Universal speakerphone with adaptable interface

Universal speaker phone with adjustable interface

The present invention relates to a system and method for a speakerphone including an adaptable or universal interface. More specifically, the present invention relates to a device that includes all the important features of a speaker phone with an adaptable or universal interface and can be used in any telephone communication system.

In today's commercialization, telephone conference calls have become routine, partly because teleconferencing provides convenient and inexpensive discussion venues that allow remote business stakeholders to communicate. In order to allow multiple parties to participate in a specific part of a telephone conversation, teleconference systems usually use speakerphones. The speakerphone is a device with a microphone and a speaker. The device is integrated into a standard phone including a handset or Set separately as a dedicated device without earpiece. In a teletype conference system, sound appears in the space (hereinafter referred to as "near-end room"), for example, the sound of the near-end speaker is received by the microphone and transmitted to the "far-end system (far-end system). -end system)", and the sound detected by the remote phone handset or microphone is transmitted to the near-end system and broadcast by the near-end speaker.

Many phones have an integrated speaker phone function that can be activated by transferring the sound input and output from the handset to the surrounding microphone and speaker by pushing a single button. However, it is specifically designed for use in speakerphones The device usually includes one or more microphones for detecting audio signals, one or more speakers for audio replay, and an interface for the user's communication link. This kind of speaker phone usually has a plurality of microphone inputs arranged around the device (for example, arranged radially) to maximize the sound input, for example, it can exist around a conference table, and the most sophisticated unit allows connection with the main unit Additional satellite microphones some distance apart. Speaker phones are also designed to interface with communication links and used as "hands-free" phones. They include all typical Man-Machine Interface features, such as dial pads and displays. And other more advanced features, such as memory, speed dial, replay and many more features.

However, speaker phones and other peripheral sound devices are usually infrastructure-specific, which means that they only communicate with specific communication basic devices, and speaker phones or other peripheral sound devices will not operate under different communication links. . For example, examples of existing telephone communication connections are:-traditional analog telephone communication (POTS or simple old telephone service, where the analog communication is carried out on two wires);-digital switchboard, such as , Private PBX (private B Exchange), a circuit-switched telephone network system designed to allow the digital transmission of voice and data between the telephone and the switch over ordinary telephone copper wires network system);-Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface connected to the computer (for Voice Over Internet Protocol or VOIP) Communication); -Analog In/Out (video conference or computer via sound card, non-standard digital communication); -Session Initiation Protocol or SIP, an application layer control (signaling) Protocols used to create, modify, and terminate conversations among one or more participants, such as Internet phone calls, multimedia distribution, and multimedia conferences; and-wireless communication, such as Bluetooth or DECT, which is a kind of Industrial specification for wireless personal area network (PAN).

The number of existing communication links continues to grow.

Therefore, manufacturers of speaker phones and other peripheral sound devices must currently produce many types of speaker phones to meet a large number of different existing communication solutions. So far, manufacturers have developed different versions of speaker phones and other peripheral sound devices for use in different communication lines. For example, only Avaya<img file="TW200845708A_D0001.tif" />Brand speaker phone will operate correctly in Avaya<img file="TW200845708A_D0002.tif" />Brand telecommunications network. Therefore, a close relationship (and commitment) is required between the supplier of the speaker phone and other peripheral sound devices (usually OEM) and the provider of basic communication equipment.

Therefore, end users have to endure paying higher prices for these devices in a less competitive environment and have to rely on the communication basic equipment provider to decide the conference solution. Similarly, the current situation also poses a problem for small companies. By requiring the company to produce many forms of speaker phone units to meet the needs of different communication basic equipment providers, the market penetration of speaker phones is increased.

It is hoped that an adaptable speaker phone can be provided so that it can be used in any telephone communication system.

An object of the present invention is to provide a speaker phone that is adaptable and can be used in any telephone communication system.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a speaker phone using a universal interface so that it can be used in any telephone communication system.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mechanism for the speaker phone to directly obtain and transmit the audio signal from a communication line.

According to these and other objectives, the present invention provides a first embodiment of a system having a main speaker phone unit or module and a separate communication interface unit or module. The main speaker phone unit or module will include audio pickup and Audio replay capability. The interface between the main speaker phone module and the communication interface module will use the standard telecommunications infrastructure protocol, and in order to handle most of the multimedia interface (MMI) functions, the speaker phone will use the phone A type of telephone that can be used for specific communication basic equipment.

Unlike standard speaker phones and other peripheral sound devices that are specific basic equipment, in one embodiment of the present invention, the interface module that has been integrated into the speaker phone so far has been separated from the main speaker phone module. Therefore, the speaker phone, which is usually the most expensive part of the equipment, can be selected independently of the carrier or communications protocol or technology, and the interface module can be used as needed. Simply switch or modify.

In this embodiment, the interface module will "sit" between the phone and the communication line and will allow the user to use the phone to dial numbers, store and recall memories, speak through the microphone, etc. Wait. When the user wants to have a "hands-free" conversation, the interface module will capture the audio signal and send it to the main speaker phone module to reproduce it on the main speaker phone module speaker. Play. The interface module also obtains the processed audio signal from the main speaker phone module and puts it into the communication link to replace the audio signal sent from the phone. The device is connected to the communication line by listening and intervening in the audio part of the communication, leaving control signals and allowing other devices to process the command part of the communication.

The interface module can be combined with software for a specific telecommunications protocol, so that the interface module can be changed when it is necessary to deal with different communication protocols or phone manufacturers. Changing the interface module is quite simple, because it uses a simple mechanical connection between the interface module on the one hand and the telephone and the communication line on the other hand. If the interface module is adapted to a specific manufacturer's agreement, the mechanical connection can also be specific.

Or, in another embodiment of the present invention, when the telecommunications protocol is to be changed, the entire interface module does not need to be changed, and only a software card that incorporates software for a specific telecommunications protocol is required Was changed. In this example, the interface module will have a mechanical connection specifically for a specific manufacturer (the specific manufacturers agreement has been coded for use).

Or, in a further embodiment of the present invention, when the telecommunications agreement When it needs to be changed, even the software card used for a specific specific telecommunications protocol does not need to be changed. In this embodiment, the interface protocol can be programmed for all specific specific telecommunication protocols. Therefore, the interface module will have a specific mechanical connection for a specific manufacturer (the specific manufacturers agreement has been coded for use), and when the audio part of the communication passes between the phone and the communication line, the software will Automatically understand which protocol software to use.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the examples and drawings described in detail below. However, it should be understood that when the preferred embodiment of the present invention is pointed out, the detailed description and specific examples are presented only by way of illustration, because the detailed description in this article is for those with ordinary knowledge in the technical field, in the scope and scope of the present invention. Various changes and modifications within the spirit will become apparent.

Refer to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of a standard telephone configuration. The basic communication equipment can be any known basic telephone communication equipment, such as analog telephone lines, digital switches, dialog initiation protocol (SIP), and universal serial convergence. Row (USB) or analog input/output (Voice Control (VC) unit), as discussed above. A basic conference speaker phone (including at least one microphone and at least one speaker, and may also include additional features, such as noise suppression, echo cancellation, automatic gain control (AGC), dial and pair The interface of the communication line is electrically connected to the basic communication equipment. This speaker phone must also include some interfaces that have been manufactured for specific telephone communication basic equipment. Types of.

Figure 2 shows a schematic diagram of the interface module of the present invention in a standard phone structure. As shown in FIG. 2, the interface module 12 and the main speaker phone module 14 are located between the standard telephone or microphone 10 and the communication line 16. The interface module 12 is a controller unit that connects the main speaker phone module 14 with the telephone 10 and the communication line 16, and has nothing to do with the manufacturer of the telephone 10 or the form of the basic telephone communication equipment 16 .

From FIG. 2, it can be seen that the interface module 12 in this embodiment is not integratedly connected to the main speaker phone module 14. Therefore, the speaker phone 14 which is usually the most expensive part of such equipment can be selected independently of the carrier or communication protocol or technology, and the interface module 12 can be simply switched or modified as needed. The user/dealer/OEM can easily install or change the interface module 12 into an interface module designed to communicate with the existing specific communication basic equipment. Therefore, because it can be used in any carrier or communication protocol or technology, it can generally be referred to as a "universal speaker phone".

Figure 3 is an alternative diagram of the interface module of the present invention located in a standard phone structure. As shown in Figure 3, the communication line 16 can be any standard telephone communication system, such as traditional analog telephone communication (POTS), digital switch, dialogue initiation protocol (SIP), universal serial bus (USB) interface connection and analog input /Output. The main speaker phone module 14 is a uniform conference speaker phone, including all the functions of a standard phone, such as at least one microphone, at least one speaker, and perhaps other features, such as noise suppression, echo cancellation, automatic gain control ( Signal level output amplification adjustment) and filtering (filtering), the interface to the general serial bus, and its His technology and characteristics. In Figure 3, it can also be seen that the interface module is not integratedly connected to the main speaker phone module. The main speaker phone module 14 has a standard interface to the interface module 12.

In certain embodiments, the interface module 12 and the main speaker phone module 14 can be housed in the same housing as a unit with two different functions. In this structure, the user will see a unit, although it will contain two separate modules with different functions, that is, the main speaker that provides high-end digital speaker phone processing (such as noise suppression, filtering, etc.) The telephone module 14 and the interface module 12 that allows the main speaker telephone module 14 to be used in different communication basic equipment. In this embodiment, it is preferable that the interface module 12 part of the housing can be separated or moved from the speaker phone module 14 part of the housing, so that the interface module 12 can be used according to specific communication basic equipment. And be exchanged or modified.

When the interface module of the present invention is used in a dialogue activation protocol and a digital switch interface module, as shown in Figure 4, the interface module 12 is sitting on the line and monitors the telephone 10 and the communication line 16 host ( Voice/audio data communication dialog between servers/switches. The interface module 12 allows all high-level handshake to become unaffected and does not interfere with any standard telephone signal processing, thus allowing the user to use the telephone 10 to dial, store and recall memories, speak, etc., as usual . In fact, in certain embodiments, the interface module 12 does not even recognize its existence or identify its identity to the telephone server.

Instead, the interface module 12 identifies the relevant data block and replaces the data block with data from the conference unit. Once the processing unit has identified Related audio data, the processing unit captures incoming data and sends it to the main speaker phone module 14 and places the output from the main speaker phone module 14 in outgoing dataThe location. The location.

The only control data that the interface module 12 can modify is the determination of using a codec (compression) algorithm (used when it is not supported by the interface module 12). The interface module 12 can interfere with the handshake to force a specific compression algorithm (an algorithm supported by the interface module 12) to accept and terminate the call. According to a request from the main speaker phone module 14, the interface module 12 can become completely transparent (allowing the user to use his phone 10 for communication).

In one embodiment of the present invention, when the user wants to conduct a "hands-free" conversation, the main speaker phone module 14 must be activated first. The user makes appropriate instructions on the interface module 12 or the main speaker phone module 14, for example, by pressing a button. Once the instruction is made, the interface module 12 will also obtain the processed audio signal from the main speaker phone module 14 and place it in the communication link to replace the audio signal from the phone 10. Therefore, the interface module will capture the audio signal and send it to the main speaker phone module 14 to be played on the speaker in the main speaker phone module 14. The main module 14 will also use one or more microphones to detect sounds, and send these audio signals to the interface module in an analog (or digital) form.

The main module 14 can further process these audio signals to allow High-quality full duplex (full duplex) communication. In order to obtain this improved performance, the main module 14 can perform noise suppression, sound echo cancellation, line echo cancellation, de-reverberation algorithms, microphone array processing, direction finding, and beam forming. And sound tracking, and other known algorithms to improve sound quality.

In one embodiment, the main module 14 will pick up sound through several (for example, four) microphones, and evaluate the direction of the sound source according to the signal levels on several different microphones. The combined signal output thus has a better listening direction (aim at the source), performs noise suppression on a single output, performs acoustic echo cancellation and line echo cancellation, and delivers higher-quality audio pickup signals. At the same time, the main module 14 can improve the quality of the signal received from the remote end so that its level is adjusted and the frequency response is optimized.

For POTS (Simple Old Telephone Service), that is, when the interface module is used in an analog telephone line, as shown in Figure 5, the interface module 12 includes the basic communication equipment 16 connected to the telephone 10 or to The switch of the main speaker phone module 14. In fact, the interface module 12 switches the connection between the phone 10 and the main speaker phone module 14. The phone 10 rings, performs dialing and other functions, and the main speaker phone module 14 "stills" the line when the audio part is generated. The interface module 12 connects the telephone 10 to the communication line 14 (as long as there is a control signal to be played on the line (busy line, ringing, etc.)), and once the voice communication is established, the interface module 12 switches the line To the main speaker phone module 14. In one embodiment, the "switch" can be implemented so that the The switch allows some signals to come from the phone 10 even when the main speaker phone module 14 is activated. For example, using the dial tone of the phone's dial pad enables the user to respond to requests through automatic services when listening through the speaker phone.

The present invention can be implemented in many different configurations to accomplish the purpose of the present invention.

FIG. 6 shows such an embodiment, which is a block diagram of the functional features of an embodiment of the interface module 12 located between the main speaker phone module 14 and the telephone 10. In this embodiment, the interface module 12 has a processing unit 21 and interface protocol processors 22 and 23 that communicate with the telephone 10 and the communication line 16 respectively to detect sound signals and convert them to the processing unit 21. In many communication protocols, the messages of all units are sent together, which is time multiplexed.

In one embodiment, the processing unit 21 analyzes the protocol to identify which packet is to be given to the phone connected to the processing unit, and strips the audio for the phone. The processing unit 21 is programmed to recognize the message directed to the phone and search for audio packets in the message. In one embodiment, the processing unit 21 knows and waits for the response from the phone 10, and then sees the recognized message and understands the interface protocol.

Generally speaking, each different communication architecture has a different protocol. Among these protocols, the dialogue initiation protocol is generally considered to be the most complicated, but it is very common in the technical field and software can be specifically written for each communication protocol. Some languages are proprietary, such as PBX (Private Business eXchange) used by Panasonic, Therefore, in order to customize the design equipment to comply with the private communication protocol, the manufacturer must obtain this information.

In the first embodiment, the interface module 12 is specifically used for a specific telecommunications protocol, so the processing unit 21 incorporates software used for this specific telecommunications protocol. In this embodiment, when different communication protocols or phone manufacturers need to be processed, the software card in the interface module 12 will have to be changed. Or, through a simple mechanical connection (connecting between the interface module on the one hand and the telephone and the communication line on the other hand), the entire interface module 12 can be changed. If the interface module is adapted to the agreement of one or more specific manufacturers, the mechanical connection can be specific to the manufacturer whose agreement has been coded for use.

Alternatively, the interface protocol can be programmed for all specific specific telecommunications protocols, so that even when the telecommunications protocol is to be changed, the software card used for the specific telecommunications protocol does not need to be changed. In this embodiment, the interface module will have a specific mechanical connection for a plurality of specific manufacturers whose protocols have been encoded for use, and when the audio part of the communication passes between the phone and the communication line, The software will automatically know which protocol software to use.

The remote sound signal (a signal transmitted from the far end of the communication line and pushed into the speaker but also used as a reference signal for the echo canceller) is transmitted from the interface module 12 to the main speaker phone module 14, Used to broadcast on its speakers. The processed microphone signal is transmitted from the main speaker phone module 14 to the interface module 12 for sending back to the communication line 16 and to the remote system. The control signal indicates the main speaker phone module 14 It communicates back and forth with the interface module 12 to control standard phone operations, such as volume control, accepting/terminating calls, mute, and power on/off. These control signals can also be used to indicate the existence of a specific interface module 12.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the functional features of the main speaker phone module 14 connected to the interface module 12. As shown above, the remote sound signal is transmitted from the interface module 12 to the main speaker phone module 14. The signal is processed in the analog/digital converter 31 to convert the analog sound signal into a digital format. . These digital audio signals are then passed through the processor 28 and then through the digital/analog converter 32 to convert the digital audio signals back to an analog format, and these processed audio signals are played back to the user through at least one speaker or speaker 30. If the communication is digital, the analog/digital converter 31 and the digital/analog converter 32 may not be needed, because the interface unit sends digital messages to the speaker phone and then receives the processed digital messages.

The main speaker phone module 14 also has at least one microphone 24 to receive sound signals, which are then passed through a signal conditioning module 25 to adjust the microphone level and frequency response to the best value and The analog sound signal is converted into a digital format through the analog/digital converter 26. The sound signal is then passed through the processor 28 and through the digital/analog converter 32 to convert the digital sound signal back to an analog format, and the processed microphone signals are transmitted from the main speaker phone module 14 to the interface module 12 is used to send back to the communication line 16 and to the remote system.

The main speaker phone module 14 also has a memory connected to the processor 28 A memory storage unit 27 to store sounds and other phone information (such as voice recognition or phone numbers), and has control/instruction buttons 29, such as those found on standard phones or speaker phones, including high volume /Low, accept/terminate call, mute, and power on instructions. In one embodiment, the unit 27 stores software for the processing unit 21. This software is automatically uploaded to the processor 21 after resetting or turning on the power.

As mentioned above, the control signal instruction is transmitted back and forth between the main speaker phone module 14 and the interface module 12. These control signals can also be used to indicate the existence of a specific interface module 12 or to send, receive/terminate call signals.

The main speaker phone module 14 may include an additional external input that can be used to pick up sound from an external microphone (eg wireless). This input can also be used to bring in the process output of another speaker phone unit. The utilization of these feature units can be connected in series to provide larger room coverage.

FIG. 8 is a program flow chart of the operation of the processor 28 of the main speaker phone module 14. When the speaker phone of the present invention is activated, the processor 28 reads the analog format, adjusted microphone signal from the analog/digital converter 26 (block 41). The processor 28 also reads the analog format remote signal from the interface module 12 through the analog/digital converter 31 (block 42). The processor 28 then evaluates the signal level and integrity on each microphone (block 43), evaluates the direction of the signal source (block 44), generates an audio beam in the direction of the source (block 45), and the audio The beam performs noise suppression (block 46). (Each of these actions are well-known in the technical field. The voice phone function is as discussed in the example in US Patent No. 6,049,607. )

At the same time, the processor 28 performs acoustic echo cancellation and line echo cancellation on the audio beam (blocks 47, 48), and then processes the far-end signal (automatic gain control (AGC), filtering, etc.) (block 49). The processor 28 then sends the processed remote signal to the speaker 30 and the processed microphone signal to the interface module (via the digital/analog converter 32) (blocks 50, 51).

Therefore, the present invention has provided a system and method for providing a universal speaker phone interface. Those with ordinary knowledge in the technical field will understand that the present invention can be implemented in other ways than the described embodiment (which is presented for illustrative purposes and not to limit the present invention). Furthermore, since people with ordinary knowledge in the technical field can easily come up with many modifications and changes, and therefore intend to limit the present invention to the precise structure and operation shown and described, so without departing from the definition in the additional Under the spirit and scope of the present invention in the scope of the patent application, all appropriate modifications and equivalents are applicable.

<p>10Phone</p><p>12Interface Module</p><p>14Main speaker phone module</p><p>16Communication lines, basic communication equipment</p><p>21Processing unit</p><p>22, 23Interface protocol processor</p><p>24Microphone</p><p>25Signal conditioning module</p><p>26Analog/Digital Converter</p><p>27Memory storage unit</p><p>28Processor</p><p>29Control/instruction button</p><p>30Speaker</p><p>31Analog/Digital Converter</p><p>32, 33digital/analog converter</p><p>41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51Block</p>

The above and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the above detailed description and the accompanying drawings. Similar component symbols in the drawings in this text refer to similar parts and among them: Figure 1 shows the standard phone structure Figure 2 shows a schematic diagram of the interface module of the present invention located in a standard phone structure; Figure 3 shows a diagram of the interface module in a general network; Figure 4 shows when used in a SIP network Schematic diagram of the interface module at the time; Figure 5 shows a schematic diagram of the interface module when used in an analog telephone line; Figure 6 is a block diagram of the functional features of the interface module; Figure 7 is a block diagram of the functional features of the main speaker phone module; and Figure 8 is a program flow chart of the operation of the processor of the main speaker phone module.