Spectral comb voice activity detection

A method of detecting voice activity in a signal, the method comprising:

• at a voice activity detection system configured to detect voice activity in an audible signal by determining a normalized difference between first and second characterization values generated from a candidate pitch associated with voiced sounds, the voice activity detection system including one or more audio sensors:
• selecting the candidate pitch from a plurality of predetermined candidate pitches, wherein the plurality of predetermined candidate pitches are generated independent from the audible signal;
• generating a plurality of temporal frames of the audible signal, wherein each of the plurality of temporal frames includes a respective temporal portion of the audible signal;
• and
• generating a plurality of voice activity indicator values corresponding to the plurality of temporal frames of the audible signal, each voice activity indicator value being determined by a function of a respective first and second spectrum characterization values associated with one or more multiples of the candidate pitch.

A voice activity detector, configured to detect voice activity in an audible signal by determining a normalized difference between first and second values generated from a candidate pitch associated with voiced sounds, the voice activity detector comprising:

• one or more audio sensors;
• a processor;
• and
• a non-transitory memory including instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the voice activity detector to:
• select the candidate pitch from a plurality of predetermined candidate pitch, wherein the plurality of predetermined candidate pitches are generated independent from the audible signal;
• generate the first value associated with a first plurality of frequencies in the audible signal, each of the first plurality of frequencies being a multiple of the candidate pitch;
• generate the second value associated with a second plurality of frequencies in the audible signal, wherein each of one or more of the second plurality of frequencies is associated with a corresponding one of the first plurality of frequencies;
• and
• generate a first voice activity indicator value, associated with the audible signal, as a function of the first value and the second value.

A voice activity detector, configured to detect voice activity in an audible signal by determining a normalized difference between first and second values generated from a candidate pitch associated with voiced sounds, the voice activity detector comprising:

• one or more audio sensors;
• a candidate pitch selection module configured to select the candidate pitch from a plurality of predetermined candidate pitches, wherein the plurality of predetermined candidate pitches are generated independent from the audible signal;
• a windowing module configured to generate a plurality of temporal frames of the audible signal, wherein each temporal frame includes a respective temporal portion of the audible signal;
• and
• a signal analysis module configured to generate a plurality of voice activity indicator values corresponding to the plurality of temporal frames of the audible signal, each voice activity indicator value being determined by a function of a respective first and second spectrum characterization values associated with one or more multiples of the candidate pitch.

A voice activity detector, configured to detect voice activity in an audible signal by determining a normalized difference between first and second values generated from a candidate pitch associated with voiced sounds, the voice activity detector comprising:

• one or more audio sensors;
• means for selecting the candidate pitch from a plurality of predetermined candidate pitches, wherein the plurality of predetermined candidate pitches are generated independent from the audible signal;
• means for dividing the audible signal into a corresponding plurality of temporal frames, wherein each temporal frame includes a respective temporal portion of the audible signal;
• and
• means for generating a plurality of voice activity indicator values corresponding to the plurality of temporal frames of the audible signal, each voice activity indicator value being determined by a function of a respective first and second spectrum characterization values associated with one or more multiples of the candidate pitch.

A method of detecting voice activity in an audible signal, the method comprising:

• at a voice activity detection system configured to detect voice activity in an audible signal by determining a normalized difference between first and second values generated from a candidate pitch associated with voiced sounds, the voice activity detection system including one or more audio sensors:
• selecting the candidate pitch from a plurality of predetermined candidate pitches, wherein the plurality of predetermined candidate pitches are generated independent from the audible signal;
• generating the first value associated with a first plurality of spectral components in the audible signal, wherein each of the first plurality of spectral components is associated with a respective multiple of the candidate pitch;
• generating the second value associated with a second plurality of spectral components in the audible signal, wherein each of the second plurality of spectral components is associated with a corresponding one of the first plurality of spectral components;
• and
• generating a first voice activity indicator value, associated with the audible signal, as a function of the first value and the second value.