Acoustic vibration sensor

• US 7,433,484 B2
• Filed: 01/30/2004
• Issued: 10/07/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jawbone Innovations, LLC
• Original Assignee: AliphCom, Inc. (AliphCom Corp.)
• Inventors: Einaudi, Andrew E., Asseily, Alexander
• Primary Examiner(s): Young; Wayne
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pendleton; Dionne H
• Application Number:
  US10/769,302
• Publication Number:
  US 20040249633A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,712 Days
• Field of Search: 381/151, 381/173, 381/372, 381345-348, 381/354, 381/162, 381355-357, 381/359, 381/361, 381/364, 381/366, 381/367, 381/368, 381112-117, 381/314, 381/322, 381/324, 381/326, 381/331, 381/71.2
• US Class Current: 381/355
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/342 for microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/46 Special adaptations for use as contact microphones, e.g. on musical instrument, on stethoscope throat mountings H04R1/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 19/016 for microphones

Abstract

An acoustic vibration sensor, also referred to as a speech sensing device, is provided. The acoustic vibration sensor receives speech signals of a human talker and, in response, generates electrical signals representative of human speech. The acoustic vibration sensor includes at least one diaphragm positioned adjacent to a front port and at least one coupler. The coupler couples a first set of signals to the diaphragm while isolating the diaphragm from the second set of signals. The coupler includes at least one material with acoustic impedance matched to the acoustic impedance of human skin.

Claims

1. A sensor for generating electrical signals, comprising:

a diaphragm positioned adjacent a front port and a rear port; and

a coupler configured to couple a first set of signals to a first side of the diaphragm and reject a second set of signals by isolating the diaphragm from the second set of signals, wherein the coupler includes a protrusion on a first side of the coupler that couples to the first side of the diaphragm, wherein the rear port couples a second side of the diaphragm to an airborne acoustic environment of a human talker.

2. The sensor of claim 1, wherein the coupler is coupled to skin of the human talker and the first set of signals include speech signals of the human talker and the second set of signals include noise of the airborne acoustic environment of the human talker.

3. The sensor of claim 1, wherein the coupler includes a protrusion on a second side of the coupler that contacts a surface of the human skin.

4. The sensor of claim 1, wherein a second side of the coupler contacts the human skin and the first side of the coupler couples to the diaphragm via at least one layer of a material comprising gel material.

5. The sensor of claim 1, wherein the coupler comprises at least one material including at least one of silicone gel, dielectric gel, thermoplastic elastomers (TPE), and rubber compounds.

6. The sensor of claim 1, further comprising an electret microphone coupled to receive acoustic signals from the talker via the coupler and the diaphragm, wherein the electret microphone is used to convert the acoustic signals to the electrical signals.

7. An acoustic sensor, comprising:

a first port on a first side of an enclosure;

a second port on a second side of an enclosure;

a diaphragm positioned between the first and second ports; and

a contiguous coupler having a first portion that couples a first side of the diaphragm to skin of a human talker, a second portion that couples to the diaphragm, and a third portion that isolates the first side of the diaphragm from an airborne acoustic environment of the human talker;

wherein the second port couples a second side of the diaphragm to the airborne acoustic environment.

8. The sensor of claim 7, further comprising an electret microphone coupled to receive acoustic signals from the talker via the coupler and the diaphragm, wherein the electret microphone is used to convert the acoustic signals to electrical signals.

9. The sensor of claim 7, wherein the coupler comprises at least one material including at least one of silicone gel, dielectric gel, thermoplastic elastomers (TPE), and rubber compounds.

10. A communication system, comprising:

at least one signal processor; and

at least one acoustic sensor that couples electrical signals representative of human speech to the signal processor, the sensor including a diaphragm positioned behind a first port of an enclosure and a contiguous coupler, wherein the contiguous coupler comprises,

a first portion that couples to the diaphragm;

a second portion that contacts skin of a human talker; and

a portion that isolates a first side of the diaphragm from an airborne acoustic environment of the human talker, wherein a second port couples a second side of the diaphragm to the airborne acoustic environment.

11. The system of claim 10, further including a portable communication device that includes the acoustic sensor, wherein the portable communication device includes at least one of cellular telephones, satellite telephones, portable telephones, wireline telephones, Internet telephones, wireless transceivers, wireless communication radios, personal digital assistants (PDAs), personal computers (PCs), headset devices, head-worn devices, and earpieces.

12. A Voice Activity Detector (VAD) sensor for generating an electrical VAD signal, comprising:

a diaphragm positioned adjacent a front port and a rear port; and

a coupler configured to couple a first set of signals to a first side of the diaphragm and reject a second set of signals by isolating the diaphragm from the second set of signals, wherein the coupler includes a protrusion on a first side of the coupler that couples to the first side the diaphragm, wherein the rear port couples a second side of the diaphragm to an airborne acoustic environment of a human talker.

13. The VAD sensor of claim 12, wherein the coupler is coupled to skin of the human talker and the first set of signals includes speech signals of the human talker and the second set of signals include noise of the airborne acoustic environment of the human talker.

14. The VAD sensor of claim 12, wherein the coupler includes a protrusion on a second side of the coupler that contacts a surface of the human skin.

15. The VAD sensor of claim 12, wherein a second side of the coupler contacts the human skin and the first side of the coupler couples to the diaphragm via at least one layer of a material comprising gel material.

16. The sensor of claim 12, wherein the coupler comprises at least one material including at least one of silicone gel, dielectric gel, thermoplastic elastomers (TPE), and rubber compounds.

17. The sensor of claim 12, further comprising an electret microphone coupled to receive acoustic signals from the talker via the coupler and the diaphragm, wherein the electret microphone is used to convert the acoustic signals to the electrical signals.