Earset assembly having acoustic waveguide

• US 8,019,107 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2008
• Issued: 09/13/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/20/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Think-A-Move Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Think-A-Move Ltd.
• Inventors: Vlach, Christopher F., Pruthi, Tarun, Ngia, Lester S. H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Tuyen
• Application Number:
  US12/272,142
• Publication Number:
  US 20090208047A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,030 Days
• Field of Search: 381/150, 381337-338, 381 711- 6
• US Class Current: 381/338
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1091 Details not provided for in groups H04R1/1008 - H04R1/1083
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 9/08 Microphones

Abstract

An earpiece may be used to detect sounds from an ear canal of a user. The earpiece may include a microphone assembly and an acoustic pathway that is at least partially defined by a hollow elongated member. The acoustic pathway fluidly couples the microphone assembly with an ear canal of the user when the earpiece is positioned with respect to the ear of the user. Sounds produced by the user travel from the ear canal through the acoustic pathway for detection by the microphone assembly. Also, the hollow elongated member behaves as an acoustic waveguide to amplify a desired frequency and/or attenuate other, less desirable, frequencies of the sounds produced by the user.

Claims

1. An earpiece, comprising:

a microphone assembly; and

an acoustic pathway defined at least in part by a hollow elongated member, the acoustic pathway fluidly coupling the microphone assembly with an ear canal of the user when the earpiece is positioned with respect to the ear of the user;

wherein sounds produced by the user travel from the ear canal through the acoustic pathway for detection by the microphone assembly; and

wherein the hollow elongated member behaves as an acoustic waveguide to modify sounds produced by the user by at least one of;

amplifying a frequency selected for amplification;

or

attenuating a frequency selected for attenuation.

2. The earpiece of claim 1, wherein the hollow elongated member is a tube that is connected at a first end of the tube to the microphone assembly.

3. The earpiece of claim 2, wherein the tube is linear.

4. The earpiece of claim 2, wherein the tube is curved about at least one axis of the tube.

5. The earpiece of claim 4, wherein the tube is curved into a spiral shape.

6. The earpiece of claim 2, wherein the acoustic pathway is further defined by a stem that has a first end connected to a second end of the tube so that a channel of the stem aligns with and fluidly communicates with the hollow portion of the tube, and the stem forming part of the acoustic waveguide.

7. The earpiece of claim 6, wherein the stem is linear.

8. The earpiece of claim 6, wherein the stem is curved about at least one axis of the stem.

9. The earpiece of claim 6, further comprising an earpiece tip that has a passageway, and wherein the stem is located in the passageway of the tip so that the tip surrounds exterior side walls of the stem, and the earpiece tip is made from material that conforms to an anatomy of the user'"'"'s ear to fluidly seal the ear canal of the user from a surrounding environment.

10. The earpiece of claim 9, wherein the tip has a length so as to extend beyond a second end of the stem, and a portion of the passageway of the tip that extends beyond the second end of the stem further defines part of the acoustic pathway.

11. The earpiece of claim 10, wherein at least part of the tube and the microphone assembly are disposed in a housing.

12. The earpiece of claim 2, wherein at least part of the tube and the microphone assembly are disposed in a housing.

13. The earpiece of claim 6, wherein the stem has a second channel, and a first end of the second channel is acoustically coupled to a speaker and the second channel fluidly couples the speaker with the ear canal of the user when the earpiece is positioned with respect to the user.

14. The earpiece of claim 13, wherein the second channel behaves as a second acoustic waveguide to modify sounds produced by the speaker by at least one of:

amplifying a frequency selected for amplification;

or

attenuating a frequency selected for attenuation.

15. The earpiece of claim 6, further comprising a speaker mounted at a second end of the stem.

16. The earpiece of claim 1, wherein the hollow elongated member is a stem connected at an end to the microphone assembly and the stem is located in a passageway of a tip that is made from material that conforms to an anatomy of the user'"'"'s ear to fluidly seal the ear canal of the user from a surrounding environment.

17. The earpiece of claim 16, wherein the microphone assembly is disposed in a housing located adjacent the tip.

18. The earpiece of claim 16, wherein the tip has a length so as to extend beyond a second end of the stem, and a portion of the passageway of the tip that extends beyond the second end of the stem further defines part of the acoustic pathway.

19. The earpiece of claim 16, wherein the stem is linear.

20. The earpiece of claim 16, wherein the stem is curved about at least one axis of the stem.

21. The earpiece of claim 16, further comprising a speaker mounted at a second end of the stem.

22. The earpiece of claim 1, wherein the microphone assembly includes a microphone, a microphone housing in which the microphone is disposed, and a washer disposed in the microphone housing and in front of the microphone.

23. The earpiece of claim 22, wherein the microphone assembly further includes potting material behind the microphone.

24. The earpiece of claim 22, wherein the hollow elongated member is a tube having a first end disposed in an opening of the washer.

25. The earpiece of claim 1, wherein the microphone assembly is disposed in a housing, and the housing retains a second microphone configured to detect sounds from an environment surrounding the user.

26. An earpiece, comprising:

a speaker assembly; and

an acoustic pathway defined at least in part by a hollow elongated member, the acoustic pathway fluidly coupling the speaker assembly with an ear canal of the user when the earpiece is positioned with respect to the ear of the user;

wherein sounds produced by the speaker assembly travel through the acoustic pathway to the ear canal of the user; and

wherein at least a part of the acoustic pathway behaves as an acoustic waveguide to modify sounds produced by the speaker assembly by at least one of;

amplifying a frequency selected for amplification;

or

attenuating a frequency selected for attenuation.

27. The earpiece of claim 26, wherein the hollow elongated member is a stem connected at a first end to the speaker assembly and the stem is located in a passageway of a tip that is made from material that conforms to an anatomy of the user'"'"'s ear to fluidly seal the ear canal of the user from a surrounding environment.

28. The earpiece of claim 27, wherein the speaker assembly is disposed in a housing located adjacent the tip.

29. The earpiece of claim 27, wherein the tip has a length so as to extend beyond a second end of the stem, and a portion of the passageway of the tip that extends beyond the second end of the stem further defines part of the acoustic pathway.

30. The earpiece of claim 27, wherein the stem is linear.

31. The earpiece of claim 27, wherein the stem is curved about at least one axis of the stem.

32. The earpiece of claim 27, further comprising a microphone assembly mounted at a second end of the stem.

33. An earpiece, comprising:

a support member;

a tip that has a passageway, and wherein the support member is located in the passageway of the tip so that the tip surrounds exterior side walls of the support member, and the earpiece tip is made from material that conforms to an anatomy of the user'"'"'s ear to fluidly seal the ear canal of the user from a surrounding environment; and

a microphone assembly positioned in the passageway of the tip and between an opening of the passageway and the support member so that the microphone assembly is in fluid communication with an ear canal of a user so that sounds produced by the user travel from the ear canal to the microphone assembly for detection by the microphone assembly.

34. The earpiece of claim 33, further comprising a speaker assembly positioned in the passageway of the tip and between an opening of the passageway and the support member.