HMD Audio Output Assembly with Rear Sound Conduit
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional head-mounted displays (HMDs) face challenges in generating high-quality audio output due to limited housing size, requiring separate audio devices rather than integrated components.
Innovation Solution
The HMD incorporates a housing with a speaker positioned within an enclosure, defining a back volume for sound enhancement, and a sound conduit that transmits sound from the speaker to the rear, allowing for integrated audio output assemblies that direct sound towards the user's ears.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a speaker is integrated within the HMD housing, then audio output quality is improved, but the housing size and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The speaker is nested within an enclosure formed by the housing, with the back volume defined between the housing and the back side of the speaker. The sound conduit is nested within the housing structure, extending through the aperture to transmit sound. This nesting approach integrates audio components within the limited HMD housing space without significantly increasing external dimensions.
Solution Approach 2:
The sound conduit extends in a rear direction from the speaker enclosure through the housing aperture, utilizing the depth dimension of the housing to route sound toward the user's ear. This dimensional approach allows sound transmission without requiring lateral expansion of the housing.
2Ease of operation
If the HMD housing is kept compact, then ease of wearing is improved, but integrated audio components cannot be accommodated
Solution Approach 1:
The sound conduit extends rearward from the speaker through the housing aperture in the depth direction, utilizing available space within the compact housing to route sound toward the user's ear without increasing the front-to-back profile significantly. This allows integrated audio while maintaining a compact form factor suitable for wearing.
Solution Approach 2:
The housing includes a specific aperture positioned to allow sound conduit penetration, creating a localized opening for audio output. The enclosure is specifically configured to position the speaker with its front side facing away from the interior surface, optimizing sound direction toward the user's ear while maintaining overall housing compactness.
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
This design enables high-quality, integrated audio output within the HMD, enhancing sound generation and transmission while maintaining a compact form factor, suitable for virtual, augmented, or mixed reality systems.
Implementation Method 1
A back volume is defined between at least a portion of the housing and the back side of the speaker for enhancing sound generated by the speaker
Implementation Method 2
The sound conduit having an end open to the enclosure and extends outside the housing through the aperture. The sound conduit has another end open toward a rear direction to transmit the sound generated by the speaker
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A
Figure 2B
AI summary
A head-mounted display (HMD) includes a housing defining an enclosure having an aperture. A is speaker positioned within the enclosure, the speaker having a back side facing an interior surface of the housing and a front side facing away from the interior surface of the housing, a back volume defined between at least a portion of the housing and the back side of the speaker for enhancing sound generated by the speaker. A sound conduit having an end open to the enclosure and extends outside the housing through the aperture. The sound conduit has another end open toward a rear direction to transmit the sound generated by the speaker.