U.S. patent application number 14/019364 was filed with the patent office on 2014-03-06 for system and method for remotely controlling audio equipment.
This patent application is currently assigned to MUSIC Group IP Ltd.. The applicant listed for this patent is MUSIC Group IP Ltd.. Invention is credited to Ulrich Behringer.
Application Number | 20140064513 14/019364 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 49111072 |
Filed Date | 2014-03-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140064513 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Behringer; Ulrich |
March 6, 2014 |
SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR REMOTELY CONTROLLING AUDIO EQUIPMENT
Abstract
An innovative new series of personal near-field active monitor
speakers incorporating a digital wireless receiver and an
industry-standard digital serial data interface that provides for
wireless and wired digital audio streaming, apps for mobile devices
or computers (smart phones, tablets, laptops etc.) to provide
remote configuration of studio monitor modeling, i.e., emulations
of popular near-field reference monitors; artist signature
modeling, i.e., emulations of the favorite settings of well-known
recording artists and music producers; and remote room equalization
using the microphone integrated in a mobile or desktop personal
computer, or an attached external microphone.
Inventors: |
Behringer; Ulrich; (Makati
City, PH) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
MUSIC Group IP Ltd. |
Tortola |
|
VG |
|
|
Assignee: |
MUSIC Group IP Ltd.
Tortola
VG
|
Family ID: |
49111072 |
Appl. No.: |
14/019364 |
Filed: |
September 5, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61697717 |
Sep 6, 2012 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
381/77 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H03G 1/02 20130101; H03G
3/3026 20130101; H04R 3/00 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
381/77 |
International
Class: |
H04R 3/00 20060101
H04R003/00 |
Claims
1. An audio system, comprising: a computer having: a user interface
configured to receive user input; a memory coupled to the user
interface and having a sequence of instructions stored thereon that
when executed by a processor in the mobile computer generate
control signals in response to user input received at the user
interface; a transmitter configured to transmit the control
signals; a speaker system having: at least one speaker; a wireless
receiver configured to receive the control signals and to receive
and convert streamed digital audio signals into analog signals; a
microcontroller configured to receive data messages from the
wireless receiver and generate corresponding messages; at least one
analog input terminal configured to receive the analog signals; at
least one digital serial data interface configured to receive the
control signals and the streamed digital audio signals; and a
digital signal processor configured to process the control signals
received by the wireless receiver and configured to control
operation of the at least one speaker in response to the received
control signals through generation of analog signals in response to
the control signals.
2. The audio system of claim 1, wherein the computer comprises
either a mobile computer or a desktop personal computer.
3. The audio system of claim 1, wherein the speaker is an active
speaker.
4. The audio system of claim 3 wherein the speaker system includes
at least one passive speaker coupled to the active speaker.
5. The audio system of claim 1, wherein the speaker is a passive
speaker configured to be coupled to an external amplification
device, external digital signal processing, and an external digital
wireless receiver.
6. The audio system of claim 1, wherein the computer is configured
to transmit digital audio signals to the speaker system to play
through the speaker.
7. The audio system of claim 6, wherein the received digital audio
signal is processed by the digital signal processor.
8. The audio system of claim 1, wherein the digital signal
processor is structured to configure a parameter of the at least
one speaker in response to the received control signals.
9. The audio system of claim 8, wherein the parameter configuration
includes at least one from among settings of other speaker models,
settings of well-known music artists, and settings of music
producers.
10. The audio system of claim 1 wherein the computer includes at
least one audio transducer configured to convert sound into
electronic signals, and the digital signal processor of the speaker
system is configured to perform equalization of audio output of the
at least one speaker in response to audio sounds received at the at
least one audio transducer.
11. The audio system of claim 1, wherein controlling operation of
the speaker comprises adjusting at least one of: user equalization,
delay, gain, dynamic equalization, noise gate, polarity invert,
speaker equalization, gain trim and limiter.
12. The audio system of claim 1, the speaker system further
comprising: a first speaker; a second speaker identical to the
first active speaker; and wherein a selection of a left and right
channel for each speaker corresponding to a relative physical
placement of the speakers is determined by an order in which they
are wirelessly paired with the computer.
13. The audio system of claim 1, the speaker system further
comprising: a active speaker having a first serial data interface;
a second speaker identical to the first speaker having a second
serial data interface; wherein a selection of a left and right
channel for each speaker corresponding to a relative physical
placement of the speakers is determined by the choice of which of
the first and second serial data interfaces is used to connect to
the transmitting device.
14. A system, comprising: audio equipment; a computer including a
memory and a wireless transmitter, the memory configured to store a
software program, and the wireless transmitter configured to
transmit a controlling signal and a streamed digital audio signal
to the audio equipment based on a user instruction; a user
interface coupled to the mobile computer and configured to receive
an input and to generate the user instruction; a receiver coupled
to the audio equipment and configured to receive the controlling
signal and streamed digital audio; and a controller coupled to the
receiver and configured to alter a sound parameter of the audio
equipment in response to the controlling signal.
15. The audio system of claim 14, wherein the computer comprises
one of either a desktop personal computer or a mobile computer
16. The system of claim 14, wherein the receiver is configured to
receive at least one of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth signals.
17. The system of claim 14, wherein the controller is a digital
signal processor.
18. The system of claim 14, wherein the sound parameter of the
audio equipment consists of at least one from among: user
equalization, delay, gain, dynamic equalization, noise gate,
polarity invert, speaker equalization, gain trim and limiter.
19. The system of claim 14, wherein altering the sound parameter
includes configuring the parameter to conform to at least one from
among: settings of other speaker models, settings of well-known
music artists, and settings of music producers.
20. A system, comprising: at least one electronic audio device
having a wireless receiver, an industry-standard digital serial
data interface and a controller, the wireless receiver configured
to receive a wireless control signal and streamed digital audio and
the controller configured to adjust an audio output in response to
the received control signal; the industry-standard digital serial
data interface configured to receive a control signal and a
streamed digital audio signal via a wired cable connection and the
controller configured to adjust an audio output in response to the
received control signal; a mobile computer having a user interface,
a memory, a microphone, and a wireless transmitter, the mobile
computer including a series of instructions stored in the memory
and configured to carry out the following: receive input
instructions via the user interface; generate a control signal in
response to the received input instructions and transmit the
control signal via the wireless transmitter to the at least one
electronic audio device; and sense through the microphone an audio
sound from the electronic audio device and transmit a results
signal to the at least one electronic audio device.
21. The system of claim 20, wherein the microphone is an external
microphone configured to be coupled to the mobile computer.
22. The system of claim 20, wherein the wireless receiver is
configured to receive a radio frequency signal.
23. The system of claim 20, wherein the industry-standard digital
serial data interface is configured to receive data messages from a
mobile or desktop personal computer via a wired cable
connection.
24. The system of claim 20, wherein the at least one electronic
audio device is a speaker.
25. The system of claim 20, wherein adjusting the audio output
includes changing at least one parameter that includes one from
among: user equalization, delay, gain, dynamic equalization, noise
gate, polarity invert, speaker equalization, gain trim and
limiter.
26. The system of claim 25, wherein the parameter is changed to at
least one of: a setting of other speaker models, a setting of
well-known artists, and a setting of music producers.
27. The system of claim 20, wherein the electronic audio equipment
performs equalization of the audio output in response to the
received results signal.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] 1. Technical Field
[0002] The present disclosure relates to an audio system and
related method for controlling audio system equipment and, more
particularly, to a speaker or monitor system with integrated
wireless communication and associated mobile device, such as a
computer, tablet or smart phone, with application software to
permit remote wireless configuration and digital audio
streaming.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] Public Address speakers, studio monitors and hi-fi speakers,
to name a few, usually have fixed sound parameters (such as, but
not limited to, crossover frequency, equalization, delays, limiter,
etc.) and some form of variable controls (bass, treble, cut-off,
volume controls, etc.) on the speaker itself to change the sound.
Although nearly all audio equipment allows for easy adjustment of
the variable controls, the fixed parameters are often difficult to
alter on speakers, monitors and other equipment. In addition, some
known audio systems employ a 30-pin or Ethernet, and the like,
hardwired connection between the speakers and a controlling system
to allow for some form of remote controllability, but this is
limited by the need for a physical connection at all times,
restricting the location from which a user can control the
speakers.
[0005] Remotely controlling speakers and audio equipment has been
done for many years. However, remote controls for audio equipment
are generally only capable of controlling the variable parameters
such as bass, treble and volume. Although this can be useful, it
does not allow for full customization of the audio equipment
because it requires many other parameters to remain fixed. In
recent years the use of smart phone and tablet devices has become
nearly ubiquitous, and remote controls for audio equipment can
often now be implemented as applications to be loaded onto a smart
phone or similar device. However, these remote control applications
still suffer from the same deficiencies of standard remote
controls, namely that they have only the ability to control the
variable parameters such as volume, bass and treble and not the
fixed parameters.
[0006] There is a need for audio systems that employ modern
wireless remote control via a mobile computer devices, such as, but
not limited to: iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, other iOS devices,
Windows, Android, Chrome or Tizen devices or any other smart phone,
tablet, laptop, notebook, netbook or mobile device, referred to
generally as a mobile computer, where parameters of the speakers
can be controlled through Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, and the like, that
facilitate changing the parameters of the speaker beyond merely
volume, treble and bass.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0007] In accordance with a representative embodiment of the
present disclosure, an audio system is provided that includes a
mobile computer having a user interface configured to receive user
input, a memory coupled to the user interface and having a sequence
of instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor
in the mobile control system, generate control signals in response
to user input received at the user interface, and a wireless
transmitter configured to transmit the control signals and streamed
digital audio. The mobile computer interacts with a speaker system
having at least one active speaker, a wireless receiver for
wireless stereo audio streaming and remote control, at least one
analog input terminal configured to receive analog signals, at
least one digital serial data interface for wired stereo audio
streaming and remote control, and a digital signal processor
configured to process the control signals received by the wireless
receiver and any received audio signals and control operation of
the at least one speaker in response to the received control
signals and any received audio signals.
[0008] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure,
the speaker system may include at least one passive speaker coupled
to the active speaker, or it may include or substitute at least one
passive speaker coupled to external amplification, digital signal
processing, and a digital wireless receiver.
[0009] In a preferred system, the digital signal processor is
enabled to configure a response of the at least one active
speaker.
[0010] In accordance with still yet a further aspect of the present
disclosure, the configuration of a response includes at least one
from among models of other speaker settings, settings of well-known
music artists, and settings of music producers.
[0011] In accordance with yet another aspect of the present
disclosure, the mobile computer utilizes at least one audio
transducer configured to convert sound into electronic signals,
such as the microphone integrated in the mobile computer, or an
attached external microphone in some embodiments, and is used in
conjunction with the digital signal processor of the speaker system
that is configured to perform equalization of audio output of the
at least one active speaker (or at least one passive speaker in
combination with external amplification, digital signal processing
and digital wireless receiver) in response to audio sounds received
at the at least one audio transducer.
[0012] In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure,
a system is provided that includes a mobile computer having a
memory and a wireless transmitter, the memory storing a software
program, and the wireless signal transmitter configured to transmit
a controlling signal to an audio equipment based on a user
instruction; a user interface coupled to the mobile computer and
configured to receive an input; a digital wireless receiver coupled
to the audio equipment and configured to receive the controlling
signal and streamed digital audio; and a controller coupled to the
digital wireless receiver and configured to alter a sound parameter
of the audio equipment in response to the controlling signal. Wired
remote configuration and digital audio streaming from all types of
mobile computer or desktop personal computer is also supported
using an industry-standard digital serial data interface. Wireless
remote configuration and digital audio streaming may also be
performed from a desktop personal computer.
[0013] As will be readily appreciated from the foregoing and the
accompanying detailed description, an innovative new series of
personal near-field active monitor speakers incorporating a digital
wireless receiver is provided in accordance with a representative
embodiment of the present disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] The foregoing and other features and advantages of the
present disclosure will be more readily appreciated as the same
become better understood from the following detailed description
when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,
wherein:
[0015] FIG. 1 is an illustration of the topology of one embodiment
of an audio system formed in accordance with the present disclosure
with one two-way active speaker;
[0016] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of one preferred embodiment of a
speaker system employing the design of the present disclosure with
one two-way active speaker; and
[0017] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an automatic equalization of a
speaker system according to one embodiment of the present
disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0018] In the following description, certain specific details are
set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of various
disclosed embodiments. However, one skilled in the relevant art
will recognize that embodiments may be practiced without one or
more of these specific details, or with other methods, components,
materials, etc. In other instances, well-known structures or
components or both associated with monitors, speakers, personal
mobile electronic devices such as, but not limited to, iPad,
iPhone, iPod touch, other iOS device, Windows, Android, Chrome or
Tizen device or any other smart phone, tablet, laptop, notebook,
netbook or mobile device, referred to hereinafter generally as a
mobile computer, as well as, personal computers, loudspeakers, and
the like have not been shown or described in order to avoid
unnecessarily obscuring descriptions of the embodiments.
[0019] Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout the
specification and claims that follow, the word "comprise" and
variations thereof, such as "comprises" and "comprising" are to be
construed in an open inclusive sense, that is, as "including, but
not limited to." The foregoing applies equally to the words
"including" and "having."
[0020] Reference throughout this description to "one embodiment" or
"an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or
characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is
included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearance of the
phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" in various places
throughout the specification are not necessarily all referring to
the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features,
structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable
manner in one or more embodiments.
[0021] The representative embodiments of the present disclosure
will be described in the context of near-field monitors. It is to
be understood, however, that the concepts and disclosures herein
can be applied to speakers in general, such as loud speakers,
stereo speakers, home audio speakers, and the like.
[0022] Generally, in the present disclosure, a wireless remote
control is implemented with a mobile device, referred to
hereinafter as a mobile computer. The mobile computer can include,
but is not limited to, iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, other iOS devices,
Windows, Android, Chrome or Tizen device or any other smart phone,
tablet, laptop, notebook, netbook or mobile device, that is
configured to control essentially all parameters of the speakers
through Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or other wireless technology. This is
accomplished by changing the parameters of the speaker via an
analog crossover with controllable analog switches or, more
preferably, with a digital signal processor (DSP) that is connected
to a Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or other wireless technology receiver. Wired
remote configuration and digital audio streaming from all types of
mobile computer or desktop personal computer is also supported
using an industry-standard digital serial data interface. Wireless
remote configuration and digital audio streaming may also be
performed from a desktop personal computer.
[0023] This remote controllability of the speaker parameters allows
for (1) control of various sound presets offered by the provider;
(2) "Sound modeling" of well-established competitor speakers; and
(3) "Signature Series" where presets by famous sound engineers or
artists are provided (for example a Quincy Jones Preset that allows
a user to listen to sound produced from the speakers using settings
that Quincy Jones uses for configuring his personal or professional
speakers).
[0024] Ideally, the foregoing is implemented through applications
that the user can download and use to control the sound of the
speakers with the mobile computer described above. This allows a
user to alter the parameters of the audio equipment from a remote
location, such as a chair within the audience or in a recording
studio. The application can also show graphic displays of the
speakers they are modeled after or the artists that provided the
presets.
[0025] Referring to FIG. 1, shown therein is an audio system 10
having a mobile computer 12 and a speaker or near field monitor
system 14. A mobile control system, generally a mobile computer, is
shown in the form of a personal communication device, such as a
smart phone 16 having a user interface 18 in the form of a touch
screen 20 displaying a selection of devices 22 to be controlled
along with a control panel 24 having buttons 26. The mobile
computer is a known processing device that is readily commercially
available and will not be discussed in detail herein. Briefly, it
includes a processor, internal memory, a display device that
functions as the user interface 18, such as the touch screen 20,
and is configured to process instructions stored in the memory in
response to user input on the display device 18 or other known
input device, such as a keyboard or mouse or any combination of the
foregoing, such instructions provided in the form of a software
application, commonly referred to as an "App".
[0026] The user interface 18 is configured to enable a user to
select which device 22 to control, such as an active speaker, a
passive speaker, or other audio equipment. The user also utilizes
the user interface 18 to use the display screen and either soft or
hard keys to select which functions to control, including changing
parameters of the audio equipment and controlling streaming digital
audio. Generally, the user will interact with the user interface 18
through a series of touch sensitive buttons 26 displayed on the
touch screen 20. For example, the user interface may display
buttons with labels such as: audio, record, play, abort, search,
connect, and next.
[0027] The mobile computer 12 also has wireless communication
capability, including a wireless transmitter with antenna 27 to
transmit control signals, such as digital wireless signals, and
stream digital audio. The wireless transmitter with antenna 27 is
coupled to the mobile computer 12 and configured to transmit a
radio frequency signal such as, but not limited to, Wi-Fi and
Bluetooth from the mobile computer to the audio equipment. The
wireless transmitter with antenna 27 may be natively integrated
into the mobile computer, or an after-market transmitter coupled to
the mobile computer may be used.
[0028] The speaker system 14 shown in FIG. 1 includes an antenna 32
configured to receive digital wireless signals, and a digital
wireless receiver module 34. The analog audio output 36 of digital
wireless receiver module 34 is coupled to an analog-to-digital
converter (ADC) 48, the digital output 38 of which is then in turn
coupled to the input of Digital Signal Processor (DSP) 40. Control
of both the digital wireless receiver 34 and Digital Signal
Processor 40 is achieved using microcontroller (MCU) 44 which
communicates via serial control data links 42 and 46. The two
digital audio outputs 100 and 102 from the DSP feed
digital-to-analog converters (DAC) 104 and 106 in order to convert
the processor's signals to analog. The analog signals are then fed
to power amplifiers 108 and 110 which drive Low Frequency and High
Frequency speakers 112 and 114.
[0029] The antenna 32 and wireless receiver module 34 receive
transmitted signals from the wireless transmitter with antenna 27.
The antenna 32 and wireless receiver module 34 are configured to
receive radio frequency signals such as, but not limited to, Wi-Fi
or Bluetooth. The received signals may be control signals that are
received by the microcontroller (MCU) 44 which in turn instructs
the DSP 40 to configure the audio parameters of the audio equipment
or to alter a parameter of the audio equipment, or they may be
digital audio signals that are received and processed by DSP 40 and
played through the speaker or other audio equipment.
[0030] FIG. 2 illustrates one preferred embodiment of the present
disclosure in connection with an active speaker system 50. In the
standard configuration, a 1-input, 2-output DSP 52 which implements
a two-way crossover with separate low-pass and high-pass filters
(XOVER LO PASS and XOVER HI PASS respectively) is used, is
configured as shown in FIG. 2. The DSP 52 is configured to perform
pre-crossover functions such as, but not limited to, user
equalization (USER EQ), delay, gain, dynamic equalization (DYNAMIC
EQ) and noise gate functions for the input channel, and
post-crossover functions such as, but not limited to, polarity
invert, speaker equalization (SPEAKER EQ), gain trim and limiter
for each of the two output channels 54, 56. The pre-crossover
functions are generally intended for user adjustment from the
mobile computer application, whereas the crossover and
post-crossover functions are specific to the speakers used and are
not generally intended for user adjustment, however access may be
permitted using an "expert user" or diagnostic mode in the mobile
computer application. In one preferred embodiment, external
digital-to-analog converters (DAC) 62, 64 will be required to
convert the digital output back to analog to feed the power
amplifiers 70, 72 which in turn drive high frequency (HF) speaker
82 and low frequency (LF) speaker 84 respectively.
[0031] The active speaker system 50 also includes a wireless
Bluetooth receiver 144 with antenna 142 configured to receive
control signals from a wireless transmitter, such as the wireless
transmitter with antenna 27 of the mobile computer of FIG. 1.
[0032] It is recognized that in a stereo configuration of two such
identical active speakers, that the Mobile Computer may first need
to be wirelessly paired to one of the active speakers (which
becomes the Bluetooth Master speaker) which in turn may then be
paired with the other speaker (the Bluetooth Slave speaker). As the
two speakers are identical, to ensure that the left and right audio
channels are heard from the left- and right-positioned speakers
respectively, a simple rule can be made that the user should always
pair the mobile computer with, say, the left active speaker first,
such that this then becomes the Bluetooth Master speaker. The left
active speaker is then paired with the right active speaker which
becomes the Bluetooth Slave speaker (or vice versa if the speaker
is so designed that the right channel speaker should always be the
Bluetooth Master). The Bluetooth Receiver module 144 is
correspondingly programmed to output the left audio channel on its
analog output if it is set as the Bluetooth Master or to output the
right audio channel if it is the Bluetooth Slave. Pairing between
the Mobile Computer and the Bluetooth Master left speaker, and
between the Bluetooth Master left speaker and the Bluetooth Slave
right speaker is performed using Bluetooth Pairing switch 138, with
Pairing Connection status indicated by light emitting diode (LED)
136.
[0033] In one preferred embodiment, the active speaker will need to
be certified under the Apple MFi program as the Bluetooth
communication will use Apple protocols and an Apple Authentication
Coprocessor 146 will be required to be connected to the Bluetooth
Receiver Module 144 via serial control data connection 154.
[0034] In one preferred embodiment, balanced and unbalanced analog
inputs are provided using industry-standard audio connectors 120,
and a preamplifier 92 with an externally adjustable gain trim
control 80 is provided for setting the optimum input signal
level.
[0035] A standard wired computer serial data interface, such as,
but not limited to, Universal Serial Bus (USB) is provided in one
embodiment for stereo audio streaming and remote control, as an
alternative to wireless audio streaming and control. In one
preferred embodiment, when a stereo pair of speakers is used, the
serial data interface of the left channel speaker will be used to
connect to the transmitting device, however, in other embodiments
the right speaker could be used. The USB interface 126 is connected
to a USB hub 128 under the control of microcontroller (MCU) 140 and
after conversion to stereo analog audio signals by a USB Codec 130,
the left channel of this stereo audio signal is summed with the
analog input preamplifier output by summing amplifier 122, whilst
the right channel is routed to an external unbalanced audio
connector 134 via a buffer amplifier 132, for wired connection to
the right channel speaker in a stereo configuration. In this way,
the routing of the left and right channel audio signals corresponds
with the relative physical placement of the speakers. The
microcontroller (MCU) 140 interfaces to the USB hub 128, Bluetooth
receiver 144 and DSP 52 via serial control data connections 148,
150 and 152 respectively.
[0036] An external two-position switch 124 is used to select
between the analog output of summing amplifier 122 and the analog
output of the Bluetooth Receiver module 144 (the left audio channel
if the Bluetooth Receiver is Bluetooth Master and the right audio
channel if it is Bluetooth Slave). The selected input connects to
Analog-to-Digital Converter (ADC) 96 and the respective digital
audio output signal is then received at respective input terminal
of the DSP 52.
[0037] Configuration of the speaker settings in the DSP 52 may be
performed over the wireless link to the speaker 50. Other speaker
configurations (e.g., stereo, 5.1 surround sound, etc.) can also be
created using combinations of speakers.
[0038] In one preferred embodiment, the wireless Bluetooth receiver
144 will mute its analog output when there is no valid connection
established with a mobile computer to avoid undesired audible
noises being heard.
[0039] Referring to FIG. 1, another feature is the use of a
software application program (commonly referred to as an "App")
typically downloaded to the mobile computer by a user to configure
the responses of speakers, such as speaker 14, to emulate other
models of studio monitors and the favorite settings of well-known
music artists and producers via the remote wireless connection.
These emulations contain pre-set parameter settings for the DSP
functions as shown in FIG. 2. Referring again to FIG. 1, the
emulation settings may come pre-loaded onto the mobile computer
application or may be downloaded or entered manually after the
smartphone application has been loaded. The user will be able to
select certain emulations by interacting with the user interface
18. Once a selection is made, the mobile computer 12 will transmit
a control signal through the transmitter 36 to the audio equipment,
which will automatically change the parameters of the speaker in
response to the control signals and incorporate the parameters
selected by the user. Once the DSP adjusts the parameters of the
speaker 14 according to the selection made, the user will be able
to listen to an audio output that will emulate other speaker models
or the configurations that other artists or producers use.
[0040] As shown in FIG. 3, another feature of the present
disclosure is the ability to provide for room equalization using
the mobile computer 12. Room equalization will be performed using
the application and a microphone integrated into the mobile
computer or coupled to the mobile computer, in conjunction with the
DSP integrated into an active speaker in one embodiment. The mobile
computer 12 sends a signal to the speaker 14 to enter into a room
equalization mode. The speaker 14 then outputs a test noise from
the speaker, which the microphone coupled to the mobile computer 12
senses or receives. The mobile computer processes the received test
noise from the speaker, comparing various parameters of the
received test noise to ideal settings or preferred settings made by
a user. As a result of the comparison, a comparison signal
representing a change to be made in the speaker output parameters
or settings, is generated by the mobile computer.
[0041] The mobile computer then sends the generated comparison
signal back to the speaker (either wired or wirelessly), where it
performs adjustments to the parameters of the speaker if necessary.
The mobile computer and speaker may perform this testing and
adjustment multiple times in order to fully equalize all
parameters. The end result is an equalized sound for the listener's
position without the need to move around to adjust parameters
manually.
[0042] As an alternative to the use of a mobile computer, an
integrated or external microphone coupled to a desktop personal
computer may be used.
[0043] These and other features can be incorporated into the
embodiments in light of the above-detailed description. In general,
in the following claims, the terms used should not be construed to
limit the claims to the specific embodiments disclosed in the
specification and the claims, but should be construed to include
all possible embodiments along with the full scope of equivalents
to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, the claims are not
limited by the disclosure.
* * * * *