IP Library Granted Patent US 8,139,777
Granted Patent B2
US 8,139,777 · App. 11/930,968 · Granted Mar 20, 2012

System for comfort noise injection

View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,139,777
App. No.
11/930,968
Granted
Mar 20, 2012
Kind
B2
Abstract

A noise injection system adds comfort noise to an audio signal. The system includes a background noise estimator that determines a spectral content of a background noise associated with the audio signal. A comfort noise generator generates a comfort noise signal having a random phase. A gain circuit adjusts the comfort noise signal based on the spectral content of the background noise. A combining circuit combines a gain-adjusted comfort noise signal and the audio signal to generate an output signal.

Claims (74)

1. A noise injection system for adding comfort noise to an audio signal, comprising:

a background noise estimator configured to determine a spectral content of a background noise associated with the audio signal, and generate frequency domain data;

a comfort noise generator configured to generate a comfort noise signal having a randomized phase;

a gain circuit configured to calculate a gain value for adjusting the comfort noise signal in the frequency domain based on the determined spectral content of the background noise to generate a gain-adjusted comfort noise signal, where the gain circuit comprises:

a ripple compensator configured to adjust the gain value to compensate for an energy increase due to ripples caused by processing in an overlapping block manner; and

a coherency mismatch compensator configured to adjust the gain value to compensate for data coherence mismatch caused by a phase randomization and processing in an overlapping block manner; and

a combining circuit configured to combine the gain-adjusted comfort noise signal and the audio signal to generate an output signal.

2. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:

an analysis filter configured to filter time domain input data on a block basis using overlapping blocks of the time domain input data, the time domain input data representing an input signal;

a first conversion circuit configured to convert the time domain input data into the frequency domain data;

a second conversion circuit configured to convert the frequency domain output data into time domain output data; and

a synthesis filter configured to filter the time domain output data.

3. The system of claim 2 , where the gain circuit further comprises:

a window compensator configured to adjust the gain value to compensate for a loss in energy due to the filtering of the time domain input data and/or the time domain output data.

4. The system of claim 1 , where adjusting the comfort noise signal using the gain value smoothes an amplitude of the comfort noise signal.

5. The system of claim 2 , where the ripple compensator provides a portion of the gain value based on a standard deviation of the synthesis filter and a frameshift due to processing in an overlapping manner.

6. The system of claim 1 , where the coherency mismatch compensator provides a portion of the gain value based on coefficients of the analysis filter, coefficients of the synthesis filter, and a frameshift due to processing in an overlapping manner.

7. The system of claim 3 , where the window compensator provides a portion of the gain value based on coefficients of the analysis filter (ω a ) and coefficients of the synthesis filter (ω s ) according to the formula

(

ω

a

ω

s

2

_

ω

a

2

ω

s

2

)

.

8. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a complex random number generator configured to randomized a phase of the comfort noise signal in the frequency domain.

9. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a speech detection circuit configured to determine the presence of speech in the frequency domain data and notify the background noise estimator.

10. A noise injection system comprising:

a first conversion circuit configured to convert time domain input data into frequency domain data;

a background noise estimator configured to determine a spectral content of background noise associated with the frequency domain data;

a comfort noise generator configured to generate a comfort noise signal having a randomized phase;

a gain circuit configured to calculate a gain value for adjusting the comfort noise signal in the frequency domain data based on the determined spectral content of the background noise to generate a gain-adjusted comfort noise signal, where the gain circuit comprises a window compensator configured to adjust the gain value to compensate for a loss in energy due to filtering of the time domain input data and/or the time domain output data;

a combining circuit configured to combine the gain-adjusted comfort noise signal and the frequency domain data to generate frequency domain output data; and

a second conversion circuit configured to convert the frequency domain output data into time domain output data.

11. The system of claim 10 , further comprising:

an analysis filter configured to filter the time domain input data on a block basis using overlapping blocks of the time domain input data, the time domain input data representing an input signal; and

a synthesis filter configured to filter the time domain output data, the time domain output data representing an output signal.

12. The system of claim 10 , where the gain circuit further comprises:

a ripple compensator configured to adjust the gain value to compensate for an energy increase due to ripples caused by processing in an overlapping block manner; and

a coherency mismatch compensator configured to adjust the gain value to compensate for data coherence mismatch caused by phase randomization and processing in an overlapping block manner.

13. The system of claim 10 , where adjusting the comfort noise signal using the gain value smoothes an amplitude of the comfort noise signal.

14. The system of claim 12 , where the ripple compensator provides a portion of the gain value based on a standard deviation of the synthesis filter and a frame shift due to processing in an overlapping manner.

15. The system of claim 12 , where the coherency mismatch compensator provides a portion of the gain value based on coefficients of the analysis filter, the coefficients of the synthesis filter, and a frameshift due to processing in an overlapping manner.

16. The system of claim 11 , where the window compensator provides a portion of the gain value based on a root-mean-square value of a combination of coefficients of the analysis filter (ω a ) and coefficients of the synthesis filter (ω s ).

17. A method for injecting comfort noise, comprising:

converting time domain input data into frequency domain data;

estimating a spectral content of background noise associated with the frequency domain data;

generating a comfort noise signal having a randomized phase;

calculating a gain value based on the calculated spectral content and applying the gain value to the comfort noise signal to generate a gain-adjusted comfort noise signal, wherein the calculating a gain value further comprises:

calculating a ripple compensation factor, a coherency mismatch compensation factor, and a window compensation factor; and

multiplying the gain value by the compensation factor, the coherency mismatch compensation factor, and the window compensation factor;

combining the gain-adjusted comfort noise signal with the frequency domain data to generate frequency domain output data; and

converting the frequency domain output data to time domain output data.

18. The system of claim 17 , further comprising:

analysis filtering the time domain input data on a block basis using overlapping blocks of the time domain input data, the time domain input data representing an input signal; and

synthesis filtering the time domain output data, the time domain output data representing an output signal.

19. The method of claim 18 , where

multiplying the gain value by the ripple compensation factor compensates for an energy increase due to ripples caused by processing in an overlapping block manner

and multiplying the gain value by the coherency mismatch compensation factor compensates for a phase randomization and processing in an overlapping block manner

and multiplying the gain value by the window compensation factor compensates for a loss in energy due to filtering of the time domain input data and/or the time domain output data.

20. The method of claim 18 , further comprising applying the gain value to the comfort noise signal to smooth an amplitude of the comfort noise signal.

21. The method of claim 17 , further comprising calculating the ripple compensator factor based on a standard deviation of the synthesis filtering and a frameshift due to processing in an overlapping manner.

22. The method of claim 17 , further comprising calculating the coherency mismatch factor based on coefficients of the analysis filtering, coefficients of the synthesis filtering, and a frameshift due to processing in an overlapping manner.

23. The method of claim 17 , further comprising calculating the window compensation factor based on a root-mean-square value based on a combination of coefficients (ω a ) of the analysis filtering and coefficients (ω s ) of the synthesis filtering.

Assignments (5)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 22, 2020
From: 2236008 ONTARIO INC.
To: BLACKBERRY LIMITED
Reel/Frame 053313/0315 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 4, 2014
From: 8758271 CANADA INC.
To: 2236008 ONTARIO INC.
Reel/Frame 032607/0674 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 4, 2014
From: QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS LIMITED
To: 8758271 CANADA INC.
Reel/Frame 032607/0943 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Feb 27, 2012
From: QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS CO.
To: QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS LIMITED
Reel/Frame 027768/0863 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded May 8, 2009
From: HARMAN INTERNATIONAL INDUSTRIES, INCORPORATED; BECKER SERVICE-UND VERWALTUNG GMBH; CROWN AUDIO, INC.; HARMAN BECKER AUTOMOTIVE SYSTEMS (MICHIGAN), INC.; HARMAN BECKER AUTOMOTIVE SYSTEMS HOLDING GMBH; HARMAN BECKER AUTOMOTIVE SYSTEMS, INC.; HARMAN CONSUMER GROUP, INC.; HARMAN DEUTSCHLAND GMBH; HARMAN FINANCIAL GROUP LLC; HARMAN HOLDING GMBH & CO. KG; HARMAN MUSIC GROUP, INCORPORATED; HARMAN SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL BETEILIGUNGS GMBH; HARMAN SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT GMBH; HBAS INTERNATIONAL GMBH; HBAS MANUFACTURING, INC.; INNOVATIVE SYSTEMS GMBH NAVIGATION-MULTIMEDIA; JBL INCORPORATED; LEXICON, INCORPORATED; MARGI SYSTEMS, INC.; QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS (WAVEMAKERS), INC.; QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS CANADA CORPORATION; QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS CO.; QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS GMBH; QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS GMBH & CO. KG; QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION; QNX SOFTWARE SYSTEMS, INC.; XS EMBEDDED GMBH (F/K/A HARMAN BECKER MEDIA DRIVE TECHNOLOGY GMBH)
To: JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A.
Reel/Frame 022659/0743 →