Adaptive personal active noise system

Abstract

An improved active noise reduction system which has a transducer, an electro-acoustic sensing means including adjacent to the transducer, an attenuation means with electro-acoustic sensing means to attenuate selected sound frequencies, said system utilizing both feed forward control means and feedback control means comprising a heteronomous electronic controller with algorithmic transfer function and said controller being individually operable.

1 . A heteronomous controller of a personal active noise attenuation system comprising: 
 a feedback controller adapted for receiving an acoustically transduced signal from a noise error sensor and for generating a feedback active noise attenuating control signal portion;    a feedforward controller adapted for: 
 receiving the acoustically transduced signal from the noise error sensor;  
 receiving a noise reference signal from a noise reference signal sensor; and  
 applying an adaptive signal processing algorithm to the acoustically transduced signal from the noise error sensor and to the noise reference signal to generate an adaptive active noise attenuation control signal portion; and  
   a linear combiner adapted for summing a linear combination of the feedback active noise attenuating control signal portion and the adaptive active noise attenuation control signal portion so as to generate a heteronomous control signal.    
   
   
       2 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1  further comprising a compensator adapted for canceling a feedback path from the noise reference signal sensor before application of the adaptive signal processing algorithm, wherein the feed forward controller receives the noise reference signal from the noise reference signal sensor via the compensator  
   
   
       3 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 2 , wherein the feedback compensator is an analog filter.  
   
   
       4 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 2 , wherein the compensator is a digital filter.  
   
   
       5 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the adaptive signal processing algorithm is an adaptive feedforward algorithm.  
   
   
       6 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the adaptive signal processing algorithm is an adaptive feedback algorithm.  
   
   
       7 . The compensator of  claim 2 , wherein the compensator is executed on the feedforward controller that executes the adaptive signal processing algorithm.  
   
   
       8 . The compensator of  claim 2 , wherein the feedforward controller is further adapted for minimizing a sensitivity of a loop transfer function between the acoustically transduced signal from the noise error sensor and the adaptive active noise attenuating control signal portion of the heteronomous control signal.  
   
   
       9 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the noise error sensor is a microphone.  
   
   
       10 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the noise error sensor is an accelerometer.  
   
   
       11 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the noise error sensor is spatially adaptable in the noise field.  
   
   
       12 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the noise reference signal sensor is a microphone.  
   
   
       13 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the noise reference signal sensor is an accelerometer.  
   
   
       14 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the noise reference signal sensor is the noise error sensor.  
   
   
       15 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the noise reference signal sensor is spatially adaptable in the noise field.  
   
   
       16 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the personal active noise attenuation system is a headset system comprising a head-mounting portion, earcups, a noise error sensor, a noise reference signal sensor, and an electroacoustic control speaker system.  
   
   
       17 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the personal active noise attenuation system is a silent seat comprising a noise error sensor, a reference signal sensor, and an electroacoustic control speaker system.  
   
   
       18 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the linear combiner is an analog summing amplifier.  
   
   
       19 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the linear combiner is adapted for proportionally combining the feedback active noise attenuation control signal portion and the adaptive active noise attenuation control signal portion in the feed forward controller.  
   
   
       20 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , where the linear combiner summer is adapted for outputting selectively controlled proportions of the feedback active noise attenuation control signal portion and the adaptive active noise attenuation control signal portion.  
   
   
       21 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the personal active noise attenuation system is a headset and earplug system comprising a head mounting portion, earcups, and earplugs, further comprising a noise error sensor, a noise reference signal sensor, and an electroacoustic control speaker system.  
   
   
       22 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 1 , wherein the personal active noise attenuation system is an earplug system comprising earplugs, a noise error sensor, a noise reference signal sensor, and an electroacoustic control speaker system.  
   
   
       23 . The heteronomous controller and earplug system of  claim 22  where earplugs are custom earmolds, foam earplugs, flanged earplugs, acrylic earplugs.  
   
   
       24 . The heteronomous controller of  claim 23 , wherein the electroacoustic control speaker system is comprised of one or more speakers.