Implementation of Acoustic Echo Cancellation through Adaptive Filtering Algorithms in MATLAB

Syed Ashraf Ali; Syed Haider Ali

Author(s)

Syed Ashraf Ali Department of Electrical Engineering, Iqra National University, Peshawar 25100, Pakistan

Syed Haider Ali Pakistan Council of Scientific & Industrial Research, Peshawar 25120, Pakistan

Abstract

Acoustic echo cancellation (AEC) is crucial for hands-free communication systems to mitigate echoes caused by microphone-loudspeaker coupling. This study presents a software-based AEC system implemented in MATLAB, leveraging adaptive filtering algorithms, specifically Least Mean Squares (LMS) and Normalized Least Mean Squares (NLMS), to achieve real-time echo suppression. Unlike conventional hardware-based methods reliant on Digital Signal Processors (DSP) and Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) processors, the proposed approach provides a cost-effective and flexible alternative without sacrificing performance. Key contributions: a novel step-size adaptation technique for LMS/NLMS, enhancing convergence stability and computational efficiency. An optimized noise gate device for superior residual echo suppression, ensuring improved speech clarity. Comprehensive performance evaluation of LMS and NLMS algorithms under dynamic acoustic conditions, including realworld testing across varying noise levels and speaker-microphone distances. Results demonstrate that the proposed software-based solution achieves faster convergence, reduced computational complexity, and effective suppression of acoustic echoes, offering a scalable alternative to expensive DSP-based implementations.

Publication Details

Page(s) 86-101

DOI DOI not available

Published Journal: The Sciencetech, Volume: 6, Issue: 1, Year: 2025

Request the full text from PASTIC

Keywords

Very Large Scale Integration Processors, Acoustic Echo Cancellation, Adaptive Filtering, MATLAB, Digital Signal Processors, Speech Enhancement

References

Alshulli M. S.,Othman B. H. .2024 .VOIP Acoustic Echo Cancellation Performance Improvement Using a Novel TimeVarying Step Size of NLMS Algorithm. ةسدنهلاو مولعلل ثلاثلا رمتؤملاب صاخ(9, : .

Bensouda M. Y.,Benallal A. .2024 .Improved Fast NLMS algorithm based on variable forgetting factor technique for acoustic echo cancellation. In 2024 8th International Conference on Image and Signal Processing and their Applications (ISPA), : 1-6.

Bismor D. .2012 .LMS algorithm step size adjustment for fast convergence. Archives of Acoustics, 37(1) : 31-40.

Divya P. S.,Mehra R. .2013 .Performance Analysis of LMS & NLMS Algorithms for Noise Cancellation. International Journal of Scientific Research Engineering & Technology (IJSRET), 2(6) : 2278-0882.

Dusia A.,Ramanathan R.,Ramanathan W.,Servaes C.,Sethi A. S. .2021 .ECHO: Efficient zero-control-packet broadcasting for mobile ad hoc networks. IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing, 21(9) : 3163-3175.

Kamarudin N.,Al Haddad S. A. R.,Azhari R. H.,Basiron A. .2024 .Acoustic Echo Cancellation using Adaptive Filter for Quranic Accent Signals. Journal of Applied Science, Technology and Computing, 1(1) : 39-51.

Kapoor J.,Pathak A. .2024 .Adaptive Filtering Application in Cancellation of Speech Signal Reverberations in Different Reverberant Surroundings. Journal of The Institution of Engineers (India): Series B, 1 : 11.

Liu D.,Zhao H.,Zhou Y.,Lv S. .2024 .Widely linear complex-valued individual-weighting-factors sign subband adaptive filtering algorithm. In Proceedings of the 2024 8th International Conference on Digital Signal Processing, : 107-111.

Maruo M. H.,Bermudez J. C. .2024 .A linearly constrained framework for the analysis of the deficient length least-mean square algorithm. Digital Signal Processing, 155 : 104747.

Masmoudi A.,Le-Ngoc T. .2016 .Channel estimation and selfinterference cancelation in full-duplex communication systems. IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology, 66(1) : 321-334.

Nagal R.,Kumar P.,Bansal P. .2014 .An approach to implement LMS and NLMS adaptive noise cancellation algorithm in frequency domain. In 2014 5th International ConferenceConfluence The Next Generation Information Technology Summit (Confluence), : 871-876.

Somefun C. T.,Daramola S. A.,Somefun T. E. .2024 .Advancements and Applications of Adaptive Filters in Signal Processing. Journal Européen des Systèmes Automatisés, 57(5) : .

Uncini A.,Nalin A.,Parisi R. .2002 .Acoustic echo cancellation in the presence of distorting loudspeakers. In 2002 11th European Signal Processing Conference, : 1-4.

Wada T. S.,Juang B. H. .2011 .Enhancement of residual echo for robust acoustic echo cancellation. IEEE Transactions on Audio, Speech, and Language Processing, 20(1) : 175-189.

Xiao Y.,Yan W.,Doğançay K.,Ni H.,Wang W. .2024 .Multikernel adaptive filtering over graphs based on normalized LMS algorithm. Signal Processing, 214 : 109230.

Xu S.,He C.,Yan B.,Wang M. .2023 .A multi-stage acoustic echo cancellation model based on adaptive filters and deep neural networks. Electronics, 12(15) : 3258.

Yadav N. K.,Dhawan A.,Tiwari M.,Jha S. K. .2024 .Modified Model of RLS Adaptive Filter for Noise Cancellation. Circuits, Systems, and Signal Processing, 43(5) : 3238-3260.