Sound improvement device

Abstract

This acoustic enhancement device is compact, lightweight, highly portable, and can be manufactured at low cost. Simply attaching it to an existing mobile device allows it to resonantly amplify the entire frequency band used in everyday conversation, emphasizing speech components to produce sound that is easier for people with hearing impairments to hear. It requires no energy supply and is easy to maintain. [Solution] The device has a main body 17 that can be detachably attached to a mobile terminal. The main body 17 includes a communication tube 20 on one side that communicates with the earpiece of a speaker, a plurality of audio output ports 21 to 23, and a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13 to 15, each having an audio input port 24 to 26 on one side that communicates with the other side of the communication tube 20, and the other side connected to each of the plurality of audio output ports 21 to 23.

Description

Technical Field

[0004] , ,

[0001] The present invention relates to an acoustic improvement device for the hearing-impaired, which is used by being attached to a mobile terminal such as a smartphone and a tablet.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, since the hearing-impaired have difficulty hearing voices in the high-frequency range, they may have difficulty communicating using a mobile terminal such as a smartphone. Therefore, many products that enable the hearing-impaired to listen to telephone voices by linking a hearing aid and a mobile terminal are on the market. However, many of these products use electronic components and consume a large amount of power, so the battery often does not last a day and needs to be charged frequently. As a result, there are restrictions on the usage time, and the products are not user-friendly for users. In addition, for the elderly and users who are not familiar with technology, the difficulty of maintaining and managing the device and the difficulty of the linking operation with the mobile phone are high, and the procedures are complicated, which becomes an obstacle to continuous use. In addition, since products using such electronic components are generally expensive, the economic burden is also large. On the other hand, Patent Document 1 discloses a sound wave metamaterial (also referred to as an acoustic metamaterial) that can amplify sound waves using the resonance phenomenon of Fabry-Perot.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] As described in Patent Document 1, a device that amplifies sound waves using the Fabry-Perot resonance phenomenon does not use electronic components, thus requiring no energy supply and easy maintenance. Furthermore, Patent Document 1 states that this sound wave metamaterial is applicable to all fields that use sound waves, such as sound wave sensors (acoustic sensors), acoustic devices, ultrasonic imaging, and non-destructive testing. However, Patent Document 1 does not mention acoustic improvement for the hearing impaired in mobile devices, and in particular, it does not describe a specific configuration and structure for use when attached to a mobile device.

[0005] This invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide an acoustic improvement device that is compact, lightweight, highly portable, can be manufactured at low cost, and can be attached to an existing mobile device to resonantly amplify the entire frequency band used in everyday conversation, emphasize the voice components, and output voice that is easy for people with hearing impairments to hear, and does not require an energy supply and is easy to maintain. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An acoustic improvement device according to the present invention that serves the aforementioned purpose is an acoustic improvement device that is attached to a mobile terminal, The device has a main body that is detachably attached to the aforementioned mobile terminal, the main body comprising a communication tube on one end that communicates with the earpiece of the mobile terminal's speaker, a plurality of audio output ports, and a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes, one end of which has an audio input port that communicates with the other end of the communication tube and the other end of which is connected to each of the plurality of audio output ports to resonate and amplify the sound output from the speaker.

[0007] In the acoustic improvement device according to the present invention, the main body has upper and lower plates that constitute a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes, and it is preferable that the outer thickness of each of the plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes is 4.5 mm or more. Here, the outer thickness of the Fabry-Perot resonance tube is preferably 8 mm or less from the standpoint of productivity, handling, and portability, and is even more preferably 6 mm or less when practicality is also considered.

[0008] In the acoustic improvement device according to the present invention, the main body may include a resonance chamber having a sound-absorbing port that communicates with the other side of the connecting pipe. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] The acoustic improvement device according to the present invention is easy to attach to a mobile device, reliably guides the sound output from the speaker's earpiece to a Fabry-Perot resonant tube, efficiently resonantly amplifies not only high-frequency sounds that are difficult for age-related hearing loss to hear, but the entire frequency band used in everyday conversation, and can be adjusted so that even hearing-impaired people can hear clearly, does not require energy supply or complex operation, can be used stably and continuously in daily life, and is excellent in terms of ease of use and high quality.

[0010] In the acoustic improvement device according to the present invention, if the main body has upper and lower plates that constitute a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes, and the outer thickness of each of the plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes is 4.5 mm or more, it can be manufactured at low cost, is compact and lightweight, is highly portable, and can optimize the resonance effect of the Fabry-Perot resonant tubes.

[0011] In the acoustic improvement device according to the present invention, if the main body is equipped with a resonance chamber having a sound-absorbing port that communicates with the other side of the connecting pipe, noise can be reduced and the clarity of the sound can be improved. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] [Figure 1] This is a plan view of an acoustic improvement device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a right side view of the sound improvement device. [Figure 3] This is a left side view of the sound improvement device. [Figure 4] This is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in Figure 2. [Figure 5] This is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in Figure 2. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0013] Next, with reference to the attached drawings, embodiments of the present invention will be described to facilitate understanding of the invention. The sound improvement device 10 according to one embodiment of the present invention, shown in Figures 1 to 5, is attached to a mobile terminal 11 such as a smartphone (mobile phone) or tablet (see Figure 5) and is used to output sound that is easy for people with hearing impairments to hear. As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the sound enhancement device 10 is equipped with multiple (in this case, three) Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13-15 that resonate and amplify the sound output from the speaker 12 of the mobile terminal 11.

[0014] In terms of specific structure, as shown in Figures 1 to 5, the acoustic improvement device 10 has a main body 17 that can be detachably attached to the mobile terminal 11. The main body 17 has a U-shaped groove 18 that corresponds to the width and thickness of the mobile terminal 11, allowing the mobile terminal 11 to be slid into place. This also allows it to function as a case (cover) to protect the mobile terminal 11. The main body 17 has a communication tube 20 on one side that communicates with the earpiece 19 of the speaker 12, a plurality of (in this case, three) audio output ports 21 to 23, and a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13 to 15, one of which has audio input ports 24 to 26 that communicate with the other side of the communication tube 20, and the other side which is connected to each of the plurality of audio output ports 21 to 23. In addition, a rubber gasket 27 is attached to the periphery of one side (inlet side) of the communication tube 20 so as to surround the outer circumference of the earpiece 19 of the speaker 12. This ensures that the sound output from the earpiece 19 is reliably guided through the connecting tube 20 to the Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13-15 without any leakage. A material with sound-leak-preventing properties, such as silicone rubber, is preferably used for the rubber packing 27.

[0015] Here, the main body 17 has upper plates 28 and lower plates 29 that constitute a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13-15. The main body 17 also includes a resonant chamber 31 having a sound-absorbing port 30 that communicates with the other side of the connecting tube 20. In this way, by arranging the upper plate 28 and the lower plate 29 opposite each other at a predetermined interval, rectangular parallelepiped (square cross-section) Fabry-Perot resonance tubes 13-15 and resonance chamber 31 can be easily formed, increasing design flexibility and enabling efficient resonance and sound dampening effects.

[0016] The acoustic enhancement device 10, equipped with multiple Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13-15, resonantly amplifies the entire frequency range used in everyday conversation (from low to high frequencies), emphasizing speech components more than usual and producing sound that is easier for people with hearing impairments to hear. In particular, the echo and reverb effects produced by the resonance of the Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13-15 make the target sound seem to last longer, giving the user (person with hearing impairment) more time to perceive the sound and making it easier to hear. Furthermore, because the sound is reflected multiple times due to the echo and reverb effects, the clarity of the speech is improved, making it especially easier to recognize words. The sustained speech signal also makes it easier for people with hearing impairments to grasp important speech information. In addition, the reverb effect makes the sound spread spatially, clarifying the position of the sound source and the sense of distance, so the user (person with hearing impairment) can more easily perceive the direction of the sound and improve their comprehension of speech. Furthermore, the sound enhancement device 10 provides voice enhancement effects simply by being attached to the mobile terminal 11, and since it does not use electronic components, it does not require an energy supply and is easy to maintain.

[0017] In this embodiment, three Fabry-Perot resonant tubes 13-15 are arranged in parallel. However, the length and pattern of each Fabry-Perot resonant tube, as well as the number and arrangement of the Fabry-Perot resonant tubes, are not limited to this embodiment and can be selected as appropriate. Furthermore, the shape, size, and arrangement of the connecting tube 20 are not limited to this embodiment and can be selected as appropriate according to the shape, size, and arrangement of the earpiece 19 of the mobile terminal 11. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the thickness of the upper plate 28 and the lower plate 29 is set to 1 mm, the height of the space portion sandwiched between the upper plate 28 and the lower plate 29 is set to 2 mm, and the outer thickness of the Fabry - Perot resonance tubes 13 to 15 is set to 4.5 mm. However, the dimensions of each part are not limited to this, and are appropriately selected according to the material of the upper plate 28 and the lower plate 29, etc. As the materials of the upper plate 28 and the lower plate 29, lightweight and durable synthetic resins such as polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, vinyl chloride resin, ABS resin, and polycarbonate are preferably used, but are not limited to these and are appropriately selected.

[0018] Also, the resonance chamber 31 of the present embodiment is composed of a Helmholtz - type muffler (resonance tube) in which the ends of the Fabry - Perot tubes are terminated. However, its shape (length), number, arrangement, etc. are not limited to the present embodiment and are appropriately selected. When configuring the resonance chamber 31 by arranging a plurality of resonance tubes, it is also possible to adjust the length of each resonance tube to reduce noise for each specific frequency band, and to output clear voice that is not disturbed by noise. In addition, if necessary, by corresponding a plurality of Fabry - Perot resonance tubes 13 to 15 and the resonance chamber 31 to a specific frequency band and efficiently performing resonance, silencing or noise removal, it is also possible to provide an audible voice environment for each user. In order to cope with presbycusis of the elderly, it is preferable to design the Fabry - Perot resonance tubes 13 to 15 centered on the frequency band of 2 kHz to 4 kHz, but it is not limited to this range and is appropriately selected. Also, the resonance chamber 31 is not an essential component and may be omitted.

[0019] The embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to the configurations described in the above - mentioned embodiments, and also includes other embodiments and modifications conceivable within the scope of the matters described in the claims.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0020] 10: Acoustic improvement device, 11: Mobile terminal, 12: Speaker, 13-15: Fabry-Perot resonant tube, 17: Main body, 18: Groove, 19: Earpiece, 20: Connecting tube, 21-23: Audio output port, 24-26: Audio input port, 27: Rubber gasket, 28: Top plate, 29: Bottom plate, 30: Sound absorption port, 31: Resonant chamber

Claims

1. A sound enhancement device attached to a mobile device, An acoustic improvement device having a main body that is detachably attached to the aforementioned mobile terminal, the main body comprising a communication tube having one end in communication with the earpiece of the speaker of the mobile terminal, a plurality of audio output ports, and a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes having an audio input port on one end in communication with the other end of the communication tube and the other end connected to each of the plurality of audio output ports to resonate and amplify the sound output from the speaker.

2. The acoustic improvement device according to claim 1, characterized in that the main body has an upper plate and a lower plate that constitute a plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes, and the outer thickness of each of the plurality of Fabry-Perot resonant tubes is 4.5 mm or more.

3. The acoustic improvement device according to claim 1, characterized in that the main body portion comprises a resonance chamber having a sound-absorbing port that communicates with the other side of the connecting pipe.

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