System and method for microphone gain adjust based on speaker orientation

Abstract

A system and method for automatically adjusting the gain of an audio system as a speaker's head moves relative to a microphone includes using a video of the speaker to determine an orientation of the speaker's head relative to the microphone and, hence, a gain adjust signal. The gain adjust signal is then applied to the audio system that is associated with the microphone to dynamically and continuously adjust the gain the audio system.

1 . A computer-implemented method for generating a gain adjust signal to establish an audio output level, comprising: 
 receiving at least one person-microphone position signal representative of a position of a person relative to a microphone;    determining a gain adjust signal based at least in part on the person-microphone position signal; and    using the gain adjust signal to establish the audio output level, wherein the gain adjust signal is determined based at least partially on at least one of: an orientation of a person's head relative to the microphone, or a head location relative to a direction of sensitivity of a microphone.    
   
   
       2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the person-microphone position signal is derived from a video system.  
   
   
       3 . (canceled)  
   
   
       4 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising: 
 recording at least one calibration person-microphone position signal;    recording at least one calibration audio level; and    using the calibration signal and calibration level, generating at least one mapping.    
   
   
       5 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising using the mapping to generate at least one gain adjust signal based on at least one person-microphone position signal.  
   
   
       6 . A computer-implemented method for generating a gain adjust signal to establish an audio output level, comprising: 
 receiving at least one person-microphone position signal representative of a position of a person relative to a microphone;    determining a gain adjust signal based at least in part on the person-microphone position signal; and    using the gain adjust signal to establish the audio output level, wherein the person-microphone position signal is derived from a motion sensing system or an orientation sensing system.    
   
   
       7 . A computer-implemented method for generating a gain adjust signal to establish an audio output level, comprising: 
 receiving at least one person-microphone position signal representative of a position of a person relative to a microphone;    determining a gain adjust signal based at least in part on the person-microphone position signal; and    using the rain adjust signal to establish the audio output level, wherein the person-microphone position signal is derived from a laser system.    
   
   
       8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the gain adjust signal is determined contemporaneously with a recording of the person.  
   
   
       9 - 16 . (canceled)  
   
   
       17 . A computer program product including: 
 computer readable code means for receiving light reflection signals representative of light reflected from a person and light reflected from a microphone;    computer readable code means for, based on the light reflection signals, determining an orientation signal; and    computer readable code means for generating an audio gain adjust signal based on the orientation signal.    
   
   
       18 . The computer program product of  claim 17 , further comprising:. 
 computer readable code means for recording at least one calibration person-microphone position signal;    computer readable code means for recording at least calibration one audio level; and    computer readable code means for, using the calibration signal and calibration level, generating at least one mapping.    
   
   
       19 . The computer program-product of  claim 18 , further comprising computer readable code means for using the mapping to generate at least one gain adjust signal based on at least one person-microphone position signal.  
   
   
       20 - 23 . (canceled)  
   
   
       24 . An audio system, comprising: 
 at least one microphone electrically connected to at least one audio amplifier having at least one audio gain;    at least one source of person-microphone position signals representative of at least one of: the angle between the head of a person and the microphone, or a head location relative to a direction of sensitivity of the microphone; and    at least one processor receiving signals from the source and establishing the audio gain in response thereto.    
   
   
       25 . The system of  claim 24 , wherein the source is a video camera.  
   
   
       26 . The system of  claim 24 , wherein the source is a motion sensing system of a laser system or a position sensing system or an orientation sensing system or a distance sensing system.  
   
   
       27 . The system of  claim 24 , further comprising a slow adjust filter using an audio stream to generate a slow gain adjust signal.  
   
   
       28 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the gain adjust signal is determined by selecting one of several microphone outputs based on head position.  
   
   
       29 . The system of  claim 24 , wherein the source is an illumination-based pupil detector or a face detector.