Abstract:
A headset having a built-in audio source and cable management mechanism is disclosed herein. The headset is composed of two loop-style earpieces and a cable connecting the two earpieces. One earpiece has a built-in audio source such as a MP3 player, an AM/FM receiver, and the like. The cable is for delivering audio signal from the audio source built in one earpiece to the other. The other earpiece has a built-in cable winder so that the cable could be pulled and fixed to a desired length. When the headset is not in use, a slight pull and release of the cable would allow the cable winder to retract the cable back into the earpiece.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     (a) Technical Field of the Invention 
     The present invention generally relates to audio headsets, and more particularly to an audio headset having built-in audio source and a retractable cable between the earpieces. 
     (b) Description of the Prior Art 
     Due to the recent widespread popularity of handheld consumer electronic devices such as mobile handsets and MP3 players, audio headset, a somewhat obscure technology, has regained the market focus. However, the major function of a headset remains to deliver audio signal from an external audio source to the ears of a user via a cable. 
     In other words, a traditional headset is simply a “passive” device. Without the external audio source, the headset is basically useless. The headset and the external audio source have traditionally been separate devices. 
     Every headset requires one or more cables for connecting to the external audio source and/or for connecting the earpieces. Headset cables are usually of some fixed length and they are quite often either too long or too short. Most people use some kind of cable tie to wrap and tie the cable into a bundle so as to control their length. This cable management makes the use of a headset quite troublesome. 
     Therefore, a cable winder is designed to solve the cable management problem. With the cable winder, the cable between the headset and the plug to the external audio source is wound and housed safely inside the cable winder when not in use. To use the headset and to extend the cable, the two ends of the cable are pulled until a desired length is reached and an internal mechanism stops the cable from being retracted back into the cable winder. The cable winder has been proven to be a very useful and convenient gadget to cable management. 
     However, currently there is no headset that combines the convenience of having a built-in audio source and a cable management solution both into a single device. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A headset having a built-in audio source and cable management mechanism is disclosed herein. The headset is composed of two loop-style earpieces, one for each ear of a user, and a cable connecting the two earpieces. Each of the loop-style earpieces has an ear loop for hanging the earpiece on the outer ear of the user and positioning the earpiece close to the ear. 
     One of the two earpieces has a built-in audio source and a chargeable battery both housed inside the body of the earpiece. The audio source could be a MP3 player, an AM/FM receiver, and the like. On the cover of the earpiece, there are a number of control buttons for controlling the function of the audio source, and a jack for battery charging. With the build-in audio source, the cable for connecting to the external audio source is omitted and the user is no longer required to be tied to an external audio source, giving the user a higher degree of mobility. 
     In the present invention, the cable between the two earpieces is for delivering audio signal from the audio source built in one earpiece to the other earpiece. For the earpiece that doesn&#39;t contain the audio source and the chargeable battery, it has a built-in cable winder so that the cable could be easily managed. With the cable winder, the cable could be pulled to a desired length and the length is maintained by the cable winder. When the headset is not in use, a slight pull and release of the cable would allow the cable winder, under the effect of an internal spring, to retract the cable back into the earpiece. The cable wider is designed such that, for every turn of the cable winder, the user has a chance to fix the cable length, thereby providing a multi-step length control capability to the cable. 
     The foregoing object and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts. 
     Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing the outlook of the headset according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective explosion view showing the internal of the earpiece having a built-in cable winder according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective explosion view showing the internal of the earpiece having a built-in audio source according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a sectional view of the earpieces of  FIGS. 2 and 3 . 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective bottom view showing the roller of the cable winder of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIGS. 6˜10  are schematic diagrams showing the consecutive stages of an operation scenario of the cable winder of  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The following descriptions are of exemplary embodiments only, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Various changes to the described embodiments may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , a headset  1  according to an embodiment of the present invention, which is based on the loop-styled headset, mainly contains two independent earpieces  1  and  2  connected by a cable  3 . The earpiece  1 , as shown in  FIG. 3 , is composed of an outer cover  11 , an ear loop  12 , an audio source member  13 , a seat  14 , a speaker  15 , and an inner cover  16 . Please note that the terms “outer” and “inner” are used herein based on the relative distance to the user&#39;s ear when the headset is worn. The outer cover  11  is locked to the seat  14  so as to house the audio source member  13  inside. The ear loop  12  is arranged to curve along the circular rim of the outer cover  11 . There are a number control buttons  111  configured on the circular rim of the outer cover  11 , providing various control functions such as power on/off, volume, start, stop, etc. to the audio source member  13 . 
     Please also refer to  FIG. 4 . The audio source member  13  housed inside the space formed by the seat  14  and the outer cover  11  could be a MP3 player, an AM/FM receiver, or other types of device capable of playing audio information stored in its internal memory. A chargeable battery (such as a Lithium battery)  131  is arranged at a side of the audio source member  13 . The chargeable battery  131  could be charged by connecting it to an external power source via an appropriate cable (not shown) and a jack  112  configured on the circular rim of the outer cover  11 . A user could learn the amount of electricity left in the chargeable battery  131  via a power indicator  113  configured on the outer side of the outer cover  11 . To load audio information into the audio source member  13 , a user opens the outer cover  11  and connects the audio source member  13  to an external source for downloading audio information from the external audio source with appropriate connection interface and cabling. 
     The inner side of the seat  14  is configured with a number offence-like openings  141 , through which an output signal wire  132  of the audio source member  13  is threaded to connect to the speaker  15 . The signal wire  132  is extended by another signal wire (not numbered) which goes through the cable  3  to the speaker  28  (see  FIG. 2 ) in the other earpiece  2  so as to deliver the audio signal from the audio source member  13  to the other earpiece  2 . 
     In addition, there are a number of tenons  242  extending out of the circular rim of the seat  14  for locking into the corresponding grooves  162  configured along the circular rim of the inner cover  16 , so that the seat  14  and the inner cover  16  could form a closed space to house the speaker  15  inside. On the inner side of inner cover  16 , there is a grille  161  to facilitate the sound wave propagation from the speaker  15 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the other earpiece  2  has the same outlook as the earpiece  1 , which mainly contains an outer cover  21 , an ear loop (not numbered), a patching cover  22 , a swirled spring  23 , a pad  24 , a winder  25 , a seat  26 , a positioning ball  27 , a speaker  28 , and an inner cover  29 . The swirled spring  23  is positioned inside the hollow space of the outer body  251  of the winder  25  and is interposed between the pad  24  and the patching cover  22 . The center end  231  of the swirled spring  23  is fixedly attached to a groove configured on the axle  261  of the seat  26 . The axle  261  threads the winder  25  via an axial hole  252 , the pad  24 , the swirled spring  23  together and joins to the patching cover  22 . The other end  232  of the swirled spring  23  which is configured as a hook is fixedly locked to a groove  253  on the inside wall of the winder  25 &#39;s outer body  251 . In other words, the center end  231  and the hook end  232  are confined to the seat  26  and the winder  25  respectively. Therefore, when the winder  25  is rotated clockwise or counterclockwise, the swirled spring  23  is either tightened or loosened. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2  and the left part of  FIG. 4 , the outer body  251  and the inner body  254  of the winder  25  have circular cable trays  2511  and  2541  respectively. The cable  3  is first wound around the outer cable tray  2511 , and then, via a hole  255  configured on the inside wall of the upper body  251 , wound around the inner cable tray  2541  in reverse direction, and finally connected to the speaker  28 . The length of the cable  3  wound around the outer cable tray  2511  is equal to the length of the cable  3  wound around the inner cable tray  2541 . In addition, the cable  3  wound around the inner cable tray  2541  wouldn&#39;t be extended into the outer tray  2511 , and the cable  3  wound around the outer cable tray  2511  wouldn&#39;t be retracted into the inner cable tray  2541  either. When the cable  3  is pulled out of the earpiece  2 , the cable  3  wound around the inner cable tray  2541  is loosened. When the cable  3  is released and the swirled spring  23  retracts the cable  3  back, the cable  3  wound around the inner cable tray  2541  is tightened again. Similar to the earpiece  1 , there are a number of tenons  262  extending out of the circular rim of the seat  26  for locking into the corresponding grooves  292  configured along the circular rim of the inner cover  29 , so that the seat  26  and the inner cover  29  could form a closed space to house the speaker  28  inside. On the inner side of inner cover  29 , there is a grille  291  to facilitate the sound wave propagation from the speaker  28 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , which is a perspective bottom view of the winder  25 , the bottom (or inner) side of the winder  25  has a ball alley  256 . On the corresponding outer side of the seat  26 , there is a positioning track  263  arranged in a radius direction where the positioning ball  27  is positioned. When the cable  3  is pulled or released, the positioning ball  27  and the ball alley  256  allow the winder  25  to be rotated smoothly. Because the orientation of the positioning track  263  is normal to the ball alley  256 , the positioning ball  27  could only slide along the positioning track  263  toward or away from the center of the seat  26 , as shown in  FIGS. 6˜10 . In an appropriate location within the ball alley  256 , there is a stopping element  2561 . When the cable  3  is pulled, the positioning ball  27  would pass the stopping element  2561  without being stuck. When the cable  3  is extended up to the desired length and released, the swirled spring  23  would rewind the winder  25 , and the positioning ball  27  would be rolled inside and stuck by the stopping element  2561 , preventing the winder  25  from further spinning and retracting the cable  3 . The desired length of cable  3  is thereby maintained. Therefore, the ball alley  256 &#39;s shape along with the configuration of the stopping element  2561  provides a capability to extend cable  3  up to any desired length within its maximum reach. For every rotation of the winder  25 , the positioning ball  27  would pass the stopping element  2561  once, meaning that it has a chance to be stuck by the stopping element for every turn of the winder  25 . If the positioning ball  27  has passed the stopping element  2561 , then it has to wait for another turn of the winder  25 , in order to be stuck by the stopping element  2561 . In other words, the present invention provides a multi-step positioning capability to the cable  3 &#39;s extension. 
     To retract the extended cable  3 , a user pulls the cable  3  again so as to roll the positioning ball  27  out of confinement of the stopping element  2561  and then releases the cable  3 . Then, under the operation of the swirled spring  23 , the winder  25  is rotated in the opposite direction and the cable  3  is rewound. Since the winder  25  is rotated now in a reverse direction, the positioning ball  27  wouldn&#39;t be stopped by the stopping element  2561  and the cable  3  could be retracted very quickly. 
     It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together may also find a useful application in other types of methods differing from the type described above. 
     While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claim, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.