Patent Publication Number: US-2009220118-A1

Title: Behind-the-head mounted personal audio set with adjustable earphone position

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
     This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/357,933, filed on Feb. 16, 2006, and it claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/653,712, filed on Feb. 16, 2005 and U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/780,633, filed on Mar. 8, 2006. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a behind-the-head mounted personal audio set with position adjustable ear-phones to allow the audio set to be adjusted as needed to optimize wearer comfort. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Personal audio-sets, commonly known as headphones, earphones, headsets, and the like, are gaining in popularity. The typical personal audio-set includes a frame containing an earphone that is usually positioned over or in a wearer&#39;s ear. In cases where the audio-set is a headset, a microphone is also typically positioned near the wearer&#39;s mouth. 
     One method for detachably securing a personal audio-set to a wearer includes securing the personal audio-set to a headband that encircles the rear portion of the wearer&#39;s head. These types of mounting structures are commonly known as “behind-the-head” mounts. 
     Known behind-the-head mounts have several drawbacks. For example, it can be difficult to adjust the position of the earphones relative to the headband to optimize wearer comfort. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, despite the available behind-the-head mounts for personal audio sets, there remains a need for a light weight, stylish, durable, and economical, mount that allows the position of the earphone to be adjusted by a user so as to optimize wearer comfort and the like. In addition to other benefits that will become apparent in the following disclosure, the present invention fulfills these needs. 
     The present invention is a behind-the-head mounted personal audio set that has a first earphone portion pivotally secured to a behind-the-head headband at a first pivot which is positioned below the longitudinal centerline of the headband. In disclosed embodiments the earphone is also slidably secured to the headband, thereby allowing additional adjustment to optimize wearer comfort. 
     The behind-the-head headband can also be segmented along its longitudinal centerline with the distal ends pivotally secured so as to substantially pivot about the longitudinal centerline of the headband. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a front, left, perspective view of a behind-the-head mounted personal audio set having individually pivoting headphones operably secured thereto and a boom microphone pivotally secured to one of the headphone assemblies showing a possible concealed position of the boom microphone in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a right, perspective view of the of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1  showing a possible orientation of the boom microphone on the right side of the headset and a possible operational position of the boom microphone. 
         FIG. 3  is a rear, right, perspective view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1  showing a possible orientation of the boom microphone on the right side of the headset with the boom microphone in the operational position. 
         FIG. 4  is a front, right perspective view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of FIG. I in the configuration of  FIG. 2  showing a possible mounting on a wearer shown in hidden lines. 
         FIG. 5  is a front, right, perspective view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 4  showing a possible position of one of the headphones so as to allow the personal audio set to operate in mono without covering one of the wearer&#39;s ears. 
         FIG. 6  is a right, perspective, partially exploded view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 7  is a front, left, perspective view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1 , showing a possible orientation with the boom microphone positioned on the wearer&#39;s right side. 
         FIG. 8  is a right side view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1 , in a second possible stereo configuration with the boom microphone positioned on the wearer&#39;s left side. 
         FIG. 9  is a right side view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1 , in a first possible mono configuration showing the earphone adjacent to the wearer&#39;s right ear pivoted so as to not cover the wearer&#39;s right ear. 
         FIG. 10  is a right side view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of FIG. I with the earphone adjacent to the wearer&#39;s right ear pivoted so as to not cover the wearer&#39;s right ear, and with the boom microphone pivoted into an operational position adjacent to the wearer&#39;s mouth. 
         FIG. 11  is a right side view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1  showing a possible orientation on a wearer&#39;s left ear. 
         FIG. 12  is a top, right, perspective view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1 , showing a possible pivoted position of the boom microphone. 
         FIG. 13  is a front, right, perspective view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 12 . 
         FIG. 14  in an enlarged view of the boom microphone of  FIG. 3  showing the possible operational position of the boom microphone. 
         FIG. 15  is an left, perspective view of the behind-the-head personal audio set of  FIG. 1  showing the possible concealed position of the boom microphone of the left side. 
         FIG. 16  is a back, right, perspective view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 15  with the boom microphone positioned as shown in  FIG. 14 . 
         FIG. 17  us a top view of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1  with the boom microphone positioned on the left side and as shown in  FIG. 14 . 
         FIG. 18  is an enlarged top view of the left earphone of the behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 19  is an enlarged rear view of the left earphone of  FIG. 18 . 
         FIG. 20  is a right, side view of the left earphone of  FIG. 18 . 
         FIG. 21  is a front, left perspective view of an alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 22  is a left side view of the alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 21  showing a possible orientation on a wearer, who is shown in broken lines. 
         FIG. 23  is a left, back isometric view of the alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 21 . 
         FIG. 24  is a right side view of the alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 21 . 
         FIG. 25  is a top view of the alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 21 . 
         FIG. 26  is a bottom view of the alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 21 . 
         FIG. 27  is an enlarged side view of an earphone component of the alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 21 . 
         FIG. 28  is an enlarged exploded isometric view of the earphone component of  FIG. 21 . 
         FIG. 29  is an enlarged, exploded, isometric view of the behind-the-head headband of the alternative behind-the-head mounted personal audio set of  FIG. 21 . 
         FIG. 30  is a right, side view of the behind-the-head headband of  FIG. 29  with a portion cut-away to show possible internal detail. 
         FIG. 31  is a top view of the behind-the-head headband of  FIG. 29 . 
         FIG. 32  is an enlarged, partial, isometric view of an alternative earphone and behind-the-head headband attachment structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 33  is an exploded view of an alternative behind-the-head headband of  FIG. 32 . 
         FIG. 34  is an enlarged, partial view of a possible pivoting structure between the alternative earphone and behind-the-headband of  FIG. 32 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     A behind-the-head mounted personal audio set  30  having two earphone portions  40   a,    40   b,  each independently pivotally secured to a behind-the-head headband  32 , is shown in  FIGS. 1-34 . 
     In a first preferred embodiment, shown in  FIGS. 1-20 , the behind-the head mounted personal audio set  30  has a curved headband  32 , preferably occupying a common plane  34  as best shown in  FIG. 1 . As best shown in  FIGS. 4 ,  5 , and  7 - 11 , the headband  32  is preferably sized to encircle and slightly grasp the rear contour of a wearer&#39;s head  36  substantially between the wearer&#39;s ears  38   a,    38   b.  As shown in  FIGS. 1-6 , the earphone portions  40   a,    40   b  are preferably positioned on opposite ends of the headband  32  at individual pivots  47   a,    47   b.  Each pivot  47   a,    47   b  operably secures an earphone-mounting portion  42  which as a substantially elongate pivot mounting portion  43  extending therefrom to operably engage the pivot, each earphone-mounting portion contains an earphone  39  therein. Preferably, the center  41  of each earphone  39  is positioned below the common plane  34  of the headband during stereo use of the personal audio set. 
     More preferably, the personal audio set  30  is a headset  30 ′ having a mini-boom microphone  46  extending therefrom. The mini-boom microphone  46  is preferably pivotally secured to the headset-mounting portion  42  at a defined third pivot  48 . The length of the boom portion of the mini-boom microphone is preferably sized to define a concealed position  100  as best shown in  FIGS. 1 &amp; 15  when aligned with the substantially elongate pivot mounting portion  43 . The mini-boom microphone may be pivoted about the third pivot  48  to define an operational position  102  of the mini-boom microphone as best shown in  FIGS. 2-5 ,  7 ,  8 ,  12 - 14  and  16 - 20 . 
     By pivoting the earphone mounting portions  42  about their respective pivots and the mini-boom microphone about the third pivot  48 , the headset may be worn so that each earphone is positioned over one of the wearer&#39;s ears with the mini-boom microphone  46  positioned on either the wearer&#39;s left side as shown in  FIGS. 4 ,  5  and  8 , or a wearer&#39;s right side as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
     In addition, should the user desire or require using the personal audio-set in mono mode, and not have one of the earphone portions  40   b  cover an ear, as shown in  FIG. 5 , the user can pivot one of the earphone mounting portions  42  about its respective pivot  47   b  so that that earphone portion rests away from the respective ear. For example, one possible mono configuration is shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9  shows one earphone portion  40   a  positioned over the wearer&#39;s right ear with the earphone mounting portion  42  containing the boom microphone  46  pivoted to its engaged position ( FIG. 8 ) while the other earphone portion  40   b  is pivoted away from the wearer&#39;s left ear ( FIG. 9 ). It can be appreciated that the disclosed structure can also be pivoted about its three pivots to provide the same basic configurations while covering the right ear with an earphone and preventing the left ear from being covered with an earphone. 
     An alternative possible mono configuration is shown in  FIGS. 10 and 11  with one earphone portion  40   a  moved forward of the wearer&#39;s left ear with the boom microphone  46  extending there from towards the wearer&#39;s mouth as shown in  FIG. 10  and the opposite earphone portion  40   b  covering the wearer&#39;s right ear as shown in  FIG. 11 . It can be appreciated that the disclosed structure can also be pivoted about its three pivots to provide the same basic configurations while covering the left ear with an earphone and preventing the right ear from being covered with an earphone. 
     Preferably, the earphone portion  40   a  positioned nearest to the mini-boom microphone  46  is displaced from the wearer&#39;s ear during mono use as best shown in  FIG. 10 . However, the disclosed structure also allows a user to position the earphone furthest away from the mini-boom microphone away from the user&#39;s ear during mono use as shown in  FIG. 5 . 
     Preferably, the first and second pivots  47   a,    47   b  are aligned along a defined three dimensional angle with respect to the headband  32  so as to optimize wearer comfort. This defined angle is shown as three two-dimensional angles in  FIGS. 18-20  and labeled “angle  1 ” ( FIG. 18 ), “angle  2 ” ( FIG. 19 ), and “angle  3 ” ( FIG. 20 ). Preferably, “angle  1 ”, which biases the position of the earphone portion of the audio set to fit the angle of a human ear when viewed from the top of the head is 12 degrees plus or minus 10 degrees. “Angle  2 ” ( FIG. 19 ), which is the angle between the intersection of the first pivot  47   a  and the second pivot  48 , is preferably 25 degrees plus or minus 20 degrees and “angle  3 ”, which is the angle between the common plane  34  of the headband  32  and the longitudinal centerline  45  of the headset mounting portion  42 , is preferably about 60 degrees plus or minus 30 degrees. More preferably, “angle  3 ” is about 63 degrees. 
     More preferably, the first and second pivots  47   a.    47   b  includes a detent mechanism  60  to allow proper alignment when the audio set  30  is positioned for wearing adjacent to either a wearer&#39;s left or right ears. Preferably, four detents are provided, one for the left ear position shown in  FIG. 4 , one for the right ear position shown in  FIG. 7 , one for the first desired mono position shown in  FIG. 10 , and one for the second desired mono position shown in  FIG. 9 . 
     One possible pivot structure for the first and second pivot  47   a,    47   b  is shown in  FIG. 6 . The opposite ends  44  of the headband  32  each include a recess  62  defining a cam surface  64 . Recesses  66  are placed at defined positions along the cam surface  64  to define the detent positions. The headset mounting portion  42  includes a circular recess  68  sized to rotate about a circular protrusion  70  extending from the first end  44  of the headband  32 . Preferably, a resilient o-ring  47  is positioned between the circular recess  68  and the circular protrusion  70  to create frictional holding force. A detent spring  72  is positioned within the recess  62  and secured to the headset mounting portion  42  with a fastener  74 . Preferably the detent spring  72  is sized to engage the recesses  66  in the cam surface  64  thereby urging the headset mounting portion  42  to one of the defined detents. More preferably, a cover  76  covers the fastener  74  and detent spring  72 . 
     A possible pivot structure for the third pivot  48  is shown in  FIG. 6 . The headset mounting portion  42  includes a substantially circular opening  80  about which the mini-boom microphone is pivotally secured thereto. The headset-mounting portion  42  preferably includes operating electronics therein. Preferably, an o-ring  86  is positioned within the circular opening  80  to hold a desired position of the mini-boom microphone. The personal audio set may be wired or wireless. 
     If desired, the electronics can contain suitable electronic control systems and control logic to deactivate the earphone not positioned adjacent to a wearer&#39;s ear during mono-use. This deactivation can be manually activated through a control button or the like positioned on the personal audio-set, or automatically detected by the control system based on predetermined criteria such as the position of the earphone mounting portions relative to the predetermined detents on the pivots. Alternatively, the control system can deactivate one earphone during use of the mini-boom microphone such as when a user is initially listening to music from one source, and then receives a phone call from another source. 
     Preferably, controls  125  in communication with the electronics, such as volume control, channel selection, on/off and the like are provided on an exterior surface of one of the earphone mounting portions. More preferably, these controls are positioned so as to allow them to be substantially at the same locations relative to the earphone mounting portion when that earphone mounting portion is worn on either the wearer&#39;s left or right ears. For example, the primary control is preferably a button positioned on the centerline of the earphone. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 21-34 , and alternative preferred behind-the-head personal audio set  30 ′ is disclosed. In order to reduce undue repetition, like elements between this embodiment and the previously described embodiment have like element numbers. 
     The headband  32 ′ of this embodiment preferably has an arcuate, substantially planar central portion  33  with downward curved distal ends  35  sized to extend over and down in front of the wearer&#39;s ears as best shown in  FIG. 22 . 
     Each earphone portion  40   a,    40   b  is secured to a base portion  43  that is preferably pivotally secured toward the distal ends  35  of the headband  32 ′ to define a pivot A. Preferably, pivot A is positioned vertically below the wearer&#39;s ear canal. More preferably, each distal end  35  of the headband  32 ′ defines a pivot A, and both pivots A are aligned coincident with each other. 
     Preferably, an opposite engaging Belleville spring assembly  45  shown in  FIG. 34  preferably operably holds the base portion  43  relative to the headband  32 ′ at each pivot A. Accordingly, each earphone portion  40   a,    40   b  is infinitely positionable about its respective pivot A with the Belleville spring assembly operably holding each earphone at its selected position. 
     Each earphone portion  40   a,    40   b  preferably includes an ear pad for engaging the wearer&#39;s ear. Alternatively, each earphone portion can include another form of acoustic delivery ear engaging structure such as a wedge or the like. 
     If desired, a plurality of spaced-apart, substantially vertically aligned pivot mounts  100  can be provided toward the distal ends  35  of the headband  32 ′ as best shown in  FIGS. 32-33 . Accordingly, a user can vertically adjust the location of pivot A as needed to optimize wearer comfort simply by changing the pivot mount into which the base  43  is attached. 
     More Preferably and as best shown in  FIGS. 23 &amp; 26 , each earphone portion  40   a.    40   b  is also slidably secured to the base portion  43  so as to be slidable toward and away from pivot A as shown. One possible structure for sliding the earphone is shown in  FIG. 28 . Slider  150  protrudes through slot  152  to operably engage the earphone as shown and thereby allow the earphone to slide in the direction of arrows  154   
     More preferably, the distal ends  35  of the behind-the-head headband  32 ′ are pivotally secured to the base central portion  33  as shown in  FIG. 21 . Accordingly, the distal end portion may be pivoted as shown for storage. 
     Also, the distal ends  35  of the headband portion  32 ′ can be telescopically secured to the base central portion  33  as shown in  FIG. 35 , thereby making the headband substantially horizontally adjustable. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 21 ,  23  and  29 , the distal ends  35  of the behind-the-head headband  32 ′ is preferably pivotally secured to the base portion of the headband as shown to define pivots B that pivot substantially about the longitudinal centerline of the behind-the-head headband. More preferably, biasing members, such as coil springs or the like, are operably secured between the sections as shown to bias the distal ends in a neutral position. 
     If desired, a boom microphone  46 ′ can be pivotally secured toward the distal ends of the headband as shown. Preferably, the pivot for the boom microphone is spaced-apart from Pivot A. 
     Having described and illustrated the principles of our invention with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be apparent that the invention can be modified in arrangement and detail without departing from such principles. In view of the many possible embodiments to which the principles may be put, it should be recognized that the detailed embodiment is illustrative only and should not be taken as limiting the scope of our invention. Accordingly, we claim as our invention all such modifications as may come within the scope and spirit of the following claims and equivalents thereto.