Patent Publication Number: US-9406456-B2

Title: Smart electrical switch with audio capability

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of patent application Ser. No. 14/788,726, filed on Jun. 30, 2015 by the present inventor. 
     This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/054,389, filed on Sep. 24, 2014 by the present inventor. 
    
    
     REFERENCES 
     The following is a tabulation of some prior art that presently appears relevant: 
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     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates generally to systems and methods for combining audio capability and user controls on the grille portion of a speaker. In particular the technology relates to a building-based electrical switch having an audio speaker, whereby a portion of the switch faceplate comprises a speaker grille speaker that provides means for both sound transmission and electrical switching. 
     BACKGROUND 
     The proliferation of consumer wireless electronics (e.g. smartphones, tablet PCs and laptops) has resulted in consumers increasingly carrying music collections with them. Speaker manufacturers have responded to this market trend by making smaller, more portable wireless speakers and wireless multi-room speakers (e.g., Bluetooth portable speakers and multi-room Wi-Fi speakers). As the form factor of wireless speakers shrinks, the area available for user input controls (e.g. Volume, Play, Pause) has also decreased. In a related area smart home electronics are becoming more popular. It would be advantageous to incorporate a speaker into new implementations of traditional devices (e.g. electrical switches, Thermostats and door locks). Providing adequate music-quality sound in a small enclosure is difficult, in part because speakers typically requires a large volume of space in a device enclosure. The space required to transmit sound form a speaker in a smart home device (e.g. a thermostat or light switch) competes for available space with the legacy control functions of traditional home control devices (e.g. electrical switches and Buttons and keypads, door-bells and light fixtures). For example the size and shape of household electrical junction boxes has remained largely unchanged since the 1940&#39;s. A building based, wall-mounted electrical switch (e.g. light switch) typically comprises of three parts: a junction box located on or within the wall, one or more switches mounted inside the junction box (e.g. paddle and button types) and a faceplate to cover the switches. The junction box has one or more bays to accommodate one or more switches. Each bay is approximately 2 inches wide and 4 inches high, therefore a 2-bay box would be 4 inches wide and could accommodate two standard light switches. When a house is constructed, the size of each junction box is typically selected to implement the lighting design. There are typically no unused or empty bays in junction boxes. This practice of “right-sizing” junction boxes is in part because unused bays must be covered for safety purposes and the presence of nonfunctioning extra bays with blank cover plates can be confusing to users. Recent trends in smart home appliances (e.g. wirelessly enabled lights and switches) make these prewired electrical junction boxes attractive location for new functionality. The practice of selecting the size of junction boxes to fit the original electrical requirements (e.g. lighting requirements and the need for switch-activated electrical outlets) is problematic to the task of adding additional functionality within junction boxes in existing homes. An ongoing challenge is how to increase the functionality within household electrical boxes while maintain the original functionality, which is often to provide electrical switching (e.g. light switches). 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,914,826 disclose a speaker placed beside a light switch in a two-bay junction box. The speaker occupies one bay of the junction box. One disadvantages of this approach is that it reduces the functionality of the junction box by 1 switch. Another disadvantage is that this speaker-switch combination cannot be implemented in a single-bay junction box. U.S. Pat. No. 6,091,037 discloses a more compact speaker-switch combination but still requires a 2-bay junction box. Means of implementing these designs in a 1-bay box is not disclosed. This is an important limitation since the light switch in many rooms is located in a single-bay junction box. Importantly U.S. Pat. No. 7,608,948, U.S. Pat. No. 5,914,826 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,091,037 do not provide means to effectively combine the functions of sound transmission and electrical switching. In conclusion, insofar as I am aware, no electrical switch assembly previously disclosed has provided a built-in speaker while maintaining the functionality of all available switching bays in the junction box. Similarly, no electrical switch assembly has combined both a speaker and a lighting switch in a single-bay configuration. Similarly, no electrical switch assembly has provided a faceplate that effectively combines sound transmission and electrical switching. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one aspect of the present disclosure an interactive speaker faceplate with a touch sensitive grille area is disclosed. Methods to implement touch sensitivity on a speaker grille are provided while promoting effective sound transmission from a speaker behind the interactive grille. 
     In one embodiment a building-based electrical switch assembly (e.g. a light switch) in a wall-mounted junction box includes a speaker and an interactive speaker grille. The speaker grille has a several distinct touch-sensitive regions and fulfills the legacy functionality of one or more electrical switches. The design enables a bigger speaker to be centrally located in the junction box, for enhanced music quality, while maintaining all of the functionality of the electrical switch. The faceplate can be located similarly to a traditional light switch faceplate. The faceplate covers the transition from the wall to the junction box. The faceplate of the present system can also have a plurality of openings forming a speaker grille for the speaker. The openings extend over the center region of the faceplate to provide protection for the speaker cone behind, while allowing sound vibrations to be emitted from the speaker. 
     In some embodiments of this disclosure the faceplate and speaker grille are made from electrically insulating material and fulfills a design requirement to electrically insulating the user from high voltage wires and components associated with the electrical switch assembly. The speaker grille region provides the functionality of one or more electrical switches. Sensors disposed behind the speaker grille sense direct user interaction with several regions of the faceplate. Sensors signals are used to operate low voltage switches (e.g. touch sensitive switches). Low voltage switches can be combined with high voltage switches (e.g. relays and triacs) to implement the electrical switching functionality of a standard electrical switch, while much of the volume inside the electrical junction box is devoted to housing a speaker. 
     In one aspect of the disclosure, the grille section of the faceplate has a plurality of touch-sensitive regions enabled by touch sensors behind the front insulating faceplate. One or more of the touch sensors can also provide control over aspects of the speaker. In another aspect of the disclosure touch sensitive electrodes can be disposed on a substrate behind the grille, wherein the substrate has a plurality of opening that align with the grille, thereby providing touch sensitive functionality to the grille while maintaining the sound quality from the speaker and providing electrical insulation. 
     The disclosed designs enable the faceplate to act as both a grille for the speaker and as one or more electrical switches and thereby allows for a larger speaker to be placed centrally in the junction box, while maintaining full electrical switch functionality. This in turn allows the user to control the electrical switches and experience improved sound quality. In other embodiments illumination components are arranged on a circuit board with a plurality of openings aligning with the grille. The illumination components (e.g. electroluminescent regions) can light regions of the faceplate, indicating the current state of one or more electrical switches ((e.g. ON/OFF or degree of dimming). In this manner the speaker grille can act as an interactive control panel while not diminishing sound quality. 
     In some embodiments the speaker grille enables the system to detect when a person is proximal to the switch and activate an aspect of the speaker or switch. In one embodiment the speaker grille is an insulating material with conductive features deposited on the interior surface to enable person detection. In other embodiments elements deposited on the interior surface of the faceplate enable indication of the state of the switch. The techniques described in this specification can be implemented to achieve the following exemplary advantages: 
     Improved sound quality from an electrical switch by centrally locating a speaker where the switch typically resides. The system can be retrofitted in a building-based electrical junction box that is fully utilized without loss of any of the electrical load switching functionality. For example, previously a 2-bay junction box could accommodate a 2-inch wide speaker and a single 2-inch wide switch, thereby diminishing the functionality of the junction box by one switch while only allowing allow the speaker to occupy half of the junction box. With the present system both bays (4 inch by 4 inch) can be devoted to the speaker and the electrical switches can be implemented using the touch-sensitive speaker grille. The speaker can provide audio feedback when the switch is actuated, thereby providing the user with a familiar “click” sound associated with actuating a mechanical switch. The electrical switch with audio functionality can function as a wireless speaker for example a Bluetooth speaker offered to a hotel guest, while the location of the speaker is ensured by the placement of the speaker in the wall and power is supplied continuously from the electrical junction box. 
     A plurality of regions of the grille can illuminate in response to a user touching the faceplate and grille portion and can guide the user to correctly operate the switch or to indicate the current position of a switch or dimmer switch. Still further advantages will become apparent from a study of the following description and the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is an exemplary diagram of the front faceplate of an electrical switch assembly with audio capability and means for a user to operate two switches in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. 
         FIGS. 2A and 2B  is a disassembled view of an electrical switch assembly with audio capability, including a speaker, and a touch sensitive faceplate in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a block diagram illustrating various components of an electrical switch assembly with audio capability in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIGS. 4A and 4B  illustrates an exemplary front view of a faceplate with a touch sensitive speaker grille and two circuit boards in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIGS. 5A to 5C . illustrates a finger interacting with a target sensor electrode and a neighboring sensor electrode in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIG. 6  illustrates an insulating electrical substrate with conductive electrodes designed in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIG. 7  illustrates various elements of an indicator light assembly including insulating electrical substrate with light emitting elements in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIGS. 8A and 8B  illustrate exemplary front views of a faceplate with a speaker grille operable to sense direct user interaction in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary rear view of a faceplate with a touch sensitive speaker grille in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIG. 10  illustrates is a disassembled view of an interactive speaker grille in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 11  illustrates exemplary front views of a faceplate with a speaker grille and solid center section in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. 
         FIG. 12  is a flow chart diagram that outlines the operation of an electrical switch assembly with audio capability in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 13  is a flow chart diagram that outlines the operation of an electrical switch assembly with audio capability and illuminated switch indication in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 14  is a flow chart diagram that outlines the operation of an interactive speaker grille with audio capability and illuminated grille regions in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure. 
         FIG. 15  is a flow chart diagram that outlines the operations associated with integrating an electrical switch assembly with audio capability, including a touch sensitive speaker grille. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     FIG.  1 -FIG.  11   
     In the following detailed description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the various implementations of the present invention. Those of ordinary skill in the art will realize that these various implementations of the present invention are illustrative only and are not intended to be limiting in any way. Other implementations of the present invention will readily suggest themselves to such skilled persons having the benefit of this disclosure. 
     In addition, for clarity purposes, not all of the routine features of the implementations described herein are shown or described. One of ordinary skill in the art would readily appreciate that in the development of any such actual implementation, numerous implementation-specific decisions may be required to achieve specific design objectives. These design objectives will vary from one implementation to another and from one developer to another. Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time-consuming but would nevertheless be a routine engineering undertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure. 
     It is to be appreciated that while one or more implementations are described further herein in the context of a typical building based electrical switch assembly used in a residential home, such as single-family residential home, the scope of the present teachings is not so limited. More generally, electrical switches with audio capability according to one or more of the preferred implementations are applicable for a wide variety of buildings having one or more speakers including, without limitation, duplexes, townhomes, multi-unit apartment buildings, hotels, retail stores, office buildings and industrial buildings. Further it is to be appreciated that an electrical switch with audio capability according to the implementations disclosed could be implemented in ships and airplanes. Further, it is to be appreciated that while the terms user, customer, installer, homeowner, occupant, guest, tenant, landlord, repair person, and the like may be used to refer to the person or persons who are interacting with the speaker or other device or user interface in the context of one or more scenarios described herein, these references are by no means to be considered as limiting the scope of the present teachings with respect to the person or persons who are performing such actions. 
       FIG. 1  is a diagram illustrating the front view of an exemplary wall-mounted electrical switch assembly  100  in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. The electrical switch assembly  100  is designed to reside in an electrical junction box (not shown in  FIG. 1 ).  FIG. 1  illustrates a 2-bay switch assembly. A touch sensitive faceplate  105  controls power to two wires  110   a  and  110   b  and thereby controls the operation of two lights  115   a  and  115   b . Alternative implementations of this disclosure can include other sizes of electrical switch assembly optimized for different sizes of electrical junction box designed to serve different numbers of building-based electrical devices (e.g. Lights, switch operated electrical outlets or garbage disposals). For example, a single bay junction box is common in many bedrooms to accommodate a single light switch, while other locations may have three or four bay junction boxes. Faceplate  105  contains a plurality of openings  120  that form a speaker grille  114 . A substantial portion of the faceplate  105  can be occupied by speaker grille  114  (e.g. 50-100% of the total area of the front surface of faceplate  105 ). Grille  114  protects a speaker (not shown in  FIG. 1 ) located behind the faceplate while enabling effective sound transmission through the openings  120 . The faceplate, and in particular speaker grille  114 , is touch-sensitive, thereby enabling a person  125  to touch portions of the speaker grille  114  to operate lights  115   a  and  115   b . Speaker grille  114  combines a variety of functions including sound transmission, light switch control, speaker protection and user protection. Aspects of the present disclosure show how to implement touch sensor functionality, while providing sound transmission through a large number of openings in the grille  114 . The touch sensitive speaker grille  114  and faceplate  105  can register binary user commands (e.g. ON/OFF) as well as continuum user input commands (e.g. increase illumination with a dimmer). Elements  130   a ,  130   b  and  130   c  are regions of the faceplate that illuminate in order to further facilitate a user  125  with visual feedback. For example elements  130   a  and  130   b  can show the present state of the electrical switches number  1  and number  2  (e.g. ON/OFF/dimmed). In one implementation elements  130   a  and  130   b  are two elongated lines of light indicating the position of two dimmer switches. The user  125  can touch the faceplate  105  and drag the illuminated indication regions  130   a  and  130   b  up or down to a desired location and controlling lights  115  in the process. Faceplate  105  designed in accordance with the present disclosure provides means for visual switch position indication and touch sensitive surfaces while facilitating sound transmission with a large speaker grille portion  114 . In some implementations the touch sensitive speaker grille  114  can provide improved access for sensors positioned behind the faceplate (e.g. passive Infrared, active infrared proximity sensors or temperature sensors) to measure the environment in the region in front of the faceplate  105 . In some implementations sensors located behind the touch-sensitive speaker grille can provide enhanced sensing of a person in the vicinity of the switch assembly and illuminate regions  130   a ,  130   b  and  130   c  when a person is nearby. In the implementation illustrated in  FIG. 1  electrical switch assembly  100 , receives wireless signals  135  and can play music or audio messages from a variety of wireless devices  140 , for example a smartphone  140   a , a tablet PC  140   b  or a media server  140   c . The media server  140   c  can be an internet gateway (e.g. a home broadband internet router) and transmit internet radio content to electrical switch assembly  100 . 
       FIGS. 2A and 2B  are disassembled views of an electrical switch assembly including a speaker grille  214  that can sense direct user interaction (e.g. touch or pressure) in accordance with one implementation of the present disclosure. Switch assembly  100  contains a housing  210 . Housing  210  is a mechanical enclosure for components of electrical switch assembly  100 . In one implementation housing  210  provides electrical and mechanical separation for components in electrical switch assembly  100  from the contents (e.g. wires) in an electrical junction box  215 . Housing  210  can contain two or more electrical terminals  290  operable to be attached to building-based wiring. Building based wiring can include wiring within the walls of a building or carried in metallic or plastic tubing for the purpose of electrically connecting switches and service points in the building. Service points can include wall mounted electrical sockets, HVAC equipment, sprinkler components and lighting fixtures in ceilings and walls. Examples of terminals  290  include screw terminal (e.g. those found on many light switches) and wire pigtails (e.g. a length of wire protruding from the housing). Housing  210  may be sized to fit in an electrical junction box  215  of a particular size. For example the two-bay junction box illustrated in  FIG. 1  is approximately 4 inches wide and can accommodate two standard electrical light switches. The exemplary housing  210  in  FIG. 1  is approximately 4 inches wide and 4 inches high and is designed to fit inside the majority of two-bay electrical junction boxes. Housing  210  has forward facing surfaces  217   a  and  217   b.    
     Housing  210  contains a speaker  205  operable to generate sound in the region of the assembly. Speaker  205  functions to emit sound through the grille portion  214  of faceplate  105 . Grille  214  and grille  114  are operable similar exemplary grilles with different shapes. Speaker  205  can be an electromagnetic type speaker with an external or internal electromagnet. In  FIG. 2A  speaker  205  is located centrally in housing  210  and can occupy the position traditionally occupied by one or more mechanical switches. In another aspect of several embodiments the speaker grille is designed to fulfill the function of the electrical switches, including dimmer switches, that would traditionally occupy the space where speaker  205  is placed. Speaker  205  can have mounting features securing it to the housing  210  and in some embodiments an air-tight seal is be formed between speaker  205  and housing  210  that enables further audio quality enhancement. Speaker  205  can have a mounting flange  206  operable to secure the speaker to housing  210 . Mounting flange  206  can have a variety of shapes including square or circular. Speaker  205  has a speaker cone  207  operable to move in the positive and negative Z direction when the electromagnet in the speaker is energized. The cone has a forward facing surface operable to project sound in the Z direction. In one embodiment the electrical switch assembly is designed to fit inside a 1-bay electrical junction box with dimensions of approximately 2 inches in the Y direction of  FIG. 2A  and 4 inches in the direction of X in  FIG. 2B . In this embodiment the assembly  100  could contain a 3 W 4 ohm speaker with a speaker cone with a diameter of approximately 50 mm. In another embodiment the electrical switch assembly  100  is designed to fit inside a 2-bay electrical junction box with dimensions of approximately 4 inches in the Y direction of  FIG. 2A  and 4 inches in the positive X direction in  FIG. 2B . In this embodiment assembly  100  can contain a larger speaker with a cone of diameter 76 mm. Speaker  205  could be model number 1-530-767-12 from Sony. Speaker  205  can have a similar design to the speaker component used in a portable Bluetooth or Wi-Fi enabled wireless speaker, for example Jawbone Jambox®. In some embodiments electrical switch assembly  100  can include two or more speakers. This is sometimes advantageous when more sound volume is required than can be provided by a single speaker. 
     Electrical switch assembly  100  can contain a faceplate  105  with a front surface including portions  212   a  and  212   b . The front surface can include a large portion  212   a  in the X-Y plane and can also include the edges of the faceplate  212   b . The front surface including portions  212   a  and  212   b  provide surface for the user to interact while at the same time faceplate  105  provides electrical isolation, between the user and high voltage components in the switch assembly behind the faceplate. Faceplate  105  can be constructed from a variety of materials including plastics, glass or enamel covered metal or metal. Faceplate  105  can be flat with rounded edges as illustrated in  FIG. 2A  and  FIG. 2B . In other embodiments faceplate  105  can have a curved structure that can provide increased mechanical stiffness, when the front of the faceplate is touched or pressed. Faceplate  105  can contain one or more ribs molded on the interior surfaces to further increase mechanical stiffness. Faceplate  105  can function to conceal the gaps between the enclosure  210  and the electrical junction box  215 . The faceplate provides an aesthetically pleasing front surface for the user to interact with while concealing gaps between paint or drywall interfaces and junction box  215 .  FIG. 2B  illustrates that faceplate  105  contains a plurality of openings  120  that form a speaker grille portion  214  of the faceplate. Openings  120  can have a variety of shapes including circular, diamond, or oval. Speaker grille  214  is designed to transmit sound into the air space in front of the faceplate in a manner so as to provide effective sound to a user in the vicinity of the electrical switch assembly.  FIG. 11  illustrates that speaker grille can be disposed as a complex shape comprising a plurality of openings  120  surround one or more solid sections  1110 . A solid section  1110  could be a decorative surface for a manufacturer to place a logo, hold a button, hold a touch sensitive button or an illuminated element. In the context of this disclosure a speaker grille refers to a portion of the faceplate  105  comprising a plurality of openings operable to transmit sound from a speaker and would not include the solid section  1110  illustrated in  FIG. 11 . In some embodiment the grille comprises several small clusters of openings. In this case the grille can refer to the combined portions of the faceplate covered by the openings. In the absence of molded features, edges or material differences delineating the boundary of the speaker grille  214  portion of faceplate  105 , the grille portion can considered to be bounded by straight lines joining the points on the perimeter of those openings that form the perimeter of a plurality of openings. Faceplate  105  contains one or more regions  240  wherein direct user input (e.g., touching, swiping or pressing) is operable to be sensed by one or more sensor electrodes  255 . For example regions  240   a ,  240   b  and  240   c  in  FIG. 2A  are exemplary touch sensitive regions used to control the operation of two electrical switches. In one implementation user input region  240   a  functions as a binary switch to turn off switch number  2 . While the exact mechanism for turning off switch number  2  in response to direct user input is detailed later, it can be appreciated that regions  240  are operable to initiate the process of controlling one or more electrical switches. For example the region  240   c  is operable to receive direct user input and direct user input sensors  330  (in  FIG. 3 ) behind the faceplate can initiate the turn on of switch number  2 . In another example a user input region  240   b  of the faceplate  105  can function to act as analog switch, capable of controlling light  115   a  to have a value within a range of switch values (e.g. from 0 to 100). Examples of analog switches include slider actuators, dimmer switches, rotary dial switches. Physical features on the faceplate can indicate the intended function of a region. For example in  FIG. 2B  switch number  1  and switch number  2  can be separated by a molded feature  225  delineating the boundary between the two switches on the common faceplate. Features  225  can also be deposited on the faceplate using other technologies including printing, etching, painting, overlay or electroplating. User input regions can control a function that is variable and dynamically defined by a computer processor. Region  240   d  illustrate an example of a region that could initiate a plurality of control functions in a speaker application for example changing the volume, selecting a song, playing or pausing music or selecting an input source. In one implementation the function of  240   d  can be defined by the direction or gesture the user makes while touching the region. For example swiping up and down may control light switch functionality, while swiping from left to right may decrease sound volume of the speaker and right to left may increase sound volume. The differentiation of these functions can be provided by the sequence of sensors  330  (in  FIG. 3 ) activated behind the front surface of region  240   d . The function of region  240   d  can be based in part the prior sequence of regions  240  that the user has interacted with. Illuminated sections of the faceplate  130  can indicate the present functionality of region  240   d.    
     In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 2B  speaker grille  214  occupies a large portion of the faceplate  105 . In this context a large portion can range from 30-100% of the faceplate area. In one aspect of this disclosure user input regions  240  overlap with grille  214 . In some embodiments user input regions can be fully contained within the grille portion of the faceplate. Speaker grilles are common on most speakers, where they provide mechanical protection for the sensitive speaker components while providing a path for sound vibrations to be emitted. 
     Electrical switch faceplates are required to provide electrical insulation between a user and high voltage components (e.g. wires) inside the junction box. In one aspect of the present disclosure electrical switch assembly  100  has a speaker grille  214  made from an electrically insulating material, for example plastic, glass, glass filled plastic, or ceramic. In one embodiment shown in  FIG. 2A  and  FIG. 2B  the grille and the surrounding area of the faceplate are made from the same piece of plastic, with the grille comprising a plurality of openings  120  covering the center section of the faceplate. In other embodiments the grille may be different material from the rest of faceplate, for example a plastic grille with an insulated metallic faceplate. The openings can be a wide variety of shapes (e.g. circular, square or elongated slots). A speaker grille is a combination of openings  120  and solid portions between the openings. The arrangement of openings and solid portions often forms a pattern and enhances the aesthetic appeal of the speaker enclosure. The combination of openings  120  and solid support material is designed to achieve competing goals of blocking or filtering objects larger than the grille openings while enabling air and sound waves to pass through the grille. The grille is not a perfect sound transmitter. The solid portions of the grille attenuate or diminish several physical properties such as sound intensity, light intensity and air flow. Sound attenuation can be caused by sound reflected back towards the speaker as it attempts to pass through the grille. 
       FIG. 2A  illustrates a circuit board  260  behind the faceplate  105  and placed in front of the speaker  205 . The circuit board has an insulating substrate  262  that functions to hold conductors  254  and sensor electrodes  255  operable to sense direct user input. Conductors  254  can function to carry signals to and from sensor electrodes and can have a large ratio of length to width (e.g. &gt;100). Modern circuit board manufacturing technologies such as photolithography and foil etching can produce conductor features  254  as narrow as 40 micrometers. Electrodes are operable to sense an aspect of a user (e.g., capacitive or resistance changes associated with a user touching the front surface of faceplate  105 . Electrodes can have a larger surface are and smaller aspect ratio than conductors on the same circuit board. Circuit board  260  has a plurality of openings (e.g.  220   a  and  220   b ). Openings  220   a  and  220   b  function to enable sound from the speaker  205  to pass through the substrate. Openings  220  are designed to align with openings  120  in the faceplate so as to not to add to the overall sound attenuation and reflection of the grille. In one implementation opening  220   a  is larger than the corresponding opening  120   a  in the faceplate and can be large enough to cover multiple holes in the front faceplate. In one implementation  220   a  can be larger than the opening  120   a  in the speaker grille. For example openings  220   a  could be a slot encompassing two openings in the faceplate. In some embodiments circuit board  260  can be a rigid circuit board made from layers of fiberglass and epoxy with deposited conductors. In other implementations circuit board  260  is a flexible circuit board. The faceplate  105  with speaker grille  214  can be combined with one or more circuit boards  260  to form an interactive grille. The interactive grille enables the switch assembly to transmit sound while accomplishing the task of switch power to household items. The switching functionality is accomplished by splitting the switching task into two functions sensing and power switching. The interactive grille enables the sensing to take place on the sound transmitting grille while the power switching is accomplished by circuitry located away from the path of sound transmission. Examples of circuitry located away from the path of sound transmission include low voltage switches and high voltage switches located behind the speaker in enclosure  210 . One high voltage switch  280  is illustrated behind the speaker in  FIG. 2A . In the context of this disclosure high voltage refers to voltages with magnitudes greater than 20 volts. Low voltage refers to voltages with magnitudes in the range 0-20 volts. Examples of high voltage switches include electromechanical relays, solid state relays and triacs. A triac is a fast solid state switch often used to implement dimmer switches in buildings. Grille  214  can be larger than the speaker cone  207  extend beyond the speaker in the X-Y plane, thereby providing the benefits of access to the surrounding air to additional sensors in the electrical switch assembly. The speaker cone  207  is defined by the inside perimeter of speaker flange  206 . For example a microphone  268  could be placed in the housing and behind the grille, whereby the interactive grille provides improved sound coupling and therefore improved sound sensing in the vicinity of switch assembly  100 . Similarly, a passive infrared sensor  269  can be placed behind the interactive grille to sense motion in the vicinity of the speaker. Openings in the grille provide enhanced motion sensitivity. In other embodiment some or all of the sensor electrodes  255  can be deposited directly onto the rear surface of the speaker grille using electroplating or conductive inks. It would be known to someone skilled in the art that conductors and electrodes can be deposited on 3-dimensional polymer parts using modern technologies such as Laser Direct Structuring (LDS) or Molded Interconnect Device MID technology. 
     Mounting features  256  on the housing  210  can be connected to corresponding mounting features  222  on the electrical junction box  215 . For example  256  can be an oblong opening in the housing  210  and feature  222  can be a threaded hole. A screw could be used to connect  256  and  222 . This arrangement enables fine adjustment of the orientation of the housing. In some embodiments additional mounting features  257   a - d  are operable to secure faceplate  105  to the housing  210 . In several embodiments mounting features  257   a - d  are load sensors. This enables the faceplate to be attached to the housing in a manner enables the load sensors  257   a - d  to generate sensor signals when the faceplate is touched or pressed. For example mounting features  257   a - d  could be planar beam type load sensors such as those available from Omega Engineering INC, Stamford Conn. In some embodiments there may more or less load sensors than the four shown in  FIG. 2A . In response to a user touching or swiping an area of the faceplate the timing and sequence of load sensors values can be used to determine the area touched and the motion pathway (e.g., swipe in the up direction or down direction) 
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram of an exemplary electrical switch assembly  100 , illustrating electrical components used to provide the two functions of sound transmission and electrical switching in accordance with one implementation of the disclosure. Wireless devices  140  can transmit wireless signals  135  to the electrical switch assembly  100 . Switch assembly  100  contains an antenna  305  to receive wireless signals  135 . Antenna  305  can be printed on a circuit board, a discrete stamped metal component or an electroplated feature on a surface. In one embodiment of the disclosure the antenna can be deposited or attached to a subassembly including faceplate  105 . On advantage of attaching or depositing the antenna on the faceplate is that placement of the antenna outside of the metal junction box can improve the antenna range and sensitivity. The antenna is operably coupled to a wireless receiver  306 . Receiver  306  can be operable to receive and demodulate a variety of common wireless audio protocols such as amplitude modulated (AM) or frequency modulated (FM) radio signals (e.g. 88.9-107.7 MHz), Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or Apple Airplay®. Receiver  306  can be part of a transceiver module that also includes transmission capability. Receiver  306  transmits demodulated wireless messages  307  to a speaker processor  308 . The speaker process performs operations to convert the digital wireless messages into audio frequencies. These operations can include digital-to-analog conversion, amplification, equalization, error correction, echo cancellation, bass enhancement, or introducing a delay to one or more frequency components. Speaker process  308  and wireless receiver  306  can be integrated into a single module or microchip. For example a Bluetooth wireless speaker can have a single chip receiver and speaker processor. Electrical switch assembly  100  can include an audio amplifier  309 . Amplifier  309  operates to receive audio signals from the speaker processor, to increase the power of these signals and to transmit amplified audio signals  316  to the speaker  205 . Amplifier  309  can be a single chip amplifier or can comprise multiple discrete transistors. Amplifier  309  can be a class A, B, A/B C or D amplifier. Amplifier  309  transmits amplified signals to the speaker. Amplifier  309  can be for a PAM1803 Class D audio amplifier available from Diode INC, Plano Tex. The amplifier  309 , speaker processor  308 , and receiver  306  can be housed behind the speaker, away from the path of sound transmission. 
     Electrical switch assembly  100  contains a plurality of direct user input sensors  310 . Direct user input sensors operate to sense direct user interaction with user input regions  240  of the faceplate  105 . Examples of direct user interaction include touching or pressing the faceplate. Examples of direct user input sensors include sensor electrodes  255 ,  605   a ,  605   b  (shown in  FIG. 6 ) and a load sensors  257   a - d . Other examples of a direct user input sensor could be a membrane switch such as found on many modern appliances such as a washing machine or stove control panel. Direct user input sensors  310  can operate to sense direct user input based on a variety of standard technologies. Examples of direct user input technology are capacitive touch sensing, resistive touch sensing, surface acoustic wave touch sensing and pressure sensing. In surface acoustic touch sensing a surface acoustic wave is generated on the front surface of the faceplate by one or more transmitters. Aspects of the reflected signals (e.g. arrival time and intensity) are used to sense a user touching the faceplate surface. In response to direct user input, sensors  310  generate direct sensor signals  311   a . Direct sensor signals  311   a  can be current, voltage, frequency or sound intensity changes associated with user input sensed by one or more direct user input sensors  310 . In some embodiments an electrical connector  315  provides two separable halves that enable electrical connections to be made between conductors  254  and one or more low voltage switches  320 . One half of electrical connector  315  may be disposed on a circuit board  260  and the other side may be disposed inside the housing  210 . When a person attaches circuit board  260  to the housing  210  electrical connector  315  can connect electrical signals between conductors  254  and circuitry in the housing. 
     In one embodiment of the present disclosure, electrical switch assembly  100  provides the two functions of sound transmission and electrical load control using touch sensitive switches. In this embodiment the grille  214  is a touch sensitive surface while the other circuitry required to accomplish electrical switching function is positioned away from the sound transmission path of one or more centrally located speakers. The exemplary electrical switch assembly  100  illustrated in  FIG. 3  contains a low voltage switches  320 . Other implementations may contain multiple low voltage switches. The switch can be located in housing  210 . The switch can function to convert sensor signals  311   a  and  311   b  into low voltage switch output signals  322 . Low voltage switch  320  can comprise a microchip or microcontroller. Many modern microcontrollers can have dedicated circuitry designed to implement low voltage touch sensitive switches. For example the Texas Instruments MSP430 processor from and the MicroChip DSPic33 processor families have analog-to-digital circuitry operable to implement the functionality of the low voltage switch  320 . In some embodiments this circuitry enables conversion of direct user interaction with a surface (e.g. touching or pressing) into low voltage switch output signals  322 . In some embodiments sensor signals  311  can cause small changes in the frequency of an oscillating circuit inside the low voltage switch  320 . The processor is operable to measure these frequency changes and control one or more low voltage switch output signals  322  based on frequency changes. This type of frequency measurement is often used to transduce sensor signals from capacitive touch sensors. Several electrodes can be sequentially connected to a frequency measurement circuit inside low voltage switch  320  and switch  320  can identify when the user touches one or more of a large number (e.g. &gt;50) of distinct regions on the faceplate  105 . In other embodiments the low voltage switch  320  can include an analog-to-digital converter operable to sense small changes in voltage from sensors and generate digital values corresponding to the magnitude of sensor signals  311 . A processor in the low voltage switch  320  can have a preset threshold for the change in magnitude or frequency that would correspond to a user touching the faceplate. When the low voltage switch  320  measures a change in frequency or magnitude sufficient to cross this threshold the state of an output pin on the low voltage switch can be changed. The change in state of the output pin can act as a low voltage switch output signal  322 . In other embodiments low voltage switch  320  can include one or more elements designed to increase the output power of a low voltage switch signal. This process is sometimes called “buffering” and can be performed for the purpose of controlling high voltage switches  323 . Examples of components that can perform buffering include power transistors and relays. 
     In some embodiments the low voltage switch  320  can accept a large number of sensor inputs  311  and can produce a large number of low voltage switch output signals  322 , where a large number is for example fifty or more. In this way the low voltage switch can transduce a plurality of sensor inputs into distinct switch output signals. In some embodiments this circuitry enables conversion of direct human interaction with a surface (e.g. touching or pressing) into output voltage signals. In other embodiments the low voltage switch can combine several sensor signals  311   a  and  311   b , perform one or more calculations using a computer processor in the low voltage switch  320  and generate one or more low voltage switch output signals  322 . For example low voltage switch  320  can receive a direct sensor signal  311   a  when a user touches the multifunctional grille  214  and second sensor signal  311   b  from a motion sensor  269  when a person moves in front of the grille openings. Low voltage switch  320  can contain a processor that can combine direct sensor signals  311   a  and indirect sensor signals  311   b  and generate an output signal. In some embodiments the low voltage switch can perform timing calculations to determine when to generate an output signal. For example electrical switch assembly  100  can receive direct sensor signals  311   a  from the region  240   a  of the faceplate operable to turn off a light  115   a . About the same time low voltage switch  320  and can receive indirect sensor input  311   b  indicating a person moving in the vicinity of the switch assembly  100 . In response to  311   a  and  311   b  low voltage switch  320  can delay the transition of signal  322  to an OFF state by a few seconds in order to provide light while the person leaves the vicinity. In the context of this disclosure an ON state can be considered as having a voltage with a magnitude that is greater than a sizeable portion (e.g. &gt;20%) of a power supply voltage (e.g. 5V) used to operate a low voltage switch  320 . In the context of this disclosure an OFF state can be considered as having a voltage with a magnitude that is less than a sizeable portion (e.g. &lt;20%) of a power supply voltage used to operate low voltage switch  320 . The power supply voltage can be measured relative to a reference voltage supplied to the low voltage switch, often defined as a ground voltage or 0V. Low voltage switch  320  can include circuitry to operate one or more illumination components  330 . Illumination components  330  can be LEDs or electroluminescent segments, incandescent bulbs or fluorescent bulbs. Illumination components  330  can be switch position indicator lights operable to indicate to a user the output state of one or more high voltage switches  323  or low voltage switch output signals  322 . 
     In other embodiments electrical switch assembly can include one or more illumination components  330 . Illumination components  330  can be operable to illuminate portions  130  of faceplate  105  and can be located on a circuit board located behind the front surface  212  of the faceplate. Connector  315  can also provide a junction for low voltage switch output signals  322   d  from a low voltage switch  320  to illumination components  330 . Low voltage switch  320  can operate illumination components  330  (e.g. switch position indicator lights) in response to sensor signals. For example in response to a user touching a region of the faceplate, low voltage switch  320  can operate illumination components  330  to illuminate sections of the faceplate  130   a  and  130   b  indicating the present state of each of two dimmer switches. In another example a passive infrared sensor (PIR) could sense a person in the vicinity of electrical switch assembly  100  and signal low voltage switch  320  to illuminate regions  130   a  and  130   b  of the faceplate corresponding to the present value of low voltage switch output signals  322   a  and  322   b  (indicating the dimmer output to switch number  1  and ON-OFF position of switch number  2  respectively). 
     Low voltage switch output signals  322  are operable to control high voltage switches  323  and other aspects of the electrical switch assembly  100 . Low voltage switch output signals  322  can be voltages in the range of minus 20 volts to plus 20 volts relative to ground in the junction box, the neutral wire or a local ground reference voltage supplied to both the low voltage switch  320  and the high voltage switch  323 . In one implementation low voltage switch output signal  322   a  is a pulse width modulated signal (PWM) containing a series of pulses. Pulses contain two or more distinct voltage levels; a high state and a low state voltage. By varying the time proportions of high and low state voltage the PWM voltage waveform voltage switch output signal  322   a  can control the dimmer switch  323   a . Other low voltage switch output signals  322   b  can operate electromechanical relays  323   b . Signals  322   b  can supply a current to an electromagnet inside relay  323   b , thereby creating a low resistance connection between wires  110   b  and  110   d . In this context a connection with resistance &lt;3 ohms can be considered a low resistance connection. Other low voltage switch output signals  322   c  can be transmitted to the speaker circuitry.  FIG. 3  illustrates low voltage switch output signals  322   c  transmitted to the speaker processor  308 . For example illumination components  330  can be used to indicate the volume of speaker  205  as an illuminated section  130   a  on faceplate  105 . Grille  214  can additionally provide an active region  240   d . In response to user interaction with  240   d  direct input sensors  330  can generate sensor signals  311   a  and cause low voltage switch  320  to signal speaker processor  308  to change the volume of the speaker. In another implementation low voltage switch output signal  322   b  operates a solid state relay, in which the moving parts of an electromagnetic relay are replaced with power transistors. 
     Electrical switch assembly  100  can contain a variety of other components and circuits. For example switch assembly  100  can contain a rectifier or diode rectifier to convert high voltages to low voltages, a battery to power the speaker or low voltage switches, particularly during a power outage to the building where the switch assembly is located. Electrical switch assembly  100  can contain one or more visual displays operable to be seen through faceplate  105 . In some alternative embodiments amplifier  309  can be contained within speaker processor  308 . In other embodiments speaker processor  308  and low voltage switch  320  can be combined in a general purpose processor that combines the ability to sense user input and generate sound signals using digital-to-analog conversion or pulse width modulation. An example of a processor that could combine the functionality of speaker processor  308  and low voltage switch  320  is the DSPic33 processor family from Microchip Incorporated. In one embodiment of electrical switch assembly  100 , the functionality of one or more touch sensitive regions  240  can be determined by the present state of one or more low voltage switch output signals  322   a  or  322   b . For example when a user walks into an room where the lights are OFF, low voltage electrical switch  320  can identify that one or more low voltage output signals  322  correspond to the light being in the OFF position and can interpret signals  311   a  from some or all touch regions  240  as indications to turn on the light. In this way the electrical switch assembly can identify direct user interaction and estimate the associated intent based on the output state of one or more electrical switches  323 . When a person enters a dark room they often reach for the light switch and use the tactile feel of the switch as user feedback. In one example electrical switch assembly could devote sensor signals  311   a  from user interaction with some or all of the surface of the grille to the function of turning on a light in this scenario, thereby alleviating the user from the burden of touching a particular ON location (e.g.  240   c ). In this example an indirect input sensor (e.g., a light level detector) located behind the speaker grille could supply sensor signals  311   b  to a low voltage switch  320 , indicating the light level in the room and enabling the low voltage switch to interpret sensor signals  311   a  from a larger number of direct user input sensors  310  as indication to operate a high voltage switch to turn on a light. In another example, indirect user input sensors  325  (e.g. a PIR sensor or proximity sensor) could sense a person who has entered a dark room and illuminate one or more regions  130  of faceplate  105 . The indirect sensor can benefit from placement behind the grille  214  with a large density of openings  120  that enhance motion signal intensity. In one aspect the electrical switch assembly can illuminate features  130  with increasing intensity as person gets closer to the faceplate (e.g. as they reach for the switch), thereby avoiding unnecessarily disturbing a person who is moving in the vicinity of the electrical switch assembly and does not intend to operate an aspect of the assembly. Dynamic intensity variation can be controlled in part by sensing a person with a plurality of different sensing technologies. For example a faceplate can glow with a low intensity when a person is sensed on a long range PIR sensor (e.g. with 10 meter range). The faceplate can glow with a higher intensity if the person is subsequently sensed by a shorter range proximity sensor (e.g. active infrared transceiver). 
       FIG. 4A  illustrates several exemplary components of electrical switch assembly  100  designed to enhance audio performance while enabling electrical switch functionality in according with embodiments of this disclosure. Two circuit boards  260  and  460  are positioned behind the faceplate  105 . Circuit board  260  contains a plurality of openings  220  and circuit board  460  contains a plurality of openings  420 . It can be appreciate that the density and shape of openings in the grille  214  can be chosen to fulfill the competing goals of sound transmission and mechanical performance (e.g. electrical isolation and speaker protection). By choosing the size and shape of openings  220  so as not to cover openings  120  with substrate material  262  the sound transmission properties of the faceplate  105  can be preserved. In particular by aligning one or more openings  220  and  420  with the grille openings  120  the sound transmission performance becomes determined primarily by speaker grille  214 . In the context of this disclosure an opening  220  can be considered to “align” with an opening  120  when the placement of  220  is such that the area of the unobstructed opening formed by the overlayed combination of  120  and  220  when viewed along an axis is at least half the area of the corresponding opening  120 . For example  220   a  and  120   a  are considered aligned in  FIG. 2A  because when assembled the area of opening  120   a  and the area of the opening when  120   a  and  220   a  are in an assembled state is essentially equal. Opening  220   a  is made larger than  120   a  to ensure that any small misalignment of circuit board  260  and faceplate  105  following assembly does not cause  220   a  to impede sound transmission from speaker  205 . In another example openings  120   b  and  220   b  and are considered aligned when the electrical switch is assembled. By aligning one or more openings in the faceplate  105  and circuit boards (e.g.  260  and  460 ) the present disclosure enables the circuit boards to add functionality to the grille while transmitting sound from the speaker. For example circuit boards  260  and  460  can provide mounting surfaces to hold touch sensor electrodes, indicator lights, and environmental sensors such as a temperature sensor  480 . In one implementation a connector  315  is used to connect circuit board  460  to one or more low voltage switches  320 . In the context of this disclosure the improved sound transmission as a result of aligning openings in the grille  214  and a circuit board can include, higher volume experienced in the region in front of the grille, decreased reverberation caused by reflected sound from grille  214  and the circuit board and improved audio clarity. 
     Circuit board  260  can be comprised of transparent conductors and a transparent substrate similar (e.g. clear plastic) to the touchscreens on tablet PCs. Transparent elements on circuit board  260  enable light illumination components  330  (e.g. light emitting diodes  470  and electroluminescent regions) on circuit board  460  to illuminate portions (e.g. sections  130 ) of the faceplate. 
     Conductive elements  255  can also be a transparent material such as indium tin oxide (ITO), antimony tin oxide or silver filled ink. In one implementation an interactive faceplate subassembly  485  is comprised of the faceplate  105  and circuit board  260 . The interactive faceplate subassembly  485  can be attached to the other components of the electrical switch assembly by a user or installer. Interactive faceplate subassembly  485  enables the alignment of one or more openings  120  and openings  220  to be conducted in a controlled manufacturing environment. Interactive faceplate subassembly  485  further facilitates installation by enabling installation of other electrical switch assembly components (e.g., the speaker  205  and housing  210 ) into the junction box  215  prior to installation of the faceplate. This order of installation can help to avoid damaging sensitive sensor electrodes  255  in the interactive faceplate subassembly  485 . In another implementation interactive faceplate subassembly  490  includes an additional circuit board  460  operable to illuminate features on the faceplate. Connector  315  can be disposed on a pigtail or a portion of flexible PCB designed to facilitate connection between the two halves of the connector. Connector  315  could be comprised of exposed connector electrodes at the end of a flexible PCB pigtail. Connector  315  can connect with a corresponding connector in the housing  210 , for example a zero insertion force connector (ZIF) such as those sold by TE Connectivity from Harrisburg Pa. In other implementations interactive faceplate subassembly  490  has plurality of connectors similar to  315 . Using more than one connector  315  provides redundancy in case a connector pin becomes dirty or damaged. One or more of the connectors can implement a safety interlock, thereby ensuring that portions of the electrical switch assembly  100  are not energized with high voltages until faceplate subassembly is properly secured and the connector  315  is correctly mated. In one embodiment interactive faceplate subassembly  490  has four connectors similar to  315 , with one located at each corner of the faceplate to provide a means to both attach and provide power to subassembly  490 . Interactive faceplate subassembly  490  has several additional advantages. The subassembly can be provided in a variety of colors, shapes and sizes to fit aspects of the wall opening and the user&#39;s preferences. Similarly, the size and pattern of grille member  214  can be varied as well as the color of illuminated sections  130 . In contrast the portion of electrical switch assembly  100  inside the junction box  215  can be standardized and offer less customization.  FIG. 4B  illustrates a crossectional view of the speaker grille subassembly  490  including aligned openings. Speaker  205  is shown for reference. 
       FIG. 5A  and  FIG. 5B  illustrate the basic operating principle of capacitive sensing. A number of standard technologies can be adapted to provide user input sensing in the presence of a large speaker  205  and pluralities of holes  120   220  and  420 . These technologies include capacitive touch sensing (illustrated in  FIGS. 5A and 5B ), and resistive touch sensing, surface acoustic wave touch sensing and load sensing. A finger  505  is placed over a layer of insulating material  510 . A target electrode  515  is disposed behind layer  510 . Electrode  515  has a background capacitive coupling to a ground electrode similar to  495 . When a finger or other object directly interacts with the top surface of layer  510  the capacitance  525  is often increased. The increase in capacitance causes a temporary current to flow in a conductor such as  254  connecting the sensor electrode  255  to a low voltage switch  320 . This current constitutes a direct sensor signal  311   a .  FIG. 5B  also illustrates an advantage of the present design. When a finger touches a conventional capacitive touch sensor, over a target electrode  515 , as illustrated in  FIG. 5A  there is an unintended signal generated at a neighboring electrode  530 . It is desirable to reduce this cross-capacitance signal  535   a  and  535   b .  FIG. 5B  illustrates a capacitive touch sensor in accordance with one implementation of this disclosure. There is an opening  540  in the insulating layer  510  between the target and neighboring electrodes. This opening can be opening  120  in the grille  214 . This opening reduces the cross capacitance  535   b  between the finger  505  and the neighboring electrode  530 . By reducing the undesirable cross-capacitance from  535   a  to  535   b  the present disclosure enables electrodes  515  and  530  to sense more accurately or be placed closer together. In the present disclosure a plurality of holes  120  in the faceplate  105  can cross-capacitance (C 2 &lt;C 1 ), thereby enabling improved special resolution of touch identification. Yet another advantage of the present assembly is illustrated in  FIG. 5C  whereby the target capacitance  530  can be increased by extending target electrode  515  at least some of the way into opening  540 . The extended section is illustrates as the shaded portion  517  of the target electrode in  FIG. 5C . One way to implement this electrode extension is to increase the plating thickness of electrode  515  close to opening  540 . Electrode  515  and  530  are examples of direct user input sensors  310 . 
       FIG. 6  illustrates an exemplary electrode array designed to enable a touch sensitive speaker grille in accordance with one implementation of this disclosure. A variety of sensor electrodes including  255 ,  605   a  and  605   b  are patterned on insulating substrate  262 . Sensor electrodes are operable to sense direct user interaction with a variety of regions  240  of faceplate  105 . The exact layout of sensor electrodes and regions  240  will vary from one implementation to another. Electrode  255  is a discrete sensor electrode designed to identify direct user interaction with a binary input region of the speaker grille.  605   a  and  605   b  are electrodes designed to nest within one another such that a user&#39;s finger is sensed by 2 or more electrodes at most times. Region  610  includes 5 nested electrodes and is used to implement a slider touch function. When a user slides their finger up or down within the dimmer region  240   b  of the faceplate  105  and grille  214 , multiple electrodes in the touch slider electrode region  610  sense the direct user input and send sensor signals  311   a  to the low voltage switch  320 . The low voltage switch can interpolate the sensor signals and estimate the placement of the user&#39;s finger on the touch sensitive region of the faceplate and grille. Circuit board  260  includes a ground electrode  495  that acts as a reference for the other electrodes. Circuit board  260  has a plurality of openings  220  places in accordance with aspects of this disclosure so as to enhance sound transmission. The size and location of openings  220  are chosen to align with openings  120 . Conductors and electrodes can be routed around openings  220  as illustrated at  625 . In some cases one electrode can be connected to multiple conductors  254 . The conductors can be routed in different paths around openings  220  to account for the presence of plurality of openings  220 . A person of skill in the art would appreciate that a dense plurality of openings can be placed on substrate  260  and modern circuit board layout software is well suited to routing conductors and electrodes within the small portion of solid substrate  262  that can remain. Openings  420  and  220  can have a guard ring  630  around the opening, whereby the guard ring is a ring around the opening without electrode material (e.g. copper foil). Guard ring  630  can ensure that a user cannot see or touch the edge of an electrode. 
       FIG. 7  illustrates an exemplary circuit board  460  designed to illuminate regions  130  of the faceplate  105 . Light can be generated on circuit board  460  using a variety of technologies including light emitting diodes (LEDs) or electroluminescenc (EL). In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 7  two emitting diodes  470  are electrically connected between two conductors  254   a  and  254   b . Light emitting diodes  470  can be electrically connected to circuit board  460  while enabling a plurality of openings  420  to align with openings  120  in grille  214 . In this manner the LEDs can be used to illuminate sections of the faceplate  105  while the circuit board  460  does not diminish the sound transmission performance of the electrical switch assembly. 
     Section  710  of circuit board encloses a region operable to produce illumination by a process of electroluminescence. Electroluminescent materials light up when current passes through them. A variety of electroluminescent paint kits are available for circuit board applications, for example the Luxprint® Electroluminescent products from Dupont. Conductors  254   c  are deposited on substrate  460  to define the shape of the electroluminescent region. Conductors  254   c  can have close proximity (e.g. 100 micrometers) thereby enabling intricate conductor shapes to be illuminated. A dielectric layer  725  covers the conductors  254   c . The dielectric layer has a high electrical resistance relative to the underlying conductor  254   c . Dielectric layer  725  can comprise a high dielectric constant material such as barium titanate. The dielectric layer can alternatively be a solder mask material deposited on the circuit board  460 . An electroluminescent material  730  covers the dielectric layer. Common electroluminescent materials include phosphor and zinc sulfide. One or more top electrodes  740  covers the electroluminescent layer  730 . In this embodiment the top electrode is a transparent electrode such as ITO on a clear plastic film. Alternating voltage applied to electrodes  740  and  254   c  causes the overlapping regions of the electrodes  740  and  254   c  to be illuminated. In some embodiments electrode  740  is large and covers a substantial portion of the circuit board  460 . The electroluminescent region  710  can be particularly useful for providing a user with visual feedback regarding the state of one or more analog  322   a  outputs from a low voltage switch  320 . For example region  710  can illuminate a dimmer switch position on the faceplate, thereby guiding the user&#39;s finger to touch the region of the faceplate corresponding to the present dimmer location and raise or lower the light level by dragging their finger to a new location. Conductors  254   c  can be closely spaced and can be energized in sequence as the user moves their finger on the faceplate, thereby tracking the user&#39;s finger with illumination from the original dimmer position to the new dimmer level. Electroluminescence can produce complex light patterns, based on the shape of conductors  254   c . Electroluminescent illuminated regions  710  produce enhanced line edge definition in comparison to LED technology. Conductors  254   c  can be patterned so as to circumvent the openings  420 . In this manner the electroluminescent region  710  can be used to illuminate sections of the faceplate  105  while the circuit board  460  and openings  420  enhance the sound transmission performance of the speaker  205 . 
       FIGS. 8A and 8B  illustrate two additional embodiments of the faceplate  105  of electrical switch assembly  100 . In  FIG. 8A  molded features on the faceplate can indicate touch sensitive areas of faceplate  105 . The raised areas can occupy a large portion of the faceplate. The size and shape of openings  120  can be designed to enhance sound performance and switch functionality. In  FIG. 8B  a plurality of vertical slots  815   a  are disposed in a touch sensitive faceplate  105 . The openings  815   a  can be designed to produce a characteristic sound and sequence of direct user input sensor signals  311   a  electrode when a user moves their finger in a vertical manner on the dimmer section of the touch sensitive faceplate  105 . In another example, a pattern of horizontal slots  815   b  can be arranged to cover a sensor disposed behind the grille (e.g. a passive infrared sensor  269 ). In this case the openings can be optimized to provide more openings with less space between openings in order to enhance sensitivity of PIR  269  to motion. 
       FIG. 9  illustrates an exemplary rear view of a faceplate with a touch sensitive speaker grille in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. In this embodiment electrodes  255  and conductors  254  are deposited directly onto the rear surface of the faceplate  105 . Electrodes  255  and conductor  254  can be deposited using a variety of technologies including conductive ink or laser direct structuring LDS or selective plating. Electrodes  255  and conductors  254  are deposited on an interior surface  910  of faceplate  105 . Surface  910  contains a plurality of openings  920   a  and  920   b  that align with openings  120   a  and  120   b  in the front surface of the faceplate, and thereby enhance sound transmission from a speaker that can be placed behind faceplate  105 . An electronic component (e.g. an LED, thermistor or resistor) is attached to the faceplate and electrically connected to conductors  954   a  and  954   b . This implementation enables one or more electronic components to be disposed on the rear surface of the faceplate while not impeding sound transmission from the speaker  205 . One or more electronic components  930  could be used with electrodes  255  to implement an indicator light that is locally controlled by signals  311   a  generated at touch electrodes  255  and do not need to be processed by low voltage  320  in order to generate illumination control signals. Another advantage of the implementation illustrated in  FIG. 9  is that alignment of the openings  120  in the faceplate and openings  920  in touch electrode substrate can be enabled by a single molding operation. In particular, the step of aligning a separate substrate (e.g.,  260  in  FIG. 2 ) is eliminated. Direct structuring technologies such as LDS are well suited to routing narrow (&lt;100 micrometer) conductors  254  around a plurality of closely spaced openings  920 . 
     Other Embodiments 
       FIG. 10  illustrates an interactive speaker grille in accordance with several aspects of the present disclosure. Interactive speaker grille  1005  is designed to transmit sound from a speaker  205 , and contains portions that are touch sensitive and operable to illuminate distinct features on the speaker grille. Interactive grille  1005  comprises a faceplate  105  and three circuit boards  260 ,  1060  and  460  located behind the faceplate and in front of speaker  205 . 
     Sound transmission is enhanced by aligning a plurality of openings on faceplate  105  and circuit boards  260 , 460  and  1060 . Faceplate  105  has a plurality of openings  120  that form a speaker grille  214 . When assembled, opening  120   a  aligns with openings  220   a    1020   a  and  420   a  and thereby promotes sound transmission from speaker  205  to the area in front of faceplate  105 . It can be appreciated that a large number of the openings comprising speaker grille  214  can be aligned with similar openings on one or more circuit boards to promote sound transmission. The speaker grille  214  contains a plurality of regions  240  in which direct user interaction (e.g., touching or pressing) can be sensed by a plurality of electrodes  255  and  605  disposed behind faceplate.  FIG. 10  illustrate four exemplary regions  240   a ,  240   b ,  240   c  and  240   d  wherein direct user input is operable to be sensed by one or more sensor electrodes  255 ,  605   a  and  605   b  on circuit board  260 . For example direct use interaction (e.g., touching or pressing) with region  240   c  causes sensor electrode  255  to generate direct user input signals  311   a . In another example region  240   b  of the faceplate  105  can function to as analog switch. The placement position of a user&#39;s finger within region  240   b  indicates a desired user input value to a low voltage switch  320  within a range of switch values (e.g. from 0 to 100). Region  240   d  is an example of a multipurpose touch sensitive region of speaker grille  214 . Area  240   d  can to control a variety of functions in a speaker application for example changing the volume, selecting a song, playing or pausing music or selecting an input source. The function of region  240   d  can be based in part the prior sequence of regions  240  that the user has interacted with. Illuminated sections of the faceplate, for example  130   c ) can indicate the present functionality of region  240   d . Circuit board  260  contains a plurality of electrodes  255 , and  605   b  operable to sense direct user interaction with speaker grille  214 . Electrodes  254  carry direct sensor signals  311   a  to a low voltage switch  320 . Electrodes  254  are routed around the plurality of openings  220 . 
     Sections of the interactive grille  1005  can be illuminated by light generating components  470  (e.g. LEDs or organic LED) or electroluminescent sections  710  (illustrated in  FIG. 7 ). Light generating components  470  and electroluminescent sections  710  can be placed on a circuit board  260  with touch electrodes or can be placed on additional circuit boards behind the touch sensor electrodes  255  and  605   b .  FIG. 10  illustrates an LED  470  on circuit board  460  and an electroluminescent section (shown as  710  on  FIG. 7 ). The electroluminescent section  710  contains the electrodes  254   c , dielectric layer  725  and electroluminescent layer  730  described previously in this disclosure. In the implementation of  FIG. 10  the top electrode  740  is replaced by a plurality of electrodes  1010  disposed on a third circuit board  1060 . This arrangement enables horizontal electrodes  254   c  and vertical electrode  1010  to be operated by signals  322   d  (illustrated in  FIG. 3 ) from a low voltage switch  320  and thereby generate an illuminated region  130   c  on faceplate  105 . Pixel  130   c  on faceplate  105  is above the region where the two electrodes cross. It can be appreciated that similar pixels of light can be generated at a large number of locations where a horizontal and vertical electrode pass over one another. It can be appreciated that the pixels can be disposed around the plurality of openings  120  and can form a variety of patterns operable to convey information to a user. In one implementation multiple illuminated pixels such as  130   c  can display the function of a multipurpose active region  240   d  for example displaying the volume of the speaker. In another example an array of pixels  1030  can display an equalizer, indicating the sound volume of particular frequency bands (e.g. 1000-2000 Hz). Such equalizer displays are common on multispeaker music systems such as the Kenwood GE 100 and provide an aesthetic appealing graphical display for the user. A plurality illuminated regions  130   c  can also generate patterns operable to change shape or intensity in time with the beat of a song. It would be understood by a person of skill in the art that an array of pixels capable of illuminating individual portions of the speaker grille  214 , disposed around a plurality of openings  420   a  and  420   b  can also be implemented by a plurality of discrete light emitting light elements  470 , such as LEDs, organic LEDs, incandescent lamps or fluorescent lamps. 
     Electrodes  1010  can be made from a transparent material (e.g. indium tin oxide (ITO), antimony tin oxide (ATO) or silver ink) and thereby enhance light transmission from electroluminescent layer  730  or discrete illumination devices  705 . In  FIG. 10  direct sensor signals  311   a  are transmitted to low voltage switch  320 . Low voltage switch output signals  322   d  can be transmitted to electrodes  254   a  and  254   b  to control illumination of light emitting elements  470 . Light emitting elements  470  are examples of illumination components  330  in  FIG. 3 . Other low voltage switch output signals  322   d  can be transmitted to electrodes  254   c  and  1010  to control illumination of some or all of electroluminescent region  710  (illustrated in  FIG. 7 ). In general a large number of low voltage switch output signals  322   d  can be used to operate a plurality of illuminated components  330  (e.g. discrete light emitting elements  470  or electroluminescent region  710 ) disposed around a plurality of sound transmitting openings  420   a  and  420   b , thereby illuminating sections  130  of speaker grille  214 . Direct sensor signals  311   a  can also be used by low voltage switch  320  to generate low voltage switch outputs  322   c  operable to control aspects of a speaker processor  308 . For example a user&#39;s finger can touch region  240   b  of the interactive speaker grille and cause sensors in slider region  610  (illustrated in  FIG. 6 ) to send signals  311  to low voltage switch  320 . The switch can in turn use signals  311   a  to generate low voltage switch output  322   c  indicative of the position of the user&#39;s finger on the volume slider portion of the faceplate. Speaker processor  308  can use signals  322   c  to control the magnitude of signals  316  to the speaker  205 . In one aspect of the present disclosure, low voltage switch  320  can also produce outputs  322   d  operable to control illumination of the section of the faceplate behind  240   d  thereby indicating to the user the volume control value. In  FIG. 10  circuit board  260  and  1060  can be transparent and contain transparent conductors so as to facilitate illumination of distinct portions of the faceplate by illumination components  705  and  710  on circuit board  460 . 
     Interactive speaker grille  1005  can enable touch sensitive and illuminated regions of the speaker grille using one or more circuit boards disposed behind the grille have one or more openings that align with the openings forming the grille.  FIG. 10  illustrates three circuit boards  260 ,  460  and  1060  in part to illustrate the arrangement of components (e.g. LEDs and electrodes) on individual substrates. It can be appreciated the same touch sensing and illumination functionalities can be accomplished by combining the individual circuit boards  260 ,  460  and  1060  into a variety of multiple-layer circuit boards. For example circuit boards  260  and  1060  can be two separate transparent circuit boards or can be combined into one transparent circuit board with touch electrodes  605   a  and  255  disposed on the surface facing the interactive grille  214  and illumination electrodes  1010  disposed on the rear surface facing circuit board  460 . Electroluminescent region  710  can require intimate contact between electrodes  1010  and the electroluminescent (e.g., phosphor) layer  730 . This contact can be accomplished by bonding circuit board  1060  to board  460  in a manner similar to touch sensitive display fabrication. One or more connectors similar to  315  can connect circuit boards  260 , 460  and  1060 . A connector can also be used to connect circuit boards (e.g.  260  or  460 ) to another circuit board positioned behind the X-Y plane formed by the flange  206  of the speaker  205 . Electrodes on boards  260 ,  460  and  1060  can also be connected using wires and solder contacts. 
     The interactive speaker grille  1005  enables a large area of the speaker grille  214  to be functionalized as a control surface and a display surface. In one aspect the speaker grille  214  can be made from an electrically insulating material, thereby enabling the interactive speaker grille to identify user interaction with multiple distinct regions of the grille. A dense plurality of openings  120  can facilitate effect sound transmission. Interactive speaker grille  1005  can devote a large region (e.g. region  240   d ) to speaker controls. As wireless speakers have become more compact the surface area devoted to user controls has decreased. In contrast interactive speaker grille  1005  could devote the whole grille area to controls such as radio station selection, play, pause or skip to the next song. The touch sensitive capability and the illumination functionality can be combined to implement an interactive control. For example many of the speakers on the market do not have enough available area to provide a volume slider and therefore require the user to press a volume button multiple times to increment or decrement volume. This repeated button pushing is tedious and the user is often left without a visual indication of the volume level. Illumination components  330  and low voltage output signals  322   c  can instead produce a visual pattern of illuminated sections  130   c  on the interactive speaker grille that effectively indicate the present volume level. A user can use a corresponding touch sensitive region (e.g.  240   c  or  240   d ) to initiate volume change. Touch functionality and illuminated components can be implemented on circuit boards with a dense plurality of openings arranged so as to enable sound impedance of the interactive speaker grille  1005  in  FIG. 10  is determined primarily by the sound impedance of the grille member  214 . 
     In another embodiment electrical switch assembly  100  can be used to replace the functionality of a mechanical object (e.g., mechanical toggle switch) with which a user associates a characteristic sound (e.g., the “click” sound associated with a light switch or the chime associated with a doorbell). A speaker  205  disposed behind the touch sensitive speaker grille can produce the sound familiar to the user. This embodiment has the advantage that the user receives the sound from the area that is touches (i.e. the speaker grille) and not from another area away from the touch sensitive surface, which would have the potential to confuse a user. For example the electrical switch assembly  100  could produce a familiar click sound when a user touches an area of the grille operable to control an electrical switch. In another example the touch sensitive speaker grille could be used to guide a person towards a touch sensitive surface with audio feedback. For example a person with visual impairment could follow sound emanating from the touch sensitive speaker grille in order find the touch sensitive surface operable to control aspects of the speaker or electrical switches. The sound could vary to indicate that the user if getting closer or further from the interactive speaker grille. 
     OPERATION 
     FIG.  12 - 15   
       FIG. 12  is a block diagram illustrating the operation an electrical switch assembly with audio capability in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. At block  1210  the speaker  205  receives audio signals  316  from amplifier  309 . At block  1220  speaker  205  emits sound waves through a pattern of openings in the speaker grille  214  and an aligned pattern of openings in one or more circuit boards (e.g., openings  220  in circuit board  260 ). At block  1230  a user touches a region of the speaker grille portion  214  of the faceplate  105 , wherein the region is operable to be sensed by electrodes on circuit board  260  or functionalized surface  910  disposed behind the front surface of the faceplate. At block  1230  electrodes (e.g.  255 ,  605   a  and  605   b ) generate direct sensor signals  311   a . At block  1240  sensor signals  311   a  are received by one or more low voltage switches  320 . At block  1240  the low voltage switch processes the signals; determine if the signals meet specific criteria (e.g. touch location, duration, sequence). At block  1250  electrical switch assembly  100  generates one or more low voltage switch output signals  322  and transmits these signals to one or more high voltage switches (e.g. dimmer  323   a  or relay  323   b ). At bock  1260  one or more high voltage switches  323  operate to control the connection between one or more pairs building-based electrical wires. This operating sequence enables the functionality of a traditional electrical switch to be replicated using a combination of a low voltage switch and a high voltage switch, while devoting the space traditionally occupied by the mechanical switch to a large speaker centrally disposed in the switch housing and operable to project sound waves through a touch sensitive speaker grille. 
       FIG. 13  is a block diagram illustrating additional steps involved in the operation of some alternative embodiments of the electrical switch assembly. 
     At block  1305  electrical switch assembly can receive wireless signals  135  from a variety of wireless sources  140 . System  100  can use a wireless receiver  306 , speaker processor  308  and amplifier  309  to generate audio signals  316 . At block  1325  electrical switch assembly  100  can illuminate regions of the speaker grille using illumination components  330  disposed on a circuit board designed with a plurality of aligned openings, wherein the opening promote sound transmission. At block  1327  electrical switch assembly  100  can optionally guide the user to an active region of the speaker grille using one or more illuminated regions  130 . At block  1345  illumination components  330  can be controlled using low voltage switch output signals  322   d  from the low voltage switch processor  320 . 
       FIG. 14  is a block diagram illustrating the operation an interactive speaker grille  1005  in accordance with one embodiment of the present technology. At block  1410  the speaker  205  receives audio signals  316  from amplifier  309 . At block  1420  speaker  205  emits sound waves through a plurality of openings in the speaker grille  214  and an aligned plurality of openings in one or more circuit boards (e.g., openings  220  in circuit board  260 ). At block  1425  interactive speaker grille  1005  can illuminate regions of the speaker grille using illumination components  330  disposed on a circuit board designed with a plurality of aligned openings, wherein the openings promote sound transmission. At block  1430  a user touches a region of the speaker grille  214 , wherein the region is operable to be sensed by direct user input sensors  310  (e.g. sensor electrode  255 ) on circuit board  260  or functionalized surface  910  disposed behind the front surface of the faceplate. At block  1427  interactive speaker grille  1005  can optionally guide the user to an active region of the speaker grille using one or more illuminated regions  130 . At block  1430  electrodes (e.g.  255 ,  605   a  and  605   b ) generate direct sensor signals  311   a . At block  1440  sensor signals  311   a  are received by one or more low voltage switches  320 . At block  1440  the low voltage switch processes the signals; determine if the signals meet specific criteria (e.g. touch location, duration, sequence). At block  1445  illumination components  330  can be controlled using low voltage switch output signals  322   d  from the low voltage switch processor  320 . At block  1450  a low voltage switch  320  generates one or more low voltage switch output signals  322   c  and transmits these signals to a speaker processor  308 . At bock  1460  speaker processor  308  controls an aspect of audio signals  316  sent to speaker  205 . 
       FIG. 15  is a block diagram outlining the operations associated with integrating audio capability into an electrical switch assembly  100  in accordance with several aspect of the present disclosure. At block  1510  the integration can involve providing a housing  210  including a forward facing portion  217 . At block  1520  the integration can involve providing a speaker  205  disposed inside the housing. At block  1530  the integration can involve providing a faceplate operable to be attached to the housing and to cover the speaker. At block  1540  the integration can involve providing a grille portion of the faceplate having a first plurality of openings for sound generated by the speaker to be transmitted to the region in front of the assembly. At block  1550  the integration can involve providing one or more sensors disposed behind the forward facing surface of the faceplate and operable to sense direct user interaction with one or more regions of the forward facing surface of the faceplate. At block  1560  the integration can involve incorporating a second plurality of openings into the sensor substrate. At block  1570  the integration can involve aligning at least one of the openings in the first and second plurality, so as to promote improved sound transmission through the sensor substrate. At block  1580  the integration can involve providing a low voltage switch operable to process direct sensor signals from one or more of the sensors. At block  1580  the integration can involve providing sensor placement such that one or more of the sensors are operable to sense direct user interaction with the grille portion of the faceplate.