Patent Publication Number: US-9886235-B2

Title: Audio playback device and method

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to Taiwanese Application Serial Number 104144249, filed Dec. 29, 2015, which is herein incorporated by reference. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Field of Invention 
     The present invention relates to an audio playback technology. More particularly, the present invention relates to an audio playback device and an audio playback method. 
     Description of Related Art 
     Accompanying with maturity of network technologies, music streaming websites can transmit music streams through a network to an audio playback system for playing the music. Many music streams include audio data having compression formats, such as DTS, AC-3, E-AC3 and MC, all of which can support multiple sound channels. However, a modern audio playback system often has expandability and can be connected to or detached from different number of speakers according to a user&#39;s requirement. As a result, the total sound channel number may be different due to the adjustment by the user. In that case, when the total sound channel number of the audio playback system does not conform to the audio format provided by the server of the music streaming website, the sound is easily distorted. The optimum playback quality can not be obtained. 
     Accordingly, what is needed in the industry is a new audio playback device and a new audio playback method for resolving above deficiencies. 
     SUMMARY 
     An aspect of the present invention is to provide an audio playback device. The audio playback device has a total sound channel number and includes at least one audio playback module. The audio playback module includes a network communication unit and a processing unit electrically coupled to the network communication unit. The processing unit receives an audio playback command through a network communication unit to retrieve a piece of audio data having a specific sound channel number from internet, so that the audio playback module plays the audio data, wherein the specific sound channel number is equal to or larger than the total sound channel number. 
     Another aspect of the present invention is to provide an audio playback method used in an audio playback device. The audio playback method includes steps outlined below. An audio playback command is received by a processing unit through a network communication unit. A total sound channel number of the audio playback device is determined by the processing unit. A piece of audio data having a specific sound channel number is retrieved by the processing unit through the network communication unit from internet, wherein the specific sound channel number is equal to or larger than the total sound channel number. The audio playback device is controlled by the processing unit according to the audio data for playing an audio. 
     The advantages of applying the present disclosure lies in that the audio playback device of the present disclosure can retrieve from internet and play the audio data corresponding to the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules in the audio playback device. Distortion, generated when the channel number of the audio data does not match the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules, can be avoided so as to obtain the best playback effect. 
     These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. 
     It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are by examples, and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The invention can be more fully understood by reading the following detailed description of the embodiment, with reference made to the accompanying drawings as follows: 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an audio playback system in an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the audio playback device in  FIG. 1  according to an embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 3  is a flow chart of an audio playback method in an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts. 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 1  is a block diagram of an audio playback system  1  in an embodiment of the present invention. The audio playback system  1  includes a console electronic device  10  and an audio playback device  12 . 
     The console electronic device  10  can be any electronic device capable of performing wired or wireless communication. In an embodiment, the console electronic device  10  is a handheld electronic device such as, but not limited to a smartphone or a tablet personal computer. 
     The console electronic device  10  can wirelessly communicate with a remote server  14 . More specifically, the console electronic device  10  can wirelessly communicate with the remote server  14  through internet  16 . The remote server  14  can be such as, but not limited to a remote music database storing a plurality pieces of audio data for external electronic devices to retrieve and play. In  FIG. 1 , only the pieces of audio data  110 A- 110 C and  112 A- 112 C are exemplarily illustrated. In other embodiments, the number of the pieces of audio data stored in the remote server  14  is not limited to the number illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
     In an embodiment, the audio data  110 A- 110 C includes a same audio name or title but corresponds to different “specific channel numbers” such as, but not limited to 2 channels, 5.1 channels and 9.1 channels. The audio data  112 A- 112 C includes a same audio name or title distinguished from that of the audio data  110 A- 110 C and corresponds to different “specific channel numbers”, such as, but not limited to 5.1 channels, 7.1 channels and 9.1 channels. 
     In an embodiment, the console electronic device  10  retrieves an audio menu  13  from the remote server  14  through internet  16 . The audio menu  13  includes information of the audio data provided by the remote server  14 . In an embodiment, the audio menu  13  only lists two audio names or titles  110  and  112  corresponding to the audio data  110 A- 110 C and audio data  112 A- 112 C respectively for the console electronic device  10  to select. 
     In an embodiment, after the console electronic device  10  receives a selection input  15  from a user, the console electronic device  10  selects the desired audio from the audio menu  13 , such as the audio having the audio name or title  110  or  112 . In different embodiments, the selection input  15  can be an input from such as, but not limited to a physical button (not illustrated) of the console electronic device  10  or a touch display unit (not illustrated) disposed on the console electronic device  10 . 
     Further, the console electronic device  10  generates an audio playback command  17  according to the selection input  15  and transmits the audio playback command  17  to the audio playback device  12 , for controlling the audio playback device  12  to retrieve the desired audio data from the remote server  14  according to the audio playback command  17  and play it. 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 2 .  FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the audio playback device  12  in  FIG. 1  according to an embodiment of the present invention. The audio playback device  12  includes audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D, a network communication unit  202  and a processing unit  204 . The audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D include a plurality of sound channels. 
     In the present embodiment, the audio playback module  200 A is a main audio playback module accommodating the network communication unit  202  and the processing unit  204 . Each of the audio playback modules  200 B- 200 D is an extended audio playback module connected to the main audio playback module  200 A through a wired or wireless form. 
     The processing unit  204  is electrically coupled to the network communication unit  202  and can communicate with the console electronic device  10  and the remote server  14  through the network communication unit  202 . Based on the running of the network communication unit  202  and the processing unit  204 , the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D can receive the audio play back command  17  from the console electronic device  10  and access and play the audio data of the remote server  14 . More specifically, the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D can access and play the audio data of the remote server  14  through the Internet  16  according to the audio playback command  17 . 
     The running mechanism of the network communication unit  202  and, the processing unit  204  is elaborated in the following. 
     The processing unit  204  receives the audio playback command  17  from the console electronic device  10  through the network communication unit  202 . In an embodiment, according to the content of the audio playback command  17 , the processing unit  204  obtains the address of the remote server  14  and the desired audio data, such as the name or the title  110 , selected from the audio menu  13  by the console electronic device  10  in terms of the selection input  15 . In an embodiment, the desired audio data can be selected, as the audio content of the audio data  110 A- 110 C corresponding to the audio name or the  110 . 
     The processing unit  204  further determines the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D. 
     Each of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D may include different number of sound channels. For example, the audio playback module  200 A can be a module of 3 channels, the audio playback module  2006  can be a subwoofer module of 0.1 channels, and each of the audio playback modules  200 C- 200 D can be a module of 1 channel. As a result, the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D is 5.1 channels. 
     The processing unit  204  further retrieves a sound channel data list  19  through the network communication unit  202  from the remote server  14  according to the name or the tile of the desired audio data and the address of the remote server  14 . The sound channel data list  19  lists the pieces of audio data relating to the name or the title of the desired audio data and the specific sound channel numbers corresponding to the audio data. For example, the pieces of audio data  110 A- 110 C all include the name or the title of the desired playback data but correspond to 2 channels, 5.1 channels and 9.1 channels respectively. In this case, the content of the sound channel data list  19  presents the audio data  110 A- 110 C and the corresponding 2 channels 5.1 channels and 9.1 channels. 
     As a result, according to the sound channel data list  19  and the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D, the processing unit  204  retrieves the piece of audio data having the specific sound channel number equal to said total sound channel number from the remote server  14  and takes it as the selected audio data. Since the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D includes 5.1 channels, the processing unit  204  retrieves the audio data  110 B having the 5.1 channels as the selected audio data. 
     In another embodiment, the processing unit  204  directly transmits the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D to the remote server  14  through the network communication unit  202 . Subsequently, the remote server  14  transmits the selected audio data  110 B according to the total sound channel number so that the processing unit  204  receives the selected audio data  110 B through the network communication unit  202 . 
     Further, the processing unit  204  controls the channels of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D to play the audio data according to the selected audio data  110 B. 
     Therefore, the audio playback device  12  of the present disclosure can retrieve the audio data  110 B from the remote server  14  and play the audio data  110 B corresponding to the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 400 D. Distortion, generated due to mismatch between the channel number of the audio data and the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D, can be avoided. So the optimum playback quality is obtained. 
     In an embodiment, the number of the audio playback modules included in the audio playback device  12  can be increased or decreased. Thus, with different number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D the total channel number may be different. For example, the audio playback device  12  becomes a system of 3 channels when only the audio playback module  200 A is included. In another example, the audio playback device  12  becomes a system of ore than 5.1 channels when additional extended audio playback mode les, other than the audio payback modules  200 A- 200 D, are included. 
     Consequently, in an embodiment, when none of the specific channel numbers of the pieces of the audio data  110 A- 110 C, stored in the remote server  14 , in connection with the desired audio data matches the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules, the processing unit  204  retrieves, from the remote server  14 , the piece of audio data having the specific channel number larger than and closest to the total sound channel number for taking as the selected audio data. 
     For example besides the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D, two more extended audio playback modules each having 1 channel are connected so that the total channel number of the audio playback device  12  becomes 7.1. However, the pieces of audio data  110 A- 110 C stored in the remote server  14  correspond to 2, 5.1 and 9.1 channels. Now the processing unit  204  retrieves the audio data  110 C corresponding to 9.1 channels from the remote server  14  for taking as the selected audio data, so as to control the sound channels of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D and the two additional extended audio playback modules to play the audio according to the selected audio data  110 C. 
     As a result when the processing unit  204  controls the audio playback modules to play the audio by retrieving the piece of audio data having the specific channel number larger than and closest to the total sound channel number, the data of the redundant sound channel can be discarded or down mixed to form the data having the channels matching the total sound channel number. Comparing to the technique simulating more channels from less channels for generating extra sound channels that do not exist previously, distortion, generated due to mismatch between the channel number of the audio data and the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules, can be avoided in the present disclosure, so as to obtain the optimum playback quality. Furthermore, by retrieving the piece of audio data having the specific channel number closest to the total sound channel number for playing, waste of decoding resources, network bandwidth and additional power consumption, due to excessive channels, can be avoided as well. The optimum operation efficiency of the hardware, the network and power thus can be achieved. 
     Reference is now made to  FIG. 3 .  FIG. 3  is a flow chart of an audio playback method  300  in an embodiment of the present invention. The audio playback method  300  can be used in the audio playback system  1 , especially the audio playback device  12  in  FIG. 1 . The audio playback method  300  includes steps outlined below. It should be noted that unless the sequence of the steps recited herein is expressly indicated, the sequence of performing the steps is adjustable according to actual requirements, even the steps may be performed simultaneously or synchronously by parts. 
     In step  301 , the audio playback command  17  is received by the processing unit  204  through the network communication unit  202 , for obtaining the address of the remote server  14  and the name or the title of the desired audio data. 
     In step  302 , the total sound channel number of the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D is, determined by the processing unit  204 . 
     In step  303 , the pied of audio data  110 B having the specific sound channel number equal to the total sound channel number is retrieved, from the remote server  14  via internet, by the processing unit  204  through the network communication unit  202 . 
     If the remote serer  14  does not include the audio data that matches the total sound channel number, the flow goes to step  304  so that the processing unit  204  retrieves, from the remote server  14  via internet, the piece of audio data  110 C having the specific sound channel number larger than the total sound channel number through the network communication unit  202 . 
     In step  305 , the processing unit  204  controls the audio playback modules  200 A- 200 D to play the audio according to the audio data  110 B or  110 C. 
     It should be appreciated that in the steps described above, part of the steps can be repeated or skipped, and the order of the steps can be adjusted depending on practical requirements and are not limited thereto. 
     Although the present invention has been described in considerable detail with reference to certain embodiments thereof, other embodiments are possible. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claims should not be limited to the description of the embodiments contained herein. 
     It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims.