PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-11665455-B2
Application Number: US-202016901937-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Windscreen mesh

Abstract:
An acoustic mesh comprising a first portion that is acoustically closed; and a second portion that surrounds the first portion and is acoustically open, wherein a surface area of the second portion is at least one percent a total surface area of the acoustic mesh.

Claims:
The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. An acoustic mesh comprising:
 a first portion that is acoustically closed by a support post contacting at least a complete center of the acoustic mesh, the support post extending from a base portion of an enclosure that defines an acoustic cavity over which the acoustic mesh is positioned; and 
 a second portion that surrounds the first portion and is acoustically open, wherein the acoustic mesh provides a wind noise attenuation of 10 decibels or less. 
 
     
     
       2. The acoustic mesh of  claim 1  wherein the second portion comprises a surface area that is at least 1 percent a total surface area of the acoustic mesh. 
     
     
       3. The acoustic mesh of  claim 1  wherein the second portion is near a perimeter of the acoustic mesh. 
     
     
       4. The acoustic mesh of  claim 1  wherein the second portion is a ring shaped portion positioned around the first portion. 
     
     
       5. The acoustic mesh of  claim 1  wherein the first portion comprises a number of portions that acoustically close different sections of the acoustic mesh. 
     
     
       6. The acoustic mesh of  claim 1  wherein the first portion comprises a diameter, and the diameter of the first portion is 1.5 cm or less. 
     
     
       7. The acoustic mesh of  claim 1  wherein the acoustic mesh is coupled to an acoustic port of the acoustic cavity and a microphone is positioned within the acoustic cavity. 
     
     
       8. The acoustic mesh of  claim 7  wherein the support post is positioned between the microphone and the acoustic port, and the support posts contacts an inner surface of the acoustic mesh that faces the acoustic cavity. 
     
     
       9. An acoustic shielding assembly comprising:
 an acoustic mesh; 
 a support member having an enclosed top side contacting an inner surface of at least a center portion of the acoustic mesh to acoustically close the center portion of the acoustic mesh, 
 and wherein a dimension of the support member is selected to allow the acoustic mesh to attenuate wind noise without affecting a frequency response of a microphone to which the acoustic mesh is acoustically coupled. 
 
     
     
       10. The acoustic shielding assembly of  claim 9  wherein the center portion of the acoustic mesh is a first portion and a second portion of the acoustic mesh surrounding the first portion is acoustically open. 
     
     
       11. The acoustic shielding assembly of  claim 9  wherein the dimension of the support member is a radius and the acoustic mesh comprises a radius that is greater than the radius of the support member. 
     
     
       12. The acoustic shielding assembly of  claim 9  wherein a diameter of the acoustic mesh is 1.5 cm or less. 
     
     
       13. The acoustic shielding assembly of  claim 9  wherein the attenuation of wind noise is 10 decibels or less. 
     
     
       14. The acoustic shielding assembly of  claim 9  wherein the acoustic mesh is coupled to an acoustic port that opens to an acoustic cavity of the microphone. 
     
     
       15. The acoustic shielding assembly of  claim 14  wherein the support member is a post positioned within the acoustic cavity and that extends to the acoustic mesh. 
     
     
       16. A portable electronic device, comprising:
 an enclosure having an acoustic port that acoustically couples an acoustic cavity within the enclosure to a surrounding ambient environment; 
 a microphone positioned within the enclosure and acoustically coupled to the acoustic cavity; 
 an acoustic mesh coupled to the acoustic port; and 
 a support member formed from the enclosure as a unitary structure and extending from a top side of the microphone to a center portion of the acoustic mesh to acoustically close the center portion of the acoustic mesh, and wherein a remaining portion of the acoustic mesh surrounding the center portion is acoustically open and surrounds the center portion, and wherein the remaining portion comprises a surface area that is at least 1 percent a total surface area of the acoustic mesh. 
 
     
     
       17. The portable electronic device of  claim 16  wherein the acoustically closed center portion prevents a wind noise from the ambient environment from entering the acoustic cavity. 
     
     
       18. The portable electronic device of  claim 16  wherein the acoustically closed center portion is at a center of the acoustic mesh. 
     
     
       19. The portable electronic device of  claim 16  wherein the support member comprises a radius that is smaller than a radius of the acoustic port.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of the earlier filing date of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/906,556, filed Sep. 26, 2019 and incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     An embodiment of the invention is directed to an acoustic mesh for attenuating wind noise without impacting a frequency response of an associated microphone. Other embodiments are also described and claimed. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Portable listening devices can be used with a wide variety of electronic devices such as portable media players, smart phones, tablet computers, laptop computers, stereo systems, and other types of devices. Portable listening devices have historically included one or more small speakers configured to be placed on, in, or near a user&#39;s ear, structural components that hold the speakers in place, and a cable that electrically connects the portable listening device to an audio source. Other portable listening devices can be wireless devices that do not include a cable and instead, wirelessly receive a stream of audio data from a wireless audio source. Such portable listening devices can include, for instance, wireless earbud devices or in-ear hearing devices that operate in pairs (one for each ear) or individually for outputting sound to, and receiving sound from, the user. 
     While wireless listening devices have many advantages over wired portable listening devices, they also have some potential drawbacks. For example, it may be difficult to achieve high-end acoustic performance from the listening devices due to the limited amount of space available within each listening device. Also, some wireless listening devices that extend into the ear canal to achieve better performance can often have an improper seal between the portable listening device and the ear canal, causing the user to experience lower quality sound. Further, the small size of wireless listening devices often causes a compromise in user interface features, blockage of sensors and/or microphones, and lower overall user experience. 
     SUMMARY 
     Portable listening devices such as earbuds may include a microphone, for example, an external microphone that picks up sounds from the ambient environment surrounding the device. For example, the microphone may pick up the user&#39;s voice, pick up ambient noise (e.g., for noise cancellation), or be used for other purposes. A microphone picking up sounds from the ambient environment may, however, be sensitive to undesirable sounds such as wind noise, particularly in cases where the microphone signal is amplified. To reduce the sensitivity of the microphone to undesirable wind noise, the instant invention includes an acoustic shield coupled to an acoustic port from the ambient environment to the microphone. The acoustic shield may be an acoustic mesh that has particular dimensions that have been found to reduce (or attenuate) wind noise (or other undesirable ambient sounds) without impacting a frequency response of the microphone (e.g., without attenuating desired sounds such as speech). For example, the acoustic mesh may be acoustically closed at a center portion and acoustically open around a perimeter portion. The acoustically open and acoustically closed portions may be specially selected to provide the same wind protection (or attenuation) as opening the whole area (e.g., an acoustic mesh without an acoustically closed center portion) without impacting the frequency response of the microphone. In some aspects, the acoustic mesh including open and closed portions may achieve a maximum wind attenuation up to 10 decibels (dB). 
     In one aspect, an acoustic mesh includes a first portion that is acoustically closed; and a second portion that surrounds the first portion and is acoustically open. The acoustic mesh may be configured to provide comparable wind noise attenuation in comparison to an acoustic mesh without the first portion, without affecting a frequency response of a microphone to which the acoustic mesh is acoustically coupled. In some aspects, the first portion is at a center of the acoustic mesh. The first portion may be acoustically closed by coupling a support member to a surface of the first portion. The second portion may be near a perimeter of the acoustic mesh. The second portion may be a ring shaped portion positioned around the first portion. The first portion may include a number of portions that acoustically close different sections of the acoustic mesh. The first portion have a diameter, and the diameter of the first portion may be 1.5 cm or less. The attenuation of wind noise may be 10 decibels or less. The acoustic mesh may be coupled to an acoustic port of an enclosure that the microphone is positioned within. 
     In another aspect, an acoustic shielding assembly includes an acoustic mesh, a support member coupled to the acoustic mesh to acoustically close a portion of the acoustic mesh, and a dimension of the support member is selected to allow the acoustic mesh to attenuate wind noise without affecting a frequency response of a microphone to which the acoustic mesh is acoustically coupled. In some aspects, a portion of the acoustic mesh is a first portion and a second portion of the acoustic mesh surrounding the first portion is acoustically open. In some aspects, a dimension of the support member is a radius and the acoustic mesh comprises a radius that is greater than the radius of the support member. In some aspects, a diameter of the acoustic mesh is 1.5 cm or less. The attenuation of the wind noise may be 10 decibels or less. The acoustic mesh may be coupled to an acoustic port that opens to an acoustic cavity of the microphone. The support member may be a post positioned within the acoustic cavity and that extends to the acoustic mesh. 
     In another aspect, a portable electronic device includes an enclosure having an acoustic port that acoustically couples an acoustic cavity within the enclosure to a surrounding ambient environment; a microphone positioned within the enclosure and acoustically coupled to the acoustic cavity; and an acoustic mesh coupled to the acoustic port, the acoustic mesh having a first portion that is acoustically closed and a second portion that is acoustically open and surrounds the first portion, and wherein the acoustic mesh attenuates wind noise from the ambient environment without affecting a frequency response of the microphone. The acoustically closed first portion may prevent a wind noise from the ambient environment from entering the acoustic cavity. The acoustically closed first portion may be at a center of the acoustic mesh. A support member may extend from the acoustic cavity to the first portion of the acoustic mesh to acoustically close the first portion of the acoustic mesh, and wherein the support member comprises a radius that is smaller than a radius of the acoustic port. 
     The above summary does not include an exhaustive list of all aspects of the present invention. It is contemplated that the invention includes all systems and methods that can be practiced from all suitable combinations of the various aspects summarized above, as well as those disclosed in the Detailed Description below and particularly pointed out in the claims filed with the application. Such combinations have particular advantages not specifically recited in the above summary. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements. It should be noted that references to “an” or “one” embodiment in this disclosure are not necessarily to the same embodiment, and they mean at least one. 
         FIG.  1    illustrates a simplified schematic cross-sectional side view of one aspect of an acoustic shielding assembly. 
         FIG.  2    illustrates a graph representing a wind noise attenuation achieved using an acoustic shielding assembly. 
         FIG.  3    illustrates a top plan view of one aspect of an acoustic shielding assembly. 
         FIG.  4    illustrates a top plan view of another aspect of an acoustic shielding assembly. 
         FIGS.  5 A- 5 B  illustrates perspective and cross-sectional views of one aspect of an exemplary acoustic shielding component for a microphone in a housing. 
         FIG.  6    illustrates is a block diagram of a portable electronic listening device system including an exemplary wireless listening device with which an acoustic shielding component may be associated. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     In this section we shall explain several preferred aspects of this invention with reference to the appended drawings. Whenever the shapes, relative positions and other aspects of the parts described in the aspects are not clearly defined, the scope of the invention is not limited only to the parts shown, which are meant merely for the purpose of illustration. Also, while numerous details are set forth, it is understood that some aspects of the invention may be practiced without these details. In other instances, well-known structures and techniques have not been shown in detail so as not to obscure the understanding of this description. 
     The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular aspects only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, “above”, “upper”, and the like may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element&#39;s or feature&#39;s relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (e.g., rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly. 
     As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising” specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. 
     The terms “or” and “and/or” as used herein are to be interpreted as inclusive or meaning any one or any combination. Therefore, “A, B or C” or “A, B and/or C” mean “any of the following: A; B; C; A and B; A and C; B and C; A, B and C.” An exception to this definition will occur only when a combination of elements, functions, steps or acts are in some way inherently mutually exclusive. 
       FIG.  1    illustrates a cross-sectional simplified schematic side view of one aspect of an acoustic shielding assembly coupled to a transducer assembly. Assembly  100  may include a device frame, housing, or enclosure  102  within which various device components may be integrated, housed, contained, or otherwise positioned. One such component is a transducer  104 . Transducer  104  may be positioned within enclosure  102  and acoustically coupled to an acoustic port  108  formed through the wall of enclosure  102 . In some aspects, an acoustic cavity  106  is formed between transducer  104  and acoustic port  108  such that, for example, an acoustic input from the ambient environment that enters the enclosure through the acoustic port  108 , travels through the acoustic cavity prior to reaching transducer  104 . Representatively, in one aspect transducer  104  may be a microphone that converts sound (e.g., audible acoustic signals) into electrical signals. For example, sound from the ambient environment may enter enclosure  102  through acoustic port  108 , and travel through acoustic cavity  106  to transducer  104 . The sound is then picked up by transducer  104  (e.g., microphone), which then converts the sound to an electrical signal for further processing (e.g., noise cancellation). In some aspects, however, the sound or acoustic input may also include undesirable wind noise from the ambient environment. To reduce the impact of the undesirable wind noise on the transducer  104 , assembly  100  may further include an acoustic shielding assembly  110 . 
     Acoustic shielding assembly  110  may be any type of shielding assembly suitable for attenuating, or otherwise decreasing, undesirable wind noise without impacting a frequency response of transducer  104 . Representatively, shielding assembly  110  may include an acoustic material, for example, acoustic mesh  112 . Acoustic mesh  112  may be constructed as a single layer with contours that conform to a topography of an external surface of enclosure  102 . In some instances, acoustic mesh  112  can be a porous layer that is tuned to a specific acoustic impedance to enable proper operation of the underlying transducer  104 . In some embodiments, acoustic mesh  112  is formed of a pliable, porous material, such as a porous polyester. Acoustic mesh  112  can be covered with a hydrophobic coating that enables acoustic mesh  112  to resist ingress of water into the housing of the wireless listening device. In some embodiments, although not shown, acoustic mesh  112  may be positioned between a cosmetic mesh and a stiffener. Acoustic mesh  112  may be attached to enclosure  102 , and dimensioned to completely cover acoustic port  108  and acoustic cavity  106 . An external surface  112 A of acoustic mesh  112  may be exposed (or face) the ambient environment, and in some cases may be planar with the external surface of enclosure  102 . An internal surface of acoustic mesh  112  may be exposed, share a volume with, or otherwise face, acoustic cavity  106 . 
     Acoustic shielding assembly  110  may further include support member  114 , which may abut, contact, or otherwise be positioned against, internal surface  112 A of acoustic mesh  112 . Support member  114  may, for example, be any type of structure that provides structural rigidity to acoustic mesh  112  (e.g., prevents mesh  112  from deformation during drop events) and occludes a portion of acoustic mesh  112 . Acoustic mesh  112  is therefore acoustically open except where it is covered by support member  114 . Acoustic mesh  112  is considered acoustically closed in the regions or areas where it is in contact with, or otherwise covered by, support member  114 . The term “acoustically open” is intended to mean that sounds, wind noise, or the like from the ambient environment may pass through acoustic mesh  112  to transducer  104 . The term “acoustically closed” is intended to mean that sounds, wind noise, or the like from the ambient environment may not pass, or are otherwise prevented from passing, through acoustic mesh  112  to transducer  104 . 
     The size, surface area and/or dimensions of acoustic mesh  112  relative to support member  114  may be specially selected so that they achieve a wind noise attenuation of, for example, up to 10 decibels (dB) without impacting a frequency response of transducer  104 . Representatively, in one aspect, acoustic mesh  112  may have a dimension D 1 . Dimension D 1  may correspond to, for example, an overall maximum dimension (e.g., width, outer radius, outer diameter, surface area, etc) of acoustic mesh  112  covering acoustic port  108 . Dimension D 1  may therefore also correspond to an overall maximum dimension of acoustic port  108 . Support member  114  may have an overall dimension D 2 . Dimension D 2  may correspond to, for example, an overall maximum dimension (e.g., width, inner radius, inner diameter, surface area, etc) of the portion of support member  114  contacting, or otherwise occluding, acoustic mesh  112 . Dimension D 2  may therefore also be understood as corresponding to an acoustically closed portion, region or surface of acoustic mesh  112 . In some aspects, dimension D 2  is less than dimension D 1  such that at least a portion of acoustic mesh  112  remains open. Dimension D 3 , in turn, illustrates the difference between dimension D 1  and dimension D 2 , or the open region or portion of acoustic mesh  112  surrounding the closed region (e.g., dimension D 1 -dimension D 2 ). The dimension D 3  may be considered the critical dimension necessary to achieve a maximum wind attenuation without impacting a frequency response. For example, in some aspects, at least 1 percent (%) of acoustic mesh  112  remains open. Therefore, in some aspects, D 1 , D 2  and D 3  may be defined relative to one another, for example, as D 3 /D 1 &gt;0.01, or D 2 /D 3 &lt;99 and D 2 /D 1 &lt;0.99. In the illustrated configuration, support member  114  is in contact with a central region of support member  114  so that the acoustic mesh  112  is acoustically closed near the center and acoustically open near the perimeter. The size of the open perimeter portion, dimension or area can be selected to provide comparable wind noise attenuation in comparison to an acoustic mesh without support member  114  (e.g., completely open acoustic mesh). 
       FIG.  2    illustrates a graph representing how the critical dimensions of an acoustic shielding assembly can be arrived at for optimum wind attenuation without impacting the frequency response. In particular, graph  200  illustrates a maximum dimension of a circular acoustic port  108  that may be occluded by the support member  114  to achieve the desired wind noise attenuation without impacting the frequency response of transducer  104 . Representatively, the y-axis represents the wind coherence and the x-axis represents a radius (R) of the acoustic port (e.g., outer radius of acoustic port  108 ). As can be generally seen from graph  200 , as the dimension of the acoustic port increase (e.g., radius (R) increases), the wind coherence decreases, as illustrated by the wind coherence curve (WC), thereby increasing acoustic benefits. The frequency response (FR), or desired sound, is further illustrated by the frequency response curve labeled “FR”. In particular, it can be seen from the graph that the frequency response (FR) is flat up to about 8-10 kHz. The point at which the frequency (FR) is no longer flat or drops off, for example after about 8-10 kHz, is then used to determine the maximum desired or critical dimension of the acoustic port. In this example, for the sake of simplicity, the port is assumed to be circular so the maximum critical dimension may be defined as the outer radius (Ro) of the acoustic port. The critical dimension of the support member, or inner radius (Ri), relative to the acoustic port dimension (outer radius Ro), can then be determined based on a determined coherence threshold (CT). The coherence threshold (CT) is the point below which the coherence is low enough to achieve the desired maximum attenuation. In other words, the graph  200  shows that the acoustic port dimension (Ro) can be occluded up to a maximum inner radius (Ri) (e.g., a maximum radius of support member) before the frequency response is impacted. The difference between the outer radius (Ro) and inner radius (Ri) is the remaining open area (g), which may vary depending on the size of the port and occluded region as shown. 
     The corresponding acoustic shielding assembly  110  dimensions, which are determined based on graph  200 , are illustrated in  FIG.  3   . In particular, where the acoustic port is circular as previously discussed, the associated acoustic mesh  112  used to cover the port may have a maximum dimension D 1 , which in this case may be a maximum outer radius (e.g., radius (Ro) described in  FIG.  2   ) or diameter (e.g., 2×D 1 ). In some cases, a maximum outer diameter of acoustic mesh  112  may be 1.5 cm or less, for example, 1.4 cm or less, 1.3 cm or less, 1.2 cm or less or 1.1 cm or less. The support member  114  used to occlude a portion of the acoustic mesh  112  may have a maximum dimension D 2  (e.g., inner radius (Ri) described in  FIG.  2   ). This section, region or portion of the acoustic mesh  112  in contact with support member  114  forms the acoustically closed portion  304  of the acoustic mesh  112 . In other words, the acoustically closed portion  304  may be understood as also having a maximum dimension D 2 . As can be seen from  FIG.  3   , the maximum dimension D 2  is less than the maximum dimension D 1  of acoustic mesh  112 . An acoustically open portion  302  having a maximum dimension D 3  (e.g., open area (g) of  FIG.  2   ) therefore remains near the perimeter of acoustic mesh  112 . In this configuration, support member  114  is positioned within the center region of acoustic mesh  112 . Therefore, the acoustically open portion  302  of acoustic mesh  112  is a ring shaped region occupying an entire perimeter of acoustic mesh  112 , and the center of the mesh is the acoustically close portion  304 . It is contemplated, however, that the acoustically open portion  302  and acoustically closed portion  304  of mesh  112  may have different shapes and sizes and are not limited to circular shapes. To achieve the desired wind noise attenuation, however, D 2  should be less than D 1 , or D 3  should be greater than zero. In some aspects, it is contemplated that the dimensions D 1 , D 2  and D 3  may represent a surface area of the acoustic mesh  112 , support member  114  (or acoustically closed portion  304 ) and acoustically open portion  302 , respectively. In some aspects, the configuration of the shielding assembly  110  may therefore also be described based on a surface area of the closed portion relative to the open portion. For example, in some aspects, the surface area of the acoustically closed portion  304  of acoustic mesh (e.g., D 2 ) may be larger than a surface area of the acoustically open portion  302  of acoustic mesh (e.g., D 3 ). In other aspects, the surface area ratio for the entire surface area of acoustic mesh  112  (e.g., D 1 ) to the surface area of the acoustically closed portion  302  (e.g., D 3 ) may be 1.04. Said another way, the surface area of acoustically open portion  302 , or dimension D 3 , may be at least 1 percent of the entire surface area of acoustic mesh  112  (e.g., D 1 ). It should further be understood that the acoustically open portion  302  and the acoustically closed portion  304  are both formed by the same mesh material making up acoustic mesh  112 . For example, the acoustically open portion  302  and the acoustically closed portion  304  may be formed from the same sheet of pliable, porous material, such as a porous polyester, making up the acoustic mesh  112 . The acoustically open portion  302 , however, is considered acoustically open because sounds and/or noise may pass through the acoustically open portion  302  to the underlying acoustic chamber but are prevented from passing through the acoustically closed portion  304  to the underlying acoustic chamber. 
     It should further be understood that while a circular configuration is described in  FIGS.  2 - 3   , it is contemplated that the acoustic port  108  and acoustic shielding assembly  110  may have other shapes and configurations.  FIG.  4    illustrates a top plan view of another aspect of an acoustic shielding assembly associated with an elongated acoustic port. Representatively, acoustic shielding assembly  410  may have an acoustic mesh  412  having an elongated shape as shown, which may correspond to the shape and dimensions of the associated acoustic port (although not shown). Assembly  410  may further include a number of support members  414 A,  414 B,  414 C,  414 D,  414 E contacting the acoustic mesh  412 . Therefore, in this configuration, the acoustic mesh  412  includes a number of sections, portions or regions that are acoustically closed (e.g, sections covered by members  414 A,  414 B,  414 C,  414 D,  414 E) and the surrounding mesh portion  402  is acoustically open, as opposed to a single centrally occluded portion and open perimeter portion as previously discussed. The total occluded and open surface areas of acoustic mesh  412 , however, may still be the same when single support member is used, therefore the same wind noise attenuation can ultimately be achieved. 
       FIGS.  5 A- 5 B  illustrate another aspect of an acoustic shielding assembly associated with a device.  FIG.  5 A  illustrates a perspective view of a portable electronic device within which the acoustic shielding assembly may be implemented. For example, the portable electronic device may be a portable listening device  500  having an acoustic port  514 .  FIG.  5 B  illustrates a cross-sectional view taken along line  5 - 5 ′ of device  500 . From this view, it can be seen that shielding assembly  502  may be coupled to the acoustic port  514 . The acoustic shielding assembly  502  may include acoustic mesh  510 . Acoustic mesh  510  can be a single or multi-layer mesh structure that extends at least partially between externally facing microphone  504  and an outer surface  506  of enclosure  508 . For instance, an external surface  520  of the acoustic mesh  510  can face outside of enclosure  508  and be substantially planar with the immediately adjacent regions of external surface  506  of enclosure  508 . External surface  520  of acoustic mesh  510  can be curved to seamlessly integrate with (i.e., be flush with) the curvature/profile of outer surface  506  of enclosure  508  so that structural step formations and recesses at their interface can be avoided, thereby substantially mitigating the generation of acoustic turbulence as air  512  moves quickly past acoustic port  526  while still enabling external noise to filter through to microphone  504 . 
     In some instances, acoustic mesh  510  is relatively thin compared to the depth of opening  526 . Thus, because external surface  520  of mesh  510  is positioned planar with external surface  506  of enclosure  508 , a cavity  516  within enclosure  508  and below external surface  520  of acoustic mesh  510  can be defined by the structure of acoustic mesh  510 . The relatively large surface area of external surface  520  of acoustic mesh  510  along with its thin construction and position relative to cavity  516 , acoustic mesh  510  may be particularly vulnerable to deformation during drop events. Thus, to resist such deformation, a support member  522  can be abutted against an inner surface  524  of acoustic mesh  510  opposite from external surface  520 . Support member  522  can be a support post that is an extension of housing  508  that extends toward, and makes contact with, acoustic mesh  510 , and occludes a portion of acoustic mesh  510 . Support member  522  can be positioned so that it makes contact with a central region of acoustic mesh  510  as shown. In addition to support member  522 , an additional stiffener can be implemented to provide structural rigidity to acoustic mesh  510 , and a grounding tab  524  can couple the acoustic mesh  510  to ground for additional support. 
       FIG.  6    illustrates a block diagram of some of the constituent components of a portable listening device in which the acoustic shield assembly disclosed herein may be implemented. The portable electronic listening device system  600  may include an exemplary wireless listening device  601 , according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Wireless listening device  601 , as mentioned above, can include a housing  605 . Housing  605  can be an electronic device component that generates and receives sound to provide an enhanced user interface for a host device  630 . Housing  605  can include a computing system  602  coupled to a memory bank  604 . Computing system  602  can execute instructions stored in memory bank  604  for performing a plurality of functions for operating housing  605 . Computing system  602  can be one or more suitable computing devices, such as microprocessors, computer processing units (CPUs), graphics processing units (GPUs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and the like. 
     Computing system  602  can also be coupled to a user interface system  606 , communication system  608 , and a sensor system  610  for enabling housing  605  to perform one or more functions. For instance, user interface system  606  can include a driver (e.g., speaker) for outputting sound to a user, microphone for inputting sound from the environment or the user, and any other suitable input and output device. Communication system  608  can include Bluetooth components for enabling housing  605  to send and receive data/commands from host device  630 . Sensor system  610  can include optical sensors, accelerometers, microphones, and any other type of sensor that can measure a parameter of an external entity and/or environment. 
     Housing  605  can also include a battery  612 , which can be any suitable energy storage device, such as a lithium ion battery, capable of storing energy and discharging stored energy to operate housing  605 . The discharged energy can be used to power the electrical components of housing  605 . In some embodiments, battery  612  can also be charged to replenish its stored energy. For instance, battery  612  can be coupled to power receiving circuitry  614 , which can receive current from receiving element  616 . Receiving element  616  can electrically couple with a transmitting element  618  of a case  603  in embodiments where receiving element  616  and transmitting element  618  are configured as exposed electrical contacts. Case  603  can include a battery  622  that can store and discharge energy to power transmitting circuitry  620 , which can in turn provide power to transmitting element  618 . The provided power can transfer through an electrical connection  628  and be received by power receiving circuitry  614  for charging battery  612 . While case  603  can be a device that provides power to charge battery  612  through receiving element  616 , in some embodiments, case  603  can also be a device that houses wireless listening device  601  for storing and provide protection to wireless listening device  601  while it is stored in case  603 . 
     Case  603  can also include a case computing system  619  and a case communication system  621 . Case computing system  619  can be one or more processors, ASICs, FPGAs, microprocessors, and the like for operating case  603 . Case computing system  619  can be coupled to power transmitting circuitry  620  for operating the charging functionalities of case  603 , and case computing system  619  can also be coupled to case communication system  621  for operating the interactive functionalities of case  603  with other devices, e.g., housing  605 . In some embodiments, case communication system  621  is a Bluetooth component, or any other suitable communication component, that sends and receives data with communication system  608  of housing  605 , such as an antenna formed of a conductive body. That way, case  603  can be apprised of the status of wireless listening device  601  (e.g., charging status and the like). Case  603  can also include a speaker  623  coupled to case computing system  619  so that speaker  623  can emit audible noise capable of being heard by a user for notification purposes. 
     Host device  630 , to which housing  605  is an accessory, can be a portable electronic device, such as a smart phone, tablet, or laptop computer. Host device  630  can include a host computing system  632  coupled to a host memory bank  634  containing lines of code executable by host computing system  632  for operating host device  630 . Host device  630  can also include a host sensor system  636 , e.g., accelerometer, gyroscope, light sensor, and the like, for allowing host device  630  to sense the environment, and a host user interface system  638 , e.g., display, speaker, buttons, touch screen, and the like, for outputting information to and receiving input from a user. Additionally, host device  630  can also include a host communication system  640  for allowing host device  630  to send and/or receive data from the Internet or cell towers via wireless communication, e.g., wireless fidelity (WIFI), long term evolution (LTE), code division multiple access (CDMA), global system for mobiles (GSM), Bluetooth, and the like. In some embodiments, host communication system  640  can also communicate with communication system  608  in housing  605  via wireless communication line  642  so that host device  630  can send sound data to housing  605  to output sound, and receive data from housing  605  to receive user inputs. Communication line  642  can be any suitable wireless communication line such as Bluetooth connection. By enabling communication between host deice  630  and housing  605 , wireless listening device  601  can enhance the user interface of host device  630 .  FIG.  5    illustrates an example of a representative portable electronic listening device system. 
     While certain aspects have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such embodiments are merely illustrative of and not restrictive on the broad invention, and that the invention is not limited to the specific constructions and arrangements shown and described, since various other modifications may occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. The description is thus to be regarded as illustrative instead of limiting. In addition, to aid the Patent Office and any readers of any patent issued on this application in interpreting the claims appended hereto, applicants wish to note that they do not intend any of the appended claims or claim elements to invoke 35 U.S.C. 112(f) unless the words “means for” or “step for” are explicitly used in the particular claim.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20200615
Publication Date: 20230530
Grant Date: 20230530
Priority Date: 20190926
Inventors: HUA, Thanh P.
Lagler, Jarrett B.
TWEHUES, BRIAN R.
HUWE, ETHAN L.
ZHANG, MEI
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H04R2410/07", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04R2410/07", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04R1/1016", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04R1/086", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04R1/02", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04R2410/07", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04R1/02", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 75162322