Audio apparatus and methods

• US 9,344,793 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2014
• Issued: 05/17/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mimi Hearing Technologies GmbH
• Original Assignee: Symphonic Audio Technologies Corp.
• Inventors: Selig, Aaron Alexander, Srinivasan, Varun
• Primary Examiner(s): Agustin, Peter Vincent
• Application Number:
  US14/463,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20150078575A1
• Time in Patent Office: 637 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6033 for providing handsfree use or a loudspeaker mode in telephone sets arrangements for preventing acoustic echo H04M9/08
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/6058 involving the use of a headset accessory device connected to the portable telephone
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1025 Accumulators or arrangements for charging secondary cells per se H01M10/00; charging in general H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1041 Mechanical or electronic switches, or control elements switches in general H01H
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1083 Reduction of ambient noise active noise reduction per se G10K11/175; protective devices for the ear, e.g. providing acoustic protection A61F11/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1091 Details not provided for in groups H04R1/1008 - H04R1/1083
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2201/107 Monophonic and stereophonic headphones with microphone for two-way hands free communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2410/05 Noise reduction with a separate noise microphone
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2430/01 Aspects of volume control, not necessarily automatic, in sound systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2460/01 Hearing devices using active noise cancellation
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2499/11 Transducers incorporated or for use in hand-held devices, e.g. mobile phones, PDA's, camera's
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/50 Customised settings for obtaining desired overall acoustical characteristics

Abstract

An apparatus for augmenting audio capabilities of a mobile computing device, including: a housing transiently encasing a portion of the mobile computing device; a communication module arranged within the housing, downloading a hearing profile of a user from the mobile computing device, and receiving an output audio signal from the mobile computing device; a processor arranged within the housing and processing the output audio signal according to the hearing profile; a secondary audio output module arranged within the housing adjacent an integrated loudspeaker within the mobile computing device and outputting a processed form of the output audio signal in place of output of the output audio signal by the integrated loudspeaker; a secondary microphone arranged within the housing adjacent an integrated microphone within the mobile computing device, the communication module transmitting an input audio signal from the secondary microphone to the mobile computing device.

Claims

1. An apparatus for augmenting audio capabilities of a mobile computing device, the mobile computing device comprising an integrated loudspeaker proximal a first end of the mobile computing device, an integrated microphone proximal a second end of the mobile computing device opposite the first end, an integrated battery, and an integrated charging port electrically coupled to the battery, the apparatus comprising:

a housing transiently encasing a portion of the mobile computing device;

a communication module arranged within the housing, downloading a hearing profile of a user from the mobile computing device, and receiving an output audio signal from the mobile computing device;

a processor arranged within the housing and processing the output audio signal according to the hearing profile;

a secondary audio output module arranged within the housing adjacent the integrated loudspeaker and outputting a processed form of the output audio signal in place of output of the output audio signal by the integrated loudspeaker;

a secondary microphone arranged within the housing adjacent the integrated microphone, the communication module transmitting an input audio signal from the secondary microphone to the mobile computing device; and

a secondary charging port arranged within the housing, electrically coupled to the integrated charging port, and receiving a charging connector to recharge the mobile computing device through the integrated charging port.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a first portion and a second portion;

the first portion of the housing containing the communication module, the processor, and the secondary microphone;

the second portion of the housing containing the secondary audio output module and transiently engaging the first portion to substantially encase the mobile computing device.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein a portion of the secondary audio output module is transiently arranged within the second portion of the housing, the communication module wireless transmitting the processed form of the output audio signal to the portion of the secondary audio output module in response to removal of the portion of the secondary audio output module from the second portion of the housing.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, further comprising a secondary battery arranged within the housing, and wherein the secondary audio output module comprises a tertiary battery, the secondary battery charging the tertiary battery 282 in response to installation of the secondary audio output module into the housing.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communication module comprises a wireless receiver and a wired receiver, the wireless receiver receiving a first output audio signal from the mobile computing device in a first mode, and the wired receiver receiving a second output audio signal from the mobile computing device through an integrated data port in the mobile computing device in a second mode.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the communication module downloads a first hearing profile of the user, a second hearing profile of the user, and a voice profile of the user from the mobile computing device;

wherein the processor processes the first output audio signal according to the first hearing profile in the first mode, processes the second output audio signal according to the second hearing profile in the second mode, and processes the input audio signal from the secondary microphone according to the voice profile in the first mode; and

wherein the wireless receiver comprises a wireless transceiver wirelessly transmitting processed form of the input audio signal to the mobile computing device and receiving the first output audio signal from the mobile computing device substantially simultaneously in the first mode.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the secondary audio output module comprises an audio induction loop adjacent the integrated loudspeaker and broadcasting a magnetic field corresponding to the processed form of the output audio signal.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor detects an ambient noise condition based on an output of the secondary microphone and processes the output audio signal according to the hearing profile to compensate for the ambient noise condition.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, further comprising an accelerometer arranged within the housing, the processor calculating an acceleration of the mobile computing device based on an output of the accelerometer, withholding application of an ambient audio signal from the secondary microphone to the output audio signal in response to the acceleration that exceeds a threshold acceleration, and processing the output audio signal according to the hearing profile to compensate for the ambient audio signal in response to the acceleration that falls below the threshold acceleration for a threshold period of time.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the processor comprises an audio codec and a controls processor, the audio codec processing the output audio signal according to the hearing profile.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a secondary battery arranged within the housing and powering the processor and the secondary audio output module, the secondary charging port electrically coupled to the secondary battery and receiving the charging connector to recharge the battery.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor selectively diverts electrical power, received from the charging connector through the charging port, between the integrated charging port and the secondary battery to simultaneously charge the integrated battery and the secondary battery.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the processor selectively diverts electrical power between the secondary battery and the integrated battery, via the integrated charging port, to maintain the secondary battery and the integrated battery in substantially similar states of charge.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an audio jack, the processor selectively routing the processed form of the output audio signal from the secondary audio output module to the audio jack in response to connection of a peripheral audio device to the audio jack.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the processor predicts a type of the peripheral audio device connected to the audio jack based on an impedance of the peripheral audio device and processes the output audio signal according to an audio output profile corresponding to the type of the peripheral audio device.

16. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communication module receives a location datum from the mobile computing device;

and wherein the processor selects a particular audio output profile, from a set of audio output profiles stored locally in memory arranged within the housing, based on the location datum, the processor processing the output audio signal according to the hearing profile and the particular audio output profile.

17. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a proximity sensor arranged within the housing adjacent the secondary audio output module, and wherein the processor reduces a maximum audio output volume from the secondary audio output module in response to detection of a surface proximal the housing based on an output of the proximity sensor.

18. An apparatus for augmenting audio capabilities of a mobile computing device, the mobile computing device comprising an integrated loudspeaker proximal a first end of the mobile computing device, an integrated microphone proximal a second end of the mobile computing device opposite the first end, an integrated battery, and an integrated charging port electrically coupled to the battery, the apparatus comprising:

a housing transiently encasing a portion of the mobile computing device;

a communication module arranged within the housing, downloading hearing data of a user from the mobile computing device, and receiving an output audio signal from the mobile computing device;

a processor arranged within the housing, generating a hearing profile of the user based on the hearing data, and processing the output audio signal according to the hearing profile;

a secondary audio output module arranged within the housing adjacent the integrated loudspeaker and outputting a processed form of the output audio signal in place of output of the output audio signal by the integrated loudspeaker;

a secondary microphone arranged within the housing adjacent the integrated microphone, the communication module transmitting an input audio signal from the secondary microphone to the mobile computing device; and

a secondary charging port arranged within the housing and communicating electrical current into the integrated charging port to recharge the mobile computing device.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the housing comprises a first portion and a second portion;

the first portion of the housing containing the communication module, the processor, and the secondary microphone;

the second portion of the housing containing the secondary audio output module and transiently engaging the first portion to substantially encase the mobile computing device.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the secondary charging port comprises an induction coil that harvests electrical current from a local electromagnetic field and a plug that engages the integrated charging port to communicate electrical current into the mobile computing device.

21. A method for augmenting audio capabilities of a mobile computing device, the method comprising:

at a peripheral device, receiving a hearing profile of a user from the computing device coupled to the peripheral device;

wherein receiving the hearing profile of the user from the computing device comprises receiving a first hearing profile of the user and a second hearing profile of the user from the computing device over a wired connection;

generating a voice profile of the user based on audio data collected through a microphone coupled to the peripheral device;

during a telephone call established with the computing device;

at the peripheral device, processing an output audio signal according to the hearing profiles of the user, the output audio signal received from the computing device;

wherein processing the output audio signal comprises processing a first audio output profile, received from the computing device over wireless communication protocol during the phone call, according to the first hearing profile; and

further comprising processing a second audio output profile, received from the computing device over a wired connection during recorded audio playback, according to the second hearing profile;

outputting a processed form of the output audio signal through an audio output module coupled to the peripheral device;

processing an input audio signal from the microphone according to the voice profile of the user; and

transmitting a processed form of the input audio signal to the computing device.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein outputting the processed form of the output audio signal comprises outputting the processed form of the output audio signal, through the audio output module integrated into the peripheral device, substantially in real-time during the telephone call;

and wherein transmitting the processed form of the input audio signal to the computing device comprises transmitting the processed form of the input audio signal to the computing over wireless communication protocol substantially in real-time during the telephone call.