Sound guide for speaker and handset for mobile communication using the same

• US 6,763,110 B1
• Filed: 10/13/1999
• Issued: 07/13/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Information & Communications Ltd. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Sung, Young Hwan
• Primary Examiner(s): Chiang, Jack
• Application Number:
  US09/417,695
• Time in Patent Office: 1,735 Days
• Field of Search: 379/433, 379/430, 379/433.03, 379/433.01, 379/433.02, 379/433.13, 379/433.08, 455/90, 455/575, 381/71.7, 455/575.1, 455/90.3
• US Class Current: 379/433.02
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0202 Portable telephone sets, e.g. cordless phones, mobile phones or bar type handsets constructional features of telephone transmitters or receivers, e.g. of speakers or microphones H04M1/03
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/03 Constructional features of telephone transmitters or receivers, e.g. telephone hand-sets
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/035 Improving the acoustic characteristics by means of constructional features of the housing, e.g. ribs, walls, resonating chambers or cavities
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/34 by using a single transducer with sound reflecting, diffracting, directing or guiding means specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/402
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/345 for loudspeakers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2499/11 Transducers incorporated or for use in hand-held devices, e.g. mobile phones, PDA's, camera's

Abstract

A sound guide for a speaker is capable of guiding a sound of a desired volume to a desired position regardless of installation structure of the speaker. The sound guide for a speaker includes a speaker support for supporting the speaker in a case, and a sound guide groove formed in an inner side of the speaker support, for guiding the direction of the audible signal of the speaker at a predetermined angle. The sound propagation groove has one side coupled with the speaker and other side coupled with a sound propagation hole which is formed in the case. A handset for mobile communication using the sound guide includes a case having a speaker therein, and a sound propagation hole for propagating the audible signal generated by the speaker to outside, wherein the speaker is slanted at a predetermined angle with respect to a front side of the case. Preferably, the sound guide is mounted in an upper side of the speaker to guide the audible signal to the sound propagation hole by directing the audible signal at a predetermined angle.

Claims

1. A mobile communication terminal handset, comprising:

a rigid single body case having a sound propagation hole on a front side forming an opening on the case;

means for providing wireless communication;

a speaker coupled to the case configured to generate audible sounds;

a sound chamber between the speaker and the sound propagation hole, wherein the speaker is positioned at a first prescribed angle other than 0° and

180°

with respect to the front side of the case, wherein a first side of the sound chamber is formed along a portion of the first side of the case that contains the sound propagation hole, and second side of the sound chamber is aligned with the speaker, and wherein the sound propagation hole allows audible sounds from the speaker to pass directly from the sound chamber to outside of the case;

a sound guide within the sound chamber, wherein the sound guide is configured to guide the audible sounds generated by the speaker toward the sound propagation hole by directing a propagation direction of the audible signal at a second prescribed angle.

2. The handset of claim 1, wherein the first prescribed angle is approximately 90°

.

3. The handset of claim 1, wherein the sound guide comprises:

a speaker support coupled to the speaker; and

a sound guide groove formed in the sound guide between an inner portion of the speaker support and an inner portion of the front side of the case, and configured to convert the propagation direction of the audible signal to the second prescribed angle, wherein the sound guide groove has a first side in close proximity to the speaker and a second side in close proximity to the sound propagation hole.

4. The handset of claim 3, wherein the sound guide groove is formed of a single body and has a semicircular shaped curved inner surface which provides minimal reflection of the sound.

5. The handset of claim 1, wherein the sound guide is made of a rubber material.

8. The handset of claim 1, wherein an outer portion of the sound guide substantially conforms to an inner portion of the case.

9. The handset of claim 3, wherein the sound guide is configured such that substantially all of the sound from the speaker is directed into the sound guide groove.

12. The handset of claim 1, further comprising a filter coupled between the sound propagation hole and the speaker.

13. The handset of claim 1, wherein the sound propagation hole comprises an opening in the case between an inside of the case and an outside of the case.

14. The handset of claim 1, further comprising a LCD display panel, wherein the speaker is positioned between the LCD display panel and the sound propagation hole.

15. The handset of claim 1, wherein the speaker is coupled to a speaker support, and wherein the speaker support is coupled to the front side of the case.

16. The handset of claim 1, wherein the speaker is affixed to a speaker support that is affixed to the front side of the case such that the speaker is substantially adjacent to the sound propagation hole.

17. The handset of claim 3, wherein the sound guide groove is formed to commence at the speaker and terminate at the sound propagation hole.

18. The handset of claim 4, wherein an outer surface of the sound guide is molded to have a shape of the sound chamber.

19. The handset of claim 18, wherein the sound guide is configured to minimize vibration of the case.

20. The handset of claim 5, wherein the sound guide is formed from a single piece of the rubber material.

28. The method of claim 1, wherein the speaker is proximally located adjacent to the sound propagation hole.

6. A sound guide for a speaker, comprising:

a speaker support coupled to the speaker; and

a sound guide recess formed in an inner portion of the speaker support to guide the propagation direction of sound waves emitted from the speaker in a first direction to a second direction, wherein the sound guide recess has a first side substantially aligned with the speaker and a second side aligned in a second direction that is substantially perpendicular to the first direction, wherein the second side is configured to couple to a front side of a single body mobile communication terminal, and wherein the first side is contiguous with the second side wherein the sound guide groove has a semicircular shaped curve which minimnizes the reflection of the sound.

7. The sound guide of claim 6, wherein the sound guide is formed of a single body and comprises a rubber material.

10. The sound guide of claim 6, wherein the sound guide is configured to conform to an inner shape of a case of the mobile communication terminal, and the second side of the sound guide groove is aligned with the front side of the case.

11. The sound guide of claim 6, wherein the sound waves from the speaker propagate out of the sound propagation hole with substantially the same phase and amplitude as the sound waves emitted from the speaker, and the sound waves are not substantially reflected within the sound guide.

21. The sound guide of claim 6, wherein the sound guide is enclosed within a rigid body of a mobile communication device and is positioned in a location between a LCD display screen of the mobile communication device and a top of the mobile communication device.

22. The sound guide of claim 6, wherein the sound guide is formed within a sound chamber positioned between the speaker and a sound propagation hole.

23. The sound guide of claim 6, wherein the second direction is aligned with a sound propagation hole formed in the front side of the mobile communication terminal, such that the sound waves propagate out of the mobile communication terminal.

24. The sound guide of claim 11, wherein the speaker is positioned adjacent to the sound propagation hole.

25. A mobile communication terminal, comprising:

a rigid single body case having a sound propagation hole on a front side;

means for providing wireless communications;

a LCD display on the front side of the single body case, configured to display user information;

a speaker coupled to the single body case at an angle other than 0° and

180°

relative to the front side of the single body case, wherein the speaker is coupled to a speaker support adjacent to the sound propagation hole, and wherein a first side of a sound chamber is formed along a portion of the front side of the single body case that contains the sound propagation hole, and second side of the sound chamber is aligned with the speaker and wherein and the sound propagation hole allows audible sounds from the speaker to be heard outside of the case; and

a sound guide within the sound chamber, wherein the sound guide is configured to guide the audible sounds generated by the speaker toward the sound propagation hole by directing a propagation direction of the audible signal at a second prescribed angle.

26. The mobile communication terminal of claim 25, wherein the sound guide comprises:

a speaker support coupled to the speaker; and

a sound guide groove formed in the sound guide between an inner portion of the speaker support and an inner portion of the front side of the case, and configured to convert the propagation direction of the audible signal to the second prescribed angle, wherein the sound guide groove has a first side in close proximity to the speaker and a second side in close proximity to the sound propagation hole.

27. The mobile communication terminal of claim 26, wherein the sound guide groove is formed of a single body and has a semicircular shaped curved inner surface which provides minimal reflection of the sound.

29. The method of claim 25, wherein the first side of the sound chamber is contiguous to the second side of the sound chamber.