Patent ID: 6711268
Filing Date: 2004-03-23
Classification: H01R,H04R

Abstract:
In a automatic monaural/stereo headphone having two earpieces in which each earpiece includes an acoustical driver, a connection cord connected to each acoustical driver that is terminated in a stereo headphone plug for accessing a conventional two channel stereo audio source, said headphone being adapted for automatically accessing a typical single channel monaural signal source when plugged into a monaural source output jack, and for automatically accessing a typical stereo source when plugged into said stereo source output jack, said adaptation comprising:a coupling impedance connected from one terminal of one of said acoustical drivers to one terminal of said other acoustical driver, said impedance being of such magnitude with respect to the impedance of said acoustical drivers that a monaural signal appearing at said terminal of only one acoustical driver will be coupled to said terminal of said other acoustical driver with little reduction in the magnitude of said signal that the listener will perceive the monaural signal as being heard with substantially equal loudness at each earpiece; and furthermore, that the ratio of said coupling impedance to said output impedance of said typical stereo audio source is so low that when accessing said typical stereo audio source, the stereo source separate first and second channel signals appearing at their respective earpieces are heard with substantially no reduction in loudness, and the crosstalk between channels resulting from said coupling impedance will not substantially change the channel separation or stereo imaging as afforded by the two channel stereo source, whereby, the user of said headphone can access either a typical monaural or typical stereo audio source without having in advance to determine the nature of the source and can automatically hear either source substantially as it would be heard using separate dedicated headphones wherein one headphone is configured and selected especially for a monaural source and the other headphone is configured and selected especially for a stereo source.