Connecting cable for helmets

• US 20020054686A1
• Filed: 11/06/2001
• Published: 05/09/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Tabata, Hajime, Katayama, Mutsumi, Miyamaru, Yukio
• Granted Patent: US 7,123,726 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 381/86
• CPC Class Codes: A42B 3/303 Communication between riders or passengers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/08 Mouthpieces; Microphones; Attachments therefor

Abstract

A communication system for communicating between two occupants riding on the same vehicle, or between the driver and the fellow passenger. A helmet that each occupant wears is provided with a microphone and a speaker, respectively. The external contacts of microphone and the speaker are exposed toward the outside of the magnet-side socket, which is one of the sockets of the magnet connector. Each cable extending from the communication unit is provided at the tip with a magnetic-body-side socket, which is the other socket of the magnet connector. The helmet and the cable are connected electrically and mechanically via the magnet connector including the magnet-side socket and the magnetic-body-side socket, which constitutes a pair. The communication unit is connected to the magnet-body-side socket for communicating voices in which a relatively large physiological sound cannot be transmitted.

Claims

1. A communication system for a helmet comprising:

a magnet-side socket mounted on the helmet;

a magnet-body-side socket for detachably connecting to the magnet-side socket;

a connecting cable extending from the magnet-body-side socket; and

a communication unit connected to the magnet-body-side socket for communicating voices in which a relatively large physiological sound is not transmitted.

2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the magnet-side-body socket further comprises a connecting surface, the connecting surface having plurality of electrodes.

3. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the magnet-side socket further comprises a connecting surface, the connecting surface of the magnet-side-body socket having a plurality of electrodes connected to the plurality of electrodes on the magnet-side socket.

4. The communication system according to claim 3, wherein the connecting surface of the magnet-side socket further comprises a South pole iron strip and a North pole iron strip.

5. The communication system according to claim 1, the communication unit further comprises a microphone amplifier for amplifying and outputting an audio signal detected by a microphone mounted on the helmet.

6. The communication system according to claim 5, wherein the audio signal from the microphone amplifier passes through a highpass filter to remove or attenuate components of lower frequency therein.

7. The communication system according to claim 5, wherein the microphone amplifier is provided with a mute terminal, the mute terminal attenuates or shuts down the audio signal when a control signal level is reached.

8. The communication system according to claim 5, wherein the microphone amplifier is provided with a mixer for synthesizing and amplifying the audio signal.

9. The communication system according to claim 8, wherein the mixer outputs the audio signal to a VOX detecting circuit, the VOX detecting circuit having a level detecting circuit and a delay circuit.

10. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein the level detecting circuit provides a signal with a first reference valve, the first reference valve being set to a value close to a minimum value of an acoustic communication signal.

11. The communication system according to claim 10, wherein the acoustic communication signal exceeds the first reference valve for providing communication voices.

12. The communication system according to claim 10, wherein the acoustic communication signal falls below the first reference valve such that no communication voices are heard.

13. The communication system according to claim 9, wherein the delay circuit provides a five second delay.

14. The communication system according to claim 8, further comprising a second detecting circuit for detecting sneezing or coughing, the second detecting circuit having a level detecting circuit and a delay circuit.

15. The communication system according to claim 14, wherein the level detecting circuit in the second detecting circuit provides a signal with a second reference valve, the second reference valve being set to a value close to a minimum value of a signal level generated by the physiological sound.

16. The communication system according to claim 15, wherein the detecting level circuit in the second detecting circuit provides an output signal for 0.7 seconds when the signal is higher than the second reference valve.

17. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit further comprises an OR circuit for switching an output signal from a VOX circuit and an output signal from a second detecting circuit.

18. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit further comprises an operating switch for varying a reference value, a delay time for a delay circuit and a gain of a speaker amplifier.

19. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit is detachable fixed to a vehicle.

20. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the communication unit is transportable.