January 30, 2020
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Apple was recently granted a patent concerning a virtual audio processing system. The patent is related to enhancing the acoustics of MacBook speakers. In the patent background, Apple notes that the virtual acoustic system gives listeners an illusion that sound is coming from a different place, other than directly from the loudspeaker on the MacBook.
This patent uses crosstalk canceling, which is similar to noise cancelling. Described in its simplest form, crosstalk canceling will noise-cancel one side of the MacBook, so that the sound appears to be coming from the other side. Crosstalk canceling will be supplemented with other features that allow the acoustics to be adjusted to best suit the characteristics of any given room.
This new patent has been described as creating virtual speakers that simulate sound from anywhere in a room.
Authors: Sam Galway and Christine Macdonald