Patent ID: 7313243

Claim:
A sound pickup method to be implemented using a microphone array that includes a plurality of microphones disposed in an array and spaced apart from each other, and a sound source tracking device tat is disposed at determined distances relative to the microphones in the microphone array, said sound pickup method comprising: a) operating the sound source tracking device to obtain distance and direction values of a target sound source relative to the sound source tracking device; b) with reference to the determined distances of the sound source tracking device from the microphones in the microphone array, and the distance and direction values obtained in step a), determining nearest and farthest ones of the microphones in the microphone array relative to the target sound source; c) determining appropriate time delays for the nearest one of the microphones according to the distance thereof from the farthest one of the microphones and for other ones of the microphones in the microphone array according to the distance of each of said other ones of the microphones from the nearest one of the microphones; and d) processing signals generated by the microphones in the microphone array by introducing the corresponding time delays determined in step c) into the signals from the microphones.