Abstract:
A speaker apparatus includes a generally cylindrically shaped, hollowed case, a drum membrane at a first end of the case; and an electrically powered speaker at a second end of the case. The speaker is preferably positioned to emit sound primarily away from the drum membrane. The drum membrane is preferably tunable, using a plurality of circumferentially positioned drum tuners.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   Priority of my U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/677,915, filed 5 May 2005, incorporated herein by reference, is hereby claimed. 

   STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
   Not applicable 
   REFERENCE TO A “MICROFICHE APPENDIX” 
   Not applicable 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to speakers. More particularly, the present invention relates to an improved powered audio speaker that includes a cylindrically shaped case or housing having a speaker directing most of its sound toward one end of the case and a drum membrane mounted on the other end of the case. The drum membrane is tunable, so that a listener can obtain different sound effects by adjusting or tuning the drum membrane. 
   2. General Background of the Invention 
   Drums often have a drum membrane of some sort on one end. They are typically open on the other end. 
   The following table lists U.S. Patent Documents that are possibly relevant, and incorporated herein by reference. 
   
     
       
             
             
             
           
         
             
               TABLE 
             
             
                 
             
             
               PAT. NO. 
               TITLE 
               ISSUE DATE 
             
             
                 
             
           
           
             
               3,553,339 
               Drum-like musical instruments with 
               Jan. 5, 1971 
             
             
                 
               electrical pickups and circuitry 
             
             
               3,659,032 
               Percussion Instrument 
               Apr. 25, 1972 
             
             
               4,168,646 
               Electro-acoustically amplified drum 
               Sep. 25, 1979 
             
             
               4,570,522 
               Electro-acoustically amplified drum and 
               Feb. 18, 1986 
             
             
                 
               mounting bracket 
             
             
               5,293,000 
               Electronic percussion system simulating 
               Mar. 8, 1994 
             
             
                 
               play and response of acoustical drum 
             
             
               5,430,245 
               Electroacoustical drum 
               Jul. 4, 1995 
             
             
               6,075,197 
               Apparatus and method for providing 
               Jun. 13, 2000 
             
             
                 
               interactive drum lessons 
             
             
               6,757,402 
               Knockdown speaker 
               Jun. 29, 2004 
             
             
               6,815,602 
               Electronic percussion instrument with 
               Nov. 9, 2004 
             
             
                 
               impact position - dependent variable 
             
             
                 
               resistive switch 
             
             
               2004/0118269 
               Electronic percussion instrument and 
               Jun. 24, 2004 
             
             
                 
               vibration detection apparatus 
             
             
               2004/0211310 
               Sound pickup device for percussion 
               Oct. 28, 2004 
             
             
                 
               instrument 
             
             
               2005/0022655 
               Real drum trigger monitor and 
               Feb. 3, 2005 
             
             
                 
               amplified tone module 
             
             
                 
             
           
        
       
     
   
   Custom hand-built subwoofer enclosures resembling drum shells in appearance are advertised at www.subtoms.com/index.html and at www.subtomix.com (these websites are incorporated herein by reference). The instructions for installing speaker elements in the enclosures include the following general description. “Note: Tightening and loosening tension rods will not tune your enclosure like a drum. Do not over-tighten the tension rods, which can cause damage to the enclosure&#39;s shell.” This instruction indicates that these enclosures only resemble drum shells in appearance, not in function. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The apparatus of the present invention includes a housing having opposed end portions, one end portion providing a drum membrane (preferably a bass drum membrane), the other end portion being a powered audio speaker having driver and cone portions. The apparatus of the present invention can be made by taking a conventional drum and affixing speaker components to its open end, preferably in an acoustically tight manner. 
   In a simple form the speaker apparatus includes a substantially cylindrical (preferably cylindrical) housing or case with a drum membrane at one end and a speaker at the other end. The drum membrane can be any suitable material normally used for drums, and preferably for bass drums. The drum membrane is preferably synthetic, plastic, skin, or rubber, though it could also or instead be made of, for example, metal, fiber, wood, or composite. The drum membrane can be any commercially available drum membrane. 
   The speaker housing or case can be made of conventional drum body materials, such as, for example, wood, kevlar, acrylic, metal, or fiber. The speaker housing or case is preferably made of maple, birch, mahogany, or bubinga. It can have a thickness of, for example, 1-25.4 mm, preferably 4-13 mm, and more preferably around 6-7 mm. 
   The speaker case can be about one and thirty six (1-36) inches in diameter. Preferably, the speaker case is about 4-28 inches in diameter. More preferably, the speaker case is about eight to twenty four (8-24) inches in diameter. Most preferably, the speaker case is about twelve to eighteen (12-18) inches in diameter. 
   The speaker case can be about one to thirty six (1-36) inches in length. Preferably, the speaker case is about ten to thirty six (10-36) inches in length. More preferably, the speaker case is about ten to thirty (10-30) inches in length. Most preferably, the speaker case is about eighteen to twenty four (18-24) inches in length. The speaker can be a conventional electrically driven speaker, such as Model No. 421 or 421-8LF Bass Speaker made by Altec Corporation, or speakers made by Sony Corporation or Celestion Corporation. The speaker can also be any speaker sold under the mark Bose®, Peavey®, or JBL®, for example. Preferably, it is a bass speaker, such as Model No. 4156 made by Altec Corporation or B&amp;C Speaker Model No. 10NDL64. 
   Electrically, the speaker apparatus of the present invention functions as do other audio speakers. Acoustically, however, it has a deeper bass than like speakers without the drum membrane on the other end of the speaker case. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
     For a further understanding of the nature, objects, and advantages of the present invention, reference should be had to the following detailed description, read in conjunction with the following drawings, wherein like reference numerals denote like elements and wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a side, partially cut-away view of the embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention; 
       FIG. 3  is a side, partially cut-away view of the embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention; and 
       FIG. 4  is a side view of the embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIGS. 1-4  show a preferred embodiment of the present invention designated generally by the numeral  10 . Speaker apparatus  10  provides a speaker case  11  with a drum head  18  on one end  13  and a speaker on the other end  14 . Speaker case  11  can be generally cylindrically shaped, having a hollow interior  12 , openings at ends  13 ,  14  and a case wall  19 . The speaker case  11  wall  19  is preferably made of 9-ply maple, but it can be made of other conventional or commercially available drum body or like material. In the drawings case  11  can be that of a sixteen inch (16″) floor “tom” type drum by Ludwig®. 
   The drum head  18  is mounted on the speaker case with a metal drum hoop  16 , and is tunable with drum tuners  17 , tension rods or threaded screws (commercially available e.g. Rhythm Tech IT index tension tuners), for example. The speaker  20 , which could be a fifteen inch (15″) Altec model 421 eight (8) ohm bass speaker as an example, is shown as being held in place with a wood ring  21  which is glued and/or attached with fasteners (e.g. screws, rivets, or the like) to the speaker case  11 . Also, one could use a twelve inch (12″) drum with a ten inch (10″) speaker  20 , for example. The tuneability and flex of the drum head  18  increase sound, giving more harmonic range per decibel per watt added by tonal acoustics of the case  11 . 
   A plug input  23  is included in the speaker case  11  (in the wall  19  as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 ) to connect the speaker apparatus  20  to an electrical signal to drive the speaker. Because sound is round, a cylindrical case  11  is used, and drum sizes will range from ten inches (10″) to twenty eight inches (28″) in diameter. Length will vary per individual needs and styles of music intended. 
   Standard drum shells are constructed of 8-ply maple. The speaker case  11  of the present invention can be 6 or 10 ply if desired. The material is not limited to maple, but could also be birch, mahogany, bibunga, walnut or the like. The material for case  11  is not limited to hardwoods, but could be acrylic composite shells available in any color of the spectrum including mixing colors in patterns. The material for the case  11  could be carbon fibre as well as precious and semi-precious metals. 
   Drum heads  18  are available in various styles, depending on application and style of music. Head  18  can be commercially available from Remo®, Aquarian® and EVANS®, each company offering a wide range of head types. 
   Speaker covering heads can be custom made with a choice of colored cloths or various styles of metal mesh for appearance as well as protection for the enclosed speaker. 
   Typically, the speakers  20  will range in size from between about eight and eighteen inches (8″ to 18″). The speaker  20  can be Altec Lansing, but not limited to such manufacturer. Speaker  20  cone  25  opens toward a second end portion  14  of case  11  (see  FIG. 3 ). A full-rig could be as shown in  FIG. 4 , which depicts four twelve inch (12″) cases  11 A with ten inch (10″) speakers, one eighteen inch (18″) case  11 B with a fifteen inch (15″) speaker suspended within a pipe structure  26  (e.g. aluminum) and preferably mounted with custom hardware. Drum hardware such as drum tuners  17  or lugs, tension rods, and hoops  16  can be in many different styles and colors including but not limited to chrome, powder coating, brass or the like. Case  11  can be fitted with legs  27  and/or feet  28  for supporting case  11  in a selected orientation relative to an underlying support surface  29  (e.g. floor). 
   The following is a list of parts and materials suitable for use in the present invention. 
   
     
       
             
           
             
             
           
         
             
                 
             
             
               PARTS LIST 
             
           
        
         
             
               Part Number 
               Description 
             
             
                 
             
             
               10 
               drum speaker apparatus 
             
             
               11 
               case 
             
             
                   11A 
               case (smaller) 
             
             
                   11B 
               case (larger) 
             
             
               12 
               hollow interior 
             
             
               13 
               end 
             
             
               14 
               end 
             
             
               15 
               drum membrane 
             
             
               16 
               drum hoop 
             
             
               17 
               drum tuner or tension rod 
             
             
               18 
               drum head 
             
             
               19 
               case wall 
             
             
               20 
               speaker 
             
             
               21 
               wood ring 
             
             
               22 
               magnet 
             
             
               23 
               plug input 
             
             
               24 
               speaker covering 
             
             
               25 
               cone 
             
             
               26 
               pipe structure 
             
             
               27 
               leg 
             
             
               28 
               foot 
             
             
               29 
               underlying surface 
             
             
                 
             
           
        
       
     
   
   All measurements disclosed herein are at standard temperature and pressure, at sea level on earth, unless indicated otherwise. 
   The foregoing embodiments are presented by way of example only; the scope of the present invention is to be limited only by the following claims.