JP2006229301A - Microphone, signal processor, communication interface system, voice/speaker identification system, toy for nam sound - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To achieve a microphone which can sample a more audible voice. <P>SOLUTION: A sound collecting section is attached to the skin surface on nose tissue, e. g. nose cartilage, in order to sample an inaudible murmur sound, i. e. an oscillatory sound conducting through the tissue at a soft portion in the body of an externally inaudible respiratory sound tuned by variation in resonance filter characteristics incident to movement of vocal organ and not accompanied by regular oscillation of vocal cords. Since the conduction distance through the tissue at a soft portion in the body is short because a microphone is attached to the skin surface on nose cartilage, attenuation of high zone components of a voice conducting through the body is reduced and a more audible voice can be sampled. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&amp;NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication interface system, and more particularly to an externally inaudible breathing sound that is attached to the skin surface on nasal cartilage and is tuned by a resonance filter characteristic change accompanying the movement of the vocal organs, and does not involve regular vibration of the vocal cords. A non-audible murmur (NAM) that is a vibration sound that is transmitted through the soft tissue of the body of the human body or a microphone (meat conduction microphone) that collects and inputs a vibration sound that is transmitted through the soft tissue of the body, such as normal speech It relates to the communication interface system used.

Conventionally, it is attached to the skin surface on the thoracic papillary muscle, just below the mastoid process of the lower part of the auricle, and is accompanied by the regular vibration of the vocal cords, which is tuned by changes in the resonance filter characteristics associated with the movement of the vocal organs. A microphone that collects non-audible murmur (NAM), which is a vibration sound transmitted through the soft tissue of the body that is not audible from the outside, is input, and a communication interface system using the microphone is proposed. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).
International Publication WO2004 / 021738 Pamphlet

  In general, the sound is output through the articulating organ from the throat to the palate using a regular wave (pitch) generated by regular vibration of the vocal cords or turbulent noise generated by narrowing the airway as a sound source. Therefore, if the skin surface on the thoracic papillary muscle in the lower part of the pinna, just below the mastoid process of the skull, is located at a distance from the articulatory organ, the body is in the process of conducting the soft tissue in the body. There was a problem that the high frequency component of the conduction sound was attenuated, and the sound was slightly lacking in clarity. In the conventional method, since the signal is collected on the sound source side of the voice modulation organ, the signal intensity differs greatly between the NAM voice and the normal voice, and the gain of the microphone amplifier is set according to the NAM voice. However, there was a problem that overflow occurred during normal voice input.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems of the prior art, and its purpose is a microphone capable of collecting more easily audible speech, a signal processing apparatus using the same, a communication interface system, and a voice speaker authentication system. It is to provide a toy device for NAM sound.

  The microphone according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a sound collecting part attached to the skin surface on the nasal cartilage, and is tuned by a resonance filter characteristic change accompanying the movement of the vocal organs and is not accompanied by regular vibration of the vocal cords. Is characterized by collecting non-audible murmurs or normal sounds, which are vibration sounds transmitted through the soft tissue in the body of inaudible breathing sounds. By attaching the microphone to the skin surface on the cartilage, the distance conducted through the soft tissue in the body is short, so that the high-frequency component of the body-conducted speech is less attenuated and a more easily heard sound can be collected. In addition, by attaching a microphone to the skin surface on the nasal cartilage, it is collected after a lot of energy is released from the mouth through the modulation organ from the sound source, so even normal vocal sounds can be transmitted from the proper nasal cavity to the nasal cartilage part Since the volume does not increase so much, the NAM voice and the normal voice can be collected with the same microphone amplifier gain.

  A microphone according to a second aspect of the present invention is the microphone according to the first aspect, wherein a pair of support members having one end connected to a common fulcrum and a spring member that urges the other ends of the pair of support members to approach each other. The sound collecting part is provided at the other end of at least one of the pair of support members. By adopting such a configuration, the microphone can be stably mounted on the skin surface on the cartilage.

  The microphone according to claim 3 of the present invention is the microphone according to claim 1, wherein the microphone has a shape along the skin surface on the nasal cartilage and maintains the state in which the sound collecting portion is in contact with the skin surface; It includes a pair of ear hooks for hanging on the left and right auricles, and an arm for connecting between the pair of ear hooks and the support. By adopting such a configuration, the microphone can be stably mounted on the skin surface on the cartilage.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the microphone according to the first aspect of the present invention includes the annular elastic body attached to the skin surface of the head including the skin surface on the nasal cartilage according to the first aspect, and the skin surface by the elastic force of the elastic body. And maintaining the state in which the sound collecting portion is in contact with the sound collecting portion. By adopting such a configuration, the microphone can be stably mounted on the skin surface on the cartilage.
The microphone according to claim 5 of the present invention includes, in claim 1, a cap portion that covers the sound collection portion, and a pair of elastic bodies provided between the cap portion and the left and right auricles, The state where the sound collection part is in contact with the skin surface is maintained by the elastic force of the elastic body. By adopting such a configuration, the microphone can be stably mounted on the skin surface on the cartilage.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a signal processing apparatus for performing signal processing on a signal collected by a microphone according to any one of the first to fifth aspects. By adopting such a configuration, it is possible to perform various signal processing on the signal collected by the microphone that is stably attached to the skin surface on the cartilage.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a signal processing device according to the sixth aspect, wherein the analog-to-digital conversion unit that quantizes the signal collected by the microphone, and the processor unit that processes the quantization result by the analog-to-digital conversion unit And a sending part for sending the processing result by the processor part to the outside. With this configuration, the quantization result can be processed inside the signal processing device.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the signal processing device according to the sixth aspect, wherein the analog-to-digital conversion unit that quantizes the signal collected by the microphone and the sending unit that sends the quantization result by the analog-to-digital conversion unit to the outside The quantization result is processed in an external device. With such a configuration, the quantization result can be processed outside the signal processing apparatus.

  The signal processing device according to claim 9 of the present invention is the signal processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the analog-to-digital conversion unit that quantizes the signal collected by the microphone, and the processor unit that processes the quantization result by the analog-to-digital conversion unit; And a speech recognition unit that performs speech recognition processing on the processing result by the processor unit. With such a configuration, voice recognition processing can be performed on the sound collected by the microphone.

  A communication interface system according to a tenth aspect of the present invention is the microphone according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the signal processing device according to any one of the sixth to ninth aspects, And the processing result of the signal processing device is used for communication. By adopting such a configuration, the microphone attached to the skin surface on the cartilage can be used for communication.

  A voice speaker authentication system according to an eleventh aspect of the present invention includes a microphone according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, a storage unit in which data related to body conduction voice for authentication is stored in advance, Authentication means for performing authentication by collating data relating to body conduction speech input by the microphone and data relating to body conduction speech stored in the storage means, and externally depending on the authentication result of the authentication means It is characterized by controlling the equipment. With such a configuration, the external device can be controlled by the sound collected by the microphone.

A toy device for NAM sound according to a twelfth aspect of the present invention is a vocal cord input by the microphone according to any one of the first to sixth aspects and tuned by a resonance filter characteristic change accompanying a movement of a vocal organ. A predetermined operation is performed in response to a non-audible murmur sound (NAM sound) that is a vibration sound that is transmitted from the outside to the soft tissue of the body, which is not accompanied by regular fluctuations. With such a configuration, the toy device can be controlled by the sound collected by the microphone.
A toy device for NAM sound according to claim 13 of the present invention has a speaker for outputting sound according to claim 12, and the predetermined operation is an operation of outputting sound corresponding to the NAM sound from the speaker. It is characterized by being. With such a configuration, the toy device can be controlled to perform a ventral speech or the like.

  According to the present invention, since a microphone is attached to the skin surface of cartilage, particularly nasal cartilage, the distance conducted through the soft tissue in the body is short, so that the high-frequency component of the body conduction voice is less attenuated and the voice is easier to hear. Can be collected. Further, since the sound is collected near the end of the articulatory organ, it is possible to collect articulation, that is, speech with high clarity after a formant characterizing a phoneme is formed. Furthermore, since the sound is collected after the energy is released from the opening (mouth) through the modulation organ from the sound source, the volume transmitted to the nasal cartilage from the proper nasal cavity does not increase so much even with normal utterances. And normal voice can be collected with the same microphone amplifier gain.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings referred to in the following description, the same parts as those in the other drawings are denoted by the same reference numerals.
First, inaudible tweets (NAM) are vibrations that are tuned by changes in the resonance filter characteristics associated with the movement of the vocal organs, and that are not accompanied by regular vocal cord fluctuations, and are transmitted from the outside through the soft tissue of the inaudible respiratory sound. It is a sound.

(Mounting position)
2A is a front view of the face, FIG. 2B is a side view of the skull, and FIG. 2C is a front view of the skull. In these figures, a meat conduction microphone is attached to the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201. The nasal cartilage 201 is a portion below the nasal bone 202 where no bone is present. In FIGS. 2B and 2C, the position of the nasal cartilage is indicated by hatching.
Here, the cartilage is a support tissue composed of a cartilage matrix and chondrocytes rich in elasticity and containing fibers to some extent (“Maglow Hill Science and Technology Glossary 3rd Edition, 1998, Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun”). .

(Configuration example of meat conduction microphone)
A configuration example of the meat conduction microphone 101 is shown in FIG. In this figure, the meat conduction microphone 101 of this example includes a contact portion 301 to the skin surface, a piezoelectric element 302 that outputs an electric signal corresponding to a given pressure, an annular shielding 304, and a cavity portion 303. It includes a hard rubber 305 for securing, a sound absorbing material 306, a vibration isolating material 307 for suppressing the influence of external noise, and a lead wire 308 for taking out an output signal of the piezoelectric element 302.
For example, a metal plate is used for the contact portion 301. For example, copper foil or the like is used for the shielding 304. For example, cork or the like is used for the sound absorbing material 306. For example, urethane is used for the vibration isolator 307.

(Another configuration example of a meat conduction microphone)
Another configuration example of the meat conduction microphone 101 is shown in FIG. In the figure, the meat conduction microphone 101 of this example is configured to include a contact portion 2201 to the skin and a condenser microphone portion 2202. For the contact part 2201, a biocompatible substance that conducts vibration sound from the skin to the condenser microphone 2202 and has an acoustic impedance close to the acoustic impedance of the soft tissue in the body, such as silicone rubber, is used. The condenser microphone unit 2202 has two diaphragm electrodes 2202a and 2202b and a lead wire 2202c for deriving the received vibration sound as an electrical signal.

(Spectrum and amplitude)
FIG. 5 shows a spectrum of the NAM uttered voice collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 having the structure shown in FIG. FIG. 6A shows the spectrum of the NAM vocal sound sampled from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201 and FIG. 10B shows the spectrum of the NAM vocal sound sampled from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process described in Patent Document 1 at a sampling frequency of 16 kHz. is there. Referring to both figures, it can be seen that only an audio signal of up to about 3 kHz can be collected immediately below the mastoid process, whereas an audio signal of up to 8 kHz can be collected from the nasal cartilage.

  FIG. 6 shows a spectrum of a normal uttered voice collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 having the structure shown in FIG. FIG. 6A shows the spectrum of a normal vocal sound sampled from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201, and FIG. 10B shows the spectrum of a normal vocal sound sampled at a sampling frequency of 16 kHz from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process described in Patent Document 1. is there. Referring to both figures, it can be seen that a voice signal that can be stably collected immediately below the mastoid process is about 4 kHz, whereas a voice signal can be collected up to 8 kHz in nasal cartilage.

  FIG. 7 shows waveforms of the NAM uttered voice and the normal uttered voice collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 having the structure shown in FIG. (A) is from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201, and (B) is from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process described in Patent Document 1, respectively, and the waveform of the NAM vocal sound sampled at a sampling frequency of 16 kHz. It is a waveform of a normal voice. Referring to both figures, the level difference between the NAM utterance voice and the normal utterance voice is large immediately below the milky process, and when the gain of the microphone amplifier is set in accordance with the NAM utterance voice, the normal utterance voice is saturated. On the other hand, in the nasal cartilage, the level difference between the NAM voice and the normal voice is relatively small, and it can be seen that the normal voice is not saturated even if the gain of the microphone amplifier is set in accordance with the NAM voice.

  FIG. 8 shows the spectrum of the NAM uttered voice collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 having the structure shown in FIG. FIG. 6A shows the spectrum of the NAM vocal sound sampled from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201 and FIG. 10B shows the spectrum of the NAM vocal sound sampled from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process described in Patent Document 1 at a sampling frequency of 16 kHz. is there. Further, FIG. 9 shows a spectrum of a normal voice collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 having the structure shown in FIG. FIG. 6A shows the spectrum of the NAM vocal sound sampled from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201 and FIG. 10B shows the spectrum of the NAM vocal sound sampled from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process described in Patent Document 1 at a sampling frequency of 16 kHz. is there. It can be seen that both the NAM voice and the normal voice can be collected more stably from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201 to a higher frequency than from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process.

  FIG. 10 shows waveforms of the NAM voice and the normal voice collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 having the structure shown in FIG. (A) is from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201, and (B) is from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process described in Patent Document 1, respectively, and the waveform of the NAM vocal sound sampled at a sampling frequency of 16 kHz. It is a waveform of a normal voice. Referring to both figures, it can be seen that the level difference between the NAM voice and the normal voice is smaller when it is collected from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage 201 than when it is collected from the skin surface immediately below the mastoid process.

(How to wear a meat conduction microphone)
Next, a method for attaching the meat conduction microphone 101 will be described.
(1) Clip type FIG. 11 (A) is a front view showing the configuration of the meat conduction microphone 101, and FIG. 11 (B) is a side view as seen from the direction of arrow Y in FIG. Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, a pair of support members 103a and 103b having one end connected to a support shaft 103 serving as a common fulcrum, and the other ends of the pair of support members 103a and 103b. A clip is formed by a spring 702 that urges them to approach each other, and a meat conduction microphone 101 is provided at the other end of the support member 103a. Then, as shown in FIG. 11 (C), the clip is fixed and attached so as to pinch the nasal cartilage. Here, referring to FIG. 3A, in this example, a dummy 701 for stabilizing the mounting property is provided. The position of the meat conduction microphone 101 and the position of the dummy 701 may be opposite to each other, and a meat conduction microphone similar to the meat conduction microphone 101 may be provided instead of the dummy 701.

(2) Ear-hanging frame type Another mounting method is shown in FIG. Referring to FIG. 12 (A), the support 800 has an inverted U shape along the skin surface on the nasal cartilage and maintains the state where the meat conduction microphone 101 and the dummy 701 are in contact with the skin surface. The pair of ear hooks 801L and 801R for hanging on the left and right pinna respectively, and the arm portions 801a and 801b connecting the pair of ear hooks 801L and 801R and the support portion 800, the ear hook frame is formed. Is formed. Then, the ear hook frame is attached as shown in FIG. That is, the ear hook 801L is hung on the left ear pinna, and the ear hook 801R is similarly hung on the right ear pinna. Then, the support portion 800 is mounted at a position along the skin surface on the nasal cartilage, and the meat conduction microphone 101 and the dummy 701 are in contact with the skin surface on the nasal cartilage. Note that the position of the meat conduction microphone 101 and the position of the dummy 701 may be opposite to each other, and a meat conduction microphone similar to the meat conduction microphone 101 may be provided instead of the dummy 701.

(3) Elastic Band Type A band 901 to which the meat conduction microphone 101 and the dummy 701 as shown in FIG. 13A are attached may be used. The band 901 is an annular elastic body attached to the head skin surface including the skin surface on the nasal cartilage, and is formed of rubber, for example. The meat conduction microphone 101 and the dummy 701 are attached to the inner surface of the band 901.
FIG. 5B shows a state where the band 901 is attached. In this mounted state, the state where the meat conduction microphone 101 and the dummy 701 are in contact with the skin surface on the nasal cartilage can be maintained by the elastic force of the band 901. Note that the position of the meat conduction microphone 101 and the position of the dummy 701 may be opposite to each other, and a meat conduction microphone similar to the meat conduction microphone 101 may be provided instead of the dummy 701.

(4) Nose Cap Type Further, as shown in FIG. 14A, a structure in which a nose cap 1001 and an ear strap are combined may be employed. The nasal cap 1001 has an egg-shaped hollow structure that a clown attaches. The nose cap 1001 is formed of, for example, a synthetic resin, and the meat conduction microphone 101 and the dummy 701 are provided on the inner surface thereof. The nose cap 1001 is provided with ear straps 1002R and 1002L for hanging on the left and right auricles of the wearer. The ear straps 1002R and 1002L are made of a stretchable material such as rubber.

  FIG. 2B shows the mounted state. As shown in the figure, when the ear strap is hung between the ear straps 1002R and 1002L and the left and right pinna of the wearer, the elastic force of the ear straps 1002R and 1002L causes the nasal cartilage. The state where the meat conduction microphone 101 and the dummy 701 are in contact with the upper skin surface can be maintained. Note that the position of the meat conduction microphone 101 and the position of the dummy 701 may be opposite to each other, and a meat conduction microphone similar to the meat conduction microphone 101 may be provided instead of the dummy 701.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example when a communication interface system according to the present invention is applied to a mobile phone system. The caller 100 places the meat conduction microphone 101 on the skin surface of the nasal cartilage. The position of the nasal cartilage to which the meat conduction microphone 101 is attached is shown in FIG.
The meat conduction microphone 101 is connected to the mobile phone 106 by a microphone cable 104 and an earphone / microphone cable 105. The earphone 102 is mounted in the ear canal and is connected to the mobile phone 106 by an earphone / microphone cable 105, as in the meat conduction microphone 101. A speaker may be used instead of the earphone 102. The radio network 107 includes, for example, radio base stations 109a and 109b, base station controllers 110a and 110b, exchanges 111a and 111b, and a communication network 108. In this example, the mobile phone 112 wirelessly communicates with the radio base station 109b, thereby enabling a call between the mobile phone 106 and the mobile phone 112.

FIG. 15 is a flowchart until the non-audible murmur (NAM) or normal voice uttered by the caller 100 is transmitted to the other party, and FIG. 16 is a flowchart until the voice uttered by the other party is transmitted to the caller 100.
In FIG. 15, the vibration sound 1101 conducted through the soft tissue of the body such as a non-audible murmur (NAM) or normal voice of the caller 100 is transmitted from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage to the contact portion 301 of the meat conduction microphone 101 (step 1102). ), The piezoelectric element 302 in the microphone is vibrated to become an electric signal, which is taken out from the lead wire 308 (step 1103). This electrical signal is transmitted to the mobile phone 106 by wired communication means (step 1104).
The electric signal transmitted to the mobile phone 106 is transmitted to the mobile phone 112 of the call partner via the wireless network 107 (step 1105), and is converted from the electrical signal to the vibration sound by the speaker of the mobile phone 112 of the call partner. (Step 1106), the playback voice 1107 of the caller 100 is obtained.

  On the other hand, in FIG. 16, the other party's voice 1201 is converted into an electrical signal by the microphone of the other party's mobile phone 112 (step 1202) and transmitted to the mobile phone 106 via the wireless network 107 (step 1203). ). The electric signal is further transmitted from the mobile phone 106 to the earphone 102 or the speaker by a wired communication means (step 1204), and the earphone 102 or the speaker converts the electric signal into a vibration sound (step 1205), and the other party's reproduced sound is reproduced. 1206. Note that the earphone 102 is not necessary when the user directly listens to the sound from the speaker built in the mobile phone 106. In this case, for example, as shown in FIG. 17, a microphone connection portion 2601 that is made of an elastic material such as plastic or shape memory alloy, is integrated with the meat conduction microphone 101, and transmits a signal from the meat conduction microphone 101 to the mobile phone 106. Is inserted into the earphone microphone terminal of the mobile phone 106, and the bending state of the microphone connection portion 2601 and the position of the mobile phone 106 are adjusted so that the contact portion 301 of the meat conduction microphone 101 stably contacts the skin surface of the nasal cartilage. Then, a call may be made using the built-in speaker in the meat conduction microphone 101 and the mobile phone 106.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing another configuration example when the communication interface system according to the present invention is applied to a mobile phone system.
In this example, the meat conduction microphone 101 and the earphone 102 are connected to the mobile phone 106 by wireless communication means. In the figure, in the system of this example, wireless communication is performed between the first wireless communication unit 1301 on the meat conduction microphone 101 and the earphone 102 side and the second wireless communication unit 1302 on the mobile phone 106 side.

  An example of the internal configuration of the first radio communication unit 1301 and the second radio communication unit 1302 is shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the first wireless communication unit 1301 includes a digital wireless communication unit 1401 compliant with a standard such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), an antenna 1406, a microphone amplifier 1402, a speaker amplifier 1405, and an AD converter. 1403, a DA converter 1404, and a battery 1407.

On the other hand, the second wireless communication unit 1302 on the mobile phone 109 side includes a digital wireless communication unit 1408 corresponding to the digital wireless communication unit 1401, an antenna 1411, an AD converter 1409, a DA converter 1410, and a battery 1412. .
Here, the digital wireless communication unit 1401 and the digital wireless communication unit 1408 may be the same, and the second wireless communication unit 1302 may be housed in the mobile phone 106. When the second wireless communication unit 1302 is not housed in the mobile phone 106, the second wireless communication unit 1302 is connected to the mobile phone 106 via the earphone microphone terminal of the mobile phone 109. Further, when the second wireless communication unit 1302 can supply power from the mobile phone 106, the battery 1412 is not necessary.

  In such a configuration, when the caller 100 utters, the electric signal generated by the inaudible murmur (NAM) or normal voice of the caller 100 and taken out from the lead wire 308 is output by the microphone amplifier 1402. After being amplified and converted into a digital signal by the AD converter 1403, it is digitally modulated by the digital wireless communication unit 1401 and transmitted from the antenna 1406. The transmission signal is received by the antenna 1411 on the mobile phone 106 side, digitally demodulated by the digital wireless communication unit 1408, converted to an analog signal by the DA converter 1420, and taken into the mobile phone 106.

  On the other hand, when the other party speaks, the other party's voice is converted into a digital signal by the AD converter 1409, digitally modulated by the digital wireless communication unit 1408, transmitted from the antenna 1411, and received by the antenna 1406. The received signal is digitally demodulated by the digital wireless communication unit 1401, converted to an analog signal by the DA converter 1404, amplified by the speaker amplifier 1405, and input to the earphone 102.

  For example, when the digital wireless communication unit 1401 and the digital wireless communication unit 1408 compliant with Bluetooth (registered trademark) Ver1.1 are used, the maximum communication speed is 721 kbps, and the output corresponds to Bluetooth (registered trademark) Class2. In this case, the output of the digital wireless communication unit 1402 and the digital wireless communication unit 1408 is a maximum of 4 dBm, and communication of about 10 m is possible under the line-of-sight condition.

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing a configuration example when the communication interface system according to the present invention is applied to a voice recognition system.
As in the case of FIG. 1, the user 1500 wears the meat conduction microphone 101 on the skin surface of the nasal cartilage. The vibration sound transmitted through the soft tissue of the body generated by a command or a kana train uttered by the user 1500 with a non-audible murmur (NAM) or normal voice is generated from the skin surface of the nasal cartilage and the contact portion 301 of the meat conduction microphone 101. Then, the piezoelectric element 302 in the microphone is vibrated to become an electric signal and taken out from the lead wire 308.

  This electric signal is transmitted to the personal computer 1501 or the portable terminal 1502 having the voice recognition function through the microphone cable 104, and the personal computer 1501 or the portable terminal 1502 performs voice recognition. The recognition result is used as, for example, a command for starting / controlling an application operating on the personal computer 1501 or the portable terminal 1502. Further, the electrical signal from the meat conduction microphone 101 may be transmitted to the personal computer 1501 or the portable terminal 1502 by wireless communication means such as Bluetooth (registered trademark).

  FIG. 21 is a block diagram showing a configuration example when the communication interface system according to the present invention is applied to a door lock unlocking system based on voice authentication. Here, the voice authentication algorithm includes, for example, the document “Biometric authentication technology” written by Yoichi Seto, May 2002, Kyoritsu Publishing Co., Ltd. A method as described in 64-68 is used. In this method, first, a voice pattern is registered by uttering a keyword, the same keyword is uttered at the time of authentication, the similarity to the registered pattern is calculated, and compared with a preset threshold value to determine whether or not the person is the person. It is a method to do.

  In the figure, the door lock unlocking system includes a meat conduction microphone 101, a voice preprocessing unit 1601, a voice authentication system 1604, a door lock control system 1607, and a door 1608. Further, the voice preprocessing unit 1601 includes a microphone amplifier 1602 and an AD converter 1603, and the voice authentication system 1604 includes a voice authentication unit 1605 and a registered pattern storage unit 1606.

  In such a configuration, when it is desired to unlock the door lock, the authentication registrant 1600 wears the meat conduction microphone 101 on the skin surface of the nasal cartilage and sets an authentication keyword as an inaudible murmur (NAM sound) or normal sound. Say. The NAM sound or normal sound is collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 and converted into an electric signal, and then input to the microphone amplifier 1602 in the sound preprocessing unit 1601 through the microphone cable 104. The NAM sound or normal sound converted into the electrical signal is amplified by the microphone amplifier 1602, digitized by the AD converter 1603, and then input to the voice authentication unit 1605. The voice authentication unit 1605 is created and registered based on the NAM sound or normal sound uttered for registration in advance, and stored in the registered pattern storage unit 1606, and the NAM sound or normal sound uttered at the time of authentication. Is compared with a threshold value set in advance, and it is determined whether or not the speaker 1600 has authority to enter and exit the room.

The determination result obtained by the voice authentication unit 1605 is transmitted to the door lock control system 1607. When the door lock control system 1607 determines that the user has authority to enter and exit according to the determination result, the door lock of the door 1608 is fixed. Unlock for hours.
Note that the authentication target person 1600 may utter either NAM utterance or normal utterance, but it is necessary to use the same utterance method during registration and authentication. However, it is also possible to prepare registration patterns for both NAM utterances and normal utterances at the time of registration, and to select an utterance method according to the surrounding situation at the time of authentication. Further, the electrical signal from the meat conduction microphone 101 may be transmitted to the sound preprocessing unit 1601 by wireless communication means such as Bluetooth (registered trademark).

  FIG. 22 is a block diagram showing a configuration example when the communication interface system according to the present invention is applied to a ventral talk system. The stomach narrative system includes an operator 1700 and a stomach doll 1701, and the stomach doll 1701 further includes an audio processing unit 1702 and a speaker 1703. An example of the internal configuration of the audio processing unit 1702 is shown in FIG. The audio processing unit 1702 includes a microphone amplifier 1801, an AD converter 1802, a voice output unit 1803, a DA converter 1804, a speaker amplifier 1805, and a battery 1806.

  The operator 1700 wears the meat conduction microphone 101 on the skin surface of the nasal cartilage so that the utterance content that the abdomen doll 1701 wants to talk to is not heard by a third party with minimal lip movement. Tweet with an audible tweet (NAM sound). The inaudible murmur sound (NAM sound) is collected by the meat conduction microphone 101, converted into an electric signal, and then input to the microphone amplifier 1801 in the voice processing unit 1702 inside the ventral doll through the microphone cable 104. The NAM sound converted into the electric signal is amplified by the microphone amplifier 1801, digitized by the AD converter 1802, and then input to the voice output unit 1803.

  The voiced output unit 1803 converts the input NAM sound into a voice that is easy to hear. The voice signal after voice conversion is converted back to an analog signal by the DA converter 1804, the output level is adjusted by the speaker amplifier 1805, and then output as a voice from the speaker 1703 attached near the throat of the ventral doll. The operator 1700 moves the mouth of the abdominal doll 1 according to the sound output from the speaker 1703, and can output the audible sound to realize the abdominal narrative. In addition, the method of moving a ventral puppet may use a mouth shape change control apparatus, for example, and may move it manually. When the mouth shape change control device is used, information on the timing for starting driving the mouth shape change control device and the driving time may be obtained from the voice processing unit 1702.

Here, the conversion from the tweet sound to the easy-to-hear sound in the voice output unit 1803 is performed by, for example, estimating the fundamental frequency from the formant frequency of the tweet sound using the correlation between the formant frequency and the fundamental frequency, and converting the tweet sound into the tweet sound. This is possible by giving a fundamental frequency and outputting as a voiced sound.
The voice processing unit 1702 may be held by the operator 1700. Furthermore, the electrical signal from the meat conduction microphone 101 may be transmitted to the audio processing unit 1702 by wireless communication means such as Bluetooth (registered trademark).

  FIG. 24 is a block diagram showing a configuration example when the communication interface system according to the present invention is used as a speech disabled person conversation support system. The speech support system for people with speech disabilities is usually at a normal level because the vocal cords have been removed, the vocal cords are impaired, and normal vocalization using the vocal cords is difficult, or the respiratory muscles are weak. This system supports conversations of people who have difficulty speaking. This system comprises a user 1900 and a speaker built-in sound processing unit 1901. The speaker built-in sound processing unit 1901 is housed in the chest pocket of the user.

  An example of the internal configuration of the speaker built-in voice processing unit 1901 is shown in FIG. In the figure, a speaker built-in sound processing unit 1901 includes a microphone amplifier 2001, an AD converter 2002, a voice output unit 2003, a DA converter 2004, a speaker amplifier 2005, a speaker 2006, and a battery 2007.

The user 1900 wears the meat conduction microphone 101 on the skin surface of the nasal cartilage and murmurs the content to be communicated to the conversation partner. This murmur sound is collected by the meat conduction microphone 101, converted into an electric signal, and then input to the microphone amplifier 2001 in the speaker built-in sound processing unit 1901 through the microphone cable 104. The tweet sound converted into an electric signal is amplified by the microphone amplifier 2001, digitized by the AD converter 2002, and then input to the voiced output unit 2003. The voiced output unit 2003 converts the inputted tweet sound into a voice that is easy to hear. The sound signal after the sound conversion is returned to an analog signal by the DA converter 2004, and the output level is adjusted by the speaker amplifier 2005, and then output from the speaker 2006 as sound.
Here, the conversion from the tweet sound to the easy-to-hear sound in the voice output unit 2003 is performed by, for example, estimating the fundamental frequency from the formant frequency of the tweet sound by using the correlation between the formant frequency and the fundamental frequency, and converting the tweet sound into the tweet sound. This is possible by giving a fundamental frequency and outputting as a voiced sound.

  Further, when the conversation partner can sufficiently understand the utterance contents even with the tweet sound amplified by the microphone amplifier 2001, the microphone amplifier 2001 is simply composed of only the speaker 2006 and the battery 2007 as shown in FIG. The tweet sound collected by the meat conduction microphone 101 and converted into an electric signal is amplified by the microphone amplifier 2001 in the simplified speaker built-in sound processing unit 1901 using the built-in speaker built-in sound processing unit 2101, It may be output.

  The electric signal from the meat conduction microphone 101 may be transmitted to the speaker built-in sound processing unit 1901 or the simplified speaker built-in sound processing unit 2101 by wireless communication means such as Bluetooth (registered trademark). Further, the speaker 2006 may be taken out from the speaker built-in sound processing unit 1901 or the simplified speaker built-in sound processing unit 2101 and installed outside the unit.

  The present invention enables high-quality voice input without being noticed by surrounding people, so that communication devices such as mobile phones can be used in public places such as trains and places and situations where confidentiality is required. Voice recognition devices and voice authentication devices can be widely used. In addition, voices that do not use regular vibrations of the vocal cords and minute voices can be input, so the vocal cords are removed, people with impaired vocal cords, or respiratory muscles are weak, etc. People who have difficulty speaking can also be used optimally.

It is a block diagram which shows the structural example at the time of applying the communication interface system by this invention to a mobile telephone system. It is a figure which shows the mounting position of a microphone in the communication interface system by this invention. It is a side cross-sectional block diagram which shows an example of a meat conduction microphone, and a block diagram which shows the state decomposed | disassembled into the component part unit. It is a side surface sectional block diagram which shows another example of a meat conduction microphone. It is a figure which shows the spectrum of the NAM vocalization voice extract | collected from the nasal cartilage and the mastoid process. It is a figure which shows the spectrum of the normal vocalization voice extract | collected from the nasal cartilage and the mastoid process. It is a figure which shows the waveform of the NAM vocal sound extract | collected from the nasal cartilage and the mastoid process, and a normal vocal sound. It is a figure which shows the spectrum of the NAM vocalization voice extract | collected from the nasal cartilage and the mastoid process by another example of the meat conduction microphone. It is a figure which shows the spectrum of the normal vocalization voice extract | collected from the nasal cartilage and the mastoid process by another example of the meat conduction microphone. It is a figure which shows the waveform of the NAM vocal sound and normal vocal sound extract | collected from the nasal cartilage and the mastoid process by another example of the meat conduction microphone. It is a figure which shows an example of the mounting method of a microphone in the communication interface system by this invention. It is a figure which shows another example of the mounting method of a microphone in the communication interface system by this invention. It is a figure which shows another example of the mounting method of a microphone in the communication interface system by this invention. It is a figure which shows another example of the mounting method of a microphone in the communication interface system by this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the example of a processing flow at the time of transmission at the time of applying the communication interface system using this invention to a mobile telephone system. It is a block diagram which shows the example of a processing flow at the time of reception at the time of applying the communication interface system using this invention to a mobile telephone system. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example at the time of applying the communication interface system by this invention to a mobile telephone system. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example at the time of applying the communication interface system by this invention to a mobile telephone system. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example of a radio | wireless communication unit. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example at the time of applying the communication interface system by this invention to the speech recognition system. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example at the time of applying the communication interface system by this invention to the door lock unlocking system by voice authentication. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example at the time of applying the communication interface system by this invention to a ventral talk system. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example of an audio | voice processing unit. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example at the time of applying the communication interface system by invention to a speech impaired person conversation assistance system. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example of the audio | voice processing unit with a speaker. It is another block diagram which shows the structural example of another audio | voice processing unit with a speaker.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Caller 101 Meat conduction microphone 102 Earphone 103 Clip 104 Microphone cable 105 Earphone / microphone cable 106, 112 Mobile phone 107 Wireless network 108 Communication network 109 Wireless base station 110 Base station controller 111 Exchange 201 201 Nasal cartilage 202 Nasal bone 301 Contact part 302 Piezoelectric element 303 Cavity 304 Shielding 305 Hard rubber 306 Sound absorbing material 307 Anti-vibration urethane 308 Lead wire 701 Dummy 702 Spring 801 Frame 901 Band 1001 Nose cap 1002 Ear hook 1301 First wireless communication unit 1302 Second wireless communication unit 1401, 1408 Digital wireless communication unit 1402 Microphone amplifier 1403, 1409 AD converter 1404, 1410 DA converter 1 405 Speaker amplifier 1406, 1411 Antenna 1407, 1412 Battery 1500 User 1501 Personal computer 1502 Information portable terminal 1600 Authentication registrant 1601 Voice preprocessing unit 1602 Microphone amplifier 1603 AD converter 1604 Voice speaker authentication system 1605 Voice speaker authentication unit 1606 Registration Pattern storage unit 1607 Door lock control system 1608 Door 1700 Operator 1701 Abdominal doll 1702 Audio processing unit 1703 Speaker 1801 Microphone amplifier 1802 AD converter 1803 Audio output unit 1804 DA converter 1805 Speaker amplifier 1806 Battery 1900 User 1901 Audio processing unit with built-in speaker 2001 Microphone amplifier 2002 AD converter 2003 Audio output unit 2004 DA Converter 2005 Speaker amplifier 2006 Speaker 2007 Battery 2101 Simple speaker built-in voice processing unit 2201 Contact unit 2202 Capacitor microphone unit 2202a, 2202b Vibration electrode 2202c Lead wire 2601 Microphone connection unit

Claims (13)

Including a sound collecting part attached to the skin surface on the nasal cartilage,
Non-audible murmurs or normal sounds that are oscillated through the soft tissue of the body, which are not audible from the outside and are not accompanied by regular vibrations of the vocal cords, and are tuned by changes in the resonance filter characteristics associated with the movement of the vocal organs Microphone.   A pair of support members, one end of which is connected to a common fulcrum, and a spring member that urges the other ends of the pair of support members to approach each other; The microphone according to claim 1, wherein the microphone is provided on at least one other end.   A support portion having a shape along the skin surface on the nasal cartilage and maintaining the state where the sound collecting portion is in contact with the skin surface; and a pair of ear hook portions for hanging on the left and right auricles, respectively The microphone according to claim 1, further comprising: an arm portion that connects between the pair of ear hooking portions and the support portion.   An annular elastic body mounted on the skin surface of the head including the skin surface on the nasal cartilage, and maintaining the state in which the sound collecting part is in contact with the skin surface by the elastic force of the elastic body The microphone according to claim 1.   A cap portion that covers the sound collection portion; and a pair of elastic bodies provided between the cap portion and the left and right auricles; and the sound collection portion on the skin surface by the elastic force of the elastic body The microphone according to claim 1, wherein the microphone is kept in contact with the microphone.   A signal processing apparatus that performs signal processing on a signal collected by the microphone according to any one of claims 1 to 5.   An analog-to-digital conversion unit that quantizes a signal collected by the microphone; a processor unit that processes a quantization result by the analog-to-digital conversion unit; and a sending unit that sends the processing result by the processor unit to the outside The signal processing apparatus according to claim 6.   An analog-to-digital conversion unit that quantizes a signal collected by the microphone; and a sending unit that sends out a quantization result obtained by the analog-to-digital conversion unit to the outside so that the quantization result is processed in an external device 7. A signal processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein   An analog-to-digital conversion unit that quantizes a signal collected by the microphone; a processor unit that processes a quantization result by the analog-to-digital conversion unit; and a speech recognition unit that performs a speech recognition process on the processing result by the processor unit; The signal processing apparatus according to claim 6, comprising:   A microphone according to any one of claims 1 to 5 and a signal processing device according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein a processing result by the signal processing device is communicated A communication interface system characterized by being used in   The microphone according to any one of claims 1 to 6, storage means for storing data relating to body conduction speech for authentication in advance, data relating to body conduction speech input by the microphone, and the storage. An authentication unit that performs authentication by collating data related to in-vivo speech stored in the unit, and controls an external device in accordance with an authentication result of the authentication unit. Authentication system.   7. An inaudible breath that is input by the microphone according to any one of claims 1 to 6 and is tuned by a change in a resonance filter characteristic accompanying a movement of a vocal organ and is not audible from outside without a regular variation of the vocal cords. A toy device for NAM sound, which performs a predetermined operation in response to a non-audible murmur sound (NAM sound) that is a vibration sound conducted through a soft tissue in a body of sound.   The NAM sound compatible toy device according to claim 12, further comprising a speaker for outputting sound, wherein the predetermined operation is an operation of outputting sound corresponding to the NAM sound from the speaker.