UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`__________________________________
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`__________________________________
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`AMAZON.COM, INC.,
`Petitioner,
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`v.
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`JAWBONE INNOVATIONS, LLC,
`Patent Owner.
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`IPR2023-00253
`U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`DECLARATION OF RICHARD M. STERN, Ph.D.
`IN SUPPORT OF PETITION FOR INTER PARTES REVIEW
`OF CLAIMS 1-20 OF U.S. PATENT NO. 8,019,091
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`Amazon v. Jawbone
`U.S. Patent 8,019,091
`Amazon Ex. 1002
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`__________________________________
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`__________________________________
`
`AMAZON.COM, INC.,
`Petitioner,
`
`v.
`
`JAWBONE INNOVATIONS, LLC,
`Patent Owner.
`
`IPR2023-00253
`U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
`
`DECLARATION OF RICHARD M. STERN, Ph.D.
`IN SUPPORT OF PETITION FOR INTER PARTES REVIEW
`OF CLAIMS 1-20 OF U.S. PATENT NO. 8,019,091
`
`Amazon v. Jawbone
`U.S. Patent 8,019,091
`Amazon Ex. 1002
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`BACKGROUND ------------------------------------------------------------------- 1
`Experience and Qualifications--------------------------------------------- 1
` Materials Considered ------------------------------------------------------- 3
`APPLICABLE LEGAL STANDARDS ----------------------------------------- 4
`Claim Construction --------------------------------------------------------- 5
`Obviousness ----------------------------------------------------------------- 6
`PERSON OF ORDINARY SKILL IN THE ART ---------------------------- 10
` TECHNOLOGY BACKGROUND --------------------------------------------- 12
` Using Adaptive Methods to Generate Transfer Functions
`and Remove Noise --------------------------------------------------------- 12
`Tissue Vibration Sensors for Speech Detection Were Known ------- 14
`THE ’091 PATENT --------------------------------------------------------------- 15
`Summary of the ’091 Patent ---------------------------------------------- 15
`The Priority Date of the ’091 Patent ------------------------------------- 17
` CLAIMS 1-20 OF THE ’091 PATENT WOULD HAVE BEEN
`OBVIOUS -------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18
`Claims 1-8, 11-14, 16, and 18-20 Would Have Been
`Obvious in View of Ikeda and Puthuff ---------------------------------- 18
`Overview of Ikeda -------------------------------------------------- 18
`Overview of Puthuff ----------------------------------------------- 23
`Claim 11 ------------------------------------------------------------- 24
`11: Preamble ------------------------------------------------ 24
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`TABLE OF CONTENTS
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`11[a]: Two-Microphone Receiver ------------------------ 25
`11[b]: Processor that Generates First and
`Second Transfer Functions -------------------------------- 27
`11[b][1]: Generating a First Transfer
`Function When Voicing Activity is
`Absent ------------------------------------------------ 30
`11[b][2]: Generating a Second Transfer
`Function When Voicing Activity is
`Present ------------------------------------------------ 37
`11[c]: Noise Removal -------------------------------------- 40
`11[d]: Vibration Sensor ------------------------------------ 42
`Motivation to Combine Ikeda and
`Puthuff ------------------------------------------------ 44
`Claim 12 ------------------------------------------------------------- 49
`Claim 13 ------------------------------------------------------------- 49
`Claim 14 ------------------------------------------------------------- 50
`Claim 16 ------------------------------------------------------------- 50
`Claim 18 ------------------------------------------------------------- 51
`18: Preamble ------------------------------------------------ 51
`18[a]: Processor Coupled Among a Receiver
`and Sensor --------------------------------------------------- 51
`18[b]: Voicing Sensor -------------------------------------- 52
`18[c]: Processor That Generates Transfer
`Functions ----------------------------------------------------- 52
`18[c][1]: First Transfer Function ------------------ 52
`18[c][2]: Second Transfer Function -------------- 53
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`18[d]: Noise Removal -------------------------------------- 53
`Claim 19 ------------------------------------------------------------- 53
` Claim 20 ------------------------------------------------------------- 55
` Claim 1 -------------------------------------------------------------- 55
`1: Preamble -------------------------------------------------- 55
`1[a]: Receiving Acoustic Signals ------------------------- 56
`1[b]: Sensing Vibrations ----------------------------------- 56
`1[c]: Generating a VAD Signal --------------------------- 56
`1[d]: Generating at Least Two Transfer
`Functions ----------------------------------------------------- 58
`1[e]: Removing Noise -------------------------------------- 60
` Claim 2 -------------------------------------------------------------- 60
`2[a]: Generating One Transfer Function ----------------- 60
`2[b]: Removing Noise -------------------------------------- 61
` Claim 3 -------------------------------------------------------------- 61
` Claim 4 -------------------------------------------------------------- 62
` Claim 5 -------------------------------------------------------------- 63
` Claim 6 -------------------------------------------------------------- 64
` Claim 7 -------------------------------------------------------------- 64
` Claim 8 -------------------------------------------------------------- 64
`Claims 1-8, 11-14, 16, and 18-20 Would Have Been
`Obvious in View of Ikeda and Alcivar ---------------------------------- 65
`Claim 11 ------------------------------------------------------------- 65
`11: Preamble ------------------------------------------------ 65
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`11[a]: Receiver ---------------------------------------------- 65
`11[b]: Processor that Generates Transfer
`Functions ----------------------------------------------------- 65
`11[b][1]: First Transfer Function ----------------- 66
`11[b][2]: Second Transfer Function -------------- 66
`11[c]: Noise Removal -------------------------------------- 66
`11[d]: Vibration Sensor ------------------------------------ 67
`Motivation to Combine Ikeda and
`Alcivar ------------------------------------------------ 68
`Claim 12 ------------------------------------------------------------- 71
`Claim 13 ------------------------------------------------------------- 72
`Claim 14 ------------------------------------------------------------- 72
`Claim 16 ------------------------------------------------------------- 73
`Claim 18 ------------------------------------------------------------- 73
`18: Preamble ------------------------------------------------ 73
`18[a]: Processor Coupled Among a Receiver
`and Sensor --------------------------------------------------- 73
`18[b]: Voicing Sensor -------------------------------------- 74
`18[c]: Processor That Generates Transfer
`Functions ----------------------------------------------------- 74
`18[c][1]: First Transfer Function ------------------ 74
`18[c][2]: Second Transfer Function -------------- 75
`18[d]: Noise Removal -------------------------------------- 75
`Claim 19 ------------------------------------------------------------- 75
`Claim 20 ------------------------------------------------------------- 76
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`Claim 1 -------------------------------------------------------------- 76
`1: Preamble -------------------------------------------------- 76
`1[a]: Receiving Acoustic Signals ------------------------- 77
`1[b]: Sensing Vibrations ----------------------------------- 77
`1[c]: Generating a VAD Signal --------------------------- 77
`1[d]: Generating at Least Two Transfer
`Functions ----------------------------------------------------- 78
`1[e]: Removing Noise -------------------------------------- 79
` Claim 2 -------------------------------------------------------------- 79
` Claim 3 -------------------------------------------------------------- 80
` Claim 4 -------------------------------------------------------------- 81
` Claim 5 -------------------------------------------------------------- 81
` Claim 6 -------------------------------------------------------------- 81
` Claim 7 -------------------------------------------------------------- 82
` Claim 8 -------------------------------------------------------------- 82
`Claims 3, 9, and 15 Would Have Been Obvious in View of
`Ikeda and Either of Puthuff or Alcivar Further in View of
`Hussain ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 82
`Claim 3 -------------------------------------------------------------- 84
`Claims 9 and 15----------------------------------------------------- 86
`9[a] and 15[a]: Dividing Acoustic Data into
`Sub-bands ---------------------------------------------------- 86
`9[b] and 15[b]: Generating a Sub-band Transfer
`Function ------------------------------------------------------ 87
`9[c] and 15[c]: Removing Acoustic Noise -------------- 88
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`9[d] and 15[d]: Combining Sub-band Signals ---------- 88
` Motivation to Combine -------------------------------------------- 89
`Claims 10 and 17 Would Have Been Obvious in View of
`Ikeda, Puthuff or Alcivar, and Sasaki ----------------------------------- 91
`Claims 10 and 17 --------------------------------------------------- 91
` Motivation to Combine -------------------------------------------- 92
`It Would Have Been Obvious to Generate Transfer
`Functions Using a Processor in View of the References
`Discussed Above and Further in View of Bartlett --------------------- 94
` SECONDARY CONSIDERATIONS OF NONOBVIOUSNESS ---------- 97
` CONCLUSION -------------------------------------------------------------------- 97
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`I, Richard M. Stern, Ph.D., do hereby declare:
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`1.
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`I am making this declaration at the request of Petitioner Amazon.com,
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`Inc. (“Amazon”). I have been retained by Amazon as a technical expert in this
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`matter.
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`2.
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`I am being compensated for my work on this case. My compensation
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`does not depend on the content of this Declaration or the outcome of these
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`proceedings. I do not own any stock in Amazon and, to my knowledge, I have no
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`financial interest in Amazon.
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`
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`BACKGROUND
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` Experience and Qualifications
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`3.
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`I am a Professor at Carnegie Mellon University in the Department of
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`Electrical and Computer Engineering, the Department of Computer Science, and the
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`Language Technologies Institute. I have been on the faculty of Carnegie Mellon
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`since 1977.
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`4.
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`I received the S.B. degree from the Massachusetts Institute of
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`Technology (MIT) in 1970, the M.S. from the University of California, Berkeley, in
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`1972, and the Ph.D. from MIT in 1977, all in electrical engineering.
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`5.
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`I am a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
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`(IEEE), the Acoustical Society of America, and the International Speech
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`Communication Association (ISCA). I was the ISCA 2008-2009 Distinguished
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`-1-
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`Lecturer, a recipient of the Allen Newell Award for Research Excellence in 1992,
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`and I served as the General Chair of Interspeech 2006. Interspeech is the world’s
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`largest technical conference focused on speech processing and application.
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`6. Much of my current research is in spoken language systems, where I
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`am particularly concerned with the development of techniques with which automatic
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`speech recognition can be made more robust with respect to changes in environment
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`and acoustical ambience.
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`7.
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`I have actively worked on the theory and application of systems using
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`microphone arrays over a period of decades (e.g., Stern et al., 2008; Stern and
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`Menon, 2020), and my research group has developed several array-based algorithms
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`to improve speech recognition accuracy in difficult acoustical environments (e.g.,
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`Seltzer et al., 2004; Stern et al., 2007; Kim et al., 2009; Moghimi and Stern, 2019).
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`I have also actively worked on the theory and application of systems to accomplish
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`voice activity detection for more than twenty years. Most recently, my students
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`developed the system that provided best performance worldwide in the 2021
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`Fearless Steps Phase-03 Speech Activity Detection (SAD) Challenge, which was
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`organized and run by the University of Texas, Dallas (Vuong et al., 2021). My
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`relevant publications, including those cited above, are available on Carnegie
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`Mellon’s web site at http://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs/user/robust/www/papers.html.
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`8.
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`I understand a copy of my current curriculum vitae, which lists my
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`publications for the last ten years, is being submitted as Exhibit 1014.
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` Materials Considered
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`9.
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`In preparing this Declaration, I have considered the following
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`materials:
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`Exhibit No.
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`1001
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`1003
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`1004
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`1005
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`1006
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`1007
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`1008
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`1009
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`1010
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`1011
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`Description
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`U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091 (“the ’091 patent”)
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`U.S. Patent No. 5,978,824 (“Ikeda”)
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`International Patent Publication No. WO2000/021194
`(“Puthuff”)
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`U.S. Patent No. 3,746,789 (“Alcivar”)
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`U.S. Patent No. 5,473,684 (“Bartlett”)
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`Amir Hussain et al., A New Metric for Selecting Sub-Band
`Processing in Adaptive Speech Enhancement Systems, Proc. 5th
`Eur. Conf. on Speech Comm’n and Tech. (Eurospeech ’97)
`2611-14 (“Hussain”)
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`U.S. Patent No. 5,471,538 (“Sasaki”)
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`U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/219,297
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`Bernard Widrow et al., Adaptive Noise Cancelling: Principles
`and Applications, 63 Proc. IEEE 12 (1975) (“Widrow 1975”)
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`Bernard Widrow et al., Adaptive Signal Processing (1985)
`(“Widrow 1985”)
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`Exhibit No.
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`1012
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`1013
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`Description
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`U.S. Patent No. 6,349,197 (“Oestreich”)
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`Excerpts from the ’091 patent’s file history
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`10.
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`I have also relied on my education, training, and experience, and my
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`knowledge of pertinent literature in the field of the ’091 patent.
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` APPLICABLE LEGAL STANDARDS
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`11.
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`I have been asked to provide my opinion as to whether the claims of the
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`’091 patent would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the
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`time of the alleged invention, in view of the prior art.
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`12.
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`I am an electrical engineer by training and profession. The opinions I
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`am expressing in this report involve the application of my training and technical
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`knowledge and experience to the evaluation of certain prior art with respect to the
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`’091 patent.
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`13. Although I have been involved as a technical expert in patent matters
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`before, I am not an expert in patent law. Therefore, the attorneys from Knobbe,
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`Martens, Olson & Bear, LLP have provided me with guidance as to the applicable
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`patent law in this matter. The paragraphs below express my understanding of how I
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`must apply current principles related to patent validity to my analysis.
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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` Claim Construction
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`14.
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`It is my understanding that in determining whether a patent claim is
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`obvious in view of the prior art, the Patent Office construes the claim by giving the
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`claim terms their plain and ordinary meaning, as they would have been understood
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`by a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention in view of the
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`intrinsic record (patent specification and file history). For the purposes of this
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`review, and to the extent necessary, I have interpreted each claim term in accordance
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`with its plain and ordinary meaning as it would have been understood by a person of
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`ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention, in view of the intrinsic record. I
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`have been instructed that the time of the invention is July 19, 2000, which I
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`understand to be the earliest claimed priority date of the ’091 patent.
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`15.
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`I understand that a patent and its prosecution history are considered
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`“intrinsic evidence” and are the most important sources for interpreting claim
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`language in a patent. I also understand that in reading the claim, I must not import
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`limitations from the specification into the claim terms; in other words, I must not
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`narrow the scope of the claim terms by implicitly adding disclosed limitations that
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`have no express basis in the claims. The prosecution history of related patents and
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`applications can also be relevant.
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`16.
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`I understand that sources extrinsic to a patent and its prosecution history
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`(such as dictionary definitions and technical publications) may also be used to help
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`-5-
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`interpret the claim language, but that such extrinsic sources cannot be used to
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`contradict the unambiguous meaning of the claim language that is evident from the
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`intrinsic evidence.
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`17. Unless expressly stated herein, I have applied the plain and ordinary
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`meaning of the claim terms, which I understand is the meaning that a person of
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`ordinary skill in the art would have given to terms in July 2000 based on a review of
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`the intrinsic evidence.
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` Obviousness
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`18.
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`It is my understanding that a claim is “obvious” if the claimed subject
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`matter as a whole would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at
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`the time of the alleged invention. I understand that an obviousness analysis involves
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`a number of considerations. I understand that the following factors must be
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`evaluated to determine whether a claim would have been obvious: (i) the scope and
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`content of the prior art; (ii) the differences, if any, between each claim of the ’091
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`patent and the prior art; (iii) the level of ordinary skill in the art in July 2000; and
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`(iv) additional considerations, if any, that indicate that the invention was obvious or
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`not obvious. I understand that these “additional considerations” are often referred
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`to as “secondary considerations” of non-obviousness or obviousness.
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`19.
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`I also understand that the frame of reference when evaluating
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`obviousness is what a hypothetical person of ordinary skill in the pertinent art would
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`-6-
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`have known in July 2000. I understand that the hypothetical person of ordinary skill
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`is presumed to have knowledge of all pertinent prior art references.
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`20.
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`I understand that a prior art reference may be a pertinent prior art
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`reference (or “analogous art”) if it is in the same field of endeavor as the patent or if
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`it is pertinent to the problem that the inventors were trying to solve. A reference is
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`reasonably pertinent if it logically would have commended itself to an inventor’s
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`attention in considering the problem at hand. If a reference relates to the same
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`problem as the claimed invention, that supports use of the reference as prior art in
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`an obviousness analysis. Here, all of the references relied on in my obviousness
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`analysis below are in the same field of endeavor as the ’091 patent, e.g., signal
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`capture and processing for speech or audio applications. The references are also
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`pertinent to a particular problem the inventor was focused on, e.g., noise reduction.
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`21.
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`It is my understanding that the law recognizes several rationales for
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`combining references or modifying a reference to show obviousness of claimed
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`subject matter. Some of these rationales include:
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`• combining prior art elements according to known methods to yield
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`predictable results;
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`• simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain
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`predictable results;
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`-7-
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`• a predictable use of prior art elements according to their established
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`functions;
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`• using known techniques to improve similar devices (methods, or
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`products) in the same way;
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`• applying a known technique to a known device (method, or product)
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`ready for improvement to yield predictable results;
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`• choosing from a finite number of identified, predictable solutions, with
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`a reasonable expectation of success (in which case a claim would have
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`been obvious to try);
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`• known work in one field of endeavor may prompt variations of it for
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`use in either the same field or a different one based on design incentives
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`or other market forces if the variations would have been predictable to
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`one of ordinary skill in the art; and
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`• some teaching, suggestion, or motivation in the prior art that would
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`have led one of ordinary skill to modify the prior art reference or to
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`combine prior art reference teachings to arrive at the claimed invention.
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`22.
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`I understand that “secondary considerations” must be considered as part
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`of the obviousness analysis when present. I further understand that the secondary
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`considerations may include: (1) a long-felt but unmet need in the prior art that was
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`satisfied by the claimed invention; (2) the failure of others; (3) skepticism by experts;
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`-8-
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`(4) commercial success of a product covered by the patent; (5) unexpected results
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`achieved by the claimed invention; (6) industry praise of the claimed invention; (7)
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`deliberate copying of the invention; and (8) teaching away by others. I also
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`understand that evidence of the independent and nearly simultaneous “invention” of
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`the claimed subject matter by others is a secondary consideration supporting an
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`obviousness determination and may support a conclusion that a claimed invention
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`was within the knowledge of a person of ordinary skill as of July 2000. I am not
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`aware of any evidence of secondary considerations that would suggest that the
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`claims of the ’091 patent would have been nonobvious in July 2000.
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`23.
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`I understand that when assessing obviousness, using hindsight is
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`impermissible; that is, what is known today or what was learned from the teachings
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`of the patent should not be considered. The patent should not be used as a road map
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`for selecting and combining items of prior art. Rather, obviousness must be
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`considered from the perspective of a person of ordinary skill at the time the alleged
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`invention was made – July 2000 in this case.
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`24.
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`I also understand that an obviousness analysis must consider the
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`invention as a whole, as opposed to just a part or element of the invention. I
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`understand this “as a whole” assessment to require showing that one of ordinary skill
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`in the art at the time of invention, confronted by the same problems as the inventor
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`-9-
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`and with no knowledge of the claimed invention, would have selected the elements
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`from the prior art and combined them in the claimed manner.
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`25.
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`It is my understanding that something is “inherent in,” and therefore
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`taught by, the prior art, if it necessarily flows from the explicit disclosure of the prior
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`art. I understand that the fact that a certain result or characteristic may be present in
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`the prior art is not sufficient to establish inherency. However, if the result or
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`characteristic is necessarily present based upon the explicit disclosure in the prior
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`art, it is inherent in the prior art and is therefore disclosed.
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` PERSON OF ORDINARY SKILL IN THE ART
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`26.
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`It is my understanding that when interpreting the claims of the ’091
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`patent and evaluating whether a claim would have been obvious, I must do so based
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`on the perspective of a person of ordinary skill in the art at the relevant priority date.
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`I have been instructed to assume for the purposes of my opinions that the relevant
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`priority date of the ’091 patent is July 19, 2000.
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`27.
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`I understand that in determining the level of ordinary skill in the art,
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`several factors are considered. Those factors may include: (i) the type of problems
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`encountered in the art; (ii) prior art solutions to those problems; (iii) the rapidity with
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`which innovations are made; (iv) the sophistication of the technology; and (v) the
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`educational level of active workers in the field. A person of ordinary skill in the art
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`-10-
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`must have the capability of understanding the scientific and engineering principles
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`applicable to the pertinent art.
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`28. Based on my review of the specification and claims of the ’091 patent,
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`it is my opinion that a person of ordinary skill in the art would have had a minimum
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`of a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering, computer science, electrical
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`engineering, mechanical engineering, or a similar field, and approximately three
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`years of industry or academic experience in a field related to acoustics, speech
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`recognition, speech detection, or signal processing. Work experience could
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`substitute for formal education and additional formal education could substitute for
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`work experience.
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`29. My conclusions below that the claims of the ’091 patent would have
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`been obvious would remain the same even if the priority date, field of endeavor, or
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`level of ordinary skill were slightly different.
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`30.
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`I meet the above definition of a person of ordinary skill in the art, and
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`did so as of July 2000. Also, I have worked with persons of ordinary skill in the art
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`through my professional and academic experiences, and I have an understanding of
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`their skill level around July 2000.
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`-11-
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`
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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` TECHNOLOGY BACKGROUND
` Using Adaptive Methods to Generate Transfer
`Functions and Remove Noise
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`31. Two-microphone systems that adaptively remove noise using transfer
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`functions have been used for decades. For example, in 1975, Widrow described a
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`dual-microphone noise-reduction system that used an adaptive filter for generating
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`a “transfer function” to remove noise from acoustic signals such as speech. (Ex.
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`1010 (Widrow 1975), 1695-1701, 1704-1705, Figs. 3-6, 18-19.) Widrow described
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`similar systems and various adaptive methods in a 1985 textbook. (Ex. 1011
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`(Widrow 1985).) Widrow 1985 disclosed the general operation of adaptive systems
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`(id., ch. 1), a common adaptive algorithm (id., ch. 6 (describing the “LMS
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`Algorithm”)), and the use of adaptive algorithms to generate transfer functions
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`which can be used to remove noise from acoustic signals (id., ch. 12).
`
`32.
`
`Ikeda, as discussed in more detail below, describes a noise canceler that
`
`receives acoustic signals from a signal and noise source and uses adaptive filters to
`
`generate transfer functions and remove noise from the desired signal. The system
`
`includes two microphones and adaptive filters for generating transfer functions. (Ex.
`
`1003 (Ikeda), 4:49-53.) The system uses two adaptive filters (3 and 6) with
`
`respective first and second transfer functions W1(z) and W2(z) as shown by Ikeda’s
`
`Figure 1:
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`-12-
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`
`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`
`
`(Id., Fig. 1, 5:17-23.)1 Ikeda’s first transfer function is calculated when the desired
`
`speech signal is absent or negligible. (Id., 3:32-45.) In contrast, Ikeda’s second
`
`transfer function is calculated when speech is present and noise is ideally absent.
`
`(Id., 3:32-45.)
`
`33. After generating the transfer functions, Ikeda’s noise canceler uses
`
`them to produce an output “from which noise has been cancelled.” (Ex. 1003
`
`(Ikeda), 5:62-63; see also id. 5:17-62.)
`
`
`1 Figures herein have been annotated for clarity.
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`-13-
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`
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`
`
`Tissue Vibration Sensors for Speech Detection Were
`Known.
`
`34. Many non-acoustic methods of determining when speech is present or
`
`absent were known in the art. For example, determining periods when voicing
`
`activity is present or absent using a sensor that detects tissue vibrations was known
`
`for decades before the ’091 patent’s application was filed. For example, Alcivar,
`
`which issued in 1973, disclosed controlling a “voice-activated transmit switch
`
`(VOX) for high noise environment voice communication systems” using a “tissue-
`
`conduction microphone [] positioned in contact with the user’s neck tissue in the
`
`vicinity of the larynx.” (Ex. 1005 (Alcivar), Abstract.) Alcivar’s “tissue conduction
`
`microphone” detects voice through “tissue vibrations due to the modulation of the
`
`vocal chords.” (Id., 4:65-5:54, Abstract.)
`
`35. Voice activity detectors were widely used with microphones to produce
`
`a signal with reduced noise. Puthuff, which published in 2000, similarly disclosed
`
`a noise suppression system using a “motion transducer [80] comprising a vibration
`
`sensor” such as an accelerometer to “adaptively sense[] sound through bone
`
`conduction” and therefore detect when a user is speaking. (Ex. 1004 (Puthuff), 5:1-
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`3, 4:13-21; id., 6:6-10.) The vibration sensor is placed against a talker’s head (e.g.,
`
`in a handset or hearing aid) to detect “speech-induced vibrations.” (Id., 8:16-19; id.,
`
`3:19-23, 2:20-3:5.)
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`-14-
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`
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
`
` THE ’091 PATENT
`Summary of the ’091 Patent
`
`
`36. The ’091 patent relates to “systems and methods for detecting and
`
`processing a desired signal in the presence of acoustic noise” in devices such as a
`
`telephone. (Ex. 1001 (the ’091 patent), 1:16-18; id., 2:55-56.) Figure 2 of the ’091
`
`patent shows an embodiment with two microphones (102 and 103, both highlighted
`
`green) that receive acoustic signals from a signal source 100 (e.g., speech,
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`highlighted yellow) and a noise source 101 (highlighted grey):
`
`
`
`(Id., Fig. 2, 3:20-50.) As was known in the art, a first transfer function, H1(z), exists
`
`between the noise source and Mic 1, and a second transfer function, H2(z), exists
`
`between the speech source and Mic 2. (Id., Fig. 2, 3:53-55.) The transfer functions
`
`are approximated at the appropriate time periods, described below, using a VAD that
`
`“uses physiological information to determine when a speaker is speaking” through
`
`use of a sensor such as “an accelerometer [or] a skin surface microphone in physical
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`-15-
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`
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
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`contact with skin of a user.” (Id., 3:39-50.) The approximated transfer functions
`
`can be used to remove noise from the speech signal. (Id., 5:28-31.)
`
`37. As in the prior art, the denoising system approximates one transfer
`
`function during periods when speech is absent from the acoustic signals and
`
`approximates a second transfer function during periods when speech is present in
`
`the acoustic signals, as determined by the VAD. (Ex. 1001 (the ’091 patent), 4:29-
`
`5:6, 7:50-56.) The ’091 patent’s specification provides the conventional
`
`mathematical equations associated with this system. For example, when the VAD
`
`indicates that voicing information is absent, the speech signal is assumed to be zero
`
`and H1(z) is approximated as:
`𝐻𝐻1(𝑧𝑧)=𝑀𝑀1𝑛𝑛(𝑧𝑧)
`𝑀𝑀2𝑛𝑛(𝑧𝑧)
`
`where subscript “n” indicates “that only noise is being received.” (Id., 4:28-45; id.,
`
`7:50-53, Eq. 2.) M1(z) and M2(z) are the frequency (“z”) domain representations of
`
`the acoustic signals received at signal microphone 102 and noise microphone 103,
`
`respectively. (Id., 4:5-8, 4:29-51, 7:50-53.)
`
`38. Similarly, when the VAD indicates that voicing information is present,
`
`noise is assumed to be negligible or zero and H2(z) is approximated as:
`
`𝐻𝐻2(𝑧𝑧)=𝑀𝑀2𝑠𝑠(𝑧𝑧)𝑀𝑀1𝑠𝑠(𝑧𝑧)
`
`-16-
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`
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`Amazon.com, Inc. v. Jawbone Innovations, LLC
`Declaration of Dr. Richard M. Stern – U.S. Patent No. 8,019,091
`
`where subscript “s” indicates that only speech is occurring. (Ex. 1001 (the ’091
`
`patent), 4:53-5:5, 7:53-56.)
`
`39. The approximated transfer functions H1(z) and H2(z) are then used to
`
`“remove the noise from the [speech] signal” resulting in a denoised output signal
`
`S(z):
`
`𝑆𝑆(𝑧𝑧)=𝑀𝑀1(𝑧𝑧)−𝑀𝑀2(𝑧𝑧)𝐻𝐻1(𝑧𝑧)
`1−𝐻𝐻2(𝑧𝑧)𝐻𝐻1(𝑧𝑧)
`
`
`
`(Ex. 1001 (the ’091 pat
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