Acoustic device

• US 9,838,787 B1
• Filed: 06/06/2016
• Issued: 12/05/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Original Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Inventors: Jeffery, Nathan, Litovsky, Roman N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Elahee, Md S
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dang, Julie X
• Application Number:
  US15/174,086
• Publication Number:
  US 20170353796A1
• Time in Patent Office: 547 Days
• Field of Search: 381370-378, 381382, 381 27, 381 24, 381 1, 381188, 381205
• 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 1/20 Arrangements for obtaining desired frequency or directional characteristics for stereophonic purpose H04R5/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/345 for loudspeakers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/403 loud-speakers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2201/10 Details of earpieces, attachments therefor, earphones or monophonic headphones covered by H04R1/10 but not provided for in any of its subgroups
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2201/405 Non-uniform arrays of transducers or a plurality of uniform arrays with different transducer spacing
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 3/12 for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/02 Spatial or constructional arrangements of loudspeakers

Abstract

An acoustic device that is adapted to be worn on the body of a user, with a first acoustic transducer and a second acoustic transducer, where the first transducer is closer to the expected location of a first ear of the user than is the second transducer, a third acoustic transducer and a fourth acoustic transducer, where the third transducer is closer to the expected location of a second ear of the user than is the fourth transducer, and a controller that is adapted to independently control the phase and frequency response of the first, second, third and fourth transducers.

Claims

1. An acoustic device that is adapted to be worn on the body of a user, comprising:

a first acoustic transducer and a second acoustic transducer, where the first transducer is closer to the expected location of a first ear of the user than is the second transducer, and the second transducer is at least about two times farther away from the first ear than is the first transducer;

a third acoustic transducer and a fourth acoustic transducer, where the third transducer is closer to the expected location of a second ear of the user than is the fourth transducer, and the fourth transducer is at least about two times farther away from the second ear than is the third transducer; and

a controller that is adapted to independently control the phase and frequency response of the first, second, third and fourth transducers, and is further adapted to establish first, second and third different signal processing modes wherein in the second signal processing mode the first and second transducers are played in phase with each other, and the third and fourth transducers are played in phase with each other, and where the first and second transducers are played out of phase with the third and fourth transducers.

2. An acoustic device that is adapted to be worn on the body of a user, comprising:

a first acoustic transducer and a second acoustic transducer, where the first transducer is closer to the expected location of a first ear of the user than is the second transducer;

a third acoustic transducer and a fourth acoustic transducer, where the third transducer is closer to the expected location of a second ear of the user than is the fourth transducer;

a controller that is adapted to independently control the phase and frequency response of the first, second, third and fourth transducers;

wherein the controller is further adapted to establish first, second and third different signal processing modes;

wherein in the second signal processing mode the first and second transducers are played in phase with each other, and the third and fourth transducers are played in phase with each other, and where the first and second transducers are played out of phase with the third and fourth transducers; and

wherein in the third signal processing mode all four transducers are played in phase with each other.

3. An acoustic device that is adapted to be worn on the body of a user, comprising:

a first acoustic transducer and a second acoustic transducer, where the first transducer is closer to the expected location of a first ear of the user than is the second transducer;

a third acoustic transducer and a fourth acoustic transducer, where the third transducer is closer to the expected location of a second ear of the user than is the fourth transducer; and

a controller that is adapted to independently control the phase and frequency response of the first, second, third and fourth transducers wherein the controller is adapted to establish first, second and third different signal processing modes;

wherein in the second signal processing mode the first and second transducers are played in phase with each other, and the third and fourth transducers are played in phase with each other, and where the first and second transducers are played out of phase with the third and fourth transducers.

4. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein the first acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a first sound axis and the second acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a second sound axis, where the first sound axis is pointed generally toward the expected location of the first ear and the second sound axis is pointed generally away from the expected location of the first ear.

5. The acoustic device of claim 4, wherein the first and second sound axes are generally parallel.

6. The acoustic device of claim 4, wherein the third acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a third sound axis and the fourth acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a fourth sound axis, where the third sound axis is pointed generally toward the expected location of the second ear and the fourth sound axis is pointed generally away from the expected location of the second ear.

7. The acoustic device of claim 6, wherein the third and fourth sound axes are generally parallel.

8. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein the first acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a first sound axis and the second acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a second sound axis, where the first and second sound axes are both pointed generally toward the expected location of the head proximate the first ear.

9. The acoustic device of claim 8, wherein the first and second sound axes are generally parallel.

10. The acoustic device of claim 8, wherein the third acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a third sound axis and the fourth acoustic transducer is adapted to radiate sound along a fourth sound axis, where the third and fourth sound axes are both pointed generally toward the expected location of the head proximate the second ear.

11. The acoustic device of claim 10, wherein the third and fourth sound axes are generally parallel.

12. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein the second transducer is at least about two times farther from the first ear than is the first transducer.

13. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein the first and second transducers are both carried by a first enclosure and the third and fourth transducers are both carried by a second enclosure.

14. The acoustic device of claim 13, further comprising a first resonant element coupled to the first enclosure and a second resonant element coupled to the second enclosure.

15. The acoustic device of claim 14, wherein at least one of the first and second resonant elements comprises a port.

16. The acoustic device of claim 14, wherein at least one of the first and second resonant elements comprises a passive radiator.

17. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein all four transducers are acoustically coupled to a waveguide.

18. The acoustic device of claim 17, further comprising an open tube that is acoustically coupled to the waveguide.

19. The acoustic device of claim 17, wherein the waveguide has two ends, a first end adapted to be located at one side of the head and in proximity to the expected location of the first ear, and a second end adapted to be located at another side of the head and in proximity to the expected location of the second ear.

20. The acoustic device of claim 19, wherein the first and second transducers are both carried by a first enclosure that is at the first end of the waveguide, and the third and fourth transducers are both carried by a second enclosure that is at the second end of the waveguide.

21. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein in the first signal processing mode the first and second transducers are played out of phase from each other, and the third and fourth transducers are played out of phase from each other.

22. The acoustic device of claim 21, wherein in the first signal processing mode the first and third transducers are played in phase with each other.

23. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein in the first signal processing mode audio signals for the second and fourth transducers are low-pass filtered, where the low pass filter has a knee frequency.

24. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein the first and second transducers are spaced apart by a first distance, and the knee frequency is approximately equal to the speed of sound in air divided by four times the first distance.

25. The acoustic device of claim 3, wherein in the third signal processing mode all four transducers are played in phase with each other.