Headphone speech listening based on ambient noise

A digital audio processor comprising:

• a transparency digital filter path through which a microphone signal is to be filtered to produce a transparency audio signal;
• a feedforward acoustic noise cancellation digital filter path through which the microphone signal is filtered to produce an anti-noise signal;
• and
• the digital audio processor being configured to:
• combine a weighted version of the transparency audio signal with a weighted version of the anti-noise signal, to drive a speaker;
• estimate ambient acoustic noise using the microphone signal;
• enter a first configuration in response to the estimated ambient acoustic noise being lower than a first threshold, wherein in the first configuration the processor adapts the transparency digital filter path via target voice and wearer voice processing (TVWVP) of at least the microphone signal to boost detected speech frequencies in the transparency audio signal;
• and
• enter a second configuration in response to the estimated ambient acoustic noise being higher than the first threshold, wherein in the second configuration the processor controls the TVWVP to, as the estimated ambient acoustic noise increases, reduce boosting of, or not boost at all, the detected speech frequencies in the transparency audio signal.

An article of manufacture comprising a memory having stored therein instructions that configure a processor to:

• estimate ambient acoustic noise;
• enter a first configuration in response to the estimated ambient acoustic noise being lower than a first threshold, wherein in the first configuration a transparency audio signal is adapted via target voice and wearer voice processing (TVWVP) of a first microphone signal to boost detected speech frequencies in the transparency audio signal;
• and
• enter a second configuration in response to the estimated ambient acoustic noise being higher than the first threshold, wherein in the second configuration the TVWVP is controlled to, as the estimated ambient acoustic noise increases, reduce boosting of, or not boost at all, the detected speech frequencies in the transparency audio signal;
• and
• enter a third configuration in response to the estimated ambient acoustic noise being lower than a second threshold, the second threshold being lower than the first threshold, wherein in the third configuration the TVWVP is controlled to, as the estimated ambient acoustic noise decreases, reduce boosting of, or not boost at all, the detected speech frequencies in the transparency audio signal.