Patent Application
20110311083
The present invention generally relates to audio recording and more specifically to a portable audio device with microphone and controller.
Recording generally requires separate components to be connected together in series to accomplish the task. These components include a microphone, a microphone pre-amplifier, a microphone powering circuit delivering a specific voltage and current, a musical instrument input for directly connecting an instrument that normally requires amplification, an input switcher, a audio meter that is calibrated in volume units, analog to digital converter (A/D), a digital to analog converter (D/A), a volume control circuit and an audio output capable of delivering an amplified signal to a monitoring apparatus such as headphones or loudspeakers.
Existing computers may have rudimentary interfaces for audio input. These computers may not be portable, or may not be small enough to be held in a hand or pocket.
It would be desirable to have a portable audio device that acts as an audio interface to a and that provides a standard of performance that is otherwise offered by systems with separate components.
In one aspect of the present invention, a device includes a portable housing having a wall; an aperture in the wall; a microphone inside the housing, in line with the aperture; a controller that extends out of the wall; and an audio output; wherein the device receives sound through the aperture, provides an audio signal representing the sound through the audio output, and controls the strength of the audio signal with the controller.
In another aspect of the present invention, a device includes a generally portable housing; an aperture in the housing having sides sloped between 15 and 45 degrees relative to a central axis of the aperture with a large end that opens out of the housing and a small end that opens into the housing; a microphone inside the housing, in line with the aperture, so that sound enters the device and passes to the microphone; an audio output that provides an audio signal representing the sound; a meter on the housing that displays an input level for the microphone and an output level for the audio output; and a controller that controls the input level and the output level.
In yet another aspect of the present invention, a method of providing an audio signal includes passing sound through an aperture in the wall of a portable housing; receiving the sound into a built-in microphone inside the housing, located at an end of the aperture; amplifying an audio signal from the microphone; utilizing a controller that extends out of the housing to control the amplification of the audio signal; and providing the amplified signal to an audio output.
The preferred embodiment and other embodiments, including the best mode of carrying out the invention, are hereby described in detail with reference to the drawings. Further embodiments, features and advantages will become apparent from the ensuing description or may be learned without undue experimentation. The figures are not drawn to scale, except where otherwise indicated. The following description of embodiments, even if phrased in terms of “the invention,” is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but describes the manner and process of making and using the invention. The coverage of this patent will be described in the claims. The order in which steps are listed in the claims does not indicate that the steps must be performed in that order.
An embodiment of the present invention generally provides a portable audio device with microphone and controller. Embodiments of the present invention may provide audio recording without a contained sound studio or stage. Embodiments may combine audio recording components in a miniature or otherwise portable package that is capable of performing the same tasks as the separate, specialized components. An embodiment may be remotely controlled from a host computer or computing device including, but not limited to, a tablet computing device and may utilize the settings stored by such device. Embodiments may include visual feedback in several ways, directly from the device itself, using visual light indicators from electronic sources including, but not limited to LED's, OLED's, LCD's or other means of displaying visual information from electronic inputs.
Embodiments may acquire audio from a sound source utilizing a built-in electret condenser element (microphone) combined with an accompanying pre-amplifier and gain control circuit. An embodiment may include the facility to utilize a standard microphone including dynamic, condenser, tube, ribbon, carbon or another mode of transduction. An embodiment may incorporate a musical instrument interface for instruments that feature a transducer that converts acoustical energy to electrical energy needing amplification to be recorded, reproduced or broadcast. An embodiment may incorporate a means to control audio input levels, switch audio input sources, switch from controlling audio inputs and outputs, and to control audio output levels. An embodiment may provide visual confirmation of audio sources selected, the presence of a voltage and current necessary to power condenser type microphones, and monitoring of both input and output levels. An embodiment may provide remote control of computer or other host programs that manipulate audio and video signals, and the embodiment may be controlled by same. An embodiment may include a graphic user interface (GUI) enabled by the host computer, which can also act as a remote control for the embodiment.
An embodiment may include a portable audio interface with a plurality of available audio inputs, including an integrated electret condenser microphone. The integrated microphone assembly may have an acoustically tuned aperture, sloped to have a conical mouth and a narrow stem such as a funnel, specifically tuned with a chamfer or sloped sides of 60 degrees (with a range of 45˜75 degrees) on the horizontal axis and 30 degrees (with a range of 15˜45 degrees) on the vertical axis to offer a highly linear frequency response to provide a high resolution, low distortion recording. The integrated microphone assembly may be elastomer damped to resist extemporaneous vibrations to provide accurate, low distortion audio recordings and linear frequency response. An embodiment may include external musical instrument input and external microphone inputs with variable gain control on both inputs and outputs, analog to digital (A/D) and digital to analog conversion (D/A), including volume control, visual audio metering and status indicators. Analog signals, such as the input to the A/D or the output of the D/A, may include audio signals, which may represent sound, speech, singing, or other music. An embodiment may include condenser microphone powering circuit of 48 volts and provide a minimum of 25 milliamps including visual indication of engagement. An embodiment may receive sound through the aperture, provide an audio signal representing the sound through the audio output, and control the strength of the audio signal with the controller.
An embodiment may be self-contained, not requiring mains voltage to operate and may be powered by a computer or other host capable of a low voltage power source. The device may be “portable” in that it is enclosed in a housing that is generally small enough to fit in a hand, be easily carried or moved, and be operated while held. Embodiments may be, for example, from 120 mm. to 240 mm. in length, and 56 mm. to 120 mm. in width. One embodiment might be, for an approximate example, 120 mm. length by 58 mm. width, and the height or depth might be 20 mm. for the housing and 27.6 mm. for the housing with encoder. The housing may be an enclosure, possibly made of hard plastic that holds the internal electronics. The housing may have walls that act as faces or boundaries between the inside and outside of the device, and which may have holes, apertures, or elements that extend through the walls. One wall will generally be on a top face of the device, to hold an encoder and visual displays. Embodiments may be mounted on a microphone stand, a standard tripod, or directly on a table top, music stand, or clip. Embodiments may be able to be easily carried or moved, especially because the device may be light and small. The embodiment may include a controller, capable of controlling software on a host computer or tablet device and being remotely controlled by same, possibly utilizing a GUI type interface. An embodiment may utilize an onscreen “Heads Up” display with display icons to monitor and change audio sources, audio gain and audio volume settings. Embodiments may include on-board audio metering of both input and output signals, including but limited to LED, LCD, OLED or other means from signal voltage to visual representation. Embodiments may include a plurality of mounting methods in addition to being a portable device, including microphone stand, tripod, desktop, mountable clip or camera mount.
