising: a reference signal input that receives a reference signal, the reference signal being received from a reference signal source and having a correlation with noise in a space in a vehicle, the reference signal source being attached to the vehicle, the reference signal source including an acceleration sensor and a microphone; a test signal source that outputs a test signal to a loudspeaker attached to the vehicle, the loudspeaker being used to output a canceling sound for reducing the noise; and an anomaly determiner that determines whether the reference signal source includes an anomaly, based on the reference signal received by the reference signal input from the reference signal source when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker, wherein the noise includes a road noise generated when the vehicle moves on the road, and the anomaly determiner determines whether the reference signal source includes the anomaly, when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker, in an attachment of the reference signal source to the vehicle. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, wherein the anomaly determiner compares, with a predetermined threshold, a signal level of the reference signal received by the reference signal input from the reference signal source when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker to determine whether the reference signal source includes the anomaly. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The active noise reduction device according to claim 2, wherein, when the signal level is less than the predetermined threshold, the anomaly determiner determines that the reference signal source includes the anomaly. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The active noise reduction device according to claim 2, wherein when the signal level is greater than the predetermined threshold, the anomaly determiner determines that the reference signal source includes the anomaly. ### Claim 5 (depends on 2) The active noise reduction device according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined threshold includes an upper limit and a lower limit, and the anomaly determiner: determines that the reference signal source includes the anomaly in each of a first case where the signal level is greater than the upper limit and a second case where the signal level is less than the lower limit; and determines that the reference signal source does not include the anomaly when the signal level is greater than or equal to the lower limit and less than or equal to the upper limit. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, wherein the anomaly determiner converts, into a signal in a frequency domain, the reference signal received by the reference signal input from the reference signal source when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker, and compares, with a predetermined threshold, a power of the signal in the frequency domain to determine whether the reference signal source includes the anomaly. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The active noise reduction device according to claim 6, wherein, when the power is less than the predetermined threshold, the anomaly determiner determines that the reference signal source includes the anomaly. ### Claim 8 (depends on 6) The active noise reduction device according to claim 6, wherein when the power is greater than the predetermined threshold, the anomaly determiner determines that the reference signal source includes the anomaly. ### Claim 9 (depends on 6) The active noise reduction device according to claim 6, wherein the predetermined threshold includes an upper limit and a lower limit, and the anomaly determiner: determines that the reference signal source includes the anomaly in each of a first case where the power is greater than the upper limit and a second case where the power is less than the lower limit; and determines that the reference signal source does not include the anomaly when the power is greater than or equal to the lower limit and less than or equal to the upper limit. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, wherein the test signal source outputs a sine wave as the test signal to the loudspeaker. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, wherein the test signal source outputs, to the loudspeaker, as the test signal, a signal obtained by synthesizing a plurality of sine waves having mutually different frequencies. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, wherein whether the reference signal source includes the anomaly is determined when the vehicle is stationary. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, further comprising: an error signal input that receives an error signal that is based on a residual sound from an error signal source for detecting the residual sound, the residual sound resulting from interference between the canceling sound and the noise, wherein the anomaly determiner further determines whether the error signal source includes the anomaly, based on the error signal received by the error signal input from the error signal source when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The active noise reduction device according to claim 13, further comprising: an adaptive filter that is applied to the reference signal received by the reference signal input to generate a canceling signal to be used to output the canceling sound; and simulated acoustic transfer characteristics that are used to correct the reference signal received by the reference signal input to generate a filtered reference signal the simulated acoustic transfer characteristics simulating acoustic transfer characteristics from a position of the loudspeaker to a position of the error signal source, wherein a coefficient of the adaptive filter is updated using the error signal and the filtered reference signal. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) A vehicle comprising: the active noise reduction device according to claim 1; and the reference signal source. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, wherein the anomaly in the attachment of the reference signal source to the vehicle, which is determined by the anomaly determiner when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker, includes an attachment of the acceleration sensor to the vehicle. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The active noise reduction device according to claim 16, wherein the acceleration sensor is attached to a wheel housing or a knuckle of the vehicle. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The active noise reduction device according to claim 1, wherein an output of the reference signal source changes due to vibration of the reference signal source, and when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker, the loudspeaker vibrates and transfers such vibration to the reference signal source, whereby the vibration is anomalously transferred to the reference signal source when the reference signal source is not properly attached to the vehicle. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The active noise reduction device according to claim 18, wherein the test signal is a sine wave including a specific frequency from 30 Hz to 300 Hz. ### Claim 20 An anomaly determination method to be executed by a computer, the anomaly determination method comprising: outputting a test signal to a loudspeaker, the loudspeaker being attached to a vehicle, the loudspeaker being used to output a canceling sound for reducing noise in a space in the vehicle; and determining whether a reference signal source attached to the vehicle includes an anomaly, based on a reference signal obtained from the reference signal source and having a correlation with the noise when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker, wherein the reference signal source includes an acceleration sensor and a microphone, the noise includes a road noise generated when the vehicle moves on the road, and in the determining, the computer determines whether the reference signal source includes the anomaly, when the test signal is outputted to the loudspeaker, in an attachment of the reference signal source to the vehicle.