Magnetic Slider Input for Wearable Hearing Device Commands
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Solution Overview
Problem
Wireless wearable hearing devices face challenges in providing reliable user command inputs without displacing the device from the user's ear, and existing solutions often rely on audio feedback or physical switches that are difficult to incorporate in small, lightweight designs, lacking tactile feedback for confirming operational settings.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a magnetic slider switch within the wearable hearing device housing that requires less force to move and provides tactile feedback through distinct positions, allowing users to confirm settings like call muting or volume control without displacing the device, using a hall effect sensor to detect position changes and associate them with specific commands.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a physical switch is incorporated in the wearable hearing device, then user command input capability is improved, but device complexity and size increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical switches with a magnetic field detection system using a hall effect sensor. The magnetic slider switch generates magnetic field changes that are detected by the hall effect sensor, eliminating the need for complex mechanical switch structures while maintaining user command input capability. This substitution reduces device complexity and size while preserving ease of operation.
2Ease of operation
If a magnetic slider switch is used, then tactile feedback is improved, but the force required to operate it increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a spring mechanism that provides a restoring force opposing the magnetic attraction force. This spring counterbalance reduces the net force required by the user to operate the magnetic slider switch, while the magnetic attraction provides the necessary tactile feedback. The spring acts as a counterweight to the magnetic force, making the switch easier to operate while maintaining tactile responsiveness.
3Volume of moving object
If the wearable hearing device is made compact, then portability is improved, but space for input mechanisms decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The magnetic slider switch is integrated within the existing housing structure of the wearable hearing device. The slider moves within a defined channel or groove in the housing, nesting the input mechanism within the device's volume rather than adding external protrusions. This nesting approach allows the compact design to be maintained while providing sufficient space for the magnetic slider switch to operate effectively.
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
Enables reliable tactile feedback for user command inputs, reducing the risk of displacing the device and enhancing user experience by allowing confirmation of settings without visual interfaces, while maintaining the compact design of wireless earbuds and headphones.
Implementation Method 1
using a hall effect sensor to detect position changes
Implementation Method 2
Incorporating a magnetic slider switch within the wearable hearing device housing
Data Source
AI summary
A wearable hearing device operatively coupled to an information handling system comprising a housing for a speaker and a microphone, a magnetic slider switch moveable with respect to the housing between a closed position and an open position in response to a user's external force, a rolling magnet rotating within the magnetic slider switch during movement between the open and closed positions, a bar magnet fixed within the housing having a first pole attracting the rolling magnet in the closed position and a second pole attracting the rolling magnet in the open position to reduce the external force required to move the magnetic slider switch, a hall effect sensor to sense a change in distance to the rolling magnet during movement between the open and closed positions, and to associate the change in distance with a command instruction, and a microcontroller to execute or transmit the command instruction.