Speaker assembly with port

Abstract

A ported speaker assembly includes an outer enclosure having a front opening. An inner frame of the speaker assembly is positioned at least partially within the outer enclosure and has an outer peripheral edge proximate the front opening of the outer enclosure. A resonator cavity is defined between an interior of the outer enclosure and an exterior of the inner frame. At least one speaker driver is mounted to the inner frame and is configured to emit sound from a front end of the ported speaker assembly. A peripheral port is formed between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame and the front opening of the outer enclosure. The peripheral port extends uninterrupted to surround the outer peripheral portion. A plurality of fastener joints secure the inner frame to the outer enclosure, and at least some are distributed about a plurality of side portions of the inner frame and are positioned closer to the front opening of the outer enclosure than a rear end of the inner frame.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the manufacture of speaker assemblies for audio reproduction. Background Technology

[0002] Enclosures for large loudspeaker assemblies (especially loudspeakers containing two, three, or more drivers, including one or more large low-frequency drivers) impose substantial requirements on component tolerances across numerous fastening points and / or the relative difficulty of matching the large sub-components that make up the loudspeaker assembly. Loudspeaker assemblies incorporating resonator cavities with tuning frequencies further increase the overall design complexity and typically force the entire enclosure to be larger than would have been required for the size of the provided (multiple) drivers. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In one aspect, the invention provides a ported loudspeaker assembly comprising an outer housing having a front opening. An inner frame of the loudspeaker assembly is at least partially located within the outer housing and has an outer peripheral portion adjacent to the front opening of the outer housing. A resonator cavity is defined between the interior of the outer housing and the exterior of the inner frame. At least one loudspeaker driver is mounted to the inner frame and configured to emit sound from a front end of the ported loudspeaker assembly. A peripheral port is formed between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame and the front opening of the outer housing to establish acoustic communication between the resonator cavity and the surrounding external atmosphere for a resonant output at a tuning frequency. The peripheral port extends uninterruptedly around the outer peripheral edge of the inner frame to surround the outer peripheral edge. A plurality of fastener joints secure the inner frame to the outer housing, and at least some of the plurality of fastener joints are distributed around a plurality of side portions of the inner frame and positioned closer to the front opening of the outer housing than the rear end of the inner frame.

[0004] In another aspect, the invention provides a ported speaker assembly comprising an outer housing having a front opening defined between a top side, a bottom side, and two lateral sides, the outer housing defining an internal resonator cavity. An inner frame is at least partially positioned within the outer housing and has an outer peripheral portion adjacent to the front opening of the outer housing. The resonator cavity is defined between the interior of the outer housing and the exterior of the inner frame. At least one speaker driver is mounted to the inner frame and configured to emit sound from a front end of the ported speaker assembly. A peripheral port is formed between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame and the front opening of the outer housing to establish acoustic communication between the resonator cavity and the surrounding external atmosphere for a resonant output at a tuning frequency. A plurality of fastener joints secure the inner frame to the outer housing, each of the plurality of fastener joints including a threaded fastener, a clearance hole for receiving the threaded fastener, and a nut portion for engaging the threaded fastener. The clearance hole of each of the plurality of fastener joints provides a clearance exceeding the standard normal clearance for the size of the threaded fastener by at least 25%.

[0005] In another aspect, the present invention provides a method for assembling a loudspeaker assembly. An outer housing with a front opening is provided, and an inner frame with an outer peripheral portion having a shape corresponding to the shape of the front opening and a dimension smaller than the size of the front opening is provided. With the inner frame removed from the outer housing, at least one loudspeaker driver is assembled to the inner frame. The inner frame, having at least one installed loudspeaker driver, is inserted into the outer housing through the front opening of the outer housing to form a peripheral port between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame and the front opening of the outer housing, defining a resonator cavity between the interior of the outer housing and the exterior of the inner frame. All assembly tolerances between the inner frame and the outer housing are absorbed by a plurality of fastener joints secured between the inner frame and the outer housing.

[0006] Other aspects of the invention will become apparent from consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0007] Figure 1 This is a front perspective view of a speaker assembly with peripheral ports according to an embodiment of the present invention. The front grille is transparent to show internal details.

[0008] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Front view of the speaker assembly.

[0009] Figure 3 This is a front perspective view of the inner frame of the speaker assembly, which acts as an acoustic horn supporting multiple high-frequency and low-frequency speaker drivers.

[0010] Figure 4 This is the rear perspective view of the inner frame.

[0011] Figure 5 This is a front perspective view of the speaker assembly's outer casing, in which the inner frame is at least partially received.

[0012] Figure 6 This is a front perspective view of an exemplary fastener joint between the outer casing and the inner frame in an exploded assembly configuration.

[0013] Figure 6A Is it like this? Figure 6 A detailed view of the lower right side of the speaker assembly shown.

[0014] Figure 7 It is along Figure 6 The cross-sectional view taken from line 7-7.

[0015] Figure 7A yes Figure 7 A detailed view of a portion of the assembly, showing the front fastener connector.

[0016] Figure 7B yes Figure 7 A detailed view of a portion of the assembly, showing the disassembled front fastener joint.

[0017] Figure 8 It is along Figure 7 The cross-sectional view taken from line 8-8.

[0018] Figure 8A yes Figure 8 A detailed view of a portion of the image, showing the rear fastener joint. Detailed Implementation

[0019] Before explaining any embodiments of the invention in detail, it will be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the construction and arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The invention can have other embodiments and can be practiced or implemented in various ways.

[0020] exist Figure 1-8A The diagram illustrates a speaker assembly 20 with ports. The illustrated speaker assembly 20 is a multi-driver loaded speaker, however alternative configurations are optional, while other aspects of this disclosure are retained. Figure 1-5 As shown, the loudspeaker assembly 20 includes a housing or outer casing 24 and an inner frame 28 at least partially positioned within the outer casing 24. In some configurations, one or both of the outer casing 24 and the inner frame 28 are constructed of wood (e.g., solid wood, engineered wood, or plywood) and may be constructed of multiple pieces of wood glued and / or fastened together. In the illustrated configuration, the inner frame 28 forms the acoustic horn. Figure 6As shown, the outer casing 24 defines a front opening 30 leading to an internal resonator cavity 34, which cooperates with port 42 to form a resonator system for tuning frequencies (or a so-called "bassreflex" system). As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the resonator system for tuning frequencies is an acoustic example that theoretically follows a model of a mechanical spring-mass system, where the resonator cavity 34 has a defined air volume related to the spring stiffness, while the mass is represented by the configuration of port 42, specifically decreasing with increasing cross-sectional area and increasing with increasing length. The inner frame 28 has an outer peripheral portion adjacent to the front opening 30 of the outer casing 24. For example, the front edge 36 of the inner frame 28 may constitute the outer peripheral portion, which is directly positioned within the front opening 30 of the outer casing 24. However, alternative configurations are also contemplated, specifically where the front edge 36 extends forward out of or is recessed from the front opening 30. The shape of the peripheral portion of the inner frame 28 corresponds to the shape of the front opening 30, but it is smaller. As described in further detail below, port 42 is a peripheral port 42 formed between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame 28 (e.g., the front edge 36 as shown) and the front opening 30 of the outer casing 24. Peripheral port 42 provides acoustic communication between the internal resonator cavity 34 and the surrounding external atmosphere. Peripheral port 42 extends uninterruptedly around the outer periphery of the inner frame 28 to surround it. Due to the rectangular cross-sections of both the front opening 30 and the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame 28, peripheral port 42 has a rectangular shape in the front view. The front grille 38 is constructed of mesh, screen, fabric, perforated sheet, or other suitable material. Figure 1 (Seen in a partially detached manner) is positioned at the front end of the speaker assembly 20 and can be fixed at the front opening 30.

[0021] The speaker assembly 20 includes at least one speaker driver 48A, 48B, which is mounted to the inner frame 28 and configured to emit sound from the front end of the speaker assembly 20. Figure 2 The central axis for sound projection directly off the page, as observed in the front view. The illustrated inner frame 28 forms an acoustic horn for precise control of the directionality of the sound over a wide frequency range. Therefore, the inner frame 28 can include a main horn-shaped or conical portion 28A and a secondary horn-shaped or conical portion 28B extending further forward and to the front edge 36. The plurality of speaker drivers 48A, 48B supported by the illustrated inner frame 28 include different types of drivers (i.e., electrodynamic audio transducers) that vary with frequency output. For example, speaker assembly 20 includes a plurality (e.g., two) high-frequency drivers 48A and a plurality (e.g., four) low-frequency drivers 48B. (See also...) Figure 3 and Figure 4As can be seen, the low-frequency driver 48B can be distributed around multiple sides of the inner frame 28, for example, distributed around the central axis on all four sides. An opening 50 through the inner frame 28 is provided at the location of the low-frequency driver 48B so that sound can be transmitted from the outside of the inner frame 28 (within the resonator cavity 34) to the inside of the inner frame 28. The low-frequency driver 48B is positioned further forward than the high-frequency driver 48A, which is coupled to the rear end or rear panel 60 of the inner frame 28. Although not required in all embodiments, the rear of the inner frame 28 includes an elongated slot opening 52 forming the horn inlet. Figure 2 The high-frequency driver 48A is connected to the horn inlet via waveguide 56.

[0022] The inner frame rear panel 60 is attached to the outer housing 24's transverse panel 62. The transverse panel 62 defines the rear end of the resonator cavity 34 and, as shown, can be positioned in front of the outermost outer panel 66 of the outer housing 24. The transverse panel 62 can include an opening through which the high-frequency driver 48A and waveguide 56 can pass from front to back during assembly. Between the transverse panel 62 and the outermost outer panel 66, the waveguide 56 and the high-frequency driver 48A can be accommodated in a cavity that is separated from and acoustically sealed by the resonator cavity 34. The attachment between the outer housing 24 and the inner frame 28 is made by a plurality of fastener joints, including front fastener joints 70A and rear fastener joints 70B. At least some of the front fastener joints 70A are distributed around a plurality of sides of the inner frame 28 and positioned closer to the front opening 30 of the outer housing than the rear end of the inner frame 28 (e.g., the rear panel 60). In some configurations, the front fastener joint 70A is positioned within the first 30% of the front-to-back depth of the inner frame, or within the first 20%. A total of eight front fastener joints 70A can be provided in an arrangement of two on each side (top, bottom, left, and right). The front fastener joints 70A can be partially or completely recessed into the inner surface of the inner frame 28. Unlike the front fastener joints 70A, the rear fastener joints 70B are secured entirely along a parallel axis (e.g., front-to-rear). While the front fastener joints 70A are accessible from within the inner frame 28 (e.g., the acoustic horn surface) for assembly, the rear fastener joints 70B are accessible via one or more access ports 80 in the outer housing 24 behind the resonator cavity 34 for assembly. During final assembly and operation, the access ports 80 can be closed using a removable panel. In contrast, the resonator cavity 34 in which the speaker driver 48B is located may be completely without a removable panel and access ports on the sidewalls surrounding the housing 24.

[0023] In some configurations, fastener placement is chosen to minimize unwanted panel vibrations and resonances in either or both of the inner frame 28 and the outer casing 24. For example, some or all of the fastener joints 70A, 70B are placed at the antinodes of natural panel resonances to minimize their excitation. Different degrees of optimization are possible in this regard, including optimization based on FEA simulations in some cases.

[0024] The overall housing of the loudspeaker assembly 20 can be quite large in some configurations, for example, with a volume of at least 300 liters, and in some cases, 400 liters or more. Consequently, the outer shell 24 and inner frame 28 are quite large, and with numerous fastener joints 70A, 70B, a considerable amount of tolerance can be introduced, especially when one or both of the outer shell 24 and inner frame 28 are constructed of wood rather than precision-molded plastic. However, because the peripheral port 42 is formed between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame 28 and the front opening 30 of the outer shell 24, assembly tolerances that may affect the placement of the inner frame 28 in the front opening 30 (even if significantly off-center) compared to the bass reflex port provided by port 42 do not affect the performance of the loudspeaker assembly 20. Performance depends on the total cross-sectional area of ​​port 42 and the volume of the resonator cavity 34, regardless of the shape or layout of port 42. As a result, any displacement to one side (which reduces the port area) simultaneously results in an increase in the port area on the opposite side. The peripheral port 42 also maximizes space efficiency for a given port and inner frame size because it does not require the inner frame 28 to be fully offset in the front opening 30 to make room for a specified port location (e.g., a conventional round port).

[0025] Fastener joints 70A and 70B are configured to absorb assembly tolerances between the outer housing 24 and the inner frame 28. Tolerances regarding the overall dimensions of the speaker assembly 20 are determined solely by the components within the outer housing 24. The inner frame 28 has its own tolerances, and these tolerances are superimposed and accommodated by the fastener joints 70A and 70B that mount the two together. Because the performance of the resonator cavity 34 does not depend on the precise placement of the inner frame 28 within the front opening 30, it is advantageous to leverage this to eliminate the need for maintaining very tight tolerances to assemble the inner frame 28 to the outer housing 24. This is achieved by fastener joints 70A and 70B, each of which includes a threaded fastener 72, a washer 74, a clearance hole 76 for receiving the threaded fastener 72, and a nut portion 78 for engaging the threaded fastener 72. The threaded fastener 72 can have relatively large dimensions (e.g., M8, M10, or larger). Figure 7B and Figure 8AAs best shown, the nut portion 78 can be formed as part of a corner bracket in the case of the front fastener joint 70A, and as a T-nut in the case of the rear fastener joint 70B. However, the nut portion 78 can be formed in various ways in alternative constructions, such as a spring nut, quick-release nut, self-tightening nut, lock nut, or in some cases a conventional nut. The corner bracket at the front fastener joint 70A can be secured to a structural rib 84 that protrudes inward from the inner wall surface of the outer casing 24. Figure 7 and Figure 8 As shown, similar structural ribs 86 can be configured to project outward from the outer wall surface of the inner frame 28. Corresponding ribs 84, 86 can abut against each other, form a sliding interface, overlap radially, or otherwise engage with each other. As shown, the corner bracket at the front fastener joint 70A has a portion positioned coplanar with the outer wall surface of the inner frame 28 (e.g., directly abutting against the outer wall surface of the inner frame 28), eliminating the need for additional brackets or hardware extending from the inner frame 28. In other configurations, a single bracket between the inner frame 28 and the outer casing 24 can have a portion positioned coplanar with the inner wall surface of the outer casing 24 (e.g., directly abutting against the inner wall surface of the outer casing 24). In either case, a single bracket is used at each front fastener joint 70A, although the outer wall surface of the inner frame 28 and the inner wall surface of the outer casing 24 are not parallel (i.e., arranged at an skewed or tilted angle).

[0026] Even for large-sized threaded fasteners 72, the washer 74 can be excessively large (e.g., its outer diameter is 5 times or more the shank diameter of the threaded fastener 72). The reason for this excessive size is to ensure that the washer 74 extends sufficiently beyond the clearance hole 76 during assembly. Given that these fastener joints 70A, 70B are designed as components that accommodate the assembly tolerances between the main nested parts of the speaker assembly 20, housing 24 and inner frame 28, the clearance hole 76 of each of the plurality of fastener joints 70A, 70B provides a clearance at least 25% (e.g., more than 35%) greater than the standard “normal” clearance for the size of the threaded fastener 72. The standard normal fastener clearance diameter is determined by US or international engineering organizations or regulatory bodies, such as ASME B18.2.8. Although all fastener joints 70A and 70B are provided with the same fastener 72 and clearance size for the total interface between the outer housing 24 and the inner frame 28, it is also conceivable that intentional variations can be used at different joints in fastener joints 70A and 70B.

[0027] The method of assembling speaker assembly 20 is significantly easier than that of most speaker assemblies with similar dimensions and composition. According to various aspects of this disclosure, the low-frequency speaker driver 48B is mounted to the inner frame 28 before the inner frame is inserted into the outer housing 24. Therefore, a sub-assembly consisting of one or more speaker drivers is formed outside and separate from the outer housing 24. This eliminates the need for access to the panel for mounting the low-frequency speaker driver 48B, and thus, the outer housing 24 may be unfeatured. In some configurations, the high-frequency driver 48A and / or supporting electronics (e.g., frequency filtering crossover network) are assembled to the inner frame 28 before being mounted to the outer housing 24. For the purposes of this concept, the complete sub-assembly unit ( Figure 3 and Figure 4 The assembly can be configured to include an inner frame 28, multiple speaker drivers (including multiple high-frequency drivers 48A (e.g., and associated waveguides 56) and multiple low-frequency drivers 48B), and a corresponding crossover network. Assembly is accomplished by rearwardly inserting the sub-assembly unit having the inner frame 28 through the front opening 30 of the outer casing 24 to a depth where fastener joints 70A, 70B can be secured. As mentioned above, since fastener joints 70A, 70B absorb assembly tolerances, precision is not required in this step, and uniformity around the peripheral port 42 is not a prerequisite for achieving the specified performance. However, if it is desired that the inner frame 28 be precisely positioned relative to the outer casing 24 (e.g., centered in the front opening 30), this can be achieved by using temporary or permanent spacers between the outer casing 24 and the inner frame 28 to establish the desired spacing before the final securing of the fastener joints 70A, 70B.

[0028] Various aspects of this disclosure are set forth in the claims.

Claims

1. A speaker assembly with a port, comprising: A housing with a front opening; An inner frame, which is at least partially located within the outer housing and has an outer peripheral portion adjacent to the front opening of the outer housing; A resonator cavity, which is defined between the interior of the outer housing and the exterior of the inner frame; At least one speaker driver is mounted to the inner frame and configured to emit sound from the front end of the speaker assembly with ports; A peripheral port, formed between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame and the front opening of the outer casing, establishes acoustic communication between the resonator cavity and the surrounding external atmosphere for a resonant output at a tuning frequency, wherein the peripheral port extends uninterruptedly around the outer peripheral edge of the inner frame to surround the outer peripheral edge; and A plurality of fastener joints secure the inner frame to the outer housing, wherein at least some of the plurality of fastener joints are distributed around a plurality of sides of the inner frame and positioned closer to the front opening of the outer housing than the rear end of the inner frame.

2. The speaker assembly with a port according to claim 1, wherein, The outer periphery of the inner frame is provided by the foremost edge of the inner frame.

3. The speaker assembly with a port according to claim 1, wherein, The inner frame is an acoustic horn for mounting at least one speaker driver thereto.

4. The speaker assembly with a port according to claim 1, wherein, The total housing volume of the speaker assembly with ports is at least 300 liters.

5. The speaker assembly with a port according to claim 1, wherein, The at least one speaker driver includes multiple low-frequency speaker drivers and multiple high-frequency speaker drivers.

6. The speaker assembly with ports according to claim 1, wherein, The plurality of fastener joints are configured to absorb all assembly tolerances between the outer housing and the inner frame, such that the tolerances for the overall dimensions of the speaker assembly are determined solely by the outer housing.

7. The speaker assembly with ports according to claim 1, wherein, Each of the plurality of fastener joints includes a threaded fastener extending through a corresponding clearance hole, and wherein the clearance hole of each of the plurality of fastener joints provides a clearance of at least 25% greater than the standard normal clearance for the size of the threaded fastener.

8. The speaker assembly with a port according to claim 1, wherein, The at least one speaker driver includes at least one low-frequency speaker driver positioned within the resonator cavity, and wherein the outer casing has no access port into the resonator cavity.

9. A speaker assembly with a port, comprising: An outer casing having a front opening defined between a top side, a bottom side, and two lateral sides; An inner frame, which is at least partially located within the outer housing and has an outer peripheral portion adjacent to the front opening of the outer housing; A resonator cavity, which is defined between the interior of the outer housing and the exterior of the inner frame; At least one speaker driver is mounted to the inner frame and configured to emit sound from the front end of the speaker assembly with ports; A peripheral port, formed between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame and the front opening of the outer casing, is used to establish acoustic communication between the resonator cavity and the surrounding external atmosphere for the resonant output of the tuning frequency. as well as A plurality of fastener joints secure the inner frame to the outer housing. Each of the plurality of fastener joints includes a threaded fastener, a clearance hole for receiving the threaded fastener, and a nut portion for engaging the threaded fastener. The clearance hole of each of the plurality of fastener joints provides a clearance of at least 25% greater than the standard normal clearance for the size of the threaded fastener.

10. The loudspeaker assembly with a port according to claim 9, wherein, The plurality of fastener joints are distributed on the interior of the outer casing in the top side, the bottom side and the two lateral sides, wherein the plurality of fastener joints are located on the front half of the overall depth of the speaker assembly.

11. The loudspeaker assembly with a port according to claim 9, wherein, Each of the plurality of fastener joints has a clearance hole that provides at least 35% more clearance than the standard clearance for the size of the threaded fastener.

12. The loudspeaker assembly with a port according to claim 9, wherein, The total housing volume of the speaker assembly with ports is at least 300 liters.

13. The loudspeaker assembly with a port according to claim 9, wherein, The inner frame is an acoustic horn for mounting at least one speaker driver thereto.

14. The speaker assembly with a port according to claim 9, wherein, The outer periphery of the inner frame is provided by the foremost edge of the inner frame.

15. The speaker assembly with a port according to claim 9, wherein, The at least one speaker driver includes multiple low-frequency speaker drivers and multiple high-frequency speaker drivers.

16. A method of assembling a speaker assembly with ports, the method comprising: Provide an outer casing with a front opening; An inner frame is provided having an outer peripheral portion having a shape corresponding to the shape of the front opening and a size smaller than the size of the front opening; With the inner frame removed from the outer casing, at least one speaker driver is assembled to the inner frame; An inner frame having at least one mounted speaker driver is inserted into the outer housing through the front opening of the outer housing to form a peripheral port between the outer peripheral portion of the inner frame and the front opening of the outer housing, wherein the resonator cavity is defined between the interior of the outer housing and the exterior of the inner frame. as well as All assembly tolerances between the inner frame and the outer shell are absorbed by multiple fastener joints fixed between the inner frame and the outer shell.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein, Insertion of the inner frame includes passing at least one high-frequency speaker driver through the resonator cavity and into a separate acoustically sealed cavity of the outer casing, while positioning at least one low-frequency speaker driver inside the resonator cavity.

18. The method according to claim 16, wherein, Secure each of the plurality of fastener joints by inserting a threaded fastener through a clearance hole and engaging the threaded fastener with a nut portion, wherein the clearance hole of each of the plurality of fastener joints provides a clearance of at least 25% greater than the standard normal clearance for the size of the threaded fastener.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein, The fixing of the plurality of fastener joints includes fixing a plurality of front fastener joints distributed on the interior of the outer housing in the top, bottom and two lateral sides at a location within the front half of the overall depth of the speaker assembly, and fixing a plurality of rear fastener joints at the interface between the rear panel of the inner frame and the transverse panel of the outer housing, wherein the transverse panel defines the rear end of the resonator cavity.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein, The plurality of front fastener joints are secured from the open front end of the inner frame, and the plurality of rear fastener joints are secured through access ports in the outer housing.

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