# US 2021/0241746 A1 · Signal processing apparatus and method, and program > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2021/0241746 A1 - Document ID: US20210241746A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 17/266,486 - Filed: 2019-07-30 - Published: 2021-08-05 - Earliest claimed: 2018-08-13 - Assignees: Sony Corporation - Applicants: Sony Corporation - Inventors: Keiichi Osako; Yuhki Mitsufuji; Masafumi Takahashi; Yukara Ikemiya - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20210241746A1 ## CPC - G10K 11/1752: {Masking} - G06V 40/10: Human or animal bodies, e.g. vehicle occupants or pedestrians; Body parts, e.g. hands - G10K 15/02: Synthesis of acoustic waves (synthesis of speech G10L13/00) - G10L 25/51: for comparison or discrimination - H04R 1/323: {for loudspeakers (H04R1/34 and H04R1/40 take precedence)} - H04R 1/403: {loud-speakers} - H04R 3/12: for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers {(specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407)} - H04R 2203/12: Beamforming aspects for stereophonic sound reproduction with loudspeaker arrays - H04R 2430/25: Array processing for suppression of unwanted side-lobes in directivity characteristics, e.g. a blocking matrix - H04S 2420/13: Application of wave-field synthesis in stereophonic audio systems - 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 - G06V: IMAGE OR VIDEO RECOGNITION OR UNDERSTANDING - G10L: SPEECH ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES OR SPEECH SYNTHESIS; SPEECH RECOGNITION; SPEECH OR VOICE PROCESSING TECHNIQUES; SPEECH OR AUDIO CODING OR DECODING - 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) - H04S: STEREOPHONIC SYSTEMS ## Abstract The present technology relates to a signal processing apparatus and method, and a program that can easily make a leaking sound difficult to hear. A signal processing apparatus includes a masking sound generation unit that, in a case where a first content is reproduced in a first region and a second content is reproduced in a second region by wave field synthesis using a speaker array, generates a masking sound for masking a sound of the first content and a sound of the second content heard in a region between the first region and the second region. The present technology can be applied to content reproduction systems. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A signal processing apparatus comprising: a masking sound generation unit that, in a case where a first content is reproduced in a first region and a second content is reproduced in a second region by wave field synthesis using a speaker array, generates a masking sound for masking a sound of the first content and a sound of the second content heard in a region between the first region and the second region. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an output unit that causes the speaker array to output the masking sound. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an output unit that causes a speaker different from the speaker array to output the masking sound. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a reproduction level of the masking sound is larger than a background noise level. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a wave field synthesis filter unit that performs filtering processing on the masking sound generated by the masking sound generation unit to generate a sound of each of a plurality of channels for reproducing the masking sound in a masking region between the first region and the second region by wave field synthesis. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the masking sound generation unit generates the masking sound on a basis of external information. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the external information includes information indicating at least one of a time zone, a day of week, a number of visitors, and climate. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a detection unit that detects a person from an image including at least a region around the first region and the second region as a subject, wherein the masking sound generation unit generates the masking sound on a basis of a result of detection of the person by the detection unit. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: an analysis unit that analyzes characteristics of ambient background noise, wherein the masking sound generation unit generates the masking sound on a basis of an analysis result of the characteristics. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the masking sound generation unit generates the masking sound having a frequency characteristic according to the analysis result of the characteristics. ### Claim 11 (depends on 9) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising: a reproduction level adjustment unit that adjusts a reproduction level of the masking sound on a basis of the analysis result of the characteristics. ### Claim 12 (depends on 9) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 9, further comprising: an echo cancellation unit that extracts the background noise by performing echo cancellation based on the sound of the first content and the sound of the second content with respect to a collected ambient sound. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the masking sound generation unit changes frequency characteristics of the masking sound according to frequency characteristics of the first content and the second content. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The signal processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a reproduction level adjustment unit that changes a reproduction level of the masking sound according to reproduction levels of the first content and the second content. ### Claim 15 A signal processing method wherein a signal processing apparatus, in a case where a first content is reproduced in a first region and a second content is reproduced in a second region by wave field synthesis using a speaker array, generates a masking sound for masking a sound of the first content and a sound of the second content heard in a region between the first region and the second region. ### Claim 16 A program that causes a computer to execute processing including a step of: in a case where a first content is reproduced in a first region and a second content is reproduced in a second region by wave field synthesis using a speaker array, generating a masking sound for masking a sound of the first content and a sound of the second content heard in a region between the first region and the second region.