Theater sound for multimedia workstations

• US 5,553,149 A
• Filed: 11/02/1994
• Issued: 09/03/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Altec Lansing LLC (Infinity Group Holding Co. LLC)
• Original Assignee: Sparkomatic Corporation (Infinity Group Holding Co. LLC)
• Inventors: Freadman, Tommyca
• Primary Examiner(s): Kuntz, Curtis
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEE, PING
• Application Number:
  US08/333,273
• Time in Patent Office: 671 Days
• US Class Current: 381/306
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/02 Spatial or constructional arrangements of loudspeakers

Abstract

A sound reproduction system is disclosed that uses a single pair of compact speaker enclosures to provide surround sound for a multimedia computer workstation. A pair of stereo speaker enclosures provide the computer screen'"'"'s monaural center channel to a viewer seated at the workstation, as well as pairs of stereo-imaging and stereo surround channels.

Claims

1. A speaker enclosure for providing theater sound for an audio-visual system when placed as one of a pair of enclosures on either side of a viewing screen connected to display visual output to a viewer using the system, said enclosure comprising:

a front-channel speaker opening defining a front-channel plane;

a center-channel speaker opening defining a center-channel plane that is rotated toward the screen so as to form a 38-degree angle with said front-channel plane; and

a surround-channel speaker opening defining a surround-channel plane that is rotated away from the screen so as to form a 68-degree angle with said front-channel plane and a 74-degree angle with said center-channel plane.

2. The speaker enclosure of claim 1 further comprising:

a center-channel speaker adapted to provide 100 Hz to 15 kHz information;

a front-channel speaker adapted to provide 80 Hz to 20 kHz information; and

a surround-channel speaker adapted to provide 100 Hz to 7.5 kHz information.

3. The speaker enclosure of claim 2 wherein said front-channel speaker comprises a first speaker providing 3.5 kHz to 20 kHz information and a second speaker providing 80Hz to 3.5 kHz information.

4. The speaker enclosure of claim 3 wherein the information provided to said first and second speakers is derived by a cross-over network.

5. The speaker enclosure of claim 2 wherein the major axis of the sound produced by the respective speakers is perpendicular to the respective speaker planes.

6. The speaker enclosure of claim 1 further comprising:

a center-channel speaker adapted to provide center channel information;

a front-channel speaker adapted to provide left or right stereo information; and

a surround-channel speaker adapted to provide information delayed 20 to 30 msec behind the center channel information.

7. A speaker enclosure for providing theater-type sound for an audio-visual system when placed as one of a pair of enclosures placed on either side of a viewing screen connected to display visual output to a viewer using the system, said enclosure comprising:

a front-channel speaker having a major axis of the sound produced by said speaker that is perpendicular to a front-channel plane;

a center-channel speaker having a major axis of the sound produced by said speaker that is perpendicular to a center-channel plane that is rotated toward the screen so as to form a 38-degree angle with said front-channel plane; and

a surround-channel speaker having a major axis of the sound produced by said speaker that is perpendicular to a surround-channel plane that is rotated away from the screen so as to form a 68-degree angle with said front-channel plane and a 74-degree angle with said center-channel plane.

8. A sound reproduction system having right and left mirror-image speaker enclosures adapted to be placed on either side of a viewing screen, said enclosures comprising:

a front-channel speaker opening defining a front-channel plane;

a center-channel speaker opening defining a center-channel plane that is rotated toward the screen so as to form a 38-degree angle with said front-channel plane; and

a surround-channel speaker opening defining a surround-channel plane that is rotated away from the screen so as to form a 68-degree angle with said front-channel plane and a 74-degree angle with said center-channel plane.

9. A sound reproduction system having right and left mirror-image speaker enclosures for providing theater-type sound for an audiovisual system when placed on either side of a viewing screen connected to display visual output to a viewer using the system, said enclosures comprising:

a front-channel speaker having a major axis of the sound produced by said speaker that is perpendicular to a front-channel plane;

a center-channel speaker having a major axis of the sound produced by said speaker that is perpendicular to a center-channel plane that is rotated toward the screen so as to form a 38-degree angle with said front-channel plane; and

a surround-channel speaker having a major axis of the sound produced by said speaker that is perpendicular to a surround-channel plane that is rotated away from the screen so as to form a 68-degree angle with said front-channel plane and a 74-degree angle with said center-channel plane.