head acoustics telecom engineering services...tuning of systems from hands-free suppliers to...
TRANSCRIPT
Engineering Services
Optimize Speech and Audio Quality in Telecommunications – Apply HEAD acoustics Engineering Services for various applications
The rapid growth and competition of in-vehicle entertainment, Internet of Things applications, and consumer electronics ability to
connect people has placed increasing demand on OEMs and suppliers to quickly adopt these technologies while maintaining high
levels of customer satisfaction and quality. This means engineers must employ test methods that evaluate performance of devices, guide
them in troubleshooting problems, and determine the optimized tuning for each product. A major aspect of these products is the speech
communication quality.
As the leaders in supplying test systems, innovative test methods, and engineering services for over 25 years in the telecommunications
speech quality field, HEAD acoustics is well prepared to help move your product development program forward.
The HEAD acoustics Telecommunication Engineering Services Group offers speech communication performance testing and system
optimization services for telecommunications systems and components.
Partner with HEAD acoustics on your projects and benefit from an experienced staff that will quickly evaluate your products, offer
meaningful recommendations for improvement, and assist with the optimized tuning. HEAD acoustics offers:
Industry-wide accepted test systems with all the latest procedures built in
Proven methods for evaluating all areas of speech communication testing
Over 25 years of experience testing telecommunication devices and active leadership in standardization organizations
Test procedures, analyses, and perceptual models that go beyond international standards to test speech quality in the latest devices
Close access to OEMs and suppliers
One-stop shopping for all of your speech communication test services and test systems
Iterative tuning of supplied systems during testing to optimize performance
A way to get testing done in a timely manner when in-house test labs are overbooked
Benchmarking performance of competitive products
An unbiased independent lab
Experienced Project Partner
Mobile Phones
Speech quality assessment of mobile phones presents a challenge due to the various kinds of signal processing involved (e.g. echo
cancellation and noise reduction algorithms, various kinds of speech enhancement and processing and the transmission delay). All
these aspects have a significant influence on conversational speech quality.
HEAD acoustics services offer:
Operator-specific testing and tuning
Automated testing according to current standards such as
3GPP TS 26.131/132 or CTIA Certification Program Test Plan
Comprehensive testing of narrowband, wideband, super-wideband and
fullband mobile devices (handset, handheld hands-free, headset)
Tests according to GSMA HD Voice / HD Voice+ standards to make use
of the official logo
Tuning and improvement of VoIP and VoLTE terminals
Testing and optimizing of Bluetooth® performance
Auditory (subjective) testing
Ensure an optimal conversational
speech quality experience using a mobile
Ensure a positive customer experience when using a product’s hands-free
phone system. HEAD acoustics can evaluate all aspects of hands-free
operation, from Bluetooth® interoperability, to speech quality attributes, to
effect of using different mobile devises and carriers.
HEAD acoustics services include:
Validation testing according to ITU-T Recommendations P.1100, P.1110 and
P.1120 as well as ETSI, CTIA, GLONASS, and 3GPP specifications
Optimizing microphone packaging and placement
Testing Bluetooth® Interoperability
Troubleshooting speech quality issues and recommendations for improvement
Tuning of systems from hands-free suppliers to optimize echo, noise suppression, and double talk performance
Testing of system robustness across mobile devices and service providers
Apple CarPlay™, Android Auto™, Skype®, and Microsoft® Lync® testing
Subjective testing
Hands-free Phone Systems
Determine all aspects of
hands-free phone systems
Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR)
HEAD acoustics offers one-stop services to create databases of calibrated speech and noise recordings that are ready to use in
automated speech recognition testing software such as HEAD acoustics VoCAS system.
Accurate calibrated recordings using precision microphones for speech and background
noise. Speech recordings are referenced to a specific active speech level (ASL)
Lombard effect recordings may be made by recording speech while playing
calibrated background noise through headphones worn by the speaker. The
background noise is recorded using a calibrated binaural headset in the actual
environment being tested
Speech files are ready to be played accurately through the artificial mouth of the HEAD
acoustics HMS II.3 at the correct ASL, while playing background noise through a HEAD
acoustics background noise simulation system (HAE-BGN or 3PASS)
Speech files may be convolved with an impulse response function for simulating various
environments (e.g. car models) to allow electronic mixing of various speech, noise and environment scenarios
All files are conveniently organized and tagged in the VoCAS database
Based on the desired scenarios of speakers and background noise, VoCAS automatically plays out sound files to the ASR system and
receives entries for information about system response
To ensure reliability of an ASR system, the acoustic component of the system must be tested. This means using speech from the operator
position and considering the acoustic aspects of various operating conditions for background noise in any environment.
HEAD acoustics services include:
Proven methodology for preparing and accurately playing back a
database of speech utterances mixed with background noise from
various operating conditions and environments
Calibrated input to the speech recognition engine can either be
done acoustically to the frontside of the hands-free microphone or
electrically to the backside of the hands-free microphone
Recording of calibrated background noises from ASR product use
cases
In-Car Communication (ICC)
One of the latest vehicle innovations are system which enhance the live speech between vehicle passengers using in-vehicle microphones
and loudspeakers. Performance of these systems must be evaluated to demonstrate improvements to speech communication quality.
HEAD acoustics services Include:
Methodology for doing objective
measurements of ICC performance,
which matches subjective impression
Subjective and objective evaluation of
improvements to passenger in-vehicle
communication when the ICC system
is activated
Enhance the live speech performance of
In-Car Communication systems
Emergency Call (eCall)
Vehicle manufacturers and suppliers are working to quickly develop and implement emergency call systems (In-Vehicle Systems, IVS)
that trigger an automatic or a manual emergency call in the event of an accident. The basis for this is hands-free functionality. To
optimize such eCall systems and to ensure optimal communication between the vehicle involved in an accident and the emergency
services, the appropriate measurement technology must be provided. Moreover, eCall
technology is mandatory for vehicles from 2018. Therefore, testing and certifying these
systems is absolutely necessary.
HEAD acoustics services offer:
Validation tests of voice communication for IVS and eCall systems
Tuning and deduction of optimization limits for eCall systems
Test procedures per the Russian standard GOST 33468/33464
(former GOST R55531/54620, ERA-GLONASS) as well as the ITU-T
Recommendation P.1140
Testing and tuning of eCall systems
to receive necessary certification
TUNE
Evaluating performance of broadcast signal reception
Radio Broadcast
Poor radio reception can cause an undesirable customer experience. Often time consuming and complicated subjective methods by
expert listeners are employed to evaluate performance across many vehicle types and many miles of public roads. The TUNE system
from HEAD acoustics eliminates the need for subjective testing. TUNE provides a reliable objective test method, which accurately and
automatically evaluates the quality of the received broadcast signals and the way the radio manages impairments.
HEAD acoustics services offer:
Objective method which matches subjective impression of impairments, such as noises
and pops, caused by poor reception of radio broadcast signals
Optimization of antenna placement and algorithms for
suppressing reception noise
TUNE can conduct tests automatically for many car cabin
configurations
Field proven results with excellent correlation
Statistical overview of occurrences over time
Appropriate measurement technology must be provided to optimize the performance of speech transmission through networks. HEAD
acoustics can measure and assess the impact of network echo cancellers, codec impairments such as packet loss and jitter or gateways
on networks.
• Speech quality testing through networks and network components
• Testing one-way transmission performance e.g. according to ITU-T P.863 (POLQA) and all conversational aspects (e.g. double talk,
echo performance)
• Testing of network interconnection
• End-to-end testing as well as mouth-to-ear testing
Network
Various Applications
Besides traditional communication (Public Switched Telephone Networks, PSTN) the migration towards IP (Internet Protocol) communication
dominates fixed line networks and terminals. All these aspects have a significant influence on conversational speech quality.
• Automated testing of IP phones and Integrated Access Devices (IADs) according to current ETSI and TIA standards
• Testing and tuning of handset, hands-free and loudspeaker modes
• Test of terminal equipment according to operator-specific specifications
• End-to-end testing as well as mouth-to-ear testing
• Troubleshooting speech quality issues and recommendations for improvement
Fixed-Line Communication
Voice Control is an integral part of our daily life. Devices and systems such as doors, blinds, or lights can be controlled by voice. HEAD
acoustics can evaluate all relevant speech quality aspects in smart home environments.
• Speech quality testing for in-house communication systems
• Tests of speech recognition rates
• Tests of hands-free communication at the entrance door with realistic background noise conditions (e.g. road noise)
In-House Communication
Audio Systems
Audio systems are evolving from traditional home stereo and home theatre to portable wireless systems capable of hands-free calling,
speech recognition, and internet based features like audio and video streaming, web browsing, and email. These products are expected
to work flawlessly and a lot of that depends on how well the audio system is designed and tested. The audio components include
loudspeakers, microphones, crossovers, amplifiers, codecs, and DSPs.
With the components getting smaller it is getting more difficult to only use traditional testing metrics like total harmonic distortion (THD)
and frequency response. Now system level testing is required for testing audio over the whole audio path and using more psychoacoustic
tools to accurately assess the sound quality of the product.
HEAD acoustics services offer:
Traditional component level tests like THD and frequency response
System level tests that include wireless components like Bluetooth® or WiFi
Proven psychoacoustic metrics for assessing sound quality
Automated speech recognition testing using VoCAS
Audio system tuning and optimization
Assess the sound quality
of audio systems accurately
Auditory Jury Testing
Auditory jury tests are continuously conducted at HEAD acoustics laboratory to determine quality of systems. There are two main
applications of these tests: On the one hand they are used for the determination of quality during product development phase or for final
products. On the other hand, auditory jury tests always serve as basis for the development of new, instrumental speech quality analyses.
The listening studio of HEAD acoustics provides an ideal environment for
auditory testing. Due to the acoustical optimization of the room and extremely
quiet PCs the listening studio provides a low-noise environment that is suitable
for evaluating even the quietest sound samples.
HEAD acoustics services offer:
Intuitive, quick and uncomplicated implementation of auditory tests
Auditory tests to determine the quality of communication devices, such as
terminals or algorithms
A projector to include visual input, which allows for an enhanced immersion into the test scenario
Efficient testing for up to 9 subjects, which can participate in one auditory test simultaneously
Seminars
HEAD acoustics Telecom Consult offers a wide variety of seminars ranging from
auditory (subjective) speech quality tests to instrumental (objective) measurements
of telecommunication equipment. These seminars are not only available on our
premises but can also be conducted at the customer´s location.
HEAD acoustics services offer:
Subjects that are of particular interest to the customer´s applications
On-site measurements and evaluations of customer´s devices and/or systems
Focus on individual questions and solutions
Seminars at HEAD acoustics as well as at customer´s location
© HEAD acoustics GmbH 2017 | Subject to change
HEAD acoustics GmbHEbertstraße 30 a52134 Herzogenrath, Germany
[email protected]: +49 2407 577-0Fax: +49 2407 577-99