IP Library Granted Patent US 11,100,910
Granted Patent B2
US 11,100,910 · App. 16/721,480 · Granted Aug 24, 2021

Noise amplification control in adaptive noise cancelling systems

Inventors: Trausti Thormundsson (Irvine, CA); Ali Abdollahzadeh Milani (San Francisco, CA); Govind Kannan (Irvine, CA)
Assignee: Google LLC
G10K11/17854G10K11/17881G10K2210/3026G10K2210/3027G10K2210/3028G10K2210/3056
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,100,910
App. No.
16/721,480
Granted
Aug 24, 2021
Kind
B2
Abstract

Adaptive noise cancellation systems and methods comprise a reference sensor operable to sense environmental noise and generate a corresponding reference signal, an error sensor operable to sense noise in a noise cancellation zone and generate a corresponding error signal, a noise cancellation filter operable to receive the reference signal and generate an anti-noise signal to cancel the environmental noise in the cancellation zone, an adaptation module operable to receive the reference signal and the error signal and adaptively adjust the anti-noise signal. The adaptation module includes a noise amplification control module operable to adaptively control noise amplification in at least one hiss region of the anti-noise signal, while achieving cancellation in non-hiss regions of the anti-noise signal.

Claims (30)

1. An adaptive noise cancellation system comprising:

a reference sensor operable to sense environmental noise and generate a corresponding reference signal;

an error sensor operable to sense noise in a noise cancellation zone and generate a corresponding error signal;

a noise cancellation filter operable to receive the reference signal and generate an anti-noise signal to cancel the environmental noise in the cancellation zone; and

an adaptation module operable to receive the reference signal and the error signal and adaptively adjust the anti-noise signal;

wherein the adaptation module comprises a noise amplification control module operable to adaptively control noise amplification in at least one hiss region of the anti-noise signal, while achieving cancellation in non-hiss regions of the anti-noise signal,

wherein the hiss region of the anti-noise signal includes frequency bandwidths in which constructive interference between the environmental noise and the anti-noise signal is detected.

2. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 1 , wherein the noise amplification control module is operable to define a noise-shaping filter and derive new weight update rules for the noise cancellation filter.

3. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 2 , wherein the noise amplification control module is operable to derive new weight update rules using a least mean squared algorithm.

4. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 2 , wherein the noise-shaping filter is adaptively tuned during operation.

5. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 2 , wherein the weight update rules are derived using gradients.

6. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 1 , wherein the noise amplification control adapts a cost function to minimize E{e 2 (n)+γE{e 1 2 (n)}} where E{.} is the expectation operator, e(n) is the error signal, y is a constant that controls the aggressiveness, and e 1 (n) is noise-shaped anti-noise signal.

7. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 1 , further comprising a transient activity detection module operable to receive the reference signal, detect a transient noise event and selectively disable the adaptation module during the detected transient noise event.

8. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 1 , wherein the noise cancellation filter is further operable to generate the anti-noise signal in accordance with stored filter coefficients; and wherein the adaptation module is further operable to modify the stored filter coefficients.

9. The adaptive noise cancellation system of claim 1 , further comprising a loudspeaker operable to receive the anti-noise signal and generate anti-noise to cancel the noise in the noise cancellation zone.

10. A method comprising:

receiving a reference signal from a first sensor, the reference signal representing external noise;

processing the reference signal through a noise cancellation filter to generate an anti-noise signal;

outputting the anti-noise signal to a loudspeaker;

receiving an error signal from an error sensor, the error signal representing noise in a noise cancellation zone; and

adaptively adjusting the noise cancellation filter in response to the reference signal, the error signal and a noise amplification control process;

wherein the noise amplification control process comprises adaptively controlling noise amplification in at least one hiss region of the anti-noise signal, while achieving cancellation in non-hiss regions of the anti-noise signal,

wherein the hiss region of the anti-noise signal includes frequency bandwidths in which constructive interference between the environmental noise and the anti-noise signal is detected.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the noise amplification control process further comprises defining a noise-shaping filter and deriving new weight update rules for the noise cancellation filter.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the noise amplification control process further comprises deriving new weight update rules using a least mean squared algorithm.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the noise amplification control process further comprises adaptively tuning the noise-shaping filter during operation.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the weight update rules are derived using gradients.

15. The method of claim 10 , wherein the noise amplification control process further comprises adapting a cost function to minimize E{e 2 (n)+γE{e 1 2 (n)}} where E{.} is the expectation operator, e(n) is the error signal, γ is a constant that controls the aggressiveness, and e 1 (n) is noise-shaped anti-noise signal.

16. The method of claim 10 , further comprising detecting a transient noise event and selectively setting a transient noise detection state to enable and disable, respectively, the adaptively adjusting the noise cancellation filter.

17. The method of claim 10 , further comprising generating the anti-noise signal in accordance with stored filter coefficients.

Assignments (5)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 12, 2021
From: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
To: GOOGLE LLC
Reel/Frame 055576/0502 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Mar 11, 2021
From: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
To: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
Reel/Frame 055561/0083 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 24, 2020
From: THORMUNDSSON, TRAUSTI; MILANI, ALI ABDOLLAHZADEH; KANNAN, GOVIND
To: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
Reel/Frame 054459/0856 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 24, 2020
From: THORMUNDSSON, TRAUSTI; MILANI, ALI ABDOLLAHZADEH; KANNAN, GOVIND
To: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
Reel/Frame 054460/0406 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Feb 14, 2020
From: SYNAPTICS INCORPORATED
To: WELLS FARGO BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
Reel/Frame 051936/0103 →