Abstract:
The present invention transmits sounds and/or music to an unborn baby in the mother&#39;s womb via a waist belt and speaker disposed within the belt, where the speaker connects to most audio devices via a universal audio plug. The waist belt can also be used to temporarily house/transport appropriate portable audio devices in an internal pocket. The speaker of the present invention utilizes a volume control unit that is separate from a volume control of an attached audio device and that allows for limiting and/or adjusting the sound volume delivered by the speaker. The separate volume control unit is an improvement over any previously known devices because it provides additional safety for the developing baby&#39;s hearing.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of the filing date of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/044650 entitled “VOLUME CONTROLLED PRENATAL MUSIC BELT” having a filing date of Apr. 14, 2008, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Resent research has shown that an unborn baby (fetus) has the ability to hear sound while still in the womb. It is further believed that an unborn baby may also recognize and react to certain sounds, such as: music, the mother&#39;s and/or father&#39;s voice, and a variety of other natural and/or man-made sounds. 
         [0003]    The extraordinary benefits of sound and music during pregnancy have been documented over the last twenty years, due to a period of tremendous scientific advancement in our understanding of life in the womb, and its consequences thereafter. It has been established that the baby before birth is a hearing, feeling, and sensing being. 
         [0004]    Research has also shown that babies develop prenatal memories. The sounds and/or music that are heard frequently before birth will be recognized after birth. This has been observed as the babies physically turned to the source of the sound or were completely absorbed by the sounds and/or music being played. 
         [0005]    Hearing is believed to be the first sense to develop in the embryo, appearing in the third week of gestation. Sound and/or music may have a variety of effects on the unborn fetus, including; fetal development, stimulation, cognitive development, relaxation, musical therapy, baby &amp; mother bonding and enjoyment for both mother and developing baby. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    The present invention transmits sounds and/or music to an unborn baby in the mother&#39;s womb via a waist belt and speaker disposed within the belt, where the speaker connects to most audio devices via a universal audio plug. The waist belt can also be used to temporarily house/transport appropriate portable audio devices in an internal pocket. The internal pocket typically includes a means to securely close the pocket. Such means may include, without limitation, zippers, hook and loop fasteners and buttons. Generally, a speaker wire and universal audio plug may extend from the speaker into the internal pocket. 
         [0007]    While it is believed that providing sound and music to unborn babies has numerous benefits, the present inventors have recognized it may be desirable to avoid excessive sound levels. Accordingly, the speaker of the present invention utilizes a volume control element/or unit that is separate from a volume control of an attached audio device and that allows for limiting and/or adjusting the sound volume delivered by the speaker. The separate volume control unit is an improvement over any previously known devices because it provides additional safety for the developing baby&#39;s hearing. The volume control unit may be disposed between the speaker and the universal plug or integrated into the speaker. 
         [0008]    As will be appreciated, different audio devices may output different levels of power to the speaker when connected thereto resulting in different output volumes. Accordingly, the volume control unit may prevent excessive speaker volume or allow adjustment of the volume of the speaker system to prevent excessive speaker volume. In one arrangement, the volume control unit includes a current limiting circuit that limits current that is received by the speaker. Accordingly, by limiting the current received by the speaker, the maximum output volume of the speaker may be capped. In another arrangement a power dissipating element such as an attenuator may be disposed between the plug and the speaker to limit speaker output. In such arrangements, it may be desirable that the speaker volume be limited to a safe range of about 90 dB. 
         [0009]    In another arrangement, the volume control unit includes a manual volume control. Such a manual volume control may be attached directly to the speaker or disposed in a speaker wire between the speaker and the audio plug. Such a manual control allows the mother to independently and manually control the volume of sound and/or music being transmitted to the baby in the womb. Furthermore, the mother may use a separate headset attached to a dual universal audio plug attachment and listen to the same audio device, at the same time as the baby in the womb, while controlling the unborn baby&#39;s volume separately from her volume. 
         [0010]    In one arrangement, the belt includes a second internal pocket that is sized to receive and house the speaker. Again this pocket may include means to securely close the pocket. In one arrangement, the second pocket is disposed within the first internal pocket. Use of such a second pocket allows for removing the speaker from the belt such that the belt may be cleansed. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a drawing of one embodiment of a prenatal sound/music belt. 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a drawing of a cross section of a portion of the belt of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a drawing of a second embodiment of the prenatal sound/music belt. 
           [0014]      FIG. 4A  is a drawing of a speaker including a first volume control unit. 
           [0015]      FIG. 4B  is a drawing of a speaker including a second volume control unit. 
           [0016]      FIG. 5  is a drawing of an embodiment the prenatal sound/music as worn around the abdomen 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0017]    Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings. The description is not intended to limit the invention to the form and function disclosed herein. The function of the invention is for the purpose of delivering sounds and/or music to an unborn baby in the mother&#39;s womb. A user may also attach a separate headset (optional) to a dual audio plug attachment (optional) and listen to the same audio device at the same time. A volume control unit of the speaker allows a mother to limit the volume of sound received by the unborn baby. 
         [0018]    Generally the device includes a size adjustable flexible abdominal belt  10  with elongated ends  12   a ,  12   b  (e.g., end straps) for securing around the abdomen of a user. The belt  10  is generally a thin soft pliable material with a front side and a back side that is secured together by stitching. Each layer of the belt may be a single piece of material that includes the elongated ends  12   a ,  12   b  with the mid-section  14  being slightly larger in width than the elongated end straps  12   a ,  12   b . The elongated end straps  12   a ,  12   b  reach around the user&#39;s waist (see for example  FIG. 5 ) which, in the present embodiment, secure together by hook and loop fasteners  16  stitched to each elongated strap by laying one strap on top of the other strap. The mid-section  14  houses a speaker  30  that may be connected to an audio device such as, for example, a CD player, MP3 player etc. As shown in  FIG. 5 , when the abdominal belt  10  is worn around the abdomen sound may be transmitted to the fetus in the mother&#39;s womb through the internally disposed speaker  30 . 
         [0019]    To use the invention, an expectant mother puts the abdominal belt  10  around her waist with the speaker  30  enclosed within the belt  10  facing inwards towards the unborn baby in the womb. The mother then secures the size adjustable belt  10  using connectors  16  on the end straps  12   a ,  12   b  of the belt. The mother then opens a built-in pocket  40  to retrieve a speaker cable  34  and plugs it into an appropriate portable audio playing device using a universal audio plug  36 . If the user is utilizing a portable audio device, she can then place the portable audio device back in the internal pocket  40  for temporary storage while in use. The user has the ability to play any type of pre-recorded sounds and/or music from the audio device of her choosing, such as; a radio/stereo, digital audio device (i.e. an iPod® or other MP3 type players, MP3 player cell phones, or other digital media players), cassette player, CD player, portable radio, and the like. To limit the output of the speaker  30  a volume control unit  38  is disposed between the speaker and  30  and the audio plug  36 . 
         [0020]    Generally, the waist belt  10  is comprised of multiple layers to provide a soft comfortable engagement with the abdomen of a user. When the inner layer  6  and outer layer  8  are stitched together, they enclose the internal closable pocket  40  there between. This internal pocket  40  may be made of additional thin soft pliable material and disposed in the mid section  14  of the belt  10 .  FIG. 2  illustrates a cross section of the speaker  30  disposed within the belt  10  as it transmits sound and/or music to the unborn baby in the mother&#39;s womb. The speaker  30  is surrounded by the internal cushioning  4  that is itself enclosed by the soft pliable inner and outer layers  6 ,  8 . That is, the inner and outer layers of the belt, which are typically stitched together, may also enclose multiple layers of cushioning around the speaker  30 . 
         [0021]      FIG. 1  illustrates a first embodiment of the abdominal belt  10  with the elongated end straps  12   a ,  12   b  that may be secured together by hook and loop fasteners  16 . In this embodiment, the speaker is a built-in fixed speaker  30 . In this embodiment, the speaker  30  may be sewn into a pouch  32  between the layers of the belt. That is, a seam may be sewn around the periphery of the speaker. A speaker cable  34  extends from the speaker  30  within the internal pouch and is fed through an eyelet into the internal pocket  40 , which in the present embodiment includes a zipper  42  to selectively access the pocket  40 . The universal audio plug  36  may then connect to an audio device. A portion of the speaker wire is fed through an eyelet in the internal pocket so the audio plug and volume control unit can be accessed by the user by reaching into the pocket to retrieve the cable and plug it into an audio device. 
         [0022]      FIG. 3  illustrates a second embodiment of the abdominal belt  10  with the elongated end straps  12   a ,  12   b  that may be secured together by hook and loop fasteners  16 . In this embodiment, the speaker  30  is removeably received within the belt  10 . That is, in this embodiment, the speaker  30  is received within a second internal pocket  50 . As with the first internal pocket  40 , this second internal pocket  50  may be made of additional thin soft pliable material and disposed within the mid section  14  of the belt  10 . In this particular embodiment, the opening of the second pocket  50  opens into the first pocket  40 . A hook and loop fastener  52  along the opening of the second internal pocket  50  allows for closing the pocket. Other fasteners (e.g., zippers) may be used as well. The speaker cable  34  extending from the speaker  30  within the second pocket passes through the opening of the second pocket into the first internal pocket  40 . Again, this speaker cable includes a universal audio plug  36  for connection to an audio device. The second internal pocket  50  is generally sized to be substantially conformal with the speaker  30 . In this regard, when the speaker  30  is disposed within the pocket  50  the speaker cannot easily turn over. Stated otherwise, the size of the second pocket  50  maintains the orientation of the speaker  30  toward the interior of the belt  10 , which is disposed against the abdomen of a user when the belt is worn. 
         [0023]      FIG. 4A  illustrates one embodiment of a speaker  30  with speaker wire/cable  34  extending between the speaker and the audio plug  36  where a volume control unit is disposed in-line between the speaker  30  and the audio plug. As shown, in the present embodiment, the volume control unit  38  is formed from a manually adjustable dial that adjusts the volume output of the connected speaker  30 . 
         [0024]      FIG. 4B  illustrates a second embodiment where the volume control unit is a passive electronic element (i.e., requiring no user interaction) that is disposed between the audio plug  36  and the speaker  30  to limit the sound pressure level of the speaker. That is, in this embodiment, the maximum sound pressure level (SPL) that can be reached when driven by an audio player is reduced. In most speaker applications, a speaker is driven directly by an audio device (Mp3 etc). Here, the volume control unit limits the amount of power delivered to the speaker  30  by inserting an energy dissipating device between the audio plug  36  and the speaker  30 . Instead of all the power from the audio device going to the speaker  30 , a designated percentage of the power is dissipated prior to reaching the speaker. As power to the speaker is reduced, so is the sound pressure, or, sound pressure level that is output by the speaker. 
         [0025]    For example, typical earphones for headphones may produce over 100 dB of volume at the eardrum. It is recognized that exposure to over 90 dB can result in permanent hearing loss, depending on the combination of decibel level and duration of the exposure. It therefore may be desirable to limit the maximum output of the speaker to a safe range of about 90 dB. It will be appreciated that the maximum output level of a speaker is based at least in part on the electrical characteristics of a speaker including, without limitation, impedance ratings, Ohm ratings and watts. 
         [0026]    Various passive electronic elements may be utilized to reduce the output amplitude (e.g., SPL) of a speaker. For instance, variously configured attenuator pads may be provided to form a volume control units. Such attenuator pads are often nothing more than a network made of resistors that creates loss (attenuation) in a transmission line (e.g., between the audio device and the speaker). Although there are many different configurations (V, L, T, bridged-T, etc,), they essentially all boil down to a form of a voltage divider. Two resistors in series, with the input across both, and the output across one. By selecting the configuration and the resistance of the resistors R 1  and R 2  based on the electrical characteristics (e.g., Ohms, imprudence, etc) of the speaker and expected drive voltage and/or current, an attenuator may be designed to produce a desired dB reduction to a speaker. That is, the maximum SPL output of the speaker may be reduced to a desired level. The embodiment in  FIG. 4B  utilizes an “L-pad”, which is an attenuating device with two variable impedance pads. It has constant impedance with respect to the amplifier. The “L-Pad” provided minimal sound distortion due to minimal phase shift and provides very linear attenuation up to its power rating. However, it will be appreciated that the passive volume control is not limited to this exemplary embodiment. 
         [0027]    The foregoing description has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. Furthermore, the description is not intended to limit the invention to the form disclosed herein. Consequently, variations and modifications commensurate with the above teachings, and skill and knowledge of the relevant art, are within the scope of the present invention. It is intended that the appended claims be construed to include alternative embodiments to the extent permitted by the prior art.