Patent Publication Number: US-9838774-B2

Title: Headset apparatus

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the priority benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 62/290,966, filed on Feb. 4, 2016. The entirety of the above-mentioned patent application is hereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of this specification. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a headset apparatus and more particularly relates to a headset apparatus which is turned on or off based on an inductive sensing technique. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     With the advancement of technology, the development of electronic devices is getting quickly. Specifically, headset is a medium for transmitting sound between electronic devices and human ears. Through the headset, sound can be transmitted to human ears. 
     To meet the requirement in use, a power switch or a power button is set in many wireless headset. User has to press the power button or slide the power switch to turn the headset on for using the headset. By contrast, user also has to press the power button or slide the power switch to turn the headset off for stopping using the headset. However, pressing the power button or sliding the power switch may often cause inconvenient to users. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention provides a headset apparatus, which detects whether a user wear the headset apparatus or not and automatically turns the headset apparatus on or off accordingly to increase convenience when using the headset apparatus. 
     The headset apparatus of the invention includes an audio transmitter, a control circuit, a magnetic field generator and a magnetic field sensor. The control circuit is configured to generate a test signal. The magnetic field generator is coupled to the control circuit to receive the test signal and generate a magnetic field accordingly. The magnetic field sensor is coupled to the control circuit and configured to sense the magnetic field and generate a sensing signal accordingly. When the control circuit detects that the magnetic field is changed based on the sensing signal, the control circuit generates a control signal to enable the audio transmitter. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, after a headset plug of the headset apparatus is plugged into a headset jack of an electronic device or the headset apparatus is detached from an accommodating case, the control circuit generates the test signal and detects whether the magnetic field is changed every setting time interval. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, after a headset plug of the headset apparatus is removed from a headset jack of an electronic device or the headset apparatus is placed in an accommodating case, the control circuit stops generating the test signal and disables the audio transmitter. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the control circuit enables the audio transmitter when the control circuit detects that an amount of variation of the magnetic field is greater than a threshold based on the sensing signal. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the headset apparatus is an in-ear type headset apparatus. The headset apparatus further includes an earplug, a housing and a circuit board. The housing has an accommodating portion and an acoustic tube. The acoustic tube is connected to the earplug to form an acoustic channel. The circuit board is disposed in the accommodating portion, and the control circuit is disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected to the audio transmitter. The audio transmitter is disposed in the accommodating portion, and an acoustic plane of the audio transmitter is facing toward to the acoustic channel. The magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor are electrically connected to the control circuit through a conductive element. One of the magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor is disposed on an outer surface of the acoustic tube or an inner surface of the earplug, and another of the magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor is disposed on an inner surface of the acoustic tube. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the headset apparatus is in-ear type headset apparatus. The headset apparatus further includes an earplug, a housing and a circuit board. The housing has an accommodating portion and an acoustic tube. The acoustic tube is connected to the earplug to form an acoustic channel. The circuit board is disposed in the accommodating portion, and the control circuit is disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected to the audio transmitter. The audio transmitter is disposed in the accommodating portion. An acoustic plane of the audio transmitter is facing toward to the acoustic channel, and a space is between the acoustic plane and the acoustic tube. The magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor are electrically connected to the control circuit through a conductive element. The magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor are disposed in the space. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the headset apparatus is an in-ear type headset apparatus. The headset apparatus further includes an earplug, a housing and a circuit board. The housing has an accommodating portion and an acoustic tube. The acoustic tube is connected to the earplug to form an acoustic channel. The circuit board is disposed in the accommodating portion, and the control circuit is disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected to the audio transmitter. The audio transmitter is disposed in the accommodating portion. The audio transmitter has an acoustic plane and a base. The acoustic plane is facing toward the acoustic channel, and the base is opposed to the acoustic channel. The magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor are electrically connected to the control circuit through a conductive element. One of the magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor is disposed in a space between the acoustic plane and the acoustic tube. Another of the magnetic field generator and magnetic field sensor is disposed on the base. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, the headset apparatus is an on-ear type headset apparatus. The headset apparatus further includes a head-wearing frame and an earmuffs component. The earmuffs component is disposed at both ends of the head-wearing frame. The earmuffs component includes a housing and a cushioning earpad. The audio transmitter is disposed within the housing. The magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor may be disposed within the head-wearing frame or within the housing or within the cushioning earpad. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, each of the magnetic field generator and the magnetic field sensor includes a conductive wire or an electrode. 
     Based on the above, the headset apparatus according to the embodiment of this invention detects whether a user wear the headset apparatus or not based on an inductive sensing technique and automatically turns the headset apparatus on or off accordingly. Therefore, the convenience of using the headset apparatus is increased. 
     To make the above features and advantages of the invention more comprehensible, several embodiments accompanied with drawings are described in detail as follows. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating a headset apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to another embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to another embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic exterior view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to another embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
     In order to make the invention more comprehensible, embodiments are described below as the examples to show the invention. Moreover, elements/components with the same reference numerals are used to represent the same or similar parts in the drawings and embodiments. 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram illustrating a headset apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. Hereinafter referring to  FIG. 1 . The headset apparatus  100 , for example, is a wireless in-ear type headset apparatus or a wireless on-ear type headset apparatus, the invention is not limited thereto. The headset apparatus  100  includes an audio transmitter  120 , a control circuit  140 , a magnetic field generator  160  and a magnetic field sensor  180 . The control circuit  140  is configured to generate a test signal TS. The magnetic field generator  160  is coupled to the control circuit  140  to receive the test signal TS and generate a magnetic field accordingly. The magnetic field sensor  180  is coupled to the control circuit  140 . The magnetic field sensor  180  is configured to sense the magnetic field and generate a sensing signal SS to the control circuit  140  accordingly. When the control circuit  140  detects that the magnetic field is changed based on the sensing signal SS, the control circuit  140  generates a control signal CS to enable the audio transmitter  120 . 
     To be more specified, the magnetic field generator  160  generates the magnetic field in response to the test signal TS. The magnetic field sensor  180  senses the magnetic field and generates the sensing signal SS accordingly. When user wears the headset apparatus  100 , for instance, by putting the in-ear type headset apparatus into user&#39;s ear, or covering the ear by wearing the on-ear type headset apparatus, the user&#39;s ears may change the magnetic field generated by the magnetic field generator  160 . Thus, the control circuit  140  may detect that the magnetic field is changed through the sensing signal SS of the magnetic field sensor  180 . Therefore, the control circuit  140  determines that the headset apparatus  100  is worn by the user, and the control circuit  140  generates the control signal CS to enable the audio transmitter  120  for turning the headset apparatus  100  on automatically. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, when the control circuit  140  detects an amount of variation of the magnetic field being greater than a threshold based on the sensing signal SS, the control circuit  140  enables the audio transmitter  120  to turn the headset apparatus  100  on automatically. 
     Similarly, when user takes off the headset apparatus  100 , for instance, by removing the in-ear type headset apparatus from user&#39;s ears or taking off the on-ear type headset apparatus from user&#39;s ears, the magnetic field generated by magnetic field generator  160  is no longer affected by the user&#39;s body, thus, an intensity of the magnetic field is recovered to an original intensity. Therefore, the control circuit  140  detects that the intensity of the magnetic field is recovered based on the sensing signal SS of the magnetic field sensor  180 . Accordingly, the control circuit  140  determines that the headset apparatus  100  has been taken off by user, such that the control circuit  140  generates a control signal CS to disable the audio transmitter  120  for turning the headset apparatus  100  off automatically. 
     In addition, to prevent power consumption of the headset apparatus  100  caused by the control circuit  140  for continuously detecting whether the headset apparatus  100  is worn by user, in an embodiment of the invention, after a headset plug of the headset apparatus  100  is plugged into a headset jack of an electronic device, the control circuit  140  generates the test signal TS and detects whether the magnetic field is changed every setting time interval. Or, after the headset apparatus  100  is detached from an accommodating case, the control circuit  140  generates the test signal TS and detects whether the magnetic field is changed every setting time interval. The accommodating case described above is configured to store and charge the headset apparatus  100 , therefore, the control circuit  140  may determine that the headset apparatus  100  is detached from the accommodating case by detecting whether the headset apparatus  100  is charging or not. In an embodiment of the invention, a power of the test signal TS provided by the control circuit  140  every setting time interval could be constant to facilitate the control circuit to determine whether the magnetic field is changed, but the invention is not limited thereto. 
     In another embodiment of the invention, after a headset plug of the headset apparatus  100  is removed from a headset jack of an electronic device, the control circuit  140  stops generating the test signal TS and disables the audio transmitter  120 . Or, after the headset apparatus is placed to the accommodating case, the control circuit  140  stops generating the test signal TS and disables the audio transmitter  120 . 
     In one embodiment of the invention, the audio transmitter  120  is speaker, for example. In one embodiment of the invention, each of the magnetic field generator  160  and the magnetic field sensor  180  may include a conductive wire or electrode, but the invention is not limited thereto, the magnetic field generator  160  and the magnetic field sensor  180  could be implemented according to actual applications or design requirements. In an embodiment of the invention, the control circuit  140  may be implemented by hardware, firmware or executable programming codes stored in memory and loaded by center processor unit (CPU) or digital signal processor (DSP). If the control circuit  140  is implemented by hardware, the control circuit  140  may be achieved by a plurality of signal chips or by an integrated circuit chip, but the invention is not limited thereto. The hardware mentioned above may be application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field programmable gate array (FPGA) or programmable logic device (PLD) such as complex programmable logic device (CPLD), but the invention is not limited thereto. 
       FIG. 2  is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to an embodiment of the invention. Hereinafter referring to  FIG. 2 . The headset apparatus  200  of  FIG. 2  is a wireless in-ear type headset apparatus. The headset apparatus  200  includes an earplug  222 , a housing  224 , a circuit board  228 , an audio transmitter  220 , a control circuit (not shown), a magnetic field generator  260  and a magnetic field sensor  280 . The operations of audio transmitter  220 , control circuit, magnetic field generator  260  and magnetic field sensor  280  in  FIG. 2  are respectively similar to the operations of the audio transmitter  120 , the control circuit  140 , the magnetic field generator  160  and the magnetic field sensor  180  in  FIG. 1 . No further description is provided herein, since reference can be directed to the description of  FIG. 1 . The following provides an illustration of the deposition of the magnetic field generator  260  and the magnetic field sensor  280 . 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the housing  224  has an accommodating portion  2243  and an acoustic tube  2241 . An accommodating space is between the accommodating portion  2243  and the acoustic tube  2241 . The acoustic tube  2241  is connected to the earplug  222  to form an acoustic channel CH. The circuit board  228  is disposed in the accommodating portion  2243 . The control circuit (such as the control circuit  140  in  FIG. 1 ) is disposed on the circuit board  228  and electrically connected to the audio transmitter  220 . Also, the audio transmitter  220  is disposed in the accommodating portion  2243 . An acoustic plane  2261  of the audio transmitter  220  is facing toward to the acoustic channel CH. 
     The magnetic field generator  260  and the magnetic field sensor  280  are electrically connected to the control circuit (such as the control circuit  140  in  FIG. 1 ) through a conductive element. Each of the magnetic field generator  260  and the magnetic field sensor  280  can be implemented by a spiral tubular coil or a tubular electrode. The magnetic field generator  260  is disposed on or covers an outer surface of the acoustic tube  2241  (or an inner surface of the earplug  222 ), and the magnetic field sensor  280  is disposed on or covers an inner surface of the acoustic tube  2241 , the invention is not limited thereto. In another embodiment of the invention, the deposition of the magnetic field generator  260  and the magnetic field sensor  280  in  FIG. 2  can be mutually swapped. That is, the magnetic field sensor  280  can be disposed on or cover the outer surface of the acoustic tube  2241  (or the inner surface of the earplug  222 ), and the magnetic field generator  260  can be disposed on or cover the inner surface of the acoustic tube  2241 . The deposition of the magnetic field generator  260  and the magnetic field sensor  280  could be determined according to actual applications or design requirements. 
       FIG. 3  is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to another embodiment of the invention. Hereinafter referring to  FIG. 3 . The headset apparatus  300  of  FIG. 3  is a wireless in-ear type headset apparatus. The headset apparatus  300  includes an earplug  322 , a housing  324  (an accommodating portion  3243  and an acoustic tube  3241 ), a circuit board  328 , an audio transmitter  320  (an acoustic plane  3261  and a base  3262 ), a control circuit (not shown), a conductive element  370 , a magnetic field generator  360  and a magnetic field sensor  380 . The operations of the audio transmitter  320 , the control circuit, the magnetic field generator  360  and the magnetic field sensor  380  in  FIG. 3  are respectively similar to the operations of the audio transmitter  120 , the control circuit  140 , the magnetic field generator  160  and the magnetic field sensor  180  in  FIG. 1 . No further description is provided herein, since reference can be directed to the description of  FIG. 1 . In addition, the deposition of the earplug  322 , the housing  324  (the accommodating portion  3243  and the acoustic tube  3241 ), the circuit board  328 , the audio transmitter  320  (the acoustic plane  3261  and the base  3262 ) and the conductive element  370  in  FIG. 3  are respectively similar to the deposition of the earplug  222 , the housing  224  (the accommodating portion  2243  and the acoustic tube  2241 ), the circuit board  228 , the audio transmitter  220  (the acoustic plane  2261  and the base  2262 ) and the conductive element  270  in  FIG. 2 . No further description is provided herein, since reference can be directed to the description of  FIG. 2 . The following provides an illustration of the deposition of the magnetic field generator  360  and the magnetic field sensor  380 . 
     In an embodiment of the invention, a space SP is between the acoustic plane  3261  and the acoustic tube  3241  as shown in  FIG. 3 . The magnetic field generator  360  is disposed in the space SP near the acoustic tube  3241 , and the magnetic field sensor  380  is disposed in the space SP near the acoustic plane  3261 , but the invention is not limited thereto. In another embodiment of the invention, the deposition of the magnetic field generator  360  and the magnetic field sensor  380  in  FIG. 3  can be mutually swapped. That is, the magnetic field generator  360  may be disposed in the space SP near the acoustic plane  3261 , and the magnetic field sensor  380  may be disposed in the space SP near the acoustic tube  3241 . The deposition of the magnetic field generator  360  and the magnetic field sensor  380  could be determined according to actual applications or design requirements. 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to another embodiment of the invention. Hereinafter referring to  FIG. 4 . The headset apparatus  400  of  FIG. 4  is a wireless in-ear type headset apparatus. The deposition of the earplug  422 , the housing  424  (the accommodating portion  4243  and the acoustic tube  4241 ), the circuit board  428 , the audio transmitter  420  (the acoustic plane  4261  and the base  4262 ) and the conductive element  470  in  FIG. 4  are respectively similar to the deposition of the earplug  222 , the housing  224  (the accommodating portion  2243  and the acoustic tube  2241 ), the circuit board  228 , the audio transmitter  220  (the acoustic plane  2261  and the base  2262 ) and the conductive element  270  in  FIG. 2 . No further description is provided herein, since reference can be directed to the description of  FIG. 2 . The difference between the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 4  and other embodiment illustrated above is: the magnetic field generator  460  in  FIG. 4  is disposed in a space SP which is between the acoustic plane  4261  and the acoustic tube  4241 , and the magnetic field sensor  480  is disposed on the base  4262  of the audio transmitter  420 , but the invention is not limited thereto. In another embodiment of the invention, the deposition of the magnetic field generator  460  and the magnetic field sensor  480  in  FIG. 4  may be mutually swapped. That is, the magnetic field sensor  480  is disposed in the space SP which is between the acoustic plane  4261  and the acoustic tube  4241 , and the magnetic field generator  460  is disposed on the base  4262  of the audio transmitter  420 . The deposition of the magnetic field generator  460  and the magnetic field sensor  480  could be determined according to actual applications or design requirements. 
       FIG. 5  is a schematic exterior view illustrating a headset apparatus structure of  FIG. 1  according to another embodiment of the invention. Hereinafter referring to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 5  together. The headset apparatus  500  of  FIG. 5  is a wireless on-ear type headset apparatus. The headset apparatus  500  includes a head-wearing frame  521 , an earmuffs component  523 , an audio transmitter (not shown, please referring to the audio transmitter  120  in  FIG. 1 ), a control circuit (not shown, please referring to the control circuit  140  in  FIG. 1 ), a magnetic field generator (not shown, please referring to the magnetic field generator  160  in  FIG. 1 ) and a magnetic field sensor (not shown, please referring to the magnetic field sensor  180 ). The earmuffs component  523  is disposed at both ends of the head-wearing frame  521 . The earmuffs component  523  includes a housing  5232  and a cushioning earpad  5234 . For enhancing the comfort of the user when using the headphone device  500 , the cushioning earpad  5234  is disposed on the housing  5232  to be a cushion between user&#39;s ears and the housing  5232 . In addition, the audio transmitter  120  in  FIG. 1  is disposed within the housing  5232 , and the magnetic field generator  160  and the magnetic field sensor  180  of  FIG. 1  may be disposed within the head-wearing frame  521  or within the housing  5232  or within the cushioning earpad  5234 , but the invention is not limited thereto. 
     In summary, the headset apparatus according to the embodiment of this invention detects whether a user wear the headset apparatus or not based on an inductive sensing technique and automatically turns the headset apparatus on or off accordingly. Therefore, the convenience of using the headset apparatus is enhanced. 
     It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.