Integrated Handle Waveguide for Lower Audio Resonance Noise
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Solution Overview
Problem
Acoustic waveguides in audio systems often suffer from resonance peaks and noise issues due to their design, which affect sound quality and handling convenience.
Innovation Solution
A waveguide design featuring subsections with varying cross-sectional areas and aspect ratios, fabricated from moldable parts, that acoustically couples different bending axes to reduce resonance peaks and improve noise reduction, while also incorporating a textured surface for easier handling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional waveguide design is used, then the audio system is compact, but resonance peaks and noise issues occur affecting sound quality
Solution Approach 1:
The waveguide is divided into multiple subsections (first, second, third subsections) with different cross-sectional areas and aspect ratios. Each subsection handles acoustic energy differently, with the aspect ratio transitions helping to manage resonance and noise throughout the waveguide path.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the waveguide have different cross-sectional areas and aspect ratios optimized for their specific locations. The first subsection has a first cross-sectional area, the second subsection has a second cross-sectional area, and the third subsection has a third cross-sectional area that varies between the first and second aspect ratios, creating local acoustic optimizations.
2Ease of operation
If the acoustic exit is shaped for grasping, then handling convenience is improved, but the waveguide design becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The acoustic exit serves dual functions: it is the outlet for acoustic energy from the waveguide and simultaneously forms a grasping handle for the audio system. The shape is designed to accommodate multiple fingers for secure handling while maintaining its acoustic function.
Solution Approach 2:
The acoustic exit structure merges the waveguide termination with the handling feature. The same physical structure that allows acoustic energy to exit the waveguide also provides the geometric form factor necessary for user grasping and portability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design effectively reduces resonance peaks and noise, enhancing sound quality and providing a secure grip for the audio system, making it more user-friendly.
Implementation Method 1
Acoustic waveguides have been used in audio systems such as the commercially available Bose® WAVE® radio, WAVE® Radio/CD, and ACOUSTIC WAVE® music systems manufactured by Bose Corporation of Framingham, Mass.
Implementation Method 2
The waveguide includes a first subsection that bends around a first axis and has a first cross-sectional area with an aspect ratio that is substantially different from unity. A second subsection bends around a second axis that is non-parallel to the first axis and includes a second cross-sectional area with an aspect ratio that is substantially different from unity.
Data Source
AI summary
An audio system includes a housing and an acoustic exit that exits the housing, and has a configuration that facilitates the grasping of the housing with a plurality of fingers from a single human hand. The acoustic exit is located adjacent an exterior surface of the housing such that the shape of the exit together with the exterior surface facilitates grasping of the housing with a plurality of fingers and the thumb from the single human hand and the acoustic exit exits a back surface of the housing such that the plurality of fingers can be inserted into the exit while the thumb of the same hand can rest on at least one of the top surface and the front surface of the housing.