Patent ID: 8582783

Claim:
A method, comprising the steps of: analyzing a signal from each microphone of an array of microphones; wherein the microphone array comprises a plurality of omni-directional microphone capsules, which are spaced in a proximity to each other with a spacing between each of the microphone capsules that is small in relation to sound wavelengths that affect a mapping of a the microphone signals to an output signal that drives at least two loudspeakers; for at least one subset of microphone signals, estimating a time difference that characterizes the relative time delays between the signals in the subset; estimating a direction from which a microphone input from one or more acoustic sources, which relate to the microphone signals, arrives at each of the microphones, based at least in part on the estimated time differences; filtering the microphone signals in relation to at least one filter transfer function, which relates to one or more filters; wherein said at least one filter transfer function comprises one or more of: a first transfer function component, which has a value that relates to a first spatial orientation related to the direction of the acoustic sources; and a second transfer function component, which has a value that relates to a second spatial orientation related to the direction of the acoustic sources; wherein the second spatial orientation is substantially orthogonal in relation to the first spatial orientation; and computing a signal with which to drive the at least two loudspeakers based, at least on part, on the filtering step.