Augmented environmental awareness system
AssigneeGoogle Inc.
InventorsRichard F. Lyon, Malcolm Graham Slaney
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for an augmented environmental awareness system to present new and important sounds to a user in an enhanced auditory experience. In one aspect, a method includes detecting a new sound that was not present in a current auditory environment before the detection, adjusting electrical input signals that are determined to be characteristic of the new sound to generated adjusted electrical signals, generating electrical output signals from the adjusted electrical signals and from the electrical input signals that are not determined to be characteristic of the new sounds, and providing the electrical output signals to audio output transducers.
Claims20
A system, comprising:
- audio output transducers that transduce electrical output signals into acoustic sounds;
- and
- a signal processing device that receives as input electrical input signals, and in data communication with the audio output transducers to provide the electrical output signals to the audio output transducers, and wherein the signal processing device is arranged to execute instructions that cause the signal processing device to perform operations comprising:
- detecting, based on the electrical input signals generated from audio input signals generated by transducers and data describing a current auditory environment, a new sound in the current auditory environment that was not present in the current auditory environment before the detection;
- adjusting electrical input signals that are determined to be characteristic of the new sound to generate adjusted electrical signals, wherein an adjustment to the electrical input signals determined to be characteristic of the new sound comprises:
- determining, based on the electrical input signals and data describing the current auditory environment, a classification of the new sound detected in the current auditory environment;
- assigning, an importance to the new sound relative to the current auditory environment based on the classification of the new sound and the data describing the current auditory environment;
- and
- adjusting the electrical input signals determined to be characteristic of the new sound relative to electrical input signals that are not determined to be characteristic of the new sound in the current auditory environment based on the assigned importance;
- generating electrical output signals from the adjusted electrical signals that are determined to be characteristic of the new sound and from the electrical input signals that are not determined to be characteristic of the new sound;
- and
- providing, to the audio output transducers, the electrical output signals.
A method implemented in a data processing apparatus, comprising:
- receiving as input, by the data processing apparatus, electrical input signals;
- detecting, based on the electrical input signals generated from audio input signals generated by transducers and data describing a current auditory environment, a new sound in the current auditory environment that was not present in the current auditory environment before the detection;
- adjusting electrical input signals that are determined to be characteristic of the new sound to generate adjusted electrical signals, wherein an adjustment to the electrical input signals determined to be characteristic of the new sound comprises:
- determining, based on the electrical input signals and data describing the current auditory environment, a classification of the new sound detected in the current auditory environment;
- assigning, an importance to the new sound relative to the current auditory environment based on the classification of the new sound and the data describing the current auditory environment;
- and
- adjusting the electrical input signals determined to be characteristic of the new sound relative to electrical input signals that are not determined to be characteristic of the new sound in the current auditory environment based on the assigned importance;
- generating electrical output signals from the adjusted electrical signals that are determined to be characteristic of the new sound and from the electrical input signals that are not determined to be characteristic of the new sound;
- and
- providing, to the audio output transducers, the electrical output signals.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.