Sound system for vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10645489-B2
Application number	US-201815973032-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 7, 2018
Priority date	May 11, 2017
Publication date	May 5, 2020
Grant date	May 5, 2020

Abstract

A sound system for a vehicle including an engine and an audio device for an internal space of a cabin as sound sources disposed at given positions of the vehicle is provided which includes an engine sound localizer configured to localize a first sound generated by the engine to cause a vehicle driver inside the cabin to hear the first sound from a first position, and change the first position, and a traveling state detector configured to detect a traveling state of the vehicle. The engine sound localizer normally sets the first position at a default position and, when a given traveling state is detected by the traveling state detector, changes the first position to a specific position at which the vehicle driver is able to recognize the engine sound more clearly than at the default position.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sound system for a vehicle including an engine and an audio device for an internal space of a cabin as sound sources disposed at given positions of the vehicle, comprising:
an engine sound localizer configured to transmit a first sound from an engine bay to a first position in the cabin such that a vehicle driver inside the cabin hears the first sound from the first position, the first sound being an engine sound generated by the engine;
a controller configured to control the engine sound localizer to change the first position; and
a traveling state detector configured to detect a traveling state of the vehicle,
wherein the controller controls the engine sound localizer to set the first position at a default position and, when a given traveling state is detected by the traveling state detector, change the first position to a specific position at which the vehicle driver is able to hear the engine sound more clearly than at the default position.

2. The sound system of claim 1 , further comprising an audio sound localizer configured to localize a second sound generated by the audio device to cause the driver to hear the second sound from a second position that is different from the first position.

3. The sound system of claim 2 , wherein the specific position is located upward of the default position.

4. The sound system of claim 2 , wherein the specific position is located forward of the default position.

5. The sound system of claim 2 , wherein
the default position is set lower than an upper surface of an instrument panel, and
the specific position is set forward of the driver, at the same height of or higher than the upper surface of the instrument panel.

6. The sound system of claim 2 , wherein
the default position is set rearward of an instrument panel and lower than an upper surface of the instrument panel, and
the specific position is set forward of the driver, at the same height of or higher than the upper surface of the instrument panel.

7. The sound system of claim 2 , wherein
the default position is set lower than the second position, and
the specific position is set higher than the second position.

8. The sound system of claim 1 , wherein the specific position is located upward of the default position.

9. The sound system of claim 1 , wherein the specific position is located forward of the default position.

10. The sound system of claim 1 , wherein
the default position is set lower than an upper surface of an instrument panel, and
the specific position is set forward of the driver, at the same height of or higher than the upper surface of the instrument panel.

11. The sound system of claim 1 , wherein
the default position is set rearward of an instrument panel and lower than an upper surface of the instrument panel, and
the specific position is set forward of the driver, at the same height of or higher than the upper surface of the instrument panel.

12. The sound system of claim 1 , wherein the given traveling state is a traveling state where an operation load on a person in the vehicle increases.

13. The sound system of claim 12 , wherein the specific position is located upward of the default position.

14. The sound system of claim 13 , wherein the specific position is located forward of the default position.

15. The sound system of claim 14 , wherein
the default position is set lower than an upper surface of an instrument panel, and
the specific position is set forward of the driver, at the same height of or higher than the upper surface of the instrument panel.

16. The sound system of claim 15 , wherein
the default position is set rearward of an instrument panel and lower than an upper surface of the instrument panel, and
the specific position is set forward of the driver, at the same height of or higher than the upper surface of the instrument panel.

Assignees

• Mazda Motor

Inventors

• Toda Isao
• Asada Kenji
• Sogame Katsumasa
• Hashiguchi Hironobu

Classifications

• H04R2499/13

  Acoustic transducers and sound field adaptation in vehicles · CPC title

• H04R2420/03

  Connection circuits to selectively connect loudspeakers or headphones to amplifiers · CPC title

• B60R16/0373 Primary

  Voice control (in general G10L) · CPC title

• H04R1/025

  Arrangements for fixing loudspeaker transducers, e.g. in a box, furniture · CPC title

• H04R3/12

  for distributing signals to two or more loudspeakers {(specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/407)} · CPC title