Patent Application: US-39179199-A

Abstract:
a programmable sound effects device which utilizes a motion - sensitive mechanism for selecting unique sound effects . the device is comprised of an electronic motion - sensitive actuator , a sound effect storage media for storing a plurality of predetermined sound effects , and a playback mechanism for audibly emitting the motion - activated sound effects . this device is designed to be used with amusement and entertainment type products such as toys , games , dolls , and props , with exemplary uses in toy swords , drumsticks , magic wands , and the like . a preferred embodiment is comprised of a unit which is physically incorporated into the handle of a toy sword . as the user moves the toy sword in a predefined manner , the motion - sensitive actuator senses the motion and plays out a plurality of unique sound effects as a function of the user &# 39 ; s movements . the motion - detection algorithm which triggers the different sound effects is programmable . in another embodiment , the device is contained within a single housing unit that is worn on the user &# 39 ; s body . this embodiment is well suited for many toys , props , games , and the like that do not have any sound effects capability but would benefit from such capability .

Description:
detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiment are provided herein . it is to be understood , however , that the present invention may be embodied in various forms . therefore , specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting , but rather as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed system , structure or manner . referring now to fig1 the amusement device of the present invention is generally designated as 100 . specifically , as a first embodiment of the present invention , a toy sword handle 110 is shown with a sword blade 131 , a hilt guard 130 , and a hilt cap 132 . the handle 110 , hilt guard 130 , and hilt cap 132 are fabricated from plastic or metal . the blade 131 is made of plastic or other material that is known in the art to create a rigid , non - brittle , and safe blade for play . the blade 131 may also be semi - transparent or translucent and coated with a light - sensitive material in order to give it a glowing effect . the electronic components of the present embodiment are encased in the handle 110 . these electronic components comprise a motion - sensitive actuator 123 , a playback 115 , and a power supply 112 . the playback 115 includes an amplifier 113 and a speaker 111 . the motion - sensitive actuator 123 is enabled and disabled via a button 124 . button 124 is a momentary pushbutton , slide switch , or other type of switch that has at least one pole . the motion - sensitive actuator is comprised of an accelerometer 122 , a signal processor 121 , and a storage 120 . the accelerometer 122 converts any detected motion into an electrical signal . the resulting electrical signal from accelerometer 122 is transferred to the signal processor . the signal processor monitors the incoming motion data from the accelerometer and determines , via a predetermined algorithm , whether or not the detected motion meets a predefined criteria for playing a certain sound effect . this predefined criteria is pre - programmed into the signal processor and can be a simple or complex set of rules , equations , or logic that base their decision on the incoming motion detected by the accelerometer . as a simple example , the signal processor 121 can play one unique sound effect if it detects significant motion , such as waving , in the x direction , while another unique sound effect can be played if significant motion is detected in the y direction , respectively . as a consequence , different sound effects can be played as a function of the direction of the detected motion as well as the magnitude of the detected motion , a feature not present in the prior art . a plurality of sound effects and program instructions for signal processor 121 are stored in the storage 120 . in the present embodiment , the storage 120 consists of an eprom chip . by re - programming the eprom with different program instructions for signal processor 121 , different motion - detecting algorithms can be implemented using a single realization of the present embodiment ; yet another advantage over the prior art . again referring to fig1 of the present embodiment , when signal processor 121 subsequently determines that the detected motion from the accelerometer meets the criteria for playing a particular sound effect , it sends out an analog signal representative of the chosen sound effect to the playback 115 . the amplifier 113 receives the analog signal from the motion - sensitive actuator , amplifies the analog signal , and sends the amplified signal to the speaker 111 for auditory playback . the motion - sensitive actuator and the playback are powered by the power supply 112 , which is also encased in the handle 110 . the hilt cap 132 attaches to the end of the sword handle 110 and can have an open or closed bottom . in the present embodiment , the bottom of hilt cap 132 is open and is covered with a protective screen 133 to protect the speaker . the hilt cap in this embodiment will allow sound to emanate freely out of the handle from the speaker . the power supply is also replaceable by removing the hilt cap and the speaker from the sword handle . referring now to fig2 a block diagram is shown of the motion - sensitive actuator 123 and the supporting components . the accelerometer 122 is a solid - state measurement device which converts dynamic and static accelerations into electrical signals that are directly proportional to acceleration . these electrical signals are sent to the signal processor 121 for analysis . the signal processor is comprised of a digital signal processor ( dsp ) 210 , a master clock 211 , and a digital - to - analog converter ( dac ) 212 . alternatively , dsp 210 can be replaced with a standard microcontroller known in the art that is capable of analyzing data from the accelerometer . the master clock supplies dsp 210 with a synchronous clock to run program instructions which analyze the incoming signals from the accelerometer . the program instructions and prerecorded sound effects are both stored in the storage 120 , which is comprised of an eprom chip . the eprom loads the data into the dsp upon applying power to the device . while the button 124 , denoted si , stays in the &# 34 ; off &# 34 ; position , the dsp remains in an low - power mode to conserve battery life . when s1 is placed into the &# 34 ; on &# 34 ; position , the dsp begins running its internal program to analyze incoming signals from the accelerometer . upon the dsp analyzing data and subsequently deciding that a sound effect is to be played based on the incoming motion measurements , it sends out digital sound effect samples representative of the selected sound effect to dac 212 . the dac is comprised of a digital - to - analog converter chip which converts these digital sound effects samples that are representative of the selected sound effect into an analog signal . this analog signal is then passed to the playback 115 . the amplifier 113 boosts the analog signal representative of the selected sound effect and then sends the resulting amplified signal to the speaker 111 . the speaker converts the analog signal into an audible sound indicative of the chosen sound effect , which the user can readily hear . the power supply 112 powers the playback and motion - sensitive actuator . the power supply is comprised of a voltage regulator and replaceable battery capable of powering the motion - sensitive actuator and the playback . now turning to fig3 a more detailed diagram of the components that comprise the motion - sensitive actuator and the power supply are shown . in the present embodiment , the signal processor is implemented by using off - the - shelf components . all of the components , data sheets , and relative connections for completing a necessary pcb board can be found by using an off - the - shelf dsp evaluation board , the adds - 21xx ez - kit lite . the adds - 21xx ez - kit lite is manufactured by analog devices , inc ., and is an evaluation dsp board that contains the dsp , the dac , the eprom , and the power supply . the adds - 21xx ez - kit lite board is a standard prototyping tool that allows one skilled in the art to develop real - time dsp assembly code software . the software for the preferred embodiment of the invention was developed using this board . the dsp is an analog devices adsp - 2181 operating at 33 mhz . the dsp has 16 k words of internal data ram and 16 k words of internal program ram . external master clock 211 runs at 16 . 67 mhz and is upconverted to 33 mhz in the dsp . the dac is comprised of an analog devices ad1847 soundport running with an external dac clock 310 at 24 . 576 mhz . the ad1847 has a programmable sampling frequency for its onboard adc and dac that is controlled via the dsp . the ad1847 is connected to the dsp via synchronous serial port 0 , denoted sport0 . the storage 120 is comprised of a 27c010 eprom which is connected to the dsp via eight data lines and seventeen address lines . the data lines ( d7 - d0 ) of the eprom are connected to eight data lines ( d8 - d15 ) of the dsp . the seventeen address lines of the eprom are comprised of a combination of the fourteen address lines ( a13 - a0 ) and three data lines ( d18 - d16 ) of the dsp . upon powerup , the dsp sets the / bms line low and loads in the data and program instructions from the eprom into its own internal memory . after loading is complete , the dsp jumps to the beginning line of program code and begins program execution . the accelerometer 122 is an analog devices adxl202 +/- 2 g dual axis digital output accelerometer chip . this accelerometer is different than any motion actuator used in the prior art in the fact that it measures precise acceleration in two coordinate axes , which is used by the dsp to classify different types of movement , such as waving versus striking , jabbing versus blocking , and the like . the adxl202 also outputs a pulse - width modulated digital signal that is proportional to the acceleration experienced by the chip in each respective axis . it is able to measure static acceleration , such as gravity , and also dynamic accelerations for each axis . the digital signals outputted by the adxl202 , xout and yout , are connected to the dsp via external port pins pf0 and pf1 , respectively . the x - axis output is connected to the pf0 port pin , and the y - axis output is connected to the pf1 port pin on the dsp . thus , the dsp is responsible for polling the port pins and decoding the pulse - width modulated digital signal via a software decoding routine . this novel approach eliminates the need for a dual - channel adc that would typically be needed to convert analog acceleration signals into digital values for the dsp . the button 124 is connected to the external interrupt line / irqe on the dsp and debounced via resistor r and capacitor c . any type of debouncing circuit known in the art can be used in conjunction with the button to provide a clean signal to / irqe . every time the button is pressed , the / irqe line is pulled low , and the program running internally on the dsp responds by jumping to the appropriate / irqe interrupt subroutine , in which the dsp then enables or disables itself , depending on its previous state , in order to monitor incoming acceleration data from the accelerometer . the power supply 112 , also shown in fig3 is comprised of a nine - volt battery 320 and a five - volt regulator lm7405 321 . the five - volt regulator also resides on the adds - 2181 ez - kit lite dsp board , and the only external component supplied is the nine - volt battery . in accordance with an important feature of the present invention , there is shown in fig4 a flowchart of the program code that is contained in eprom 120 and executed by dsp 210 . the program monitors the motion data from the accelerometer 122 and determines whether a sound effect should be played in accordance with a predetermined set of rules . the software flowchart in fig4 is described in connection with the present embodiment , it is not intended to limit the scope of the alternative programs , methods , and techniques that are contained within the spirit of the present invention . referring now to fig4 when power is applied to the device , the dsp loads the program code from the eprom into its own internal memory , then jumps to the starting program code segment and begins running the program internally . at the beginning of the program , the dsp initializes all relevant variables and sits in a &# 34 ; wait &# 34 ; loop until button s1 is placed into the &# 34 ; on &# 34 ; position . when button s1 is pressed in this manner , the signal processor reacts by sending out a &# 34 ; power up &# 34 ; sound effect to the playback . this gives the user the realism that the toy sword has been &# 34 ; activated &# 34 ; and has come to life . the signal processor waits until the sound has been completely played , and afterwards it begins to monitor acceleration measurements delivered by the accelerometer . the dsp decodes the incoming acceleration digital data in the x and y axes , respectively . once it receives a valid acceleration measurement for each axis direction , the derivative of acceleration in each direction is calculated . by computing the derivative of acceleration , it can be determined how vigorously the sword is being waved in each of the accelerometer axes . furthermore , since the accelerometer is capable of measuring static acceleration , by computing the derivative this static acceleration is removed , and the resulting measurement only contains the acceleration components due to dynamic motion , such as waving , striking , and the like . the derivative measurements are then compared next to two thresholds , a high ( t2 ) and low ( t1 ) threshold for both the x and y axes . if either of these axis measurements surpasses the t1 threshold , then there is a significant dynamic acceleration typical of the user waving the sword handle around . thus , a &# 34 ; waving &# 34 ; sound effect is played . the waving sound effects are unique to the x and y axes , respectively . that is , if t1 is surpassed in the x direction only , one type of waving sound effect is played . if t1 is surpassed in the y direction only , another type of waving sound effect is played . if t1 is surpassed in both directions , then yet another type of waving sound effect is played , for example , the two unique waving sound effects for both axes can be added together by the dsp before sent to the playback . in a similar manner , if either axis derivative measurement surpasses the t2 threshold , then this is indicative of a large dynamic acceleration , typical of sudden stops of the sword handle or the sword blade striking another object . thus , if either of the axis derivative measurements surpasses t2 , then a corresponding &# 34 ; clashing &# 34 ; sound is played in accordance with the rules set forth above and as shown in fig4 . if the measurements do not surpass any of the thresholds , then no &# 34 ; waving &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; clashing &# 34 ; sounds are played since the detected motion is considered minimal . while the sword is &# 34 ; on &# 34 ;, the dsp also plays out a constant &# 34 ; hum &# 34 ; sound . this gives the user the added realism that the toy sword is &# 34 ; active &# 34 ;. the hum can be an ambient energy hum or similar sound effect , an example being the sound emanated from an activated lightsaber in the popular star wars movies . the hum sound effect is mixed in real time with any other sound effect currently being played out by the dsp , as set by the flowchart in fig4 . so , if there is no &# 34 ; waving &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; clashing &# 34 ; sound effects playing , then the user will only hear the &# 34 ; hum &# 34 ; sound effect while the sword is on . if a &# 34 ; waving &# 34 ; or &# 34 ; clashing &# 34 ; sound effect is presently being played , the &# 34 ; hum &# 34 ; sound effect is mixed with the currently outputted sound effect . after mixing the sound effects together , the dsp sends out the resulting mixed sound to the playback . at the end of the main program loop , the program checks to see whether button s1 has been pressed again . if button s1 has not been pressed , the program continues monitoring acceleration data from the accelerometer and playing out sound effects based on the flowchart shown in fig4 . if button s1 has been pressed again , this is indicative of &# 34 ; deactivating &# 34 ; the sword . in this case , the dsp sends out a &# 34 ; power down &# 34 ; sound effect to the playback , which gives the user the added realism that the sword is now turned off . after the entire &# 34 ; power down &# 34 ; sound effect is played , the dsp returns to a power - down mode and again waits for button s1 to be pressed . in this state , no sound effects are played out and the program once again waits for button s1 to be turned on . table 1 contains program instructions in object code for the storage 120 on the adds - 21xx ez - kit lite kit . the object code is listed in s - record format . the program implements the spirit of the algorithm specified in fig4 ., with the acceleration measurements on the pf1 port pin decoded exclusively , corresponding to y - axis acceleration measurements . the sound effects for each event as specified in fig4 can be chosen to correlate the specific movements to each unique sound effect outputted . while the program flowchart shown in fig4 and object code shown in table 1 is representative of the preferred embodiment , anyone skilled in the art will recognize that many other motion - based algorithms can be readily implemented by writing new software for the dsp and storing the program into the storage . since the storage also stores the predetermined sound effects , these sound effects can be changed as well to suit the specific application . this process requires no changes to the hardware described above and results in a programmable motion - sensitive sound effects device . referring now to fig5 a second embodiment of the present invention is shown . in this embodiment of the invention , the playback 115 is replaced by a transmitter 510 . the transmitter is a device that is encased within the sword handle 110 and transmits the analog signal received from the motion - sensitive actuator to a remote receiver 515 . in this embodiment of the invention , the amplifier and speaker are no longer necessary and can be eliminated from the handle . likewise , the power supply supplies the necessary power to the transmitter . the transmitter uses a signal from a family of signals comprised of radio frequency signals , ultrasonic signals , or infrared signals . the receiver is comprised of components that are capable of decoding the signal emanated by the transmitter , amplifying the decoded signal , and audibly emitting the decoded and amplified signal . the decoded signal is an analog signal representative of the selected sound effect . as an example , the transmitter 510 is encased in the handle and is a typical fm transmitter known in the art . the remote receiver 515 is a typical fm radio receiver , which effectively gives the user a wireless link between the toy sword and the remote radio receiver . a third embodiment of the present invention is demonstrated in fig6 . this embodiment is comprised of a body - worn sound effects unit 600 which is attached to the user &# 39 ; s body and can be used with existing toys or props . the body - worn unit is comprised of a housing 610 and a band 611 . the band is designed for the wrist or ankle and is attached to the housing . the band allows the user to wear the housing comfortably . the electronics in the body - worn unit are comprised of the same components as the second embodiment and operates in the same manner as the second embodiment . however , in this embodiment , the difference is that the user wears the body - worn sound effects unit which can be used in conjunction with any toy , game , doll , and the like . as the user moves in a predefined manner , the body - worn unit senses the motion and plays out unique sound effects as a function of the user &# 39 ; s movements . like the second embodiment , the sound effects based on the user &# 39 ; s motion are transmitted by the transmitter to a remote receiver . this embodiment is advantageous to the user that has a plurality of toys , games , dolls , and the like that do not have sound effects capability , but would like to add sound effects capability to those toys , games dolls , and the like by using this one device . this embodiment adds further realism and provides an interactive environment in which the user can play with a plurality of preexisting toys , games , dolls , and the like . the manner of using the illustrated embodiments are the same . when the button is pushed once so that it is placed into the &# 34 ; on &# 34 ; position , the motion - sensitive actuator is enabled . the device plays an &# 34 ; activation &# 34 ; sound effect , giving the realism that the device has become active . also , a constant &# 34 ; hum &# 34 ; or other relevant sound effect is sent to the playback indicating to the user that the device is &# 34 ; active &# 34 ;. subsequently , when the device is waved about in either the x - direction or y - direction , the resulting motion is detected by the motion - sensitive actuator . the motion - sensitive actuator analyzes the motion , and based on its internal motion - detection algorithm , it decides whether or not the resulting motion satisfies its requirements . if the motion does satisfy the requirements , the motion - sensitive actuator sends a unique sound effect that is representative of the detected motion to the playback . the playback audibly emits a signal indicative of the selected sound effect for the user to hear . as the user moves the device around , the device will continue to play out the motion - based sound effects until the button is pressed once more . upon pressing the button , the constant &# 34 ; hum &# 34 ; sound is stopped and a &# 34 ; deactivating &# 34 ; sound effect is played , giving the added realism that the device in now inactive . in this mode , the motion - sensitive actuator is disabled and no sound effects are played . the motion - sensitive actuator then waits until the button is pressed again , and the program cycle is repeated . accordingly , the reader will see that the motion - sensitive sound effects device of this invention provides a programmable , portable , and interactive sound effects solution that can be designed into new toys or used with preexisting toys , providing a more realistic and fulfilling play environment for the user . while the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment , it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular form set forth , but on the contrary , it is intended to cover such alternatives , modifications , and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents . table 1__________________________________________________________________________s22500000040060093fe2040020093fe1040000093fe3040087093fe403c008c0000003c0083ef s22500002102800018020f0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000f s2250000420000000000000000000000000000000000000a001f000000000000000000401f50c0 s22500006393fe2040004093fe1040001093fe3040019093fe4002800000000000000000000070 s22500008400000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000056 s2250000a500000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000035 s2250000c600000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000014 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