Patent Description:
The invention relates generally to a wireless microphone system and methods and more particularly to a system and methods for dynamically recording and transmitting audio. Document <CIT> relates to a system of a similar type.

In some applications, wireless systems are used to transmit audio to a remote device. For example, wireless microphone systems are commonly used in film, newsgathering, and gaming.

Conventional wireless microphone systems often include an audio receiver that receives audio data from one or more wireless transmitters. Various forms of analog to digital conversion and data compression are known to help facilitate transmission of audio data. Typically, wireless applications require long-term operation over minutes, hours, days, and months, and they require rapid, reliable, handling of large amounts of data.

High speed transmission of audio data, i.e., close to real time (low latency) is desirable, especially for synchronization of audio with video, but it has been difficult to obtain, and, with some of the typical systems and methods, practically impossible to achieve.

Moreover, it is often difficult to provide desirable size and weight in portable systems along with good performance in long-term operation because, among other limitations, transmitters typically are battery powered.

Systems such as disclosed in <CIT> have met with success in professional filmmaking, however, their power requirements, including RF power, complexity, and cost can make them impractical for many users.

The Rode Wireless Go system, developed, made, and sold by Applicant, has been popular with hobbyists and professionals alike for its compact size, low power, and ease of use, however, it has certain limitations, such as limited transmission range.

One accessory sold with the latter system is a DeadCat synthetic fur windshield for shielding the transmitter from wind noise. That windshield has been very popular, and it has spawned many imitations, however, many users have had difficulty keeping the windshield securely attached, i.e., from falling off the transmitter.

In addition, conventional microphone systems often experience a drop in signal due to interference. Efforts to reduce and to remedy dropouts have been made, but they have not been entirely successful, and they have tended to be overly complicated. Improvements to the range and the handling of audio transmission in and between receiver and transmitter would provide a variety of advantages to users.

The present invention seeks to ameliorate one or more of the abovementioned disadvantages or at least provide a new alternative to known wireless microphone systems.

The invention relates generally to a wireless microphone system and methods and more particularly to a compact wireless microphone system for dynamically recording and transmitting audio.

In one aspect, the system includes a receiver configured to output audio via one or more connector ports. The receiver may be linked to one or more transmitter. Each transmitter may include an antenna and a circuit board including a controller. The controller may be configured to obtain audio data, for example, from a built-in microphone or a wired microphone connected via an input port of the transmitter. In addition, a windshield may be secured to the housing of a transmitter via a bayonet fastener to provide wind noise dampening.

Once audio is received, the controller may record the audio data according to a processing path. A first processing path may include recording the raw audio data. A second processing path may include compressing, via an encoder, the audio data and recording the compressed audio data. Simultaneously, the controller may transmit the compressed audio to the receiver unit.

The controller may further be operative to monitor the wireless link between the transmitter and receiver. In response to detecting a broken connection, the controller may, automatically or in response to a user input, tag or mark the recorded audio to signify a dropout. In addition, the controller is configured to record a peak audio file, which is a low resolution signal used to display a waveform corresponding to the recorded data. The waveform may be used to output a visual the audio file on a display. The output of the entire audio waveform allows for more efficient editing of the audio data and any corresponding markings.

The transmission of audio may be via one or more antennas of the transmitter unit. The one or more antennas may be an inverted -F antenna and/or a folded dipole antenna. The folded dipole antenna may include a horizontally polarized antenna array coupled to a vertically polarized antenna array. Moreover, the antenna may be raised a predetermined distance from a ground plane of a circuit board to provide a greater communication range. A slit in the circuit board may receive a portion of the antenna, which may be soldered to a connector element of the circuit board.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific exemplary embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and have herein been described in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intent to limit the invention to the particular embodiments disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover all implementations falling within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless system that includes:.

In an embodiment each transmitter further includes a non-volatile, non-transitory memory configured to store the audio data according to the first processing path or the second processing path.

In an embodiment each transmitter further includes a realtime clock configured to tag the recorded audio data with at least one of a date and a time.

The controller is further operative to record peak audio file, wherein the peak audio data is a low resolution signal used to display a waveform corresponding to the recorded audio data.

In an embodiment the controller is further operative to monitor the wireless link to said receiver.

In an embodiment the controller is further operative to mark a portion of said recorded audio data in response to detecting the wireless link to said receiver is broken.

In an embodiment the antenna is a folded dipole antenna.

In an embodiment the antenna is positioned at a height from a ground plane of the circuit board.

In accordance with another aspect of the present technology, there is provided a device for transmitting and recording audio, the device including:.

In an embodiment the housing further includes a fastener configured to fasten to a user's clothing.

In an embodiment the fastener is a clip for clipping to the user's clothing.

In an embodiment the housing further includes one or more ports for interfacing with one or more external devices.

In an embodiment there is further provided an antenna positioned within the housing, the antenna decoupled from the ground plane.

In accordance with another aspect of the present technology, there is provided an antenna array of a wireless microphone, the antenna array including:.

In an embodiment each of the conductive elements is L-shaped and includes a leg having a length preferably less than about thirty millimeters.

In an embodiment there is provided another leg having a length less than about ten millimeters.

In an embodiment the one leg of the first conductive element is spaced between about two millimeters and about ten millimeters from the ground plane.

In an embodiment the one leg of the second conductive element is spaced between about one millimeter and about two millimeters from the ground plane.

Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures in the accompanying drawings, in which like references indicate similar elements and in which:.

The invention relates generally to a wireless microphone system and methods and more particularly to a system and methods for dynamically recording and transmitting audio.

Turning now to the drawings wherein like numerals represent like components, <FIG> and IB illustrate an exemplary wireless microphone system <NUM>. As shown, wireless microphone system <NUM> includes at least one transmitter unit <NUM> and a receiver unit <NUM>. As shown in FIG. IB, components of wireless microphone system <NUM> are compact so as to be easily transported and stored, such as within pouch <NUM>.

One or more transmitter units <NUM> may communicate with receiver unit <NUM> via a wireless link <NUM>. Wireless link <NUM> can facilitate data communication over a wireless medium, e.g., Wi-Fi (IEEE <NUM> family standards), Bluetooth. (a family of standards promulgated by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. ), <NUM> wireless protocols with <NUM> bit encryption or other protocols for wireless data communication. Wireless link <NUM> can be implemented using a combination of hardware (e.g., driver circuits, antennas, modulators/demodulators, encoders/decoders, and other analog and/or digital signal processing circuits) and software components. In some embodiments, wireless link <NUM> can include near field communication ("NFC") capability, e.g., implementing the ISO/IEC <NUM> standards or the like; NFC can support wireless data exchange between devices over a very short range (e.g., <NUM> centimeters or less). Multiple different wireless communication protocols and associated hardware can be incorporated into transmitter units <NUM> and receiver unit <NUM>.

As illustrated in <FIG>, transmitter unit <NUM> may include a housing <NUM>, a microphone <NUM>, an input port <NUM>, and a connector interface <NUM>. In addition, transmitter unit <NUM> may include a link indicator <NUM> and a battery indicator <NUM>, each of which may be a light-emitting diode (LED). Housing <NUM> may be made of a thermoplastic material, such as polycarbonate-ABS having a lower carbon content or substantially no carbon content.

Transmitter unit <NUM> may be a wearable device having a cube-shaped structure. Other structures are contemplated and therefore the possible wearable devices may include a ring, a wristwatch (also referred to as a "smartwatch"), a button or brooch which may include a pin for attaching to clothing, or a patch that may be sewn to, or into, clothing such as a shirt or blouse, etc. Other example wearable devices may include a bracelet, a belt buckle, etc..

Transmitter unit <NUM> may range from about thirty millimeters to about sixty millimeters in length, and preferably between about forty millimeters and fifty millimeters. In one embodiment, the transmitter unit <NUM> has an approximate length of about forty -four millimeters.

The height of transmitter unit <NUM> may range from about thirty millimeters to about sixty millimeters, and preferably between about forty millimeters and fifty millimeters. In other words, it is preferably less than sixty millimeters in height, and still more preferably less than fifty millimeters in height. In one embodiment, the transmitter unit <NUM> has an approximate height of about forty -five millimeters.

Transmitter unit <NUM> may range from about ten to about twenty five millimeters in width, and preferably between about fifteen millimeters and twenty millimeters. In other words, it is preferably less than twenty five millimeters in width, and still more preferably less than twenty millimeters in width. In one embodiment, the transmitter unit <NUM> has an approximate width of about eighteen and a half millimeters.

The weight of transmitter unit <NUM> may range from about twenty grams to about forty grams, and preferably between about twenty five grams and thirty five grams. In other words, the weight is preferably less than forty grams, and still more preferably less than thirty five grams. In one embodiment, the transmitter unit <NUM> has an approximate weight of about thirty grams.

<FIG> illustrate various views of transmitter unit <NUM> including a front surface <NUM>, a back surface <NUM>, a top surface <NUM>, a bottom surface <NUM>, and side surfaces <NUM>. <FIG> illustrates a top view of transmitter unit <NUM>. Microphone <NUM> protrudes from a top surface <NUM> of housing <NUM>. At other end of housing <NUM>, bottom surface <NUM> of transmitter unit <NUM> may include a power button <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, back surface <NUM> of transmitter unit may include a clip <NUM>. Clip <NUM> may be an alligator clip for securing to, for example, an article of clothing, such as a shirt, or a sun visor of a vehicle. While a clip is shown, other releasable connector types are contemplated for securing to such articles.

As shown in <FIG>, side surface <NUM> includes a connector interface <NUM>. Connector interface <NUM> may communicate with various host devices via a wired communication path, e.g., using Universal Serial Bus (USB), universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter (UART), or other protocols for wired data communication. Such connection may provide for additional advanced features (e.g., playback audio, optimize audio, export or delete recordings, switch between mono and stereo, activate a granular gain control mode, and the like) relating to transmitter unit <NUM>. In some embodiments, connector interface <NUM> can provide a power port, allowing transmitter unit <NUM> to receive power, e.g., to charge an internal battery, such as a <NUM>. 8V lithium ion battery.

Connector interface <NUM> can include a connector such as a mini-USB connector or a custom connector, as well as supporting circuitry. In some embodiments, the connector can be a custom connector that provides dedicated power and ground contacts, as well as digital data contacts that can be used to implement different communication technologies in parallel; for instance, two pins can be assigned as USB data pins (D+ and D-) and two other pins can be assigned as serial transmit/receive pins (e.g., implementing a UART interface). The assignment of pins to particular communication technologies can be hardwired or negotiated while the connection is being established. In some embodiments, the connector can also provide connections for audio and/or video signals, which may be transmitted to or from an external device (not shown) in analog and/or digital formats.

In certain embodiments, connector interface <NUM> may include a USB device stack. USB device stack may be configured to perform USB Host OS detection by means of heuristic analysis of enumeration sequence. This may enable providing different capabilities and configurations to different operating systems. For example, the system may be configured to avoid exposing an iOS-specific interface, which may otherwise show up on a Window device as lacking a driver. In addition, the USB device stack may facilitate reassigning limited endpoint resources within a USB controller to interfaces relevant to a particular operating system.

Moreover, connector interface <NUM> may include a USB audio stack. USB audio stack may employ phantom terminal descriptors to, for example, work around unique limitations of certain Android implementations preventing an input -only USB device from working with an Android system audio stack.

As shown in <FIG>, transmitter unit <NUM> may include a microphone <NUM> protruding from an opening <NUM> at top surface <NUM>. Examples of microphone <NUM> may include an omni-directional microphone, cardioid microphone, or supercardioid microphone.

An omni-directional microphone is a microphone with an even or equal response sensitivity to sound from all directions over a full <NUM>° range. As such, the direction response pattern for an omni-directional microphone as a function of location with respect to it is a uniform level, graphically full circle. A cardioid microphone is improved over an omni-directional microphone in that a cardioid microphone has maximum sensitivity in the forward direction and reduced sensitivity to sounds arriving from a side or rear direction with respect to the longitudinal axis of the microphone. A supercardioid microphone has a direction response pattern more attenuated for sounds arriving from a side direction than a cardioid direction response pattern.

As shown, transmitter unit <NUM> may include an input port <NUM>. Input port <NUM> may be a <NUM> TRS (tip, ring, sleeve) connector for receiving analog audio signals. The input port may be cylindrical in shape and provide multiple channels. For example, input port <NUM> may include a three- or four-conductor version of the <NUM> or <NUM> to provide mono (three conductor) or stereo (four conductor) sound and a microphone input. It is noted that transmitter unit <NUM> is not necessarily limited to the type, size, or configuration of the connector, so long as it is suitable for the system and applications disclosed and described.

<FIG> further illustrates a windshield <NUM>, which may be mounted on transmitter unit <NUM>. In particular, windshield <NUM> may be removably mounted around microphone <NUM> to provide wind noise dampening. Windshield <NUM> may include a first layer and a second layer. First layer may be made of a foam or wind-guard material and can be used to fill the interior of windshield <NUM>. Second layer may encompass the first layer and may be made of artificial, synthetic, faux fur or other suitable material, with relatively long, flexible fibers, while remaining acoustical transparency, including any backing material or fabric, which may be a thin, open material, so soundwaves travel easily through it. The faux fur provides soft, absorptive, movable surfaces, such that as wind contacts the fur, the fur moves, absorbing some of the wind energy, with many strands of soft fur, presenting a surface area more than <NUM> times the device surface facing the fur, and much more flexible. These strands of fur produce micro-turbulence and absorb energy silently and at a distance from the microphone.

For the system disclosed herein, the fibers may range in length from about <NUM> to about <NUM>, preferably from about <NUM> to about <NUM>, with the strands being shorter at the outside and increasing in length toward the center of the windshield. The faux fur may be made of any acceptable composition, such as polymers, examples being polyester, acrylic, or the like, including blends, having the properties described above, as will be understood by those of skill in the art.

Further, windshield <NUM> may include a fastener <NUM> made of a silicone material or any other suitable material to form an air-tight seal between windshield <NUM> and microphone <NUM>.

As shown, fastener <NUM> may be a bayonet fastener including two or more arced ridges <NUM> and two or more L-shaped female slots <NUM>. Arced ridges <NUM> may be adapted to receive corresponding ball locks <NUM> extending from top surface <NUM> of housing <NUM>. In operation, arced ridges <NUM> are lowered right down against ball locks <NUM> and caused to turn so that the ball locks <NUM> engage arced ridges <NUM>.

Female slots <NUM> may be adapted to receive corresponding two or more bayonet pins <NUM> on housing <NUM>. In operation, the female slots <NUM> are lowered right down against pins <NUM> and caused to turn so that the pins <NUM> engage the slots <NUM>.

Slots <NUM> may be spaced across opening <NUM> having a diameter between about ten millimeters and about millimeters and in one embodiment may have a diameter of about sixteen millimeters. Length of each slot <NUM> is between about five millimeters and about ten millimeters and in one embodiment may have a length of about seven millimeters. Pins <NUM> may be between about two mm and about seven millimeters long and in one embodiment may have a length of about four millimeters. In other embodiments, it is contemplated that the windshield may have pins and the housing may have slots.

<FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG> illustrate a circuit board <NUM> of transmitter unit <NUM>. Circuit board <NUM> may have a thickness ranging between about half a millimeter and two millimeters, and preferably be about one millimeter. In other words, circuit board <NUM> preferably may have a thickness less than two millimeters.

Circuit board <NUM> includes a ground plane <NUM>. Circuit board <NUM> may be a printed circuit board (PCB) or a flexible PCB. Flexible PCBs can be entirely flexible or can contain both flexible and rigid regions, where the rigid regions can be made of standard, rigid PCB materials with connections to the flexible portions of the overall PCB.

The flexible substrate can provide electrical traces, electrical connections and/or electrical pads on one or both primary surfaces of the flexible substrate. Examples of components that may communicate over one or more communication buses or signal lines of circuit board <NUM> may include a memory (which optionally includes one or more computer readable storage mediums), memory controller, one or more processing units, peripherals interface, RF circuitry, audio circuitry, microphone, input/output (I/O) subsystem, other input or control devices, and external ports.

Circuit board <NUM> may be rectangular with rounded corners and include a cut-out portion <NUM> for an antenna <NUM>, as described below. In one embodiment, circuit board <NUM> is substantially square. Each linear dimensions of circuit board <NUM> may range from about twenty millimeters to about sixty millimeters in length, and preferably between about thirty millimeters and about fifty millimeters, and more preferably about forty millimeters. In other words, each linear dimension is preferably less than about sixty millimeters and still more preferably less than about fifty millimeters. Each linear dimension of circuit board <NUM> may correspond to and substantially fill the corresponding linear dimensions of the housing <NUM>. Thus, circuit board <NUM> may fill at least approximately <NUM>% of the corresponding internal linear dimensions of housing <NUM>.

Transmitter unit <NUM> may include one or more antennas configured to, for example, transmitting an audio signal to receiver unit <NUM>. Antennas of transmitter unit <NUM> may be made of a copper and/or thermoplastic material, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) having a lower carbon content or substantially no carbon content.

The one or more antennas may be a monopole antenna <NUM> and a folded dipole antenna <NUM>. Antennas <NUM>, <NUM> may be of different polarizations (horizontal/vertical) for adapting without losing performance due to the physical orientation of the transmitter unit <NUM>. The system may use a diversified antenna approach to actively scan and select the antenna that receives the strongest signal and operates within the least congested frequency band, such as the <NUM> band.

Monopole antenna <NUM> may be an inverted-F antenna running parallel to ground plane <NUM> and grounded at one end. The polarization of monopole antenna <NUM> may be vertical, and the radiation pattern may be roughly torus or donut shaped.

As shown, circuit board <NUM> may include a slit <NUM> for receiving a dipole antenna <NUM>. More specifically, dipole antenna <NUM> may be configured to fit inside slit <NUM> formed within circuit board <NUM>. It is contemplated that dipole antenna <NUM> may include connector portions <NUM> that soldered to, for example, corresponding regions on either side of circuit board <NUM>.

Dipole antenna <NUM> may be disposed substantially opposite connector ports of the transmitter unit <NUM> and on an edge of circuit board <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, folded dipole antenna <NUM> may comprise of a first conductive element <NUM> and a second conductive element <NUM> connected by a coupler <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, dipole antenna <NUM> may be folded so that L-shaped conductive elements <NUM>, <NUM> are positioned on either side of ground plane <NUM>, thereby conserving space within transmitter unit <NUM> while maximizing antenna size.

Each conductive element <NUM>, <NUM> may be L-shaped and may include a tapered end. As shown, width (shown as W<NUM>) of tapered end may range between about three millimeters and about five millimeters, and preferably between about three and a half millimeters and four millimeters, and in one embodiment may be about three and seven tenths millimeters.

As shown in <FIG>, legs 243a, 245a of each conductive element <NUM>, <NUM> of folded dipole antenna <NUM> may have a length (shown as L<NUM>) ranging between about ten millimeters and about thirty millimeters, and preferably between about fifteen millimeters and twenty millimeters. In one embodiment, the length L<NUM> is about seventeen millimeters. Each leg 243a, 245a may be positioned substantially parallel to ground plane <NUM> and each may be spaced a predetermined distance above or below ground plane <NUM>.

The distance between legs 243a and 245a, when folded and positioned with respect to ground plane <NUM>, may range between about five millimeters and about fifteen millimeters, and preferably be about ten millimeters. Cut-out <NUM> may eliminate circuit board material between legs 243a, 245a and thereby reduce interference.

As shown in <FIG>, another leg 243b, 245b of each conductive element <NUM>, <NUM> of folded dipole antenna <NUM> may have a length (shown as L<NUM>) ranging between about five millimeters and fifteen millimeters, and preferably between about seven millimeters and ten millimeters. In one embodiment, the length L<NUM> is about eight and a half millimeters. Each leg 243b, 245b may be positioned substantially normal to ground plane <NUM> and extends a predetermined distance from ground plane <NUM>.

Folded dipole antenna <NUM> may be a polarized antenna array. It is contemplated that antenna <NUM> may include a plurality of horizontally polarized antenna arrays coupled to a vertically polarized antenna array. The vertically polarized antenna array may generate a radiation pattern substantially perpendicular to a radiation pattern generated by one of the horizontally polarized antenna arrays.

The arrangement of dipole antenna <NUM> provides for a better link in all directions and a greater communication range, substantially greater than <NUM> feet (about <NUM> meters) and in certain embodiments about <NUM> feet (about <NUM> meters) of range in, for example, line of sight conditions. In other words, the range of transmission provided by folded dipole antenna <NUM> and system <NUM> is preferably between about <NUM> feet (about <NUM> meters) and about <NUM> feet (about <NUM> meters), still more preferably between about <NUM> feet (about <NUM> meters) and about <NUM> ,<NUM> feet (about <NUM> meters).

As illustrated in <FIG>, folded dipole antenna <NUM> in transmitter unit <NUM> may be decoupled (i.e., positioned at a height) from either side of ground plane <NUM>. The distance between dipole antenna <NUM> and ground plane <NUM> may range between about one millimeter and a ten millimeters. In one embodiment, folded dipole antenna <NUM> may be positioned on circuit board <NUM> such that a first conductive element <NUM> of dipole antenna <NUM> is distanced (shown as D<NUM>) between about one millimeter and about two millimeters, in one embodiment about one and a half millimeters, from ground plane <NUM>, and second conductive element <NUM> of dipole antenna <NUM> is distanced (shown as D<NUM>) between about seven millimeters and about eight millimeters, in one embodiment about seven and a half millimeters, from ground plane <NUM>. The separation from ground plane <NUM> may decrease signal loss and thereby lower the rate of dropout error.

As shown in <FIG>, a power system <NUM> is mounted within housing <NUM> of transmitter unit <NUM>. Power system <NUM> may be used for powering the various components of transmitter unit <NUM>. Power system <NUM> may include a power management system, one or more power sources (e.g., battery, alternating current (AC)), a recharging system, a power failure detection circuit, a power converter or inverter, a power status indicator (e.g., a light-emitting diode (LED)) and any other components associated with the generation, management and distribution of power in transmitter unit <NUM>.

A battery <NUM> of transmitter unit <NUM> may be a lithium ion polymer rechargeable battery. In certain embodiments, battery <NUM> is a <NUM>. 8V 350mAh <NUM> Wh Tenergy Model <NUM> T battery.

A height of battery <NUM> may range between about fifteen millimeters and thirty millimeters, and preferably between about twenty millimeters and twenty five millimeters. In one embodiment, the height of battery <NUM> is about twenty two millimeters.

A length of battery <NUM> may range between about ten millimeters and twenty five millimeters, and preferably between about fifteen millimeters and twenty millimeters. In one embodiment, the height of battery <NUM> is about eighteen millimeters.

Referring back to <FIG>, wireless microphone system <NUM> includes a receiver <NUM>. Receiver <NUM> may include a housing <NUM>, a display <NUM>, an output port <NUM>, and a connector interface <NUM>. Receiver unit <NUM> may be a wearable device, like transmitter unit <NUM>, or structured for attaching to an external device, as detailed below. Housing <NUM> may be made of a thermoplastic material, such as polycarbonate-ABS having a lower carbon content or substantially no carbon content.

Receiver unit <NUM> may range from about thirty millimeters to about sixty millimeters in length, and preferably between about forty millimeters and fifty millimeters. In one embodiment, the receiver unit <NUM> has an approximate length of about forty-four millimeters. In other words, receiver unit <NUM> may have a length less than sixty millimeters and preferably less than fifty millimeters.

The height of receiver unit <NUM> may range from about thirty millimeters to about sixty millimeters in length, and preferably between about forty millimeters and fifty millimeters. In one embodiment, the receiver unit <NUM> has an approximate height of about forty-six millimeters.

Receiver unit <NUM> may range from about ten to about twenty five millimeters in width, and preferably between about fifteen millimeters and twenty millimeters. In other words, receiver unit <NUM> may have a width less than twenty five millimeters and preferably less than twenty millimeters. In one embodiment, the receiver unit <NUM> has an approximate width of about eighteen and a half millimeters.

The weight of receiver unit <NUM> may range from about twenty grams to about forty grams, and preferably between about twenty five grams and thirty five grams. In other words, weight may be less than forty grams and preferably less than thirty five grams. In one embodiment, the receiver unit <NUM> has an approximate weight of about thirty grams.

<FIG> illustrate various views of receiver unit <NUM> including a front surface <NUM>, a back surface <NUM>, a top surface <NUM>, a bottom surface <NUM>, and side surfaces <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates a top view of transmitter unit <NUM>. As shown, front surface <NUM> includes display <NUM>. Display <NUM> may be a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode display, an electrophoretic display, an electrowetting display, or any other suitable type of display. Display <NUM> may be a touch screen display (e.g., a display that incorporates touch sensor) or may be insensitive to touch.

Display <NUM> may output various types of contents, such as an image, a moving picture, text, and the like. As shown in <FIG>, display <NUM> may be configured to output certain information relating to the transmitter unit <NUM> and receiver unit <NUM> including, but not limited to, battery levels, signal strength, audio input levels, audio channels, and the like.

Further, receiver unit <NUM> include various selectable buttons relating to features of the system <NUM>. Top surface <NUM> includes a power button <NUM> for turning on and off the receiver unit <NUM>.

Bottom surface <NUM> of receiver unit <NUM> includes a control button <NUM> and a link button <NUM>. Control button <NUM> may reduce the decibel output from the receiver unit <NUM> to an external device. For example, a user may press control button <NUM> to engage a -24dB pad, then upon a second press reduce the attenuation to just a -12dB pad (midway between -24dB and OdB) then pressing again will bring it back to the full output level (no attenuation) at the OdB setting.

Moreover, a user may activate an advanced mode for additional granular gain control, which may include adjusting from OdB all the way down to -30dB in, for example, -3dB increments. This may operate in a round robin, cycling through all available gain steps through use of control button <NUM>. In other embodiments, adjusting the gain may be achieved in 1dB increments and/or may include additional or alternative choices of control buttons, such as a "+" button and button (not shown).

In addition, receiver unit <NUM> may include a safety channel when recording in mono audio mode. The safety channel may be used to create a copy of a mono audio signal from one or more transmitters at a lower level. In certain embodiments, the safety channel may facilitate choosing to create an audio signal from a specific transmitter unit be at a lower decibel level.

A user can engage link button <NUM> to commence a pairing procedure or connection procedure, depending on the wireless technology employed, between the receiver unit <NUM> and transmitter unit <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, back surface <NUM> of transmitter unit may include a clip <NUM>. Clip <NUM> may be a shoe clip, such as a hot-shoe clip or a cold-shoe clip, for securing to an external device. For example, as shown in <FIG>, clip <NUM> may be used to secure to a shoe mount <NUM> of camera <NUM>. Additional external devices that receiver unit may connect to include a smartphone, table, laptop, and the like. While a clip is shown, other connections are contemplated.

As shown in <FIG>, side surface <NUM> includes connector interfaces <NUM>. Connector interfaces <NUM> communicate with various host devices via a wired communication path, e.g., using Universal Serial Bus (USB), universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter (UART), or other protocols for wired data communication. In some embodiments, connector interfaces <NUM> can provide a power port, allowing receiver unit <NUM> to receive power, e.g., to charge an internal battery.

Connector interfaces <NUM> can include a connector such as a <NUM> TRS (tip, ring, sleeve) or TRRS (tip, ring, ring sleeve) connector, a USB connector, mini-USB connector or a custom connector, as well as supporting circuitry. In some embodiments, the connector can be a custom connector that provides dedicated power and ground contacts, as well as digital data contacts that can be used to implement different communication technologies in parallel; for instance, two pins can be assigned as USB data pins (D+ and D-) and two other pins can be assigned as serial transmit/receive pins (e.g., implementing a UART interface). The assignment of pins to particular communication technologies can be hardwired or negotiated while the connection is being established. As shown in <FIG>, the connector interface <NUM> may provide connections for audio and/or video signals, which may be transmitted to or from an external device, such as camera <NUM>, in analog and/or digital formats.

<FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG> illustrate a circuit board <NUM> of receiver unit <NUM>. Circuit board <NUM> includes a ground plane <NUM>. Circuit board <NUM> may have a thickness ranging between about half a millimeter and two millimeters, and preferably be about one millimeter.

Circuit board <NUM> may be a printed circuit board (PCB) or a flexible PCB. Flexible PCBs can be entirely flexible or can contain both flexible and rigid regions, where the rigid regions can be made of standard, rigid PCB materials with connections to the flexible portions of the overall PCB.

Receiver unit <NUM> may include one or more antennas configured to, for example, receive an audio signal from transmitter unit <NUM>. Antennas of receiver unit <NUM> may be made of a copper and/or thermoplastic material, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) having a lower carbon content or substantially no carbon content.

The one or more antennas may be a monopole antenna <NUM> and a folded dipole antenna <NUM>. Antennas <NUM>, <NUM> may be of different polarizations (horizontal/vertical) for adapting without losing performance due to the physical orientation of the receiver unit <NUM>. The system may use a diversified antenna approach to actively scan and select the antenna that receives the strongest signal and operates within the least congested frequency band, such as the <NUM> band.

As shown, circuit board <NUM> may include a slit <NUM> for receiving a folded dipole antenna <NUM>. More specifically, folded dipole antenna <NUM> may include a connector portion <NUM> that is configured to fit inside slit <NUM> formed within circuit board <NUM>. It is contemplated that folded dipole antenna <NUM> may include connector portions <NUM> soldered to, for example, corresponding regions on either side of circuit board <NUM>.

Dipole antenna <NUM> may be disposed substantially opposite connector ports of the receiver unit <NUM> and on an edge of circuit board <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, folded dipole antenna <NUM> may comprise a first conductive element <NUM> and a second conductive element <NUM> connected by a coupler <NUM>. The distance between each conductive element <NUM>, <NUM> may range between about five millimeters and about fifteen millimeters, and preferably be about ten millimeters.

As shown in <FIG>, dipole antenna <NUM> may be folded so that L-shaped conductive elements <NUM>, <NUM> are positioned on either side of ground plane <NUM>, thereby conserving space within receiver unit <NUM> while maximizing antenna size.

As shown in <FIG>, legs 339a, 341a of each conductive element <NUM>, <NUM> of folded dipole antenna <NUM> may have a length (shown as L3) ranging between about ten millimeters and about thirty millimeters, and preferably between about fifteen millimeters and twenty millimeters. In one embodiment, the length L3 is about seventeen millimeters. Each leg 339a, 341a may be positioned substantially parallel to ground plane <NUM> and each may be spaced a predetermined distance above or below ground plane <NUM>.

The distance between legs 339a and 341a, when folded and positioned with respect to ground plane <NUM>, may range between about five millimeters and about fifteen millimeters, and preferably be about ten millimeters. Cut-out <NUM> may eliminate circuit board material between legs 339a, 341a and thereby reduce interference.

As shown in <FIG>, another leg 339b, 341b of each conductive element <NUM>, <NUM> of folded dipole antenna <NUM> may have a length (shown as L4) ranging between about five millimeters and fifteen millimeters, and preferably between about seven millimeters and ten millimeters. In one embodiment, the length L4 is about eight and a half millimeters. Each leg 339b, 341b may be positioned substantially normal to ground plane <NUM> and extends a predetermined distance from ground plane <NUM>.

Dipole antenna <NUM> may be a polarized antenna array. It is contemplated that dipole antenna <NUM> may include a plurality of horizontally polarized antenna arrays coupled to a vertically polarized antenna array. The vertically polarized antenna array may generate a radiation pattern substantially perpendicular to a radiation pattern generated by one of the horizontally polarized antenna arrays.

As illustrated in <FIG>, folded dipole antenna <NUM> in receiver unit <NUM> may be decoupled (i.e., positioned at a height) from either side of ground plane <NUM>. The distance between dipole antenna <NUM> and ground plane <NUM> may range between about one millimeter and a ten millimeters. In one embodiment, folded dipole antenna <NUM> may be positioned on circuit board <NUM> that a first conductive element <NUM> of dipole antenna <NUM> is distanced (shown as D<NUM>) between about one millimeter and about two millimeters from ground plane <NUM>, and the second conductive element <NUM> of dipole antenna <NUM> is distanced (shown as D<NUM>) is distanced between about seven millimeter and about eight millimeters from ground plane <NUM>. The separation from ground plane <NUM> may decrease signal loss and thereby lower the rate of dropout error.

As shown in <FIG>, a power system <NUM> is mounted within housing <NUM> of receiver unit <NUM>. Power system <NUM> may be used for powering the various components of receiver unit <NUM>. Power system <NUM> may include a power management system, one or more power sources (e.g., battery, alternating current (AC)), a recharging system, a power failure detection circuit, a power converter or inverter, a power status indicator (e.g., a light-emitting diode (LED)) and any other components associated with the generation, management and distribution of power in receiver unit <NUM>.

A battery <NUM> of receiver unit <NUM> may be a lithium ion polymer rechargeable battery. In certain embodiments, battery <NUM> is a <NUM>. 8V 350mAh <NUM> Wh Tenergy Model <NUM> R battery.

<FIG> is a block diagram <NUM> of transmitter unit <NUM>. <FIG> is a block diagram <NUM> of receiver unit <NUM>. <FIG> is a block diagram <NUM> of an exemplary wireless microphone system.

As shown in <FIG>, transmitter unit <NUM> may include a mic preamp <NUM>, an analog to digital converter (ADC) <NUM>, an audio digital signal processor (DSP) <NUM>, a controller <NUM>, a radio module <NUM>.

Mic preamp <NUM> may be a low noise amplifier with low-voltage operation. Mic preamp <NUM> may be formed of a field-effect transistor and/or a bipolar junction transistor, such as a PNP transistor. The amplification of audio may be performed to the optimum input necessary. A variable resistor of the mic preamp may facilitate adjusting gain.

ADC <NUM> may receive a pre-amplified analog audio signal <NUM> output from preamp <NUM>. ADC <NUM> may include any suitable system device or apparatus configured to convert the pre-amplified analog audio signal received at its input to a digital signal representative of the analog audio signal. ADC <NUM> may itself include one or more components including, but not limited to, a delta-sigma modulator and a decimator.

Once converted, the digital signal may be transmitted over significantly longer distances without being susceptible to noise as compared to an analog transmission over the same distance.

DSP <NUM> may include any suitable system, device, or apparatus configured to process the digitized signal for use in a digital audio system. For example, DSP <NUM> be configured to interpret and/or execute program instructions and/or process data.

Controller <NUM> may receive the digitized audio signal from DSP <NUM>. Controller <NUM> may include an encoder <NUM>, a recorder <NUM>, and a realtime clock <NUM>. Encoder <NUM> may be configured to compresses the audio signal. For example, the signal may be compressed to one half or less using a logarithmic compression.

Recorder <NUM> may be configured to record the audio signal according to a processing path via a switching arrangement of the transmitter unit <NUM>. A first processing path includes recording the raw audio signal prior to compression. A second processing path includes compressing the audio signal, via encoder <NUM>, and recording the compressed audio signal.

Further, recorder <NUM> records a peak audio file. Peak audio files include a low resolution signal that indexes the shape of the audio waveform to aid in displaying the waveform via, for example, a software component of the system. In other words, the peak audio file may be used to output a visual the audio file on a display. The output of the entire audio waveform allows for more efficient editing of the audio.

The recording, either according to the first processing path or the second processing path, may then be tagged through on realtime clock <NUM>. In particular, realtime clock <NUM> may monitor temporal information, such as the day, date, hour, minute, and second the recording was started and stopped. That information is then used to tag the audio signal and/or the peak file. For example, the system may, automatically or in response to a user input, mark a portion of the audio file to identify audio dropouts.

The tagged audio recording may then be stored in a memory <NUM>. Memory <NUM> may be any suitable non-volatile, non-transitory, memory such as, a high-speed random access memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, DDR RAM or other random access solid state memory devices; and optionally includes non-volatile memory, such as one or more magnetic disk storage devices, optical disk storage devices, flash memory devices, or other non-volatile solid state storage devices.

As shown in <FIG>, transmitter unit <NUM> may utilize the same audio data, compressed or raw audio, for both recording and transmitting via radio antenna <NUM>, which is described in further detail below.

As shown in <FIG>, receiver unit <NUM> may include a radio module <NUM>, a decoder <NUM>, DSPs <NUM>, <NUM> corresponding to the channel of the audio data, digital to analog converters (DAC) <NUM>, <NUM>, and digital output circuitry <NUM>.

Radio antenna <NUM> is configured to receive digitized audio data from transmitter <NUM>, as detailed below. Decoder <NUM> may receive the audio data and be configured to decode the audio compression codec corresponding to encoder <NUM>.

As shown, the audio data may then be directed to a DSP <NUM>, <NUM> corresponding to the channel of the recording, e.g., the transmitter unit the audio was received from. DSP <NUM> corresponds to Channel <NUM> and may be used when receiver unit is linked to a second transmitter unit. If a second transmitter unit is linked, audio may be received from the left and right channel separately, or mixed together in mono. If mixed together into mono, the safety channel may be available on the right channel. The outputs may be left and right from, for example, a TRS analogue output, or channel <NUM> and <NUM> of the USB digital audio output (USB digital output does not pass through a DAC). DSPs <NUM>, <NUM> may include any suitable system, device, or apparatus configured to process the audio data for output. For example, DSPs may facilitate processing the audio in real-time to provide equalization, compression, and the like.

DACs <NUM>, <NUM> may receive the digitized audio from a corresponding DSP <NUM>, <NUM>. DACs <NUM>, <NUM> may include any suitable system device or apparatus configured to convert the digitized audio received to an analog format for output <NUM> to an external device.

Digital output circuitry <NUM> may be adapted for coupling directly to other devices or indirectly over a network (e.g., the Internet, wireless LAN, etc.). In some embodiments, the external port is a multi-pin (e.g., <NUM>-pin) connector or USBC connector that is the same as, or similar to and/or compatible with various devices, such as Android and iOS devices and corresponding accessory cables. Digital output circuitry <NUM> may output audio <NUM> in a digital format.

As shown in <FIG>, radio module <NUM> of transmitter unit <NUM> may communicate with radio module <NUM> receiver unit <NUM> over a wireless link. As detailed above, data communication may be implemented over a wireless medium, e.g., <NUM> with <NUM> bit encryption, Wi-Fi (IEEE <NUM> family standards), Bluetooth. (a family of standards promulgated by Bluetooth SIG, Inc. ), or other protocols for wireless data communication. In certain embodiments, transmitter unit may transmit the same audio pack <NUM> time and have a maximal output RF power of about 10mW or less.

Radio modules <NUM>, <NUM> may include logic <NUM>, <NUM> configured to, for example, process audio, controls, and status, such as link status, audio level information, battery health, and charge status. Logic <NUM>, <NUM> may be a single component or may be implemented as any combination of DSPs, ASICs, FPGAs, CPUs running executable instructions, GPUs running executable instructions, hardwired circuitry, state machines, etc., without limitation. Therefore, as one example, the logic may be implemented using an ASIC or an FPGA. In another example, the logic may be a combination of hardware and software or firmware executed by a processor, etc..

Moreover, radio modules <NUM>, <NUM> may include power amps <NUM>, <NUM> configured to amplify low-power audio signals. Other contemplated components may include a tuner and one or more oscillators.

Radio module <NUM> further includes a link monitor <NUM> operatively coupled to recorder <NUM> of transmitter unit <NUM>. Link monitor <NUM> is operative to monitor the wireless link connection between the transmitter unit <NUM> and the receiver unit <NUM>. In response to detecting a drop in the connection by link monitor <NUM>, a recorder, such as recorder <NUM>, may be configured to mark an audio peak file, as detailed above.

<FIG> illustrates a flow chart <NUM> of an exemplary transmitter unit of a wireless microphone system. The method of operation begins and, at step <NUM>, the transmitter unit receives audio. The audio may be obtained via a built-in microphone of the transmitter unit or via an external microphone wired to the transmitter unit.

In step <NUM>, transmitter unit may compress the received audio via, for example, an encoder <NUM>. In decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit may determine whether to record the audio. If yes, in decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit may determine whether to record the audio in a compressed format. If at decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit determines that the compressed audio should be recorded, at step <NUM>, the compressed audio is recorded. If at decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit determines that the raw audio should be recorded, at step <NUM>, the raw audio is recorded.

If, at decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit determines that no audio should be recorded or after the audio is recorded in a selected format, in decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit will determine whether to transmit the audio. If yes, in decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit will determine whether a receiver unit is available. If, at0 decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit determines that a receiver unit is available, in step <NUM>, the two devices may be paired. In step <NUM>, transmitter unit will transmit the compressed audio to receiver unit.

In decision <NUM>, transmitter unit will determine whether the connection link between transmitter unit and receiver unit has been broken. If, at decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit determines that the link is not broken, in decision step <NUM>, transmitter unit will determine if an input is received to tag, if recorded, the audio file and/or a peak audio file with a marker.

Claim 1:
A wireless microphone system (<NUM>) comprising:
a receiver unit (<NUM>) configured to output audio via one or more connector interfaces (<NUM>); and
one or more transmitter units (<NUM>) wirelessly linked to the said receiver unit (<NUM>), each transmitter unit (<NUM>) including:
an antenna (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>);
a circuit board (<NUM>) operatively coupled to a memory (<NUM>) and the antenna (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>), the circuit board (<NUM>) including a controller (<NUM>) operative to:
obtain audio data, the audio data including raw audio stream;
record the audio data according to a processing path, wherein a first processing path includes recording the raw audio stream and a second processing path includes compressing, via an encoder (<NUM>), the audio data and recording the compressed audio data;
record peak audio file, wherein the peak audio file is a low-resolution signal used to display a waveform corresponding to the recorded audio data; and
transmit, via said antenna (<NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>), the compressed audio data to the receiver unit (<NUM>).