Passive directional acoustic radiating

• US 8,358,798 B2
• Filed: 05/30/2012
• Issued: 01/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/02/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Original Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Inventors: Ickler, Christopher B., Jankovsky, Joseph, Johanson, Eric S., Saffran, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Warren, David S.
• Application Number:
  US13/483,729
• Publication Number:
  US 20120237070A1
• Time in Patent Office: 237 Days
• Field of Search: 381/346
• US Class Current: 381/346
• CPC Class Codes: G10K 11/26 Sound-focusing or directing, e.g. scanning
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/2819 for loudspeaker transducers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/345 for loudspeakers

Abstract

An acoustic apparatus, including an acoustic driver, acoustically coupled to a pipe to radiate acoustic energy into the pipe. The pipe includes an elongated opening along at least a portion of the length of the pipe through which acoustic energy is radiated to the environment. The radiating is characterized by a volume velocity. The pipe and the opening are configured so that the volume velocity is substantially constant along the length of the pipe.

Claims

1. An acoustic apparatus, comprising:

an acoustic driver, acoustically coupled to a pipe to radiate acoustic energy into the pipe,

the pipe comprising an elongated opening along at least a portion of the length of the pipe through which acoustic energy is radiated to the environment, the opening lying in a plane that intersects an axis of the acoustic driver at a non-zero, non-perpendicular angle relative to the axis of the acoustic driver, and

acoustically resistive material in the elongated opening,

wherein the geometry and dimensions of the elongated opening, the non-zero, non-perpendicular angle, and the acoustic resistance of the acoustically resistive material, are configured so that the acoustic apparatus directionally radiates acoustic energy of wavelengths at least two times the diameter of a radiating surface of the acoustic driver.

2. An acoustic apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the pipe is configured so that a cross sectional area decreases from the first end to a second end so that there are no acoustically reflective surfaces at the second end.

3. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 2, wherein the pipe is configured so that the pressure along the pipe is substantially constant.

4. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 3, the pipe and the opening configured and dimensioned and the resistance of the resistive material selected so that substantially all of the acoustic energy radiated by the acoustic driver is radiated through the opening before the acoustic energy reaches the end of the pipe.

5. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 2, wherein the pipe is bent.

6. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 5, wherein the opening is in a face of the pipe that is bent.

7. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 2, wherein the pipe is curved.

8. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 7, wherein the opening is in a face of the pipe that is curved.

9. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 2, wherein the width of the opening varies along the length of the pipe.

10. An acoustic apparatus in accordance with claim 2, wherein the opening lies in a plane that intersects the pipe at a non-zero, non-perpendicular angle relative to the axis of the acoustic driver.