Articulating Speaker Assembly for Aircraft Weight and Sound Quality

Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional loudspeaker assemblies for aircraft are hindered by size, weight, and shape constraints, which compromise sound quality and require a trade-off between high fidelity and weight/size requirements, making it difficult to provide high-quality audio entertainment in aircraft.

Innovation Solution

An articulating speaker assembly with pivotally connected midrange and high frequency drivers, housed in cylindrical enclosures, allows for adjustable positioning and reduced size and weight through a central housing with arcuate slots and coupling cylinders, enabling flexible placement within aircraft passenger service units without compromising sound quality.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If conventional loudspeaker assemblies are used to provide high fidelity sound, then sound quality is improved, but weight and size increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesound qualityVSAvoidweight

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The speaker assembly is divided into multiple independent driver units (tweeter, midrange, woofer) that can be selectively activated. This segmentation allows the system to provide high fidelity sound across different frequency ranges using smaller, lighter individual drivers rather than requiring a single large high-power driver, thus maintaining sound quality while reducing overall weight

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Multiple driver units are nested within a compact housing structure where the tweeter is positioned within or adjacent to the midrange driver, which is itself positioned within or adjacent to the woofer housing. This nested arrangement allows multiple functional elements to occupy minimal space, achieving high fidelity sound reproduction without increasing the overall size and weight of the speaker assembly

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

2Reliability

If conventional loudspeaker assemblies are used to provide high fidelity sound, then sound quality is improved, but size increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesound qualityVSAvoidsize

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSVolume of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The speaker assembly is divided into multiple independent driver units (tweeter, midrange, woofer) that can be selectively activated. This segmentation allows the system to provide high fidelity sound across different frequency ranges using smaller, lighter individual drivers rather than requiring a single large high-power driver, thus maintaining sound quality while reducing overall weight

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Multiple driver units are nested within a compact housing structure where the tweeter is positioned within or adjacent to the midrange driver, which is itself positioned within or adjacent to the woofer housing. This nested arrangement allows multiple functional elements to occupy minimal space, achieving high fidelity sound reproduction without increasing the overall size and weight of the speaker assembly

Inventive Principle:

Principle #7Nested doll (Nesting)

3Ease of manufacture

If fixed positioning speaker assemblies are used, then installation is simplified, but adaptability to different aircraft configurations is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinstallation simplicityVSAvoidpositioning flexibility

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of manufactureVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The speaker assembly incorporates an articulating mechanism with pivot joints that allow the housing to be dynamically adjusted to various angles and orientations. This dynamic positioning capability enables the same speaker assembly to be installed in different locations and configurations within aircraft interiors, providing adaptability to different aircraft types and layouts while maintaining relatively simple installation procedures through the self-contained articulating structure

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentUS9320641B2Articulating speaker assembly providing for pivotal adjustment of connected first and second members

Publication Date: 2016.04.26 TRACY DENNIS A

AI summary

An articulating speaker assembly includes a first member including a first driver and a second member including second driver. The first member and the second member are pivotally connected for selectively changing the profile of the speaker assembly. A central housing member is pivotally connected to each of the first member and the second member, wherein the central housing member supports a third driver.