System and method for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing

Abstract

Two or more wireless devices can be independently controlled by their respective users, a mixer component, or a leader wireless device to perform audio recording, convert the recorded audio into a standard or proprietary audio stream format, and transmit the audio stream to a server. The real-time clocks of two or more participating wireless devices can be synchronized. A wireless device can insert timestamps into the audio stream to facilitate the mixing operation. Mixing of the two or more audio streams recorded by wireless devices can be performed by a mixer component either in real time (contemporaneously with the recording) or asynchronously with respect to the recording. The mixing can be performed in a fully automated mode, and/or in an operator-assisted mode.

1 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing comprising:
 two or more wireless devices capable of audio recording, wherein said two or more wireless devices are located near a sound source to be recorded;
 wherein each wireless device of said two or more wireless devices having an interface allowing at least start and stop audio recording and streaming operations; 
 wherein each wireless device of said two or more wireless devices being configured to transmit a recorded audio stream to a mixer component; and 
 a mixer component configured to combine two or more audio streams received from said two or more wireless devices into a multi-channel audio stream by synchronizing in time said two or more audio streams, said synchronization being performed based upon one or more clearly distinguishable events present in all said two or more audio streams. 
   
     
     
         2 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein said mixer component runs on a remote computer. 
     
     
         3 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices is controlled by a user of said at least one wireless device via a user interface. 
     
     
         4 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices registers with a mixer component and is controlled by said mixer component via an application program interface. 
     
     
         5 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices transmits said recorded audio stream to said mixer component synchronously with said recording. 
     
     
         6 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices buffers said recorded audio stream to produce a buffered audio stream, and transmits said buffered audio stream to said mixer component asynchronously with respect to said recording. 
     
     
         7 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein said two or more wireless devices elect a leader device, and wherein said leader device coordinates said audio recording by said one or more wireless devices. 
     
     
         8 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein said synchronizing said two or more recorded audio streams is performed by an operator via a graphical user interface (GUI), said GUI presenting to said operator two or more graphs of said first audio streams, and allowing said operator to align said graphs at said one or more clearly distinguishable events present in said two or more recorded audio streams. 
     
     
         9 . The system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 1 , wherein said synchronizing said two or more recorded audio streams is performed by a mixer component, said mixer component being configured to synchronize one or more clearly distinguishable events present in said two or more recorded audio streams. 
     
     
         10 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing comprising:
 two or more wireless devices capable of audio recording,   wherein said two or more wireless devices are located near a sound source to be recorded, each wireless device of said two or more wireless devices having an interface allowing at least start and stop audio recording and streaming operations, each wireless device of said two or more wireless devices being configured to transmit a recorded audio stream to a mixer component, each wireless device of said two or more wireless devices having a real-time clock, each wireless device of said two or more wireless devices being further configured insert timestamps into said recorded audio stream; and   a mixer component configured to combine two or more audio streams received from said two or more wireless devices into a multi-channel audio stream by synchronizing in time said two or more audio streams based upon said timestamps.   
     
     
         11 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 10 , wherein at least one of said two or more wireless devices is configured to synchronize said real-time clock with an external clock source. 
     
     
         12 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 10 , wherein said mixer component runs on a remote computer. 
     
     
         13 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 10 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices is controlled by a user of said at least one wireless device via a user interface. 
     
     
         14 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 10 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices registers with a mixer component and is controlled by said mixer component via an application program interface. 
     
     
         15 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 10 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices transmits said recorded audio stream to said mixer component synchronously with said recording. 
     
     
         16 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 10 , wherein at least one wireless device of said two or more wireless devices buffers said recorded audio stream to produce a buffered audio stream, and transmits said buffered audio stream to said mixer component asynchronously with respect to said recording. 
     
     
         17 . A system for distributed audio recording and collaborative mixing of  claim 10 , wherein said two or more wireless devices elect a leader device, wherein said leader device coordinates said audio recording by said one or more wireless devices.