Digital speech coder having optimized signal energy parameters

1. A method for transmitting information that relates to gain information, which gain information is to be applied to excitation information that corresponds to a speech sample, wherein the gain information includes:

a first gain value to be applied to a first excitation component, which first excitation component represents a first voice component of the speech sample, which first voice component has a first energy value;

at least a second gain value to be applied to a second excitation component, which second excitation component represents a second voice component of the speech sample, which second voice component has a second energy value;

the method comprising the steps of:

A) providing a speech sample;

B) digitizing the speech sample to provide a frame of information comprising at least one subframe;

C) determining total energy of the frame of information to provide a long term energy value;

D) determining an overall energy value for a subframe of the at least one subframe;

E) providing a first parameter, wherein the first parameter is proportional to the overall energy value and inversely proportional to the long term energy value;

F) providing a second parameter, wherein the second parameter is proportional to the first energy value and inversely proportional to the overall energy value; and

G) transmitting information related to the long term energy value and the first and second parameters.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein:

the gain information includes at least a third gain value that relates to gain to be applied to a third excitation component, which third excitation component represents a third voice component of the speech sample, which third voice component has a third energy value;

the method includes the additional step, before step G), of:

F1) providing a third parameter, wherein the third parameter is proportional to the second energy value and inversely proportional to the overall energy value;

the step of transmitting information includes transmission of information relating to the third parameter.

3. The method of claim 1 further including the step of vector quantizing at least the first parameter and second parameter information to provide a code.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein the step of transmitting includes transmitting the code.

5. A method for transmitting information that relates to gain information for a speech sample, comprising the sleds of:

A) providing a speech sample;

B) digitizing the speech sample to provide a frame of information comprising at least one subframe;

C) determining a first value comprising a long term energy value for the frame of information;

D) determining at least a second value, wherein the second value is proportional to an overall energy value and inversely proportional to the long term energy value, wherein the overall energy value is determined for a subframe of the at least one subframe;

E) transmitting, at a first rate, information relating to the first value; and

F) transmitting, at a second rate more frequent than the first rate, information relating to the second value.

6. A method for recovering information that relates to gain information for excitation components of a speech sample, wherein the speech sample is digitized to provide a frame of information comprising at least one subframe, the method comprising the steps of:

A) receiving at least one parameter comprising a log term energy value for the frame of information;

B) receiving excitation component definition information for at least one excitation component;

C) processing the excitation component definition information to provide a pre-component, which pre-component has an energy value;

D) determining a gain value that is proportional to the long term energy value and inversely proportional to the energy value; and

E) applying the gain value to the pre-component, to provide a recovered excitation component of the speech sample.

7. A method for recovering information that relates to gain information for excitation components of a speech sample, wherein the speech sample is digitized to provide a frame of information comprising at least one subframe, the method comprising the steps of:

A) receiving a radio signal;

B) demodulating the radio signal to provide a recovered signal;

C) extracting from the recovered signal at least one parameter comprising a long term energy value for the frame of information;

D) extracting from the recovered signal excitation component definition information for at least one excitation component;

E) processing the excitation component definition information to provide a pre-component, which pre-component has an energy value;

F) determining a gain value that is proportional to the long term energy value and inversely proportional to the energy value; and

G) applying the gain value to the pre-component to provide a recovered component of the speech sample.

8. A radio that receives speech coded information and that synthesizes speech in response thereto, comprising:

A) RF means for receiving and demodulating a radio signal that includes speech coded information;

B) excitation source means operably coupled to the RF means for receiving the speech coded information; and for:

1) extracting from the speech coded information at least one parameter comprising a long term energy value for information, wherein a speech sample is digitized to provide the frame of information comprising at last one subframe;

2) extracting from the speech coded information excitation component definition information for at least one excitation component;

3) processing the excitation component definition information to provide a pre-component, which pre-component has an energy value;

4) determining a gain value that is proportional to the long term energy value and inversely proportional to the energy value;

5) applying the gain value to the pre-component to provide a recovered component of the speech sample;

6) providing an excitation signal using the recovered component; and

C) LPC filter means for receiving the excitation signal and for providing a synthesized speech signal in response thereto.

9. The radio of claim 8, and further comprising:

A) audio processing means operably coupled to the LPC filter means for rendering the synthesized speech signal audible.