Patent Publication Number: US-2020292850-A1

Title: Glasses-type acoustic device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to PCT Application No. PCT/JP2018/048230, having a filing date of Dec. 27, 2018, based off of Japanese Application No. 2018-032378, having a filing date of Feb. 26, 2018, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF TECHNOLOGY 
     The following relates to a glasses-type acoustic device, and more particularly to a glasses-type acoustic device that is in the form of a pair of glasses, and can be used as various modes of acoustic devices, such as a stereo headphone and a hearing aid. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Conventional acoustic devices in a spectacle shape that have an electronic circuit generally have a structure with which there are disposed a power supply part in one of the temples, a circuit part in the other of them, and a speaker on both right or first and left or second sides. And most of them have a configuration in which lead wires to transmit a signal or supply power to the speakers on the first and second sides are wired through a frame (for example, refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2015-202196 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-227806). Consequently, the wiring is intricate, and further the degree of freedom of designing a pair of glasses is limited, thereby development of a glasses-type acoustic device as commodities having a variety of designs being made difficult. 
     SUMMARY 
     As described above, conventional acoustic devices in a spectacle shape that have an electronic circuit have presented problems that the lead wires to transmit a signal or supply power between the temple on the first side and the temple on the second side are wired through a frame, thereby the wiring being intricate, and further the degree of freedom of designing a pair of glasses is limited, thereby development of a glasses-type acoustic device as commodities having a variety of designs being made difficult. 
     In view of such a situation, embodiments of the present invention has been made, and is intended to provide a glasses-type acoustic device which obviates the need for lead wires for transmitting a signal or supplying power between the temple on the first side and the temple on the second side, thereby eliminating the need for a complex wiring, and further, allowing the glasses-type acoustic device to be developed as commodities having a variety of designs. 
     Embodiments of the invention for solving the above problems is a glasses-type acoustic device, including an electronic circuit and a sound generating device, the electronic circuit and the sound generating device being incorporated in respective temples on the first and second sides; an electric cell that drives an electronic circuit in the temple on the first side, the electric cell being built in a drop end on the first side; and an electric cell that drives an electronic circuit in the temple on the second side, the electric cell being built in a drop end on the second side. 
     In one embodiment, the temple on the first side and the drop end on the first side, and the temple on the second side and the drop end on the second side are configured as components that are independent of each other, respectively; are capable of being jointed to or separated from each other; and are capable of being electrically connected to or disconnected from each other. 
     In another embodiment, the temples on the first and second sides are adapted to be attachable to or detachable from a frame, respectively. 
     In another embodiment, the sound generating device is a bone conduction speaker unit. In addition, the drop ends on the first and second sides may have a flexible part in the vicinity of a joint to the temple, the flexible part having a flexibility. 
     In another embodiment, in the electronic circuit in one temple of the temples on the first and second sides, there is incorporated a main substrate having a circuit for receiving a wireless signal such as Blue Tooth® (trademark) signal from a piece of external equipment and a radio transmission circuit for separating a signal from the received signal to send it out to another channel, and in the electronic circuit in the other temple, there is incorporated a receiver and an amplifier or means for receiving and amplifying the signal sent from the main substrate. 
     In another embodiment, the electronic circuits in the temples on the first and second sides are hearing aid circuits that are independent of each other, being capable of being set to suit to the hearing abilities on the first and second sides of a user, respectively. 
     As described above, a glasses-type acoustic device in accordance with embodiments of the present invention has a configuration in which an electronic circuit and a sound generating device are incorporated in respective temples on the first and second sides, and in a drop end on the first side, there is built an electric cell that drives an electronic circuit in the temple on the first side, while, in a drop end on the second side, there is built an electric cell that drives an electronic circuit in the temple on the second side, whereby the need for lead wires to transmit a signal or to supply power between the temple on the first side and the temple on the second side being obviated, and thus an advantage being offered that there is no need for a complex wiring. 
     In addition, the temple on the first side and the drop end on the first side, and the temple on the second side and the drop end on the second side are adapted to be an independent component, respectively, being configured to be capable of being jointed to or separated from each other, and being electrically connected to or disconnected from each other, and further the temples on the first and second sides are configured to be attachable to or detachable from the frame, respectively, whereby selection and replacement of the frame, temple, and drop end being made possible, and thus an advantage being offered that development of a glasses-type acoustic device as commodities having a variety of designs is allowed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION 
       Some of the embodiments will be described in detail, with reference to the following figures, wherein like designations denote like members, wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view showing a glasses-type acoustic device according to embodiments of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic configuration drawing of a glasses-type acoustic device according to embodiments of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Hereinbelow, embodiments of the present invention will be explained with reference to the attached drawings. 
     Embodiments of the present invention is a glasses-type acoustic device incorporating a sound generating device in temples of a pair of glasses, and as shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , an electronic circuit  5  and a sound generating device  7  are built in the temple  1  on the second side, while an electronic circuit  6  and a sound generating device  8  are built in the temple  2  on the first side. In addition, an electric cell  9  for driving an electronic circuit  5  in the temple  1  on the second side is built in a drop end  3  on the second side, and an electric cell  10  for driving an electronic circuit  6  in the temple  2  on the first side is built in a drop end  4  on the first side. 
     The temple  1  on the second side and the drop end  3  on the second side are independent and separate parts, in other words, parts having replaceability, and they are configured to be able to be jointed to or separated from each other, and able to be electrically connected to or disconnected from each other. Likewise, the temple  2  on the first side and the drop end  4  on the first side are independent and separate parts, in other words, parts having substitutability, and they are configured to be able to be jointed to or separated from each other, and able to be electrically connected to or disconnected from each other. 
     In order to enable the temple  1  and the drop end  3  to be jointed to or separated from each other and electrically connected to or disconnected from each other, and enable the temple  2  and the drop end  4  to be jointed to or separated from each other and electrically connected to or disconnected from each other, for example, a connector  11  for supplying power to drive the electronic circuit  5  is disposed on the rear end face of the temple  1 , a connector  11  for supplying power to drive the electronic circuit  6  being disposed on the rear end face of the temple  2 , and a connector  12 , which is mated with the connector  11 , is disposed on the front end face of the drop ends  3  and  4 , which are opposed to the rear end face of the temples  1  and  2 , respectively. Moreover, the connectors  11  and  12  are adapted to have a corresponding male and female connector structure, or a pin plug and pin jack structure, whereby the temple  1  and the drop end  3 , and the temple  2  and the drop end  4  can be jointed to or separated from each other, respectively. 
     Further, the temple  1  on the second side and the temple  2  on the first side are configured to be attachable to or detachable from the frame  13 , respectively. Still further, as the frame  13 , those which have a variety of shapes, those which are made from various materials, or those which are provided with various colors are prepared, while those which are to be used as a sun glass, powered spectacles, or the like, being prepared. The temples  1  and  2  are adapted to be attachable to or detachable from any one of such many and diversified types of frames  13 , respectively, such that the user can use an appropriate frame  13  as necessary. 
     As a configuration that allows the temples  1  and  2  to be attachable to or detachable from the frame  13 , the configuration in which a protruding part  14  is formed at the respective ends of the temples  1  and  2 , while, in the respective side parts at both ends of the frame  13 , a hinging part  15 , which grips the protruding part  14 , is formed, and from the hinging part  15 , a setscrew is inserted through the protruding part  14  is convenient. 
     In a portion of the respective drop ends  3  and  4 , in other words, a portion between the connector  12  and the electric cell housing part, there is disposed a flexible part  16 , which has flexibility. By doing so, the drop ends  3  and  4  are made easier to be fitted to the geometry of the head of the user, and it is made possible to secure the intrinsic function of the drop ends  3  and  4  that is to hold the pair of glasses when it is worn. 
     With the glasses-type acoustic device configured as described above, the temple  1  on the second side and the temple  2  on the first side are each provided with a power supply (an electric cell  9  or  10 ) to thereby eliminate the need for supplying of power through the frame  13 , which is located between the temples  1  and  2 , and, since the electronic circuit  5  on the second side and the electronic circuit  6  on the first side can be connected to each other by a radio system, the frame  13  can be separated from the temples  1  and  2 , which incorporate the electronic circuit  5  and the sound generating device  7 , and the electronic circuit  6  and the sound generating device  8 , respectively. 
     The glasses-type acoustic device in accordance with embodiments of the present invention is configured as above, and thus it is capable of being used as, for example, a stereo headphone. In this case, in the electronic circuit  5  in the temple  1 , which constitutes one of the temples on both sides, a main substrate having a circuit for receiving a Blue Tooth® (trademark) signal from a piece of external equipment, and a radio transmission circuit for separating a signal from the received signal to send it out to another channel is incorporated, and in the electronic circuit  6  in the temple  2 , which constitutes a pair with the temple  1 , a receiver and an amplifier or means for receiving and amplifying a signal that is sent from the main substrate is incorporated. 
     Further, the glasses-type acoustic device in accordance with embodiments of the present invention can also be used as a hearing aid one. In this case, the electronic circuit  5 , which is used as a hearing aid, being incorporated in the temple  1 , and the electronic circuit  6 , which is used as a hearing aid one, being incorporated in the temple  2 , can be each provided with a circuit configuration for hearing aid that is independent of the same on the other side, whereby the characteristics and the sensitivity of the electronic circuits  5  and  6  can be set and adjusted more finely to the user&#39;s hearing abilities on the second or first side, respectively. 
     The features of the glasses-type acoustic device in accordance with embodiments of the present invention include: 
     1) Since the frame  13  is independent of the temples  1  and  2 , the degree of freedom of design is high, and further, each of the drop ends  3  and  4  is adapted to be replaceable, which means that the electric cells  9  and  10  can be prepared as a spare, respectively, whereby a time loss that could be caused by charging the electric cell can be avoided.
 
2) Each particular component can be freely replaced with another same component by the purchaser, whereby the purchaser can use an appropriate glasses-type acoustic device in accordance with a variety of situations.
 
3) It is applicable to a stereo headphone, a hearing aid, and the like, and in case where it is used as a hearing aid, the characteristics and sensitivity can be set and adjusted to the respective hearing abilities of the user on the first and second sides.
 
4) Since the electric cell housing parts (the drop ends  3  and  4 ) are separable from the main body, separation disposal thereof that is needed in scrapping the product can be easily conducted.
 
     The glasses-type acoustic device in accordance with embodiments of the present invention has a number of features as described above, and thus it provides a high industrial applicability. 
     Although the present invention has been disclosed in the form of preferred embodiments and variations thereon, it will be understood that numerous additional modifications and variations could be made thereto without departing from the scope of the invention. 
     For the sake of clarity, it is to be understood that the use of ‘a’ or ‘an’ throughout this application does not exclude a plurality, and ‘comprising’ does not exclude other steps or elements.