Adaptive sound generation based upon current sound environment properties, current device properties, and current media properties

An electronic device comprising:

• a processor configured to:
• determine current sound environment properties of an environment external to a user, current device properties of a sound playback device, and current media properties of media that is played through the sound playback device,
• generate, based on (a) the current sound environment properties, (b) the current device properties, and (c) the current media properties, an adaptive masking soundscape that, when combined with external sounds in the environment, renders the external sounds less perceptible to the user,
• determine, as at least part of the current sound environment properties, a classification of an acoustic scene of the environment,
• determine, as at least part of the current sound environment properties, a category for each of currently perceptible external sounds in the environment as one of intelligible human speech, unintelligible human speech, transient noise, or non-transient noise, and
• select, as at least part of the adaptive masking soundscape and for each currently perceptible external sound categorized as intelligible human speech, transient noise, or non-transient noise, a masking sound from a set of masking sounds for that category,
• wherein the adaptive masking soundscape and the media is played simultaneously through the sound playback device.

A non-transitory computer readable medium containing instructions that when executed cause at least one processor of an electronic device to:

• determine current sound environment properties of an environment external to a user, current device properties of a sound playback device, and current media properties of media that is played through the sound playback device;
• generate, based on (a) the current sound environment properties, (b) the current device properties, and (c) the current media properties, an adaptive masking soundscape that, when combined with external sounds in the environment, renders the external sounds less perceptible to the user;
• determine, as at least part of the current sound environment properties, a classification of an acoustic scene of the environment;
• determine, as at least part of the current sound environment properties, a category for each of currently perceptible external sounds in the environment as one of intelligible human speech, unintelligible human speech, transient noise, or non-transient noise;
• and
• select, as at least part of the adaptive masking soundscape and for each currently perceptible external sound categorized as intelligible human speech, transient noise, or non-transient noise, a masking sound from a set of masking sounds for that category,
• wherein the adaptive masking soundscape and the media is played simultaneously through the sound playback device.