Wireless earphone

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11937037-B2
Application number	US-202217827493-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 27, 2022
Priority date	Apr 21, 2014
Publication date	Mar 19, 2024
Grant date	Mar 19, 2024

Abstract

A housing has a bud portion abutting an elongated stem portion. The bud portion is to fit within an ear. The bud portion has a primary sound outlet at its far end that is to be inserted into an outer ear canal, and abuts the stem portion at its near end. A speaker driver is inside the bud portion. Electronic circuitry inside the housing includes a wireless communications interface to receive audio content over-the-air and in response provides an audio signal to the speaker driver. A rechargeable battery as a power source for the electronic circuitry is located inside a cavity of the stem portion. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A wireless earphone comprising:
a housing having a first portion and a second portion, wherein the first portion comprises a far end, a near end and a primary sound outlet at the far end, and wherein the second portion abuts the first portion;
a speaker driver positioned within the first portion;
electronic circuitry positioned within the housing that includes a wireless communications interface to receive audio content over-the-air and in response provides an audio signal to the speaker driver;
a rechargeable power source positioned within the housing;
a first microphone positioned within a cavity of the first portion;
a second microphone positioned within a cavity of the second portion; and
a third microphone positioned inside the housing, between the first microphone and the second microphone, and
wherein one of the first microphone, the second microphone or the third microphone is operable to pick up ambient sound outside of an ear for performing acoustic noise cancellation.

2. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the speaker driver is positioned within the cavity of the first portion and the rechargeable power source is positioned between the speaker driver and the second microphone.

3. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the first portion is dimensioned to fit within the ear and comprises a face portion that extends between the far end and the near end of the first portion, and the face portion is positioned behind and in contact with a tragus of the ear when the first portion is within the ear.

4. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the rechargeable power source is a rechargeable battery.

5. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the first portion comprises a center axis through the primary sound outlet, and the second portion comprises a longitudinal axis that is at an angle to the center axis.

6. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the cavity in the second portion is open to the cavity in the first portion and a plurality of wires pass from the cavity in the second portion to the cavity in the first portion to supply power to the electronic circuitry.

7. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the first portion comprises a spout, and a flexible tip is coupled to the spout, and the flexible tip is dimensioned to be inserted into the ear.

8. The earphone of claim 1 further comprising a vibration sensor positioned inside the cavity of the first portion, wherein the vibration sensor is operable to detect bone conduction vibrations during speech of a wearer of the earphone.

9. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the earphone further comprises a connector positioned in the second portion, wherein the connector is coupled to a) the rechargeable power source, for charging the power source from an external power source, and b) the electronic circuitry, for data communications with an external device.

10. The earphone of claim 9 wherein the connector comprises a pair of conductive terminals that are exposed at an external surface of the second portion to conduct electrical power from the external power source to charge the rechargeable power source.

11. The earphone of claim 1 wherein the third microphone is positioned inside the housing for pickup of ambient sound outside of the ear.

12. A wireless earphone comprising:
a housing having an in-ear portion that shares a cavity with an elongated portion, and the in-ear portion is sized and dimensioned to fit within an ear and comprises a far end having a sound outlet and a near end that abuts the elongated portion;
a speaker driver positioned within a portion of the cavity defined by the in-ear portion;
electronic circuitry positioned within the cavity, the electronic circuitry comprising a wireless communications interface to receive audio content over-the-air and, in response, provide an audio signal to the speaker driver;
a first microphone positioned within the portion of the cavity defined by the in-ear portion;
a second microphone positioned within a portion of the cavity defined by the elongated portion;
a vibration sensor positioned within the cavity, wherein the vibration sensor is operable to detect bone conduction vibrations during speech when the in-ear portion is within the ear of a wearer;
a rechargeable power source positioned within the cavity; and
a processor operable to enhance audio content picked up by the vibration sensor.

13. The earphone of claim 12 wherein the audio content comprises a speech of the wearer.

14. The earphone of claim 12 wherein the processor is further operable to perform acoustic noise cancellation based on ambient sound outside the ear picked up by the first microphone or the second microphone.

15. The earphone of claim 12 wherein the vibration sensor comprises a wideband accelerometer, and the earphone further comprising one of an orientation sensor, a proximity sensor, a touch sensor, or combinations thereof.

16. The earphone of claim 12 wherein the elongated portion extends from the in-ear portion and the electronic circuitry and the rechargeable power source are positioned within the portion of the cavity defined by the elongated portion.

17. The earphone of claim 12 wherein the rechargeable power sources is positioned between the second microphone and the speaker driver.

18. The earphone of claim 12 further comprising a flexible tip coupled to the in-ear portion.

19. The earphone of claim 12 wherein the rechargeable power source is a lithium-based rechargeable battery.

20. The earphone of claim 12 wherein when the sound outlet is positioned within the ear, a longitudinal axis of the elongated portion is vertical, while a center axis of the sound outlet is horizontal.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Rich Zachary C
• Stiehl Kurt R
• Chawan Arun D
• Howes Michael B
• Aase Jonathan S
• Andersen Esge B
• Azmi Yacine
• Minoo Jahan C
• Shaw David J
• Kumar Aarti
• Prats Augustin
• Watson Robert D
• Paquier Baptiste P
• Berny Axel D
• Cook Benjamin W
• Guterman Jerzy S
• Cousins Benjamin Adair

Classifications

• H04R1/1016 Primary

  Earpieces of the intra-aural type · CPC title

• H04R1/1025

  Accumulators specially adapted for earpieces; Arrangements specially adapted for charging thereof · CPC title

• H04R1/1075

  Mountings of transducers in earphones or headphones · CPC title

• H04R1/105

  Earpiece supports, e.g. ear hooks (for stereophonic headphones H04R5/0335) · CPC title

• H04R2201/107

  Monophonic and stereophonic headphones with microphone for two-way hands free communication · CPC title