A gasket especially adapted for use as a speaker ring is provided. The gasket is formed of a plurality of segments, each having first and second ends defining first and second complementary mating surfaces respectively. The complimentary mating surfaces allow the segments to be placed end to end with the first mating surface of a segment abutting the second mating surface of an adjacent segment. All of the segments arranged together in this manner form closed gasketed ring. The first mating surface of each segment is made up of first and second relatively flat shoulders adjacent the inner and outer sides of each segment respectively, and a triangular projection extending between the first and second shoulders. Similarly, the second mating surface of each segment is made up of third and fourth relatively flat shoulders adjacent the inner and outer sides of each segment, and a triangular recess or notch extending between the third and fourth shoulders. The triangular recess of the second mating surface is substantially the inverse of the triangular projection protruding from the first mating surface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
 The present invention relates to audio speakers, and more particularly to
 an improved gasket or speaker ring employed in mounting a speaker assembly
 to a speaker cabinet.
 Audio speakers include, among other things, a vibrating paper cone which
 generates sound waves in response to electrical signals supplied to the
 speaker. In order to operate effectively the speaker must be mounted in a
 way that allows the paper cone to vibrate freely so that sounds may be
 faithfully reproduced without distortion.
 Typically, a speaker will be mounted within a conical support basket. The
 speaker basket includes a base at the smaller end of the basket for
 supporting the electrical components of the speaker. Opposite the base,
 the front or top of the basket forms a circular rim comprising an annular
 flange extending parallel to the front face of the speaker and extending
 around the perimeter thereof, and a small lip which extends forward from
 the flange again, encircling the entire perimeter of the basket. When the
 speaker is mounted in the basket, the vibrating speaker cone extends from
 near the base toward the rim of the basket where it is attached to the
 annular flange.
 For attaching the vibrating cone to the flange, a structure known as a
 roll-over is attached to the outer peripheral edge of the cone. The
 roll-over may be formed of plastic or some other suitable material, and
 comprises a transition piece from the conical sidewalls of the vibrating
 cone to the flat annular surface of the speaker basket rim. In general,
 the roll-over comprises a first conical surface which is glued or
 otherwise attached to the vibrating speaker cone, and a second flat
 annular surface for attaching to the rim of the speaker basket. An arcuate
 ridge, or a succession of such ridges arranged side-by-side in a
 corrugated fashion, form the transition from the flat annular surface of
 the roll-over to the inner conical surface of the rollover, and thus to
 the speaker cone itself. When the conical surface of the roll-over is
 joined to the speaker cone and the flat annular surface is glued to the
 annular rim of the speaker basket, the arcuate ridge or ridges forming the
 transition section allow the conical surface of the roll-over, as well as
 the speaker cone itself, to move back and forth axially relative to the
 rim of the speaker basket. Thus, the roll-over allows the speaker cone to
 vibrate freely without distortion.
 Once the roll-over has been attached to the annular flange, a speaker ring
 or gasket is inserted around the rim of the basket above the rollover. The
 speaker ring is typically glued to the flat portion of the roll-over.
 Prior to gluing, the speaker ring is held in place in the outward radial
 direction by the short lip extending around the outer edge of the speaker
 basket rim.
 When finally assembled, the speaker basket, speaker, and speaker ring may
 be mounted to a speaker cabinet. This may be accomplished in one of two
 ways. First, the outer surface of the speaker ring can be placed flat
 against a mounting panel of the speaker cabinet, and fasteners such as
 screws may be inserted through the mounting panel and the speaker basket
 flange to attach the speaker to the mounting panel. In this arrangement
 the speaker ring acts to isolate the vibrating cone within the speaker
 from the mounting panel of the speaker cabinet, thereby limiting
 distortion to the audio signals broadcast by the speaker. Alternately, the
 speaker assembly may be dropped into a hole formed in the mounting panel
 of the speaker cabinet. In this arrangement, the back side of the speaker
 basket annular flange engages the mounting panel and fasteners may be
 inserted through the annular flange and the mounting panel to secure the
 speaker assembly within the cabinet. In this arrangement, the mounting
 flange and roll-over are visible from the front of the cabinet. Therefore,
 the speaker ring performs a more aesthetic function by providing a neat
 trim piece which conceals the annular flange and the glued-in-place
 roll-over.
 Speaker rings are typically supplied in short arcuate segments. During the
 speaker assembly process the individual segments must be manually placed
 within the basket rim and glued to the upper surface of the roll-over.
 From a production standpoint, inserting the segments and aligning them
 properly around the rim is a time consuming and costly process. Further,
 once the segments are glued, making sure they remain in place until the
 glue has set has also been a long standing manufacturing challenge.
 Past speaker rings have been formed with lap joint type mating surfaces as
 shown in FIG. 1. In this arrangement, segments 10 are formed having "L"
 shaped projections 12 extending from each end of the segment such that
 when adjacent segments are placed end to end the projections 12 overlap
 one another. While the lap joint arrangement provides some benefit in
 helping to properly locate ring segments adjacent one another, it still
 allows some margin for error in aligning the various segments as shown in
 FIGS. 1b and 1c. As is clear from these drawings, the lap joint
 arrangement does not prevent the speaker ring segments from collapsing
 radially inward toward the center of the speaker. Thus, prior to the glue
 setting, the segments are somewhat unstable and likely to move. If the
 glue sets while speaker ring segments are misaligned, the entire assembly
 must be scrapped.
 Therefore, a self aligning segmented speaker ring is desired wherein
 adjacent abutting segments are automatically centered relative to one
 another by action of their respective mating surfaces. It is further
 desired that the mating surfaces provide additional support for
 maintaining the proper shape of the ring during the period of the assembly
 process when the glue applied to the speaker ring segments is setting.
 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
 In light of the background given above, an object of the present invention
 is to provide an improved segmented gasket that may be effectively
 employed as a self centering speaker ring.
 Another object of the invention is to provide an improved speaker assembly
 having a self aligning speaker ring.
 Yet another object of the invention is to provide a segmented speaker ring
 which tends to retain its proper shape during the speaker assembly and
 shipping process.
 All of these objects as well as others which will become apparent upon
 reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiments, are met by
 the V-lock segmented gasket and speaker assembly herein disclosed.
 The present invention provides a gasket or speaker ring made up of a
 plurality of individual segments. Each segment is formed with
 complementary mating surfaces at each end such that, when the segments are
 arranged end to end to form a closed ring, a first mating surface of a
 first segment abuts the second mating surface of a second segment, and so
 on around the entire gasket.
 The first mating surface comprises a pair of flat shoulders adjacent the
 inner and outer sides of the gasket segment, and a triangular or V-shaped
 projection extending forward between the two shoulders. The second mating
 surface also comprises a pair of flat shoulders, each adjacent the inner
 and outer surfaces of the gasket segment, and a triangular or V-shaped
 groove or notch disposed between the shoulders. The V-shaped notch in the
 second mating surface is the complement of the V-shaped protrusion of the
 first mating surface. When two gasket segments are placed end to end with
 the first mating surface of one segment abutting the second mating surface
 of another, the V-shaped protrusion of the first segment fits securely
 within the V-shaped notch of the second mating surface, and the shoulders
 of the first mating surface abut the shoulders of the second mating
 surface. The V-shaped protrusion and complementary notch assure that the
 two segments align properly, and the abutting shoulders ensure that the
 segments maintain the proper angular relationship with respect to one
 another. The present invention further comprehends a speaker assembly
 including a multi-segment speaker ring as just described.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
 Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, an annular multi-segment gasket specially
 adapted for use as a speaker ring is shown at 100. In the preferred
 embodiment, gasket 100 is formed of a material specially selected for
 acoustic applications. Materials particularly well suited for forming
 speaker ring gaskets include cork, rubber, plastic, plastic foam, medium
 density fiberboard, chipboard, and other similar materials. In addition to
 solid materials, gasket 100 may further comprise laminates comprising the
 aforementioned materials, as well as various combinations thereof. For
 example, in a preferred embodiment the gasket segments comprise a
 plurality of chipboard laminates 103 and a single cork laminate 105.
 The entire gasket 100 comprises a plurality of individual segments 102. In
 the preferred embodiment, gasket 100 is provided in the form of a circular
 ring with each segment forming an arcuate portion of a circle. However,
 other shapes such as square, rectangular, elliptical or others are
 possible. Further, gasket 100 is shown comprising four equal segments 102,
 however, the number of segments may be changed to meet the requirements of
 a particular application.
 Each segment 102 comprises an inner surface 124 and an outer surface 126.
 First end 104 and second end 112 define the mating surfaces that engage
 the next adjacent segment when the entire gasket is assembled. The first
 end 104 comprises a male mating surface characterized by a pair of flat
 shoulders 106, 108 which extend between inner and outer surfaces 124, 126.
 A triangular or V-shaped protrusion 110 extends forward between shoulders
 106, 108.
 The second end 112 of each gasket segment 102 comprises a female mating
 surface which is the complement of the male mating surface formed at the
 first end 104. The female mating surface is characterized by a second pair
 of flat shoulders 114, 116 which extend between the inner and outer
 surfaces 124, 126. A triangular groove or notch 118 is formed in the
 second end between shoulders 114, 116.
 The segments 102 are further defined by top and bottom surfaces 120, 122 as
 well as inner and outer surfaces 124, 126. The outer surface may be formed
 with inwardly directed notches 119. As will be described in more detail
 below, notches 119 allow fasteners to be inserted into structures below or
 behind speaker ring 100 when a speaker is being assembled.
 In the preferred embodiment, each segment 102 forms a 90.degree. arc. Thus,
 when four segments are placed end to end a full circular gasket is formed
 as shown in FIG. 3. While a circular gasket is preferred, other shapes may
 also be employed. For example FIG. 7 shows a square segmented gasket
 wherein each segment forms a right angle between two perpendicular arms.
 FIG. 8 shows an elliptical gasket wherein each segment forms a portion of
 an ellipse. It should be clear that by properly forming the individual
 segments, almost any shape gasket may be realized. The individual segments
 102 are placed end to end such that the first end of a segment abuts the
 second end of the next adjacent segment around the entire circumference of
 the gasket. In this arrangement the female mating surface of each segment
 receives the male mating surface of an adjacent segment, and the shoulders
 114, 116 of the female mating surfaces lie flat against the shoulders 104,
 106 of the abutting male mating surface. The angled sides of the V-shaped
 protrusion 110 engage the angled sides of the notch 118 to force the two
 adjacent segments into a centered and aligned position. Also, the abutting
 shoulders 104, 114 and 106, 116 provide rigidity and strength to the
 gasket, helping to hold the various segments in place.
 Turning to FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, a speaker assembly is shown employing a
 speaker ring 100 according to the present invention. The speaker assembly
 includes a metal basket 128 for supporting the speaker. Basket 128 is
 generally conical in shape, having a base 130 located at the smaller end
 of the basket. The electrical components that make up the speaker (not
 shown) may be mounted to base 130. A plurality of side support members 132
 extend in an outward manner from the base to an annular rim 134 located
 above the base. Rim 134 includes a flange 136 that extends parallel to the
 base 130, and a short lip 138 that extends perpendicular to the flange.
 Flange 136 may be formed having a plurality of mounting holes for
 receiving fasteners such as screws for mounting the speaker assembly to a
 speaker cabinet.
 The speaker itself includes a vibrating paper cone 142 that generates sound
 waves in response to electrical signals received by the speaker. For the
 speaker to function properly, the vibrating cone 142 must be
 simultaneously supported by rim 134 yet allowed to vibrate freely to
 produce undistorted sound. For this purpose a structure known as a
 roll-over 144 is attached to the distal end of the vibrating cone 142. The
 roll-over includes a first conical surface 146 which is glued or otherwise
 attached to the vibrating cone, and a flat annular surface 148 configured
 to engage the annular flange 136 comprising the speaker basket rim 134.
 The flat annular surface 148 of the roll-over is glued to the flange 136
 to secure the vibrating cone 142 to rim 134.
 Next the speaker ring or gasket 100 is inserted within rim 134 above the
 roll-over. The outer surface 126 of the gasket engages the inner surface
 of lip 138, and the bottom surface 122 of the gasket is glued to the
 roll-over. The upper surface 120 of the gasket extends above the height of
 lip 138. The recessed portions 119 of the gasket segments 102 are aligned
 with the holes 140 formed in the flange 136 of rim 134 so that fasteners
 154 may be inserted through the holes after gasket 100 has been glued in
 place. As has been discussed, the nature of the complimentary mating
 surfaces on each end of the gasket segments help to align the gasket 100
 within rim 134 and ensure that the gasket remains in place while it is
 glued to the roll-over 144. The self aligning and self centering aspect of
 the mating surfaces reduce the amount of time necessary to properly
 assemble the gasket 100 within rim 134.
 FIG. 5 shows the speaker assembly front mounted to the face 150 of a
 speaker cabinet. As can be seen, the gasket 100 extends beyond the annular
 lip 138 that surrounds the rim. Thus, only the gasket actually engages the
 face 150 of the speaker cabinet, thereby isolating the speaker from the
 surfaces of the cabinet.
 FIG. 6 shows a somewhat different speaker mounting arrangement wherein the
 speaker assembly is dropped into a hole formed in the face 150 of a
 speaker cabinet. In this arrangement the speaker face 150 engages the back
 side of flange 136 and the gasket 100 is visible from the front of the
 speaker. Thus, the gasket acts as trim providing a more finished
 appearance to the overall speaker assembly.
 It should be noted that various changes and modifications to the present
 invention might be made by those of ordinary skill in the art without
 departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention which is set
 out in more particular detail in the appended claims. Furthermore, those
 of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the foregoing
 description is by way of example only, and is not intended to be limiting
 of the invention as described in such appended claims.