JP2000013900A - Sound playback device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [PROBLEMS] To provide a sound reproducing apparatus for performing a three-dimensional sound effect processing of a plurality of sound sources, by reducing the load on a processing device by making use of three-dimensional information on sound sources. SOLUTION: When a scene in a three-dimensional virtual space to be reproduced is specified, the object storage unit stores a feature of a sound source. According to the difference between the direction and the direction in which the sound source is connected from the listener with a straight line, the sound sources arranged by the scene composition unit are divided into groups, and the sound sources divided into the same group are referred to as the sound source and the listener, respectively. The sound sources are weighted in consideration of the distance relationship, and are combined into one sound source, and a three-dimensional sound effect process using the direction as a parameter is performed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sound reproducing apparatus for generating sound from a plurality of virtual sound sources (hereinafter, simply referred to as sound sources) virtually arranged in a three-dimensional virtual space.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventional sound reproduction technology in a three-dimensional virtual space pursues how to realize a realistic three-dimensional sound by faithfully performing an operation for each sound source. Attempts have been made. Each of these methods requires a large amount of arithmetic processing and requires a special arithmetic device. Therefore, when constructing a system that simultaneously reproduces video and three-dimensional sound, the quality of the video to be processed, the content of the video, and the performance of the system that realizes three-dimensional sound are adjusted, and the accuracy in three-dimensional sound processing is adjusted. The individual system is configured by deciding. 2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, rapid development of computer performance has enabled real-time reproduction of multimedia data such as video, graphics, and sound by a personal computer. For this reason, there is an increasing need to freely generate three-dimensional sound in a three-dimensional virtual space using a personal computer.

[0003]

When a three-dimensional sound is generated in a three-dimensional virtual space, it is necessary to freely arrange a large number of sound sources in the three-dimensional virtual space. In the conventional method of performing sound source calculation processing for individual sound sources, the processing amount increases as the number of sound sources increases, and it is difficult to realize the effect of three-dimensional sound with a limited processing amount.

In the conventional method, when a sound reproducing apparatus is mounted on various systems, it is necessary to redesign a three-dimensional sound reproducing apparatus for each system. Therefore, there is a problem that the user cannot actively use the sound reproduction technology in the three-dimensional virtual space where a plurality of sound sources exist.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and reduces the amount of processing by utilizing three-dimensional information relating to a sound source to reduce the amount of sound of a plurality of sound sources existing in the same three-dimensional space. It is an object of the present invention to provide a sound reproducing device that performs a three-dimensional sound effect process generated in a three-dimensional space.

[0006]

In order to achieve this object, a sound reproducing apparatus according to the present invention comprises: an object storage section storing a plurality of sound data representing a plurality of sound sources; and a sound source based on the plurality of sound data. When the position where the sound is arranged, the position of the head of the listener, and the direction of the head are designated, a scene that constitutes a scene in which the sound source and the listener are arranged in a three-dimensional space and the listener is arranged to reproduce the sound A configuration unit, a position at which the sound data is arranged from the scene configuration unit, a head position and a head direction of the listener are obtained, and the relative positions of the plurality of sound sources are determined with the head position of the listener as the origin. From the relative position,
The front direction of the listener's head and the angle difference between the origin and the direction connecting the plurality of sound sources with straight lines, respectively, and the plurality of sound data existing within a specific angle difference as one group. For the sound source management unit that performs grouping, and for all the groups divided by the sound source management unit, the sound data divided into the same group by the sound source management unit is obtained as the same group sound data from the object storage unit. Then, the level of the same group sound data, weighted in consideration of the relationship of the distance to the listener lowering the level as the distance to the listener is farther, divided into the same group, and the The average angle difference of the angle differences when the sound data obtained by adding the weighted sound data is divided into the same group is defined as the direction of the sound source, and the angle difference is defined as a parameter. And a reproduced sound generating unit for performing dimensionality sound effect processing.

Further, according to the sound reproducing method of the present invention, a step of storing a plurality of sound data respectively representing a plurality of sound sources in an object storage unit, a position at which a sound source based on the plurality of sound data is arranged, and a listener A scene composition step of arranging a sound source and a listener based on a plurality of sound data in a three-dimensional space to reproduce a sound by designating a head position and a head direction; From the data to indicate the position of the sound data obtained and the head position and head orientation of the listener, the relative position of the plurality of sound sources is determined using the head position of the listener as the origin, the relative position Than,
The front direction of the listener's head and the angle difference between the origin and the direction connecting the plurality of sound sources with straight lines, respectively, and the plurality of sound data existing within a specific angle difference as one group. A sound source management step of performing a grouping operation, and, for all the groups divided in the sound source management step, sound data divided into the same group by the sound source management step as the same group sound data from the object storage unit. Then, the level of the same group sound data, weighted in consideration of the relationship of the distance to the listener lowering the level as the distance to the listener is farther, divided into the same group, and the The average angle difference of the angle differences when the sound data obtained by adding the weighted sound data is divided into the same group is defined as the direction of the sound source, and the angle difference is defined as a parameter. And a reproduced sound generating step of performing a 3-dimensional sound effects processing with.

According to the above arrangement, the position of the sound source in the three-dimensional virtual space is represented by a coordinate system whose origin is the position of the head of the listener. The three-dimensional sound effect processing is performed by referring to the sound data with the sound sources grouped for each group as one sound source.

Further, an apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention measures the load of the three-dimensional sound effect processing, and reproduces the measured load of the three-dimensional sound effect processing from the input maximum load value in real time. It has a maximum sound source number determining unit that determines the maximum number of sound sources that can be processed, and has grouping information based on human auditory characteristics that the direction of hearing differs depending on the direction of the sound source.From the maximum sound source number determining unit To a number within the determined maximum number of sound sources, a sound source management unit that groups sound data to be arranged in a scene, an object storage unit that stores sound data, a plurality of sound sources to be arranged, and the plurality of sound sources. When a position to be arranged, a head position of the listener, and a head direction are specified, a plurality of sound sources and a listener are arranged in a three-dimensional space, and a scene configuration unit that configures a scene to be reproduced, and the sound source management unit By For segmented all of the group,
The sound data divided into the same group by the sound source management unit is obtained as the same group sound data from the object storage unit, and the level is lowered to the level of the same group sound data as the distance from the listener increases. Weighted in consideration of the relationship with the distance to the listener, divided into the same group, and the angle difference when divided into the same group to the sound data obtained by adding the weighted sound data And a reproduced sound generating unit for performing a three-dimensional sound effect process using the angle difference as a parameter and the average angle difference as a parameter.

The sound reproducing method according to the present invention further includes a step of measuring a load of the three-dimensional sound effect processing, and a real-time system for reproducing the measured load of the three-dimensional sound effect processing and the input maximum load value. It has a maximum sound source number determination step of determining the maximum number of sound sources that can be processed, and has grouping information based on human auditory characteristics that the direction of hearing differs depending on the direction of the sound source. A sound source management step of grouping sound data to be arranged in a scene to a number within the determined maximum number of sound sources,
When the sound data is stored in the object storage unit, a plurality of sound sources to be arranged, a position at which the plurality of sound sources are arranged, a head position and a head direction of the listener are designated, and a plurality of sound sources are arranged in a three-dimensional space. A sound source and a listener are arranged, and a scene configuration step of configuring a scene to be reproduced, and for all groups divided by the sound source management step, sound data divided into the same group is stored in the same group from the object storage unit. Acquisition as sound data, weighting the level of the same group of sound data, taking into account the relationship of the distance to the listener lowering the level as the distance to the listener is farther, is divided into the same group And, the sound data obtained by adding the weighted sound data to the sound data, the average angle difference of the angle differences when the sound data is divided into the same group is defined as the direction of the sound source, and the angle difference is a parameter. And a reproduced sound generating step of performing the three-dimensional sound effect processing.

With the above arrangement, the maximum number of sound sources that can be processed in real time in a three-dimensional virtual space is determined.
Sound sources are divided into groups within the maximum number of sound sources based on human auditory characteristics. Three-dimensional effect processing is performed by referring to sound data with the sound sources grouped as one sound source.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sound reproducing apparatus including a three-dimensional object storage unit for storing sound data, a sound source based on sound data, a head position of a listener, and a head direction. A plurality of sound sources and listeners are arranged in a space, and when a target sound source that is a source to which the listener pays attention is specified, a scene to be reproduced with additional information attached to the target sound source is configured. The sound data that is the sound source of interest is regarded as one group of interest, the relative position of the sound source of interest is determined with the position of the head of the listener as the origin, and the listener of the sound data excluding the sound source of interest from the scene configuration unit is obtained. Determine the relative position of the plurality of sound data except for the sound source of interest with the position of the head as the origin, from the relative position, the front direction of the listener's head,
A sound source for grouping a plurality of sound data excluding the target sound source which exists within a specific angle difference based on an angle difference between the origin and a direction in which the plurality of sound data excluding the target sound source are connected by straight lines, respectively. For the management unit and all the groups divided by the sound source management unit, the sound data divided by the sound source management unit into the same group is obtained as the same group sound data from the object storage unit and divided into the same group. The level of the sound data is weighted in consideration of the relationship between the distance to the listener and the level of the sound that decreases as the distance to the listener increases, and the weighted sound is divided into the same group and weighted. The average angle difference of the angle differences when the data is added to the sound data and divided into the same group is defined as the direction of the sound source, and the angle difference is defined as a parameter.
A reproduction sound generation unit for performing a two-dimensional sound effect process.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sound reproducing method in which sound data is stored in an object storage unit, and a position where a sound source based on the sound data is arranged, and a head position and a head direction of a listener are designated. Place multiple sound sources and listeners in a three-dimensional space,
When a target sound source, which is a sound source to which the listener pays attention, is designated, a scene to be reproduced with additional information added to the target sound source is configured,
A scene configuration step, the sound data as the target sound source is regarded as one target group, and the relative position of the target sound source with the origin of the head of the listener as the origin is obtained, and the target sound source is removed from the scene constituent part. The relative position of the plurality of sound data excluding the target sound source is determined using the position of the listener's head of the sound data as the origin, and the front direction of the listener's head, the origin, and the target sound source are determined from the relative positions. A sound source management step of grouping a plurality of sound data excluding the sound source of interest present within a specific angle difference based on an angle difference from a direction in which each of the plurality of excluded sound data is connected by a straight line; For all the groups divided by the process, the sound data divided into the same group is obtained as the same group sound data from the object storage unit, and the sound divided into the same group is obtained. The data level is weighted in consideration of the relationship of the distance to the listener and the level is reduced as the distance to the listener is increased, and the weighted sound data divided into the same group is A reproduction sound generating step of performing a three-dimensional sound effect process using the average angle difference of the angle differences when the added sound data is divided into the same group as a sound source direction and using the angle difference as a parameter. .

With the above configuration, the position of the sound source in the three-dimensional virtual space is represented by a coordinate system whose origin is the position of the listener's head. A plurality of sound sources in the coordinate system are grouped into regions having the same central angle, and three-dimensional sound effect processing is performed by referring to sound data with the grouped sound sources as one sound source. At this time, 1
Process as one group.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a sound reproducing apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. In FIG. 1, an output terminal of the object storage unit 1 is connected to each input terminal of the scene composition unit 2 and the reproduced sound generation unit 4. Scene composition part 2
Is connected to the input terminal of the sound source management unit 3. The external input signal 2a is input to the other input terminal of the scene configuration unit 2. An output terminal of the sound source management unit 3 is connected to another input terminal of the reproduced sound generation unit 4.

The operation of the sound reproducing apparatus will be described below with reference to FIGS. Object storage unit 1
Is PCM sample format data and M as sound data.
IDI format (Musical Instrument Digital Interface fo
rmat) data is stored separately for each format. According to the external input signal 2a, a file name of sound data, a place in a three-dimensional space where a sound source based on the sound data is arranged,
The listener's head position and head orientation are specified. The scene composing unit 2 arranges a sound source and a listener based on sound data based on an absolute coordinate system specified by the external input signal 2a, and composes a scene to be reproduced. The sound source management unit 3 sets a new coordinate system in which the coordinates of the sound source of the reproduction scene composed by the scene composition unit 2 are set such that the origin of the head of the listener is 0 and the positive direction of the Z axis is the front of the face. Convert to Next, from the coordinates after conversion, the vertical angle and the horizontal angle with respect to the positive direction of the Z axis with respect to the origin are determined for each sound source, and the sound sources are grouped based on the respective angles. The reproduced sound generation unit 4 multiplies the sound data of all the sound sources put together in one group by a weight value that is inversely proportional to the distance between the listener and the sound source for each group. After adding all the sound data multiplied by the weight values, a three-dimensional effect process for generating a sound in a three-dimensional space is performed, and a processing result is output.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing, as an example of a scene reproduced by the sound reproducing apparatus of the present invention, a scene in which the listener 202 listens to the choir of the choir 201 from a position far away.
In this figure, this choir 201 is composed of a plurality of sound sources. The operation of the sound reproducing device when reproducing this scene will be described below. The object storage unit 1 stores sounds emitted by objects such as singing voices and musical instruments of all the members of the choir 201 as monaural PCM sample data and MIDI data. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a storage state of sound data in the object storage unit 1. The sound data is divided into directories in the PCM format and the MIDI format, and stored according to each format. A file name of sound data of all voices constituting the choir 201 by an external input signal 2a which is a user input,
When the position of the sound source based on the sound data, the position of the head of the listener, and the direction of the head are specified, the scene forming unit 2 arranges the sound source and the listener in the absolute coordinate system, and reproduces the scene to be reproduced. Is configured.

Next, the sound source management unit 3 sets the coordinates of each sound source of the scene composed by the scene composing unit 2 in such a manner that the position of the head of the listener is the origin 0 and the positive direction of the Z axis is the face. Is converted to a coordinate system with the front direction of. (A) of FIG.
FIG. 4 is a diagram of a coordinate system when a scene is composed, and FIG. 4B is a diagram of a coordinate system centered on a listener. In FIG.
01 indicates the arrangement of the listener in the coordinate system when the scene is composed, and the position 402 indicates the arrangement of the sound sources in the coordinate system when the scene is composed. A position 403 indicates the arrangement of the listener after the coordinate conversion, and a position 404 indicates the arrangement of the sound source after the coordinate conversion. Next, from the converted coordinates in FIG. 4B, for each sound source,
The angles in the vertical and horizontal directions with the origin at the center are obtained, and sound sources existing in the range of ± α degrees in the vertical direction and ± β degrees in the horizontal direction are grouped into one group. In this way, all the arranged sound sources are grouped into several groups.

Next, the reproduced sound generating section 4 centers on the number of groups, the group ID, the names of sound data constituting the groups, the position coordinates of the sound data after coordinate conversion, and the origin calculated at the time of grouping processing. Group information having data indicating an angle is received from the sound source management unit 3. The reproduced sound generation unit 4 acquires sound data from the object management unit 1 using the received sound data name. Further, the distance between each piece of sound data and the listener is obtained from the received position coordinate data, a weight value inversely proportional to the distance is multiplied to the sound data, and each piece of sound data multiplied by a weight value belonging to the same group is added. Next, the reproduced sound generation unit 4 calculates the average value of the vertical and horizontal angles about the origin of each sound source constituting one group from the received vertical and horizontal angle data about the origin. Ask for. The result of the addition is subjected to a three-dimensional effect process on the assumption that a sound source exists in the direction of the angle of the average value, and the result of the operation is output.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the reproduced sound generator 4 for processing sound data of one group.
In the figure, a reproduced sound generation unit 4 includes a plurality of weighting calculation units 501, an average value calculation unit 502 that calculates an average value from the outputs of the weighting calculation units 501, and an output of the weighting calculation unit 501 and an output of the average value calculation unit 502. It has a three-dimensional sound effect processing unit 503 to be input. The weighting calculation unit 501 obtains all sound data forming one group from the object storage unit 1 and obtains coordinates of sound sources based on all sound data forming one group from the sound source management unit 3.
From the coordinates, the distance between the listener and all sound sources is calculated, a weighting calculation is performed on each sound data in inverse proportion to the distance, and the sum of the calculation results is output. Average value calculation unit 5
02 uses the vertical angle and the horizontal angle of the sound source centered on the front direction of the listener acquired from the sound source management unit 3,
The average of the vertical angle and the horizontal angle of all the sound sources constituting one group is calculated, and the calculation result is output. The three-dimensional sound effect processing unit 503 applies the average value calculation unit 50 to the calculation result obtained from the weight calculation unit 501.
The three-dimensional sound effect processing in which the sound source is set in the direction determined by the vertical and horizontal angles obtained from Step 2 is performed, and the processing result is output.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing an example of a scene in which a plurality of sound source groups 210 to 215 exist near the listener 202. In the figure, sound source groups 210 to 215 are arranged in regions divided at the same angle. The operation of the sound reproducing device during sound reproduction in this scene will be described with reference to FIGS. The object storage unit 1 and the scene composition unit 2 perform the same operation as in the case of a scene in which the listener 202 is listening to the choir of the choir 201 located far away. The sound source management unit 3 determines the coordinates of the sound source based on the sound data of the scene composed by the scene composition unit 2 with the position of the head of the listener 202 as the origin and the positive direction of the Z axis as the front direction of the face of the listener 202. Is converted to a coordinate system.

Next, from the converted coordinates, the vertical and horizontal angles with respect to the positive direction of the Z-axis are determined for each sound source with respect to the origin, and the sound data is divided into groups based on the angles. In the sound source management unit 3, as shown in FIG. 6, the sound source groups 212 and 213 in an area separated by two lines of ± α degrees in the horizontal direction from the Z axis are set as a group 1.
In addition, the sound source 211 in an area divided by two lines of − (α + α1) degrees and −α degrees in the horizontal direction is set as a group 2. The sound source 213 in an area divided by two lines of α degrees and (α + α1) degrees in the horizontal direction is set as group 3. Laterally-
The sound source 210 in an area separated by two lines of (α + α1 + α2) degrees and − (α + α1) degrees is set as a group 4.
The sound source 214 in a region separated by two lines (α + α1 + α2) degrees and (α + α1) degrees in the horizontal direction is group 5. The grouped sections are indicated by dotted lines extending radially from the listener.

The sound source management unit 3 has five groups,
Each of the group IDs 1 to 5, the names of the sound data constituting the group, the position coordinates of the sound data after the coordinate conversion, and the angle about the origin calculated at the time of the grouping process are used as group information to reproduce sound. Output to the generator 4. The reproduction sound generation unit 4 performs the same calculation as in the case of the scene where the listener is listening to the chorus in which the listener is located far from each of the groups 1 to 5, and outputs a result obtained by adding the calculation results. In the present embodiment, the sound source and the listener are arranged based on the sound data by the external input signal 2a in the scene composing unit 3. However, the object constituting the scene and the position of the object in the three-dimensional space are determined. Scenario data describing scene information such as movement may be input, and the same scene as described above can be configured and used.

Embodiment 2 FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a sound reproducing apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. In FIG. 7, an object storage unit 1 and a scene configuration unit 2 have the same configuration as that of the first embodiment and perform the same operation. The maximum number of sound sources determination unit 5 performs the same processing as the three-dimensional sound effect processing of the reproduced sound generation unit 4 at the time of startup, and measures the amount of processing. The maximum number of sound sources determination unit 5 divides the maximum processing amount related to the sound source operation input from the outside by the maximum processing amount signal 5A by the measured processing amount, and determines the maximum number of sound sources from the result. The sound source management unit 3 has grouping information using a horizontal angle and a vertical angle as parameters based on information representing human auditory characteristics. In human auditory characteristics, the ability to discriminate a sound source is highest in the front, and decreases toward the left and right sides. The sound source management unit 3 performs grouping according to the grouping information so that the maximum number of sound sources determined by the maximum number of sound source determination unit 5 is equal to or less than the number of groups. As shown in FIG. 6, in a scene where a plurality of sound sources exist near the listener,
It is assumed that all sound sources are arranged on the same plane.

The operation of the sound reproducing apparatus during reproduction of this scene will be described below. The object storage unit 1 and the scene configuration unit 2 operate in the same manner as in the first embodiment. It is assumed that the maximum number of sound sources determining unit 5 has determined the maximum number of sound sources to be three. FIG.
FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a region of a grouping range in grouping information based on human auditory characteristics of a sound source management unit 3. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing grouping information based on human hearing that the sound source management unit 3 has. In FIG. 9, when the maximum number of sound sources is 5, a plurality of sound sources included in the region 1, the region 2, the region 3, the region 4, and the region 5 are grouped as one sound source group. Since the ability to discriminate the direction of human hearing decreases as one goes to the left or right, even if the sound sources in regions 2 and 4 and regions 3 and 5 are grouped into one group each, the effect on the sound reproduction effect is small. . When the maximum number of sound sources is 3, it indicates that the sound sources included in the region where the region 4 and the region 2 are combined and the region 1 and the region where the region 3 and the region 5 are combined are grouped as one sound source. I have. The sound source management unit 3 obtains a vertical angle and a horizontal angle with respect to the positive direction of the Z axis with the origin at the center. Next, the sound source management unit 3 refers to the grouping information based on the human auditory information, and determines a grouping region when the maximum number of sound sources is 3, as shown in FIG. That is, it is determined that the sound sources included in (region 4 + region 2), region 1 or (region 3 + region 5) are grouped so as to be one sound source. Then, as the group information, the number of groups is 3, and the group ID is 1.
To the reproduction sound generation unit 4, the name of the sound data forming the group, the position coordinates of the sound data after the coordinate conversion, and the angle about the origin calculated at the time of the grouping process. The reproduction sound generation unit 4 performs the same calculation as in the first embodiment for the groups 1 to 3, and outputs a result obtained by adding them.

Third Embodiment Next, an operation example of the first or second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The object storage unit 1 and the reproduced sound generation unit 4 operate in the same manner as in the first embodiment. The external input signal 2a specifies the file name of the sound data, the location of the sound source based on the sound data, the position of the listener's head, and the direction of the head. Scene composition part 2
Arranges the sound source and the listener based on the absolute coordinate system, and when the file name of the sound data of interest is specified, outputs the file name and the data of the position of the sound data in the absolute coordinate system of the sound source. Then, a flag to be handled as a target sound source is output as scene configuration information, and a scene to be reproduced is configured. The attention sound source is a sound source that particularly draws the attention of the listener, and is, for example, a sparrow crowing suddenly coming in FIG.

The sound source management unit 3 sets the coordinates of the sound source based on the sound data of the scene composed by the scene composing unit 2 with the position of the head of the listener as the origin and the positive direction of the Z axis as the front of the face. Convert to coordinate system. Next, the vertical and horizontal angles around the origin of each sound source are obtained from the coordinates after the conversion, and the sound sources excluding the sound source of interest designated by the scene composition unit 2 are divided into groups based on the angles. Then, it outputs group information that regards the sound source of interest designated by the scene composition unit 2 as one group.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing a scene where a sparrow 203 flies while singing when a listener 202 is listening to a choir of a choir 201 located far away. As described above, the choir 201 is composed of a plurality of sound sources.
The operation of the sound reproducing device during the reproduction of this scene will be described below with reference to FIG. The object storage unit 1 according to the first embodiment
Works the same as. When the file names of sound data of all the voices constituting the choir, the positions of sound sources based on the sound data, and the position and direction of the head of the listener are designated by the external input signal 2a, the scene forming unit 2 Arranges a sound source and a listener based on these sound data based on an absolute coordinate system. Next, the file name of the sound data of the voice of the sparrow 203, the data of the position of the sound source based on the sound data, and the change in the position, and a flag that uses this sound data as the sound source of interest are input to constitute a scene to be reproduced.

Next, the sound source management unit 3 sets the coordinates of the sound source of the scene composed by the scene composing unit 2 with the origin of the position of the head of the listener and the positive direction of the Z axis as the front of the face. Convert to system. Next, the vertical and horizontal angles with respect to the positive direction of the Z axis centered on the origin of each sound source are obtained from the coordinates after the conversion, and the angles other than the bark of the sparrow 203 designated as the sound source of interest by the scene composition unit 2 are obtained. For sound sources of sound data, sound sources existing in a range of ± α degrees in the vertical direction and ± β degrees in the horizontal direction around the origin are grouped into one group.
Now, suppose that all the sound sources other than the sound source of interest are grouped into one group. The reproduction sound generation unit 4 is centered on 2 as the number of groups, 1-2 as the group ID, sound data names constituting the group, position coordinates after the coordinate conversion of the sound data, and the origin calculated at the time of the grouping process. The data of the angle with respect to the positive direction of the Z axis is received from the sound source management unit 3 as group information. The reproduction sound generation unit 4 obtains sound data from the object management unit 1, obtains a distance between a sound source and a listener based on each sound data other than the sound data of the sound source of interest, and adds a distance to each sound data. The weights are multiplied by inversely proportional weights, and the sound data multiplied by the weights are added.

Next, the reproduced sound generation section 4 calculates an average value of angles with respect to the positive direction of the Z axis centered on the origin of the sound source based on sound data other than the sound source of interest, 3D effect processing is performed on the assumption that there is a sound source. Similarly, with respect to the sound data of the voice of the sparrow 203 as the sound source of interest, the distance between the sparrow 203 and the listener 202 is obtained, each sound data is multiplied by a weight value inversely proportional to the distance, and the weight is multiplied. A three-dimensional effect process is performed on the sound data at an angle about the origin. Finally,
This calculation result is added to the calculation result performed for sound data other than the sound source of interest, and the addition result is output.

[0032]

As apparent from the detailed description of the embodiments, the present invention has the following effects.
A plurality of sound sources are grouped by determining the directions of the sound sources arranged in the three-dimensional space and the sound source viewed from the position of the listener. By performing three-dimensional sound effect processing on the grouped sound sources, the load on the processing device in the three-dimensional sound effect processing can be reduced.

In addition, a maximum value of the number of sound sources that can be reproduced by the system is set in advance, and a plurality of sound sources are used so as to fall within the maximum value by using information based on human auditory characteristics regarding the direction of the sound source viewed from the listener. By performing the three-dimensional sound effect processing for each group, sound reproduction in a three-dimensional virtual space can be realized with a limited processing amount in various systems.

Further, a specific target sound source is set for a plurality of sound sources to be arranged, and the directions of the sound source arranged in the three-dimensional space and the sound source viewed from the position of the listener are determined. Are grouped into one group. This makes it possible to reproduce the sound in the three-dimensional virtual space without deteriorating the effect of the attention sound source for which the three-dimensional sound effect is to be particularly clarified.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a sound reproducing device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a scene in which a listener listens to chorus from a distance in Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a storage state of sound data in an object storage unit according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4A shows a coordinate system when a scene is constructed in the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4B shows a coordinate system centered on a listener.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a reproduced sound generation unit that processes sound data of one group according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a scene in which a plurality of sound sources exist near a listener according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a sound reproducing device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an area of a grouping range in grouping information based on human hearing held by a sound source management unit;

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing grouping information based on human hearing and held by a sound source management unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing a scene in which a sparrow sings and flies while a listener is listening to chorus from a distance in Examples 1 and 2 of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 object storage unit 2 scene configuration unit 3 sound source management unit 4 reproduced sound generation unit 5 maximum number of sound sources determination unit 201 choir 202 listeners 203 sparrows flying while screaming 401 arrangement of listeners in coordinate system in scene configuration 402 Arrangement of sound data in the coordinate system at the time of scene composition 403 Arrangement of listeners after coordinate conversion 404 Arrangement of sound data after coordinate conversion 501 Weight calculation means 502 Average calculation means 503 Three-dimensional sound effect processing means

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yutaka Shirai 1006 Kazuma Kadoma, Kadoma City, Osaka Prefecture Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 5D062 CC13

Claims (6)

[Claims] An object storage unit storing a plurality of sound data respectively representing a plurality of sound sources, a position at which a sound source based on the plurality of sound data is arranged, a head position of a listener, and a head direction are designated. Then, a sound source based on a plurality of sound data and a listener are arranged in a three-dimensional space to constitute a scene for reproducing a sound, and a sound source based on the sound data is arranged from the scene forming unit. Obtain data indicating the position and the head position and head orientation of the listener, determine the relative position of the sound source based on the plurality of sound data with the head position of the listener as the origin, from the relative position, Based on the angle difference between the front direction of the listener's head and the direction in which the origin and the sound source based on the plurality of sound data are each connected by a straight line, the plurality of sound data existing within a specific angle difference. Sound source based on A sound source management unit that performs grouping as a group; and, for all groups divided by the sound source management unit, sound data divided into the same group by the sound source management unit. And weighting the level of the same group sound data, taking into account the relationship between the distance between the listener and the sound source, which lowers the level as the distance between the listener and the sound source decreases, and the same group Three-dimensional sound data obtained by adding the divided and weighted sound data to the sound data, the average angle difference of the angle differences when the sound data is divided into the same group is set as the direction of the sound source, and the angle difference is used as a parameter. A sound reproduction device comprising: a reproduction sound generation unit that performs a sound effect process. 2. A maximum sound source capable of real-time processing of a system for reproducing by measuring a load of a processing device in the three-dimensional sound effect processing and obtaining a measured value of the load of the three-dimensional sound effect processing and an input maximum load value. The sound source management unit further includes a maximum sound source number determination unit for determining the number, the sound source management unit has predetermined grouping information based on human auditory characteristics,
The sound reproducing device according to claim 1, wherein the sound sources arranged in the three-dimensional space are grouped so that the number of sound sources is within the maximum number of sound sources obtained by the maximum number of sound sources determining unit. 3. An object storage unit that stores sound data representing a sound source, and a position where a sound source based on the sound data is located, and a head position and a head direction of a listener are designated, the object storage unit stores the sound data in a three-dimensional space. A sound source and a listener based on a plurality of sound data are arranged, and a scene configuration unit that configures a scene to be reproduced with additional information added to the sound source of interest when a target sound source that is sound data to which the listener focuses is specified, The sound data representing the target sound source is regarded as one target group, and the relative position of the target sound source with the origin of the listener's head as the origin is obtained. The relative position of the sound source based on a plurality of sound data excluding the sound source of interest is determined using the position of the head of the listener as the origin, and from the relative position, the front direction of the head of the listener, the origin, and the sound source of interest Multiple excluding A sound source management unit that groups a plurality of sound sources except for the sound source of interest existing within a specific angle difference based on an angle difference from a direction in which each sound source is connected by a straight line, and all the sound sources divided by the sound source management unit For the group of sound sources, sound data of sound sources divided into the same group is obtained as the same group sound data from the object storage unit, and the sound data is divided into the same group by the sound source management unit. A second sound obtained by weighting in consideration of the relationship of the distance to the listener and lowering the level as the distance to the listener increases, and adding the weighted sound data divided into the same group A reproduced sound generation unit that performs a three-dimensional sound effect process using the average angle difference of the angle differences when the data is divided into the same group as a sound source direction and the angle difference as a parameter; A sound reproducing device provided. 4. A step of storing a plurality of sound data respectively representing a plurality of sound sources in an object storage unit; and determining a position of a sound source based on the plurality of sound data, a head position of a listener, and a head direction. A scene composition step of arranging a sound source and a listener based on a plurality of sound data in a three-dimensional space to reproduce a sound by specifying the sound source; and a sound source based on the sound data obtained in the scene composition step. From the data indicating the position of the listener and the position of the head of the listener and the direction of the head, the relative position of the sound source based on the plurality of sound data is determined with the position of the head of the listener as the origin, and the relative position is calculated. Based on the angle difference between the front direction of the listener's head and the direction in which the origin and the sound source based on the plurality of sound data are connected with straight lines, respectively, based on the angle difference between the plurality of sounds existing within a specific angle difference. Sound based on data A sound source management step of performing grouping into one group, and for all the groups divided in the sound source management step, the sound data divided into the same group by the sound source management step is the same from the object storage unit. Acquisition as group sound data, weighting the level of the same group sound data, taking into account the relationship between the distance between the listener and the sound source, which lowers the level as the distance between the listener and the sound source increases, and The sound data obtained by adding the weighted sound data to the sound data is divided into the same group, and the average angle difference of the angle differences when the sound data is divided into the same group is defined as the direction of the sound source. A reproduced sound generating step of performing the three-dimensional sound effect processing described above. 5. A step of measuring the load of the processing device in the three-dimensional sound effect processing, and a system for reproducing the data in real time from the measured load value of the three-dimensional sound effect processing and the input maximum load value. A maximum sound source number determining step of determining a maximum number of sound sources, and wherein the sound source managing step has predetermined grouping information based on human auditory characteristics and has a sound source arranged in a three-dimensional space. 2. The sound reproducing method according to claim 1, further comprising the step of: performing grouping so that the number is within the maximum number of sound sources obtained by the maximum number of sound sources determining unit. 6. A three-dimensional space by storing sound data representing a sound source in an object storage unit, and designating a position at which the sound source based on the sound data is arranged, and a head position and head direction of a listener. A sound source based on a plurality of sound data and a listener are arranged in a sound source, and when a target sound source, which is sound data to which the listener pays attention, is designated, a scene to be reproduced with additional information added to the target sound source And sound data representing the target sound source as one target group, the relative position of the target sound source with the origin of the listener's head as the origin, and excluding the target sound source obtained in the scene configuration step. With respect to the sound data, from the relative position of the sound source based on the plurality of sound data except for the sound source of interest with the position of the listener's head as the origin, and the front direction of the listener's head,
A sound source management step of grouping a plurality of sound sources excluding the noted sound source existing within a specific angle difference based on an angle difference between the origin and a direction in which the plurality of sound sources except the noted sound source are connected by straight lines, respectively; For all sound source groups divided by the sound source management step, sound data of sound sources divided into the same group is obtained as the same group sound data from the object storage unit, and the same sound source management step is performed. The level of the sound data divided into groups is weighted in consideration of the relationship between the distance to the listener and the level that decreases as the distance to the listener is farther, and the weight is divided to the same group. The average angle difference of the angle differences when the sound data is divided into the same group as the other sound data to which the added sound data is added is defined as the direction of the sound source, and the angle difference is defined as a parameter 3 A sound reproducing method for performing a two-dimensional sound effect process.