Patent Publication Number: US-2022225000-A1

Title: Wooden or other dielectric capacitive touch interface and loudspeaker having same

Description:
PRIORITY CLAIM 
     The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 17/066,047, filed Oct. 8, 2020, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/997,004, filed Aug. 19, 2020, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,856,059, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/152,014, filed Oct. 14, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,785,550, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 15/468,590, filed Mar. 24, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,291,972, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 14/094,277, filed Dec. 2, 2013, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,628,880, issued Apr. 18, 2017. 
    
    
     CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/194,883, filed Mar. 9, 2021, which issued as U.S. Pat. No. 11,310,574 on Apr. 19, 2022. 
     The present application also is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/832,719, filed Mar. 15, 2013, entitled “Configuring Wireless Devices for a Wireless Infrastructure Network,” now U.S. Pat. No. 9,060,288, issued on Jun. 16, 2015, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The following patents and applications claims priority to U.S. Pat. No. 9,060,288: Ser. No. 14/702,316, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,185,168; Ser. No. 14/850,508, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,326,304; Ser. No. 15/080,940, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,629,190; Ser. No. 15/463,559, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,992,061; Ser. No. 15/927,262, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,079,717; Ser. No. 16/057,360, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,298,451; Ser. No. 16/375,428, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,601,652; Ser. No. 16/528,173, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,680,884; Ser. No. 16/528,186, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,560,323; and Ser. No. 16/875,351. 
     The present application is also related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/031,938, filed Sep. 19, 2013, entitled “Wireless Earphone Set,” which application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/609,409 filed Sep. 11, 2012, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/459,291 filed Apr. 30, 2012, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,571,544, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/936,488, filed Dec. 20, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,190,203, which is a national stage entry of PCT/US09/39754, filed Apr. 7, 2009, which claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/123,265, filed Apr. 7, 2008, all of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. The following patents and applications also claim priority to PCT Application No. PCT/US09/39754 and U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/123,265: Ser. No. 14/695,696, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,438,987; Ser. No. 15/082,040, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,497,535; Ser. No. 15/293,785, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,729,959; Ser. No. 15/650,362, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,986,325; Ser. No. 15/962,305, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,206,025; Ser. No. 16/182,927, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,368,155; Ser. No. 16/375,879, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,469,934; Ser. No. 16/528,701, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,491,982; Ser. No. 16/528,703, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,506,325; Ser. No. 16/528,705; Ser. No. 16/528,706, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,757,498; Ser. No. 16/881,488; Ser. No. 16/884,691, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,848,851; Ser. No. 16/900,035, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,848,852; Ser. No. 17/070,295, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,959,011; Ser. No. 17/070,363, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,959,012; Ser. No. 17/178,946; and Ser. No. 17/649,928. 
     BACKGROUND 
     A typical capacitive touchscreen panel consists of an insulator such as glass, coated with a transparent conductor such as indium tin oxide (ITO). When a human finger touches the surface of the screen, a distortion of the screen&#39;s electrostatic field results, measurable as a change in capacitance, because the human body is also an electrical conductor. Different technologies may be used to determine the location of the touch. The location is then sent to a controller for processing. Capacitive touchscreens are often used for user interfaces, such as in smartphones, tablet computers, etc. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one general aspect, the present invention is directed to wireless-enabled loudspeaker with a wooden or other dielectric capacitive touch user interface. The loudspeaker may comprise at least one electroacoustic transducer for producing audible sound, a processor in communication with the at least one electroacoustic transducer, and a wooden (or other dielectric) exterior surface comprising a capacitive touch user interface that allows a user to control operation of the loudspeaker. The capacitive touch user interface may comprise at least one capacitive sense electrode in communication with the processor, and the wooden exterior surface acts a dielectric for the capacitive touch user interface. In various implementations, the loudspeaker further comprises a wireless transceiver circuit in communication with the processor, wherein the wireless transceiver circuit is for receiving and transmitting wireless communication signals via a wireless network (e.g., a WiFi wireless network). As such, the wireless transceiver circuit may receive wirelessly audio content for playing by the loudspeaker via the wireless network; the processor may process the audio content; and the electroacoustic(s) transducer may audibly output the audio content. The wireless transceiver circuit may receive audio content from streaming audio content servers that are connected to the Internet. 
     In various implementations, the capacitive touch user interface comprises a plurality of user control icons etched or otherwise fixed into the wooden (or other dielectric) exterior surface, and a plurality of capacitive sense electrodes located under the wooden exterior surface. There may be at least one capacitive sense electrode for each one of the plurality of user control icons. The plurality of user control icons may comprise, for example, a volume control to control the volume of the sound output by the loudspeaker and an on/off control for the loudspeaker. There may be a plurality of side-by-side capacitive sense electrodes associated with the volume control icon, forming a slider capacitive sensor. The loudspeaker may also include a next stream control that, when activated by the user, causes the wireless transceiver circuit to switch from receiving streaming audio from a first streaming audio content server to receiving streaming audio from a second streaming audio content serer. Addresses for the first and second streaming audio content servers may be stored in a memory unit of the loudspeaker. In addition, the loudspeaker may also include a control that, when activated by the user, causes the wireless transceiver circuit to transmit an indication for a track being played by the loudspeaker to be transmitted to a remote server system that is connected to the Internet. The indication for the track may be an indication of approval by the user for the track and/or the remote server system may comprise a social media website server system. 
     These and other benefits of the present invention will be apparent from the description that follows. 
    
    
     
       FIGURES 
       Various embodiments of the present invention are described herein by example with reference to the following figures. 
         FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of a loudspeaker according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a diagram of a network system in which the loudspeaker may be used according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram of a capacitive user touch interface on a top, wooden surface of the loudspeaker according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a block diagram of components of the loudspeaker according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIGS. 5-6  are diagrams of capacitive touch electrodes according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a flowchart of a process for configuring the loudspeaker for communicating on a wireless network according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIGS. 8 and 9  are diagrams of the electroacoustic transducers of the loudspeaker according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIG. 10  is simplified block diagram of a content access point (CAP) according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION 
     In one general aspect, the present invention is directed to wireless-enabled loudspeaker with a wooden or other dielectric capacitive touch user interface, and preferably a projected capacitance user interface.  FIG. 1  is a view of the loudspeaker  100  and  FIG. 2  is a diagram of a wireless communication network  200  that includes the loudspeaker  100  according to various embodiments of the present invention. The loudspeaker may  100  may receive content wirelessly for playing (i.e., audio), for example, via a wireless communication link  201 , such as a Wi-Fi network or other suitable wireless network. With a Wi-Fi network, for example, the loudspeaker  100  may connect to the Internet  202  via an access point  206  so that the loudspeaker  100  can access and receive wirelessly audio streams from streaming audio content server systems  204  that are on (or connected to) the Internet  202 . Two such streaming audio content server systems  204  are show in  FIG. 2  for simplicity, although there could be many more. As described in more detail below, a user of the loudspeaker  100  may use a computer  208  to help configure or set-up the loudspeaker  100  for use. The computer  208  may be any computer device that is suitable for configuring the loudspeaker  100 , such as a PC, laptop, tablet computer, smartphone, etc., and that is connectable to the Internet  202  (as most computers are). The user may use the computer  208  to access a web site hosted by a remote server  210  in configuring the loudspeaker  100 . The remote server  210  may also store configuration parameters for the loudspeaker  100 , as described further below. 
     The loudspeaker  100  may be made primarily of a dielectric material, such as wood. For example, ash or any other suitable wood could be used. In such an embodiment, the loudspeaker  100  may comprise wooden top  102 , bottom  104 , side  106 ,  108 , and back  110  surfaces. A front surface may comprise, for example, an acoustical grate  112  (e.g., a perforated steel acoustical grate) through which sound emanates. As shown in the example of  FIG. 8 , one or more speakers, e.g., a mid-range speaker  802  and a tweeter  804 , may sit behind the grate  112  and output audio through the grate  112  for listening. The speakers  802 ,  804  may be surrounded by, and be fastened to, a front wood surface  806 . The loudspeaker  100  may have sharp edges/corners as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 8 , or in other embodiments it could have rounded corners and edges. The size of the loudspeaker  100  may depend on in part the size and number of electroacoustic transducers that are employed (a bigger loudspeaker is obviously needed for more and bigger transducers). The loudspeaker  100  may be, for example, 6″ to 24″ tall, 6″ to 18″ wide, and 6″ to 18″ deep, according to various embodiments, or even larger. In the illustrated embodiments, the loudspeaker  100  is taller than it is wide; in other embodiments it could be wider than it is tall. 
     In various embodiments, the top surface  102  may comprise a wooden capacitive touch user interface through which a user may control the loudspeaker  100 .  FIG. 3  is a top view of the top surface  102  of the loudspeaker  100  showing the capacitive touch user interface according to one embodiment of the present invention. The interface may include several controls, whose corresponding icons may be laser-etched in the wood of the top surface  102 . The controls may include, for example: a volume control  302 ; a next track control  304 ; a previous track control  306 ; a next stream control  308 ; a positive feedback control  310 ; a negative feedback control  312 ; an auxiliary control  314 ; and a power (on/off) control  316 . These controls may use the wood of the wooden top surface  102  as the dielectric between the user&#39;s finger and the corresponding electrode for the control. The user can contact the capacitive controls or come in close proximity to them in order for the user&#39;s commands to be sensed. In addition, each of the controls  302 - 316  may have associated LED pipes  321 - 338  that emit when their corresponding control is activated. The LED pipes may be made from an optically translucent material, such as acrylic, and may pipe light energy from corresponding LEDs (not shown) to the top surface  102  of the loudspeaker  100 . 
     In various embodiments, the volume control  302  may be implemented with a capacitive slider sensor. The user can increase the playback volume by sliding their finger from left to right, and decrease the playback volume by sliding their finger from right to left. The other controls may be implemented, for example, with capacitive buttons. There may be multiple LED pipes associated with the volume control  302 , such as the five (LEDs  321 - 325 ) shown in  FIG. 2  or a different quantity. The LED  321 - 325  may illuminate in correspondence to the position of the user&#39;s finger as the user slides his/her finger across the volume control  302 . For example, when the user slides his/her finger from left to right on the volume control  302  to increase the volume, first LED  321  may activate, and then the other LEDs  322  up to  325  may activate in sequence as the user slides his/her finger from left to right on the volume control  302  depending on where the user stops. Conversely, when the user slides his/her when the user slides his/her finger from right to left on the volume control  302  to decrease the volume, first all of the LEDs  321 - 325  may activate, and then the other LEDs  325  down to  322  may turn off in sequence as the user slides his/her finger from right to left on the volume control  302  depending on where the user stops. LEDs  321 - 325  may stay on for a short period of time, such as until the user removes his/her finger from the volume control  302 , or a short time thereafter. 
     The next stream button  308  allows the user to advance to the next stream. The streams may be, for example, audio streams from different sources received wirelessly by the loudspeaker  100  via the wireless network. For example, the streams could be from the streaming audio content server systems  204  connected to the Internet  202  (see  FIG. 2 ), where the loudspeaker  100  receives the streams via the wireless network  201 . There may be a pre-established order associated with the streaming audio content server systems  204  (e.g., stored by the remote server  210  and established by the user through computer  208 ), and clicking the next stream button  308  causes the loudspeaker  100  to connect to the next streaming audio content server  204  in the pre-established order. Clicking the next stream button  308  may cause its corresponding LED  330  to illuminate for a brief period of time. The next and previous track controls  304 ,  306  allow the user to advance to the next or prior audio tracks in a stream, respectively. Clicking the next and previous track controls  304 ,  306  may cause their corresponding LEDs  326 ,  328  to illuminate for a brief period of time, respectively. 
     By touching (or coming within sufficiently close proximity) to the positive feedback control  310  or negative feedback control  312 , the user may indicate positive or negative feedback respectively for a song or other track being played by the loudspeaker  100 . For example, when the user activates the positive (or negative) feedback control  310  ( 312 ), an indication of the user&#39;s approval (or disapproval) of the track currently being played by the loudspeaker  100  may be sent via the wireless network  201  and the Internet  202  to the remote server  210 . The remote server  210  may store data related to the tracks that the user of the loudspeaker  100  approves and disapproves. Clicking the positive feedback control  310  and/or negative feedback control  312  may cause their corresponding LEDs  332 ,  334  to illuminate for a brief period of time, respectively. 
     In yet other embodiments, additionally or alternatively, the capacitive user interface could include a control (not shown) that causes data about the track currently being listened to on the loudspeaker to be sent to a social media server system(s)  212 , such as Twitter, Facebook, Google+, etc. Upon receipt of such data, the social media site may indicate that the user is listening to or enjoying or playing the track. 
     With the auxiliary control  314 , the user can switch the input source for the loudspeaker  100 . For example, in various embodiments, the loudspeaker  100  comprises, on the back surface  110 , an audio input jack (not shown). For example, the loudspeaker  100  may comprise a female audio receptacle sized to accommodate a TRS, TS, TRRS or any other suitable audio connector. That way (with for example an audio cable with two male audio connectors), the user could connect a digital personal audio player (e.g., an iPod or other similar device) to the loudspeaker  100  such that the loudspeaker  100  can output audio from the digital personal audio player. Alternatively or additionally, the loudspeaker  100  may comprise other input means for connecting to other audio sources, such as a USB input, an optical audio connector input, etc. The user may cycle between these different sources (including the wireless source) by activating the auxiliary control  314 . Clicking the auxiliary control  314  may cause its corresponding LED  336  to illuminate for a short period of time. 
     The power control  316  may be used to turn on and off the loudspeaker  100 . The LED  338  for the power control  316  may illuminate when the loudspeaker  100  is turned on. 
       FIG. 4  is a simplified block diagram of the loudspeaker  100  according to various embodiments. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the loudspeaker  100  may comprise a central processing unit (CPU)  402  and one or more external memory units  404 . The external memory unit(s)  404  may comprise non-volatile memory, such as NAND flash memory. In addition, the CPU  402  may include internal volatile (e.g., RAM) and/or non-volatile (e.g., ROM) memory. Collectively, the internal and external memory may store software and/or firmware instructions or code that are executed by the CPU  402  to control the operation of the loudspeaker  100 . Preferably, the CPU  402  comprises digital audio processing capabilities, such as an AMS model AS3531 digital audio processor or other suitable digital audio processor. 
     Also as shown in  FIG. 4 , the loudspeaker  100  may comprise a RF transceiver circuit  408  connected to the CPU  402  that handles radio/wireless communications by the loudspeaker  100 . In various embodiments, the RF transceiver circuit  408  may be a separate chip from the CPU  402  (as shown in  FIG. 4 ) or it could be integrated with the CPU  402 . The wireless communication may use any suitable wireless communication protocol, and preferably a protocol that is capable of communicating with the Internet  202  through the access point  206  (see  FIG. 2 ), such as the Wi-Fi protocols (such as IEEE 802.11 a, b, g, and/or n), or WiMAX (IEEE 802.16), or any other suitable protocol. In operation, therefore, streaming audio from one of the streaming audio content server systems  204  (or other wireless audio source) may be received by the RF transceiver circuit  408  via the Internet  202  (or other data communications network) and processed by the CPU  402 . In an embodiment where the RF transceiver circuit  408  is a separate chip from the CPU  402 , the RF transceiver circuit  408  may be implemented with, for example, a NanoRadio NRG731 chip. The received audio may be output by one or more speakers (e.g., electroacoustic transducers)  412  after being converted from digital to analog by a digital-to-analog converter (DAC)  414  and amplified by an audio power amplifier  416 . Although only one speaker  412  is shown in  FIG. 4 , it should be recognized that the multiple speakers could be used, such as mid-range, tweeter, bass, woofer and/or sub-woofer speakers. In one embodiment, the loudspeaker  100  may be a mono (one channel) speaker system and could be paired with another (or additional) loudspeakers on different channels to create a stereo (or surround) speaker system. 
     Also as shown in  FIG. 4 , the loudspeaker  100  may comprise the capacitive touch sensors  302 - 316  and LEDs  415  for the corresponding LED pipes  321 - 338  that are part of the capacitive user interface  420 . More details about the capacitive touch sensors  302 - 316  and the LED pipes  321 - 338  are shown in connection with  FIGS. 5-6 . Also, the loudspeaker  100  may comprise a capacitive sense controller  422  for controlling the capacitive touch sensors  302 - 316  and interfacing with the CPU  402 . Any suitable capacitive sense controller  422  may be used, such as for example, a C8051F996 capacitive sensing MCU from Silicon Labs. In addition, one or more LED drivers  424  may be used as needed to drive the LEDs  321 - 338 ; any suitable LED driver may be used, such as for example, a SX1509QB LED driver from Semtech. 
       FIGS. 5 and 6  show more details about the wooden capacitive touch user interface according to various embodiments of the present invention.  FIG. 5  is a simplified side-view of the wooden capacitive touch user interface. This figure shows the wooden top surface  102  of the loudspeaker adjacent to an electrode  502  that is mounted on a top side of a printed circuit board  504 . The electrode  502  may be connected to other components, such as the capacitive sense controller  422 , by a conductive via  506  through the printed circuit board  504  and a conductive trace  508  on the underside of the printed circuit board. The capacitive sense controller  422  may be mounted, for example, to the underside of the printed circuit board  504  or to another printed circuit board (not shown). The printed circuit board  504  may be constructed of a dielectric material such as FR4. Also, the wooden top surface  102  acts as dielectric. Consequently, when a user brings their finger  510  proximate to the electrode  502 , the capacitive fields of the electrode  502  are altered since the user&#39;s finger acts an electrode of a capacitor, with the wooden top surface  102  acting as dielectric therebetween. This change in capacitance can be detected, such as by the capacitive sense controller  422 , to determine whether the user has activated the control associated with the electrode  502 . 
       FIG. 6  is a top view of the printed circuit board  504  that may be underneath the wooden top surface  102 . As shown in  FIG. 6 , each of the controls  302 - 316  (see  FIG. 3 ) has at least one associated electrode  502 . The electrodes  502  shown in  FIG. 6  are interdigitated electrodes, although in other embodiments one or more of the electrodes  502  could have other structures, such as disc electrodes, etc. As shown in  FIG. 6 , the volume control  302  may comprise multiple electrodes  502  in a row to form a slider sensor to detect movement of the user&#39;s finger across the volume control  302 .  FIG. 6  also shows the LED pipes  321 - 338 . The LEDs  415  (shown in  FIG. 4 ) may be below the printed circuit board  504 , and their light energy is carried by the light pipes  321 - 338  through the printed circuit board  504  to the top wooden surface  102 . 
     The loudspeaker  100  may be powered by an external AC-DC in-line power supply and/or internal batteries. 
       FIG. 9  is a diagram of the back of the loudspeaker  100  with the back wooden panel removed. As shown in  FIG. 9 , the interior of the loudspeaker may include, for example, a wooden shelf  901  toward the top of the loudspeaker  100 . The printed circuit boards for various electrical components and chips (e.g., the CPU  402 , the RF transceiver circuit  408 , the external memory  404 , etc.) may be mounted to or otherwise attached to a top of the shelf  901 . Caulk may be used to secure the shelf  901  to the interior sides of the wooden side surfaces  106 ,  106 . 
     To configure the loudspeaker  100  for wireless operation, two things preferably must happen. First, the loudspeaker  100  should be associated with a user&#39;s account; second, it should be provisioned to work on a WiFi (or other wireless) network. The user may have an account with an Internet service that manages the wireless loudspeaker  100  and/or other wireless audio and/or video devices that the user may have. The Internet service for managing the wireless device, including the loudspeaker  100 , may be hosted by the remote server system  210  (see  FIG. 2 ), for example. The user may access the remote server system  210  via the Internet  202  from the user&#39;s computer  208 .  FIG. 7  is a flowchart depicting a process to configure or set up the loudspeaker  100  for use, and in particular to connect to the WiFi (or other wireless) network, according to various embodiments of the present invention. At step  701 , if the user does not already have an account with the service, the user sets up an account with the remote server system  210  and logs into their account. The user may set up the account by logging onto a web site hosted by the remote server system  210  that is accessible through the Internet  202  by the user&#39;s computer  208 . Once logged in, the user opens a device set up application (e.g., an applet) from the website at step  702  and at step  703  plugs the loudspeaker  100  into the computer  208 , such as via a USB cable (the back of the loudspeaker  100  may have a USB port). The set up application may have a “search” button that, when activated by the user at step  704  at the user&#39;s computer  208 , searches for the loudspeaker  100 . Once the loudspeaker  100  is found, its device ID is displayed in the set up application and the user may, at step  705 , again through the set up application, elect to add the loudspeaker  100  to the user&#39;s account. Once the loudspeaker  100  is added to the user&#39;s account, it may now be provisioned for the WiFi network. At step  706 , a WiFi set up application may be opened from the web site. Then, at step  707  the loudspeaker is disconnected from the computer  208  and, according to various embodiments, a content access point (CAP) is connected to the computer  208 , again through a USB port, for example. The CAP may be a device that scans for local WiFi networks. More details about a suitable CAP can be found in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/832,719, filed Mar. 15, 2013, entitled “Configuring Wireless Devices for a Wireless Infrastructure Network,” issued as U.S. Pat. No. 9,060,288 on Jun. 16, 2015, and in U.S. Pat. No. 8,190,203, issued Nov. 29, 2012, entitled “Wireless Earphone That Transitions Between Wireless Networks,” both of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. At step  708 , the CAP scans for local wireless networks. Assuming one or more are found, identifiers (e.g., names) for the found networks will appear in the WiFi set up application. Then, at step  709  the CAP is disconnected from the computer  208  and the loudspeaker  100  is reconnected. Next, at step  710  the desired WiFi network can be selected in the WiFi setup application by the user, at which point then user is prompted to input the password for the WiFi network (and possible encryption type) at step  711 . The application may then, at step  712 , create a file (e.g., a .bin file) with the network credentials (identifier, password, etc.) and write the file to the loudspeaker  100  (e.g., stored in one of the memory units thereof), which completes the process such that the loudspeaker  100  is assigned to the user&#39;s account and configured to work on a local WiFi network. The network credentials are stored in the memory of the loudspeaker  100  so that the loudspeaker  100  can use them to access the WiFi network. Other WiFi networks could be added in a similar manner. 
       FIG. 10  is simplified block diagram of the CAP  16  according to various embodiments of the present invention. As shown in  FIG. 10 , the CAP  16  may comprise a processor  40 , a volatile memory  42 , a nonvolatile memory  44 , a RF (or radio or Wi-Fi) module  46  and a USB port  48  or other suitable external interface that allows the CAP  16  to connect to an external device, such as the DAP  20  or the computer  22 . The CAP  16  may also include a chargeable power source (not shown) for powering the components of the CAP  16 . The RF module  46  may handle radio/wireless communications by the CAP  16 . For example, the RF module  46  may allow the CAP to communicate via a wireless communication protocol, preferably Wi-Fi, with the speaker device or a wireless access point  206 . The memory units  42 ,  44  may store software instructions for execution by the processor  40  that control the function and operation of the CAP  16 . In addition, in various embodiments, the speaker device and the CAP  16  are part of a conjoined assembly, such that the CAP  16  is configured at manufacture to know the identifiers for the speaker device. That is, the non-volatile memory  44  may store addresses (e.g., IP addresses) for the speaker device. Also, the CAP  16  may be an integral part of a digital audio player (e.g., a device that stores and plays digital audio files, such as a MP3 player, iPod, iPhone, etc.) or the computer  208 . 
     The CAP  16  may also allow the WiFi credentials to be sent to the speaker device without having to plug the speaker device into the computer  208 . The user (e.g., a user of the speaker device), using the Internet-enabled computer  208  with a browser, logs into a website associated with the speaker device, hosted by the remote server(s)  210 , and sets up an account (if the user does not already have one). At the website the user can, for example, add Wi-Fi hotspots and specify content channels (e.g., Internet radio stations or other servers connected to the Internet that serve content). To add a Wi-Fi hotspot, the user may click (or otherwise activate) a link on the website that indicates a desire to add a Wi-Fi hotspot. In various embodiments, a JAVA applet from the website may be used by the computer  208  to search for nearby Wi-Fi hotspots, which, upon detection, may be displayed for the user on the website. The user may then click on (or otherwise select) the desired Wi-Fi hotspot to add. If applicable, the website may then prompt the user to enter a password and/or encryption type (e.g., WPA or WPA2) for the selected Wi-Fi hotspot. The SSID, password, and encryption type for the Wi-Fi hotspot is stored for the user&#39;s account by the remote server(s)  210 . This process could be repeated as necessary to add as many Wi-Fi hotspots as desired by the user. 
     Next, a user device, e.g., the loudspeaker  100 , may be added to the user&#39;s account. The user may do this, according to various embodiments, by plugging the CAP  16  into the computer  208 . Using a JAVA applet, for example, the IDs for the CAP, as well as the IDs for the speaker device, stored in a non-volatile memory of the CAP, are uploaded to the remote server(s)  210  and stored at the remote server(s)  210  as part of the user&#39;s account information. Next, the user may update the speaker device with the Wi-Fi hotspot credentials (e.g., SSID, password if one is used for the hotspot, and/or encryption type). The user may do this by clicking on or otherwise selecting a link on the website to update the speaker device. Upon clicking the link, the CAP transmits the credentials (e.g., SSID, password, encryption type) for each of the added Wi-Fi hotspots to the speaker device, via an ad hoc wireless communication link. This process allows the speaker device to be configured for infrastructure network (and Internet) access without having to physically connect the speaker device to the computer  208  to configure them and without having an existing, different infrastructure network that the speaker device need to connect to. 
     As mentioned above, the loudspeaker  100  (via the RF transceiver circuit  408 ) may receive streaming audio from streaming audio content server systems  204  connected to the Internet  202 . Using the computer  208 , the user may log onto, for example, a web site hosted by the remote server system  210  to configure the streaming audio sources  204  for the loudspeaker  100 . For example, in one embodiment, through the web site the user can specify a number of streaming audio content server systems  204  to which the user desired to listen at various times in the future. The user may also specify a cycling sequence or queue for the streaming audio content server systems  204 . The IP addresses and the desired sequence for those streaming audio content server systems  204  may be downloaded to the loudspeaker from the remote server  210  wirelessly or from the computer  208 , for example, and stored in a memory unit of the loudspeaker  100 , e.g., external memory unit  404  and/or memory units internal to the CPU  402 . When the loudspeaker is in use, and the user activates the next stream control  308 , the RF transceiver circuit  408  can retrieve (or be sent by the CPU  402 ) the address for the next streaming audio content server system  204  in the queue and connect to the streaming audio content server system  204  via the wireless link  201  and the Internet  202  so that audio from the next streaming audio content server system  204  can be played by the loudspeaker  100 . 
     The above embodiments are generally described in the context of a wooden capacitive touch user interface. In other embodiments, however, other dielectrics could be used. For example, in such embodiments, the exterior surface of the loudspeaker  100  that has the user interface could comprise other dielectric materials besides wood, such as thermoplastic or other resins (e.g., Teflon, phenolic, epoxy, acetal), fiberglass, MDF (medium density fiberboard), solid surface materials such as Corian®, glass, stone, etc. In such embodiments, substantially of the exterior surfaces (e.g., top surface  102 ) could be made of the dielectric, or just the exterior surface(s) with the capacitive touch user interface. According to such embodiments, the control icons  302 - 316  may be etched, printed on, or otherwise fixed to the exterior surface (e.g., top surface  102 ). And the LED pipes  321 - 338  may be used with any of the dielectric overlay materials. Further, for all dielectric overlay materials, the thickness of the dielectric overlay may be selected based on mechanical/ESD robustness (the thicker the better), power consumption (the thinner the better), and the dielectric properties of the material. The thickness may be about ⅛″ for a wooden (ash) overlay, for example. 
     In various embodiments, therefore, the present invention is directed generally to a loudspeaker  100  that comprises at least one electroacoustic transducer  802 ,  804  for producing audible sound, a processor  402  in communication with the at least one electroacoustic transducer, and a wooden exterior surface (e.g., top surface)  102  comprising a capacitive touch user interface  420  that allows a user to control operation of the loudspeaker. The capacitive touch user interface  420  comprises at least one capacitive sense electrode  502  in communication with the processor  402 , and the wooden exterior surface  102  acts a dielectric for the capacitive touch user interface. In various implementations, the loudspeaker  100  further comprises a wireless transceiver circuit  408  in communication with the processor  402 , wherein the wireless transceiver circuit  408  is for receiving and transmitting wireless communication signals via a wireless network (e.g., a WiFi wireless network). As such, the wireless transceiver circuit  408  may receive wirelessly audio content for playing by the loudspeaker  100  via the wireless network; the processor  402  may process the audio content; and the at least one electroacoustic transducer  802 ,  804  may audibly output the audio content. The wireless transceiver circuit  408  may receive audio content from one or more streaming audio content servers  204  that are connected to the Internet  202 . 
     In various implementations, the capacitive touch user interface  420  comprises a plurality of user control icons  302 - 316  etched in the wooden exterior surface  102 , and a plurality of capacitive sense electrodes  502  located under the wooden exterior surface  102 . There may be at least one capacitive sense electrode  502  for each one of the plurality of user control icons  302 - 316 . The plurality of user control icons may comprise, for example, a volume control  302  to control the volume of the sound output by the loudspeaker  100  and an on/off control  316  for the loudspeaker  100 . There may be a plurality of side-by-side capacitive sense electrodes associated with the volume control icon, forming a slider capacitive sensor. The loudspeaker  100  may also include a next stream control  308  that, when activated by the user, causes the wireless transceiver circuit  408  to switch from receiving streaming audio from a first streaming audio content server to receiving streaming audio from a second streaming audio content serer. Addresses for the first and second streaming audio content servers may be stored in a memory unit  404  of the loudspeaker  100 . In addition, the loudspeaker  100  may also include a control that, when activated by the user, causes the wireless transceiver circuit  408  to transmit an indication for a track being played by the loudspeaker to be transmitted to a remote server system  210 ,  212  that is connected to the Internet  202 . The indication for the track may be an indication of approval by the user for the track and/or the remote server system may comprise a social media website server system  212 . 
     In another general embodiment, the loudspeaker  100  comprises the electroacoustic transducer(s)  802 ,  804 , for producing audible sound; the processor  402 ; and the capacitive touch user interface  420  on an exterior surface  102  of the loudspeaker  100  that allows a user to control operation of the loudspeaker  100 . The capacitive touch user interface  420  comprises at least one capacitive sense electrode  520  in communication with the processor  402 ; the exterior surface  102  is a dielectric for the capacitive touch user interface  420 ; and a plurality of user control icons  302 - 316  for the capacitive touch user interface  420  are fixed (e.g., etched) on the exterior surface  102 . In various implementations, the loudspeaker  100  may further comprise a plurality of light emitting diodes (LEDs)  415  located below the exterior surface  102 ; and a plurality of LED pipes  321 - 338  for carrying light energy from the LEDs  415  to the exterior surface  102 . 
     In various embodiments disclosed herein, a single component may be replaced by multiple components and multiple components may be replaced by a single component to perform a given function or functions. Except where such substitution would not be operative, such substitution is within the intended scope of the embodiments. 
     While various embodiments have been described herein, it should be apparent that various modifications, alterations, and adaptations to those embodiments may occur to persons skilled in the art with attainment of at least some of the advantages. For example, in some instances different materials or components may be used. The disclosed embodiments are therefore intended to include all such modifications, alterations, and adaptations without departing from the scope of the embodiments as set forth herein.