Patent Grant
8594815
The present disclosure relates generally to the field of information handling systems, and more specifically, a speaker management framework.
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is an information handling system (IHS). An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for such systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
In some IHSs, a speaker may be desired to output sound derived from audio data generated within an IHS. For example, a user may desire to listen to music, play a movie, play a game, or engage in any other activity that requires sound output. Thus, speakers for an IHS may be designed to convert digital data from the IHS into an acoustic form audible by a user.
Furthermore, certain challenges may exist in designing a speaker for use with an IHS such as accurately reproducing source audio in the speaker while balancing the speaker's cabinet (i.e., enclosure) size. In addition, certain inherent deficiencies in transducer design may create further hindrances. As such, speaker compensation techniques have been developed to address deficiencies in speaker performance by modifying or filtering the source audio data before it is reproduced and output by the speaker. Speaker compensation may be performed by dedicated hardware in the speaker or by software methods in an IHS. Dedicated hardware may increase the cost of speakers but may enable external or standalone speakers (i.e., not embedded in an IHS) to perform speaker compensation. Alternatively, software methods of performing speaker compensation in an IHS may provide cost savings. However, software methods may require the use of significant IHS resources such as the processor and/or memory.
In order to implement software methods for speaker compensation, knowledge of the speaker type, such as the model, performance capabilities, performance requirements, and any other information may be required to appropriately compensate for the desired speaker performance. For embedded speakers, gaining such knowledge may be straightforward since the speakers may be part of the IHS itself. For external speakers, however, certain difficulties may arise since the IHS may need to be aware of various different types of external speakers. For example, when an external speaker is coupled to an IHS, the IHS may need to locate an appropriate driver or any speaker compensation parameters unique to the external speaker in order to effectively filter audio data.
Current methods addressing these issues may include providing applications that enable a user to determine appropriate drivers and/or parameters associated with the external speaker. Consequently, these applications may require the user to have knowledge of the type of speaker being employed. Other methods may include storing various drivers and parameters in a storage device. These storage devices, however, may be separate from the IHS, thereby requiring an extra component and layer of communication in managing a speaker system with an IHS.
Thus, a need exists for methods and systems for a speaker management framework to automatically identify a speaker and provide speaker compensation.
The following presents a general summary of several aspects of the disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding of at least some aspects of the disclosure. This summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosure. It is not intended to identify key or critical elements of the disclosure or to delineate the scope of the claims. The following summary merely presents some concepts of the disclosure in a general form as a prelude to the more detailed description that follows.
One aspect of the disclosure provides for a method for providing speaker management. The method may include initializing an information handling system (IHS) and an external speaker coupled to the IHS. Furthermore, the method may include receiving a device identifier (ID) associated with the external speaker and automatically loading an audio driver corresponding to the device ID. Additionally, the method may include filtering audio data sent to the external speaker by applying a speaker compensation parameter associated with the audio driver.
Another aspect of the present disclosure provides for an information handling system (IHS). The IHS may include an external speaker coupled to the IHS and memory operable to store an operating system (OS). To this end, the OS may be operable to receive a device identifier (ID) associated with the external speaker and automatically load an audio driver for the external speaker based on the device ID.
A further aspect of the present disclosure provides for a method for managing an external speaker coupled to an information handling system (IHS). The method may include initializing the IHS and an external speaker, the external speaker coupled to the IHS via a direct connection. Furthermore, the method may include identifying the external speaker to the IHS and loading a custom audio driver automatically for the external speaker upon identifying the external speaker. Moreover, the custom audio driver may include a speaker compensation parameter for the external speaker. Additionally, the method may include filtering the audio data sent to the external speaker by applying the speaker compensation parameter to the audio data.
Yet another aspect of the disclosure provides a computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for performing a method for providing speaker management. The method may include initializing an information handling system (IHS) and an external speaker coupled to the IHS. Furthermore, the method may include receiving a device identifier (ID) associated with the external speaker and automatically loading an audio driver corresponding to the device ID. Additionally, the method may include filtering audio data sent to the external speaker by applying a speaker compensation parameter associated with the audio driver.
For detailed understanding of the present disclosure, references should be made to the following detailed description of the several aspects, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like elements have been given like numerals and wherein:
Before the present systems and methods are described, it is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the particular systems and methods described, as such may vary. One of ordinary skill in the art should understand that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing possible aspects, embodiments and/or implementations only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure which will be limited only by the appended claims.
This invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments, implementations or aspects and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, the use of “including,” “comprising,” “having,” “containing,” “involving,” “consisting” and variations thereof, is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items.
It must also be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “and,” and “the” may include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “a speaker” refers to one or several speakers and reference to “a method of providing” includes reference to equivalent steps and methods known to those skilled in the art, and so forth.
For purposes of this disclosure, an embodiment of an Information Handling System (IHS) may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, or other purposes. For example, an IHS may be a personal computer, a storage device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. The IHS may include random access memory (RAM), one or more processing resources such as a central processing unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic, ROM, and/or other types of nonvolatile memory. Additional components of the IHS may include one or more disk drives, one or more network ports for communicating with external devices as well as various input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a video display. The IHS may also include one or more buses operable to transmit data communications between the various hardware components.
In addition, an external speaker may be coupled to the IHS 5 via the I/O interface 40. The external speaker may be operable to receive audio data and produce sound according to audio data. In some instances, the audio data may be stored and/or manipulated as a digital signal. To this end, audio data may be generated by various applications or such as an operating system (OS), software applications, and/or the like. For example, a software application, such as a computer game, may generate audio data associated with an action within the game. Such audio data may be sent to the external speaker where sound corresponding to the audio data may be rendered. Alternately, audio data may also be stored on a storage device such as in a hard disk drive, optical drive, and/or the like. As such, the OS or a software application may read and send the audio data to the external speakers. It should be noted that various methods of generating and/or storing audio may exist and that such methods are well known in the art.
The IHS 5 may be implemented with a network port 45 to permit communication over a network 70 such as a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), such as the Internet. As understood by those skilled in the art, IHS 5 implementations may also include an assortment of ports and interfaces for different peripherals and components, such as video display adapters 35, disk drives port 50, and input/output interfaces 40 (e.g., keyboard 60, mouse 65).
In certain implementations of the present disclosure, a network 70 may provide an information infrastructure, including physical connections or couplings, to allow more than one IHS to communicate with each other and share information. A network 70 may also communicatively couple components of one or more IHSs. In addition to the aforementioned, the network 70 may be implemented as, or may be part of, a personal area network (PAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), virtual private network (VPN), an intranet, or any other appropriate architecture or system that facilitates the communication of signals, data, and/or messages.
Furthermore, the IHS 5 may include custom audio drivers 210a-n each corresponding to a distinct external speaker 230. The custom drivers 210a-n may be stored in any storage devices on the IHS 5 including, but not limited to, memory, hard disk drives, and/or optical drives. Generally, a driver may refer to a software program that enables a relatively higher-level application to interact with a hardware device. For example, a printer driver may enable the printer to interact with a relatively higher level application, such as an operating system or a word processor, which has issued a print command. Similarly, audio drivers may enable the external speaker 230 to interact with an operating system or with any other application that may send audio data to the external speaker 230.
To this end, custom audio drivers (described below) 210a-n may include specific speaker compensation parameter(s) 215a-n, depending on the external speaker 230, to provide unique speaker compensation for the external speakers 230. As used herein, speaker compensation may generally refer to modifying or filtering audio data before a speaker produces sound from the audio data. Speaker compensation may be necessary due to certain inherent deficiencies in audio transducers, which may be devices used to convert electrical signals into sound. Indeed, in certain instances, approximately one percent of electrical energy sent to a speaker may be converted into sound audible by a human, thereby highlighting the inefficiencies of transducers. Furthermore, deficiencies in the design of a cabinet, which encloses a speaker, may also exist that may distort sound emanating from the speaker. As such, inefficiencies in both transducer and cabinet design may affect or significantly degrade sound quality.
Thus, speaker compensation techniques may enable certain modifications of audio data in order to reduce such degradation. For example, speaker compensation may include parametric equalization, which may enable the control of the amplitude, center frequency, and bandwidth of audio signals. To this end, various filters, including, but not limited to infinite impulse response (IIR) filters, and finite impulse response (FIR) filters may be employed adjust the frequency bands of the audio signal. As such, frequency bands which a speaker system has difficulty reproducing may be accentuated while frequency bands in which the speaker system tends to exhibit excessive peaks in reproduction may be attenuated.
In addition, speaker compensation may be performed by either dedicated hardware in the speaker itself, or by software methods in an IHS. Dedicated hardware may provide speaker compensation in standalone speaker systems (e.g., not embedded in an IHS) but may be relatively expensive to implement. On the other hand, a relatively less expensive alternative for speaker compensation may be accomplished through software. Software methods for speaker compensation, however, may require processing power from an IHS to perform speaker compensation. Moreover, the knowledge of the type of speaker, e.g., the model, manufacturer, and/or, performance parameter(s) may also be necessary. Identifying a speaker in such a manner may be straightforward for an embedded speaker but may be more difficult to obtain for an external speaker 230.
Therefore,
In one implementation of the speaker management framework 200, the IHS 5 may be coupled to the external speaker 230 though a direct connection 220. As used herein, a direct connection may refer to a connection made between the external speaker 230 and the IHS without aid from any third party device. Thus, a direct connection 220 may be established via various wired means such as the Universal Serial Bus (USB) protocol and/or the like. Alternatively, the direction connection 220 may be established via wireless protocols including, but not limited to, Bluetooth, and/or Ultra-Wide Band (UWB). For example, using the USB protocol, an external speaker 230 may be coupled to the IHS 5 by connecting a USB cable from the external speaker 230 to the IHS 5. Once both components are coupled, an enumeration process may be automatically initiated by the IHS 5.
As such, each protocol for the direct connection 220 may have its own standard enumeration process to identify the external speaker 230 to the IHS 5 (i.e., the OS of the IHS). As used within the present disclosure, an enumeration process may refer to a process by which the IHS 5 establishes communication with a peripheral device. During the enumeration process, the IHS 5 may obtain a device ID, determine information regarding the device's properties, load specific drivers for the device, and/or perform any other configuration functions associated with the device. Regarding the USB, Bluetooth, and UWB protocols, each may have its own standard enumeration process detailed within its respective specifications. Accordingly, their enumeration processes are well known in the art. Similarly, other protocols may be used for the direct connection 220 though not specifically mentioned, and each of those protocols may also have a standard enumeration process well known in the art.
Alternatively, the IHS 5 may also communicate with the external speaker 230 through a network connection 240 via a stream manager 250. A network connection may be implemented using any network protocol including, but not limited to, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and/or any proprietary wireless protocol. A stream manager 250 may be a device operable to direct audio data from the IHS 5 to an external speaker 230 over a network 70. Under this paradigm, the external speaker 230 may not be directly connected to the IHS 5 as with a direct connection 220. Rather, the stream manager 250 may receive the audio data from the IHS 5, comprehend that the IHS 5 intends to send the audio data to the external speaker 230, and then subsequently direct the audio data to the external speaker 230 through the network 70. As such, the stream manager 250 may have access to the external speaker's 230 device ID and may provide the device ID to the IHS 5 for identification purposes.
In one implementation, the stream manager 250 may be an internal device on the IHS or a software application executed by the IHS. In other implementations, the stream manager 250 may be an external device that performs network control functions or data (e.g., audio data) routing. Examples of devices or applications that can perform the functions of the stream manager 250 include, but are not limited to, a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) Audio and Video (AV) server or a Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) server.
For example, an IHS 5 may be located in a home office of a house while the external speaker may be located in the kitchen. In this instance, both the stream manager 250 and the external speaker 230 may be coupled to a network 70. Therefore, the stream manager 250 may be able to obtain the device ID of the external speaker 230 and provide it to the IHS 5. As such, the stream manager 250 may be operable to direct audio data, originating from the IHS 5, to the external speaker 230 through the network 70 so that sounds corresponding to the audio data may be produced in the kitchen. Additionally, similar to the direct connection 220 protocols, the protocols used for communicating over a network connection 240 may also each have respective standard enumeration processes by which an external speaker 230 may be identified to a device. Accordingly, these enumeration processes are also well known in the art. To this end, the external speaker may be identified by the stream manager 250, which may communicate the identification information to the IHS 5.
With respect to
In another implementation, the IHS 5 may include a generic audio driver rather than multiple custom audio drivers 210a-n. A generic audio driver may be an audio driver that is compatible with a plurality of external speakers 230 though it may not contain appropriate speaker compensation parameter(s) 215a-n for each external speaker 230. To this end, the IHS 5 may also include a database containing speaker compensation parameter(s) 215a-n that may be used in conjunction with the generic audio driver to provide speaker compensation specific to the external speaker 230. The database may likewise be stored on any storage device within the IHS 5 including, but not limited to, hard disk drives, optical drives, and tape drives. Furthermore, the present disclosure also contemplates any combination of custom audio drivers 215a-n, speaker compensation parameter(s) 215a-n, and a generic audio driver.
It should be noted that while
Referring now to
Next, in step 320, the IHS identifies the external speaker and initiates an enumeration process through the direct connection. In particular, the IHS (i.e., OS) may obtain a devices ID unique to the external speaker as part of an enumeration process previously described with reference to
Turning now to
Thus, the present disclosure may provide methods and systems for implementing a speaker management framework to automatically identify an external speaker to an IHS and load appropriate drivers and/or speaker compensation parameter(s) to perform speaker compensation. Since the identification of an external speaker occurs automatically, user input may not be necessary in selecting an appropriate driver. In addition, storage of the drivers and speaker compensation parameter(s) may be located on the IHS such as in a hard drive, memory, optical disk drive, or any other storage device, which may obviate the need for additional peripheral storage devices.
Furthermore, methods of the present disclosure, detailed description and claims may be presented in terms of logic, software or software implemented aspects typically encoded on a variety of media or medium including, but not limited to, computer-readable medium/media, machine-readable medium/media, program storage medium/media or computer program product. Such media, having computer-executable instructions, may be handled, read, sensed and/or interpreted by an IHS. Generally, computer-executable instructions, such as program modules, may include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, and the like, which perform particular tasks, carry out particular methods or implement particular abstract data types. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that such media may take various forms such as cards, tapes, magnetic disks (e.g., floppy disk or hard drive) and optical disks (e.g., compact disk read only memory (“CD-ROM”) or digital versatile disc (“DVD”)). It should be understood that the given implementations are illustrative only and shall not limit the present disclosure.
Although the present disclosure has been described with reference to particular examples, embodiments and/or implementations, those skilled in the art will recognize that modifications and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimed subject matter. Such changes in form and detail, including use of equivalent functional and/or structural substitutes for elements described herein, fall within the scope of the appended claims and are intended to be covered by this disclosure.
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