Selective disablement of noise cancelation for conversations
AssigneeSony Group Corporation
InventorsBrant L. Candelore, James R. Milne, Justin Kenefick, William Clay
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A noise canceling disablement system is provided to enables a user to hear select conversational speech directed at the user while wearing a noise cancelling hearable device. The disablement system automatically at least partial disables the noise canceling feature of the hearable device in response to recognizing conversational speech of a speaking person within a detected conversation zone of the user. In some cases, triggering of the noise canceling disablement further requires the speaking person to be identified by the system as significant person of the user.
Claims16
A method for adjusting a noise canceling feature of a hearable device of a user, the method performed, comprising:
- providing a first noise canceling feature of a first hearing unit of the hearable device and a second noise canceling feature of a second hearing unit of the hearable device;
- during an interaction period, receiving by one or more microphones of the hearable device, sound signals for at least one sound detected from an environment of the user,
- determining that the at least one sound includes first speech by a first person;
- defining a conversation zone of the user based, at least in part, on a volume level of ambient noise detected in the environment;
- determining that the first person is within a first side area of the conversation zone;
- in response, at least in part, to determining the first person is within the first side area of the conversation zone, at least partially disabling the first noise canceling feature of the first hearing unit of the hearable device that correlates with the first side area and maintaining the second noise canceling feature of the second hearing unit;
- tracking that the first person moves to a second side area of the conversation zone during the interaction period;
- and
- in response to detecting the first person speaks at the second side area, disabling the second noise canceling feature of the second hearing unit that correlates with the second side area and resuming the first noise canceling feature of the first hearing unit.
An apparatus of a noise canceling disablement system, the apparatus comprising:
- a hearable device of a user having a first hearing unit with a first noise canceling feature and having a second hearing unit with a second noise canceling feature, the hearable device further comprising:
- one or more processors;
- and
- logic encoded in one or more non-transitory media for execution by the one or more processors and when executed operable to perform operations comprising:
- during an interaction period, receiving by one or more microphones of the hearable device, sound signals for at least one sound detected from an environment of the user,
- determining that the at least one sound includes a first speech by a first person;
- defining a conversation zone based, at least in part, on a volume level of ambient noise detected in the environment;
- determining that the first person is within a first side area of the conversation zone;
- in response, at least in part, to determining that the first person is within the first side area of the conversation zone, at least partially disabling the first noise canceling feature of the first hearing unit of the hearable device that correlates with the first side area and maintaining the second noise canceling feature of the second hearing unit;
- and
- in response, at least in part, to determining that the first person is within the first side area of the conversation zone, at least partially disabling the noise canceling feature of the first hearing unit of the hearable device that correlates with the first side area and maintaining the second noise canceling feature of the second hearing unit;
- subsequent to detecting the first person in the first side area, detecting that the at least one sound includes a second speech of a second person speaking at a second side area of the conversation zone;
- and
- disabling the second noise canceling feature of the second hearing unit that correlates with the second side area.
A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium carrying program instructions thereon for adjusting a first noise canceling feature of a first hearing unit of a hearable device and a second noise canceling feature of a second hearing unit of the hearable device used by a user, the instructions when executed by one or more processors cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
- during an interaction period, receiving by one or more microphones of the hearable device, sound signals for at least one sound detected from an environment of the user,
- determining that the at least one sound includes a first speech by a first person;
- defining a conversation zone based, at least in part, on a volume level of ambient noise detected in the environment;
- determining that the first person is within a first side area of the conversation zone;
- in response, at least in part, to determining that the first person is within the first side area of the conversation zone, at least partially disabling the first noise canceling feature of the first hearing unit of the hearable device that correlates with the first side area and maintaining the second noise canceling feature of the second hearing unit;
- tracking that the first person moves to a second side area of the conversation zone during the interaction period;
- and
- in response to detecting the first person speaks at the second side area, disabling the second noise canceling feature of the second hearing unit that correlates with the second side area and resuming the first noise canceling feature of the first hearing unit.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.