Patent ID: 11922955
Assignee: SONOS, INC.
Field: Audio-visual technology (Electrical engineering)
Classification: CPC G  H | IPC G  H

Claim 6:
7. A method comprising:
receiving, at a first playback device having a plurality of transducers enclosed within a common housing, a source stream of audio content comprising a left input channel, a right input channel, and a center input channel;
in a first operating mode of the first playback device, playing back, via the plurality of transducers: (i) left channel audio based on the left input channel, (ii) right channel audio based on the right input channel, and (iii) center channel audio via the center input channel, wherein each of the transducers contributes to the output of at least one of the right channel audio, the left channel audio, or the center channel audio while in the first operating mode;
detecting that a second playback device and a third playback devices are bonded to the first playback device for synchronous audio playback;
after the detecting, transitioning the first playback device from the first operating mode to a second operating mode to a second operating mode;
receiving, via one or more microphones of the first playback device, a signal from at least one of the second or third playback devices indicating a respective location of the second and/or the third playback devices; and
in the second operating mode of the first playback device:
playing back, via the plurality of transducers, arrayed center channel audio based on at least the center input channel, wherein the arrayed center channel audio output is based at least in part on the signal indicative of the location(s) of the second and/or third playback devices, the arrayed center channel audio output having a different acoustic signature than that of the left channel audio, right channel audio, and center channel audio played back via the plurality of transducers in the first mode, and wherein at least one of the transducers outputs no audio while in the second operating mode;
causing, a network interface, right channel audio to be played back via the second playback device based on at least the right input channel, the second playback device being separate and spaced apart from the first playback device; and
causing, via the network interface, left channel audio to be played back via the third playback device based on at least the left input channel, the third playback device being separate and spaced apart from the first playback device.