Patent Application
20180192201
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
The present invention relates generally to loudspeaker devices, and more particularly, to shallow subwoofer speakers and methods for manufacturing the same.
Speakers meant for full spectrum reproduction face the difficulty of trying to simultaneous reproduce high frequency, mid, and low frequency sound. Speaker cone design is limited in its ability to reproduce across all bands simultaneously. One solution is to use two or three separate speakers to cover the different bandwidths. In two speaker systems, the main speakers sound cleaner and louder when not forcing it to do extra work in the low-frequency range. With the low frequencies sourced to a purpose built speaker, the system can reproduce the full audio spectrum with better clarity.
However, one clear drawback is that as speakers are added to the system for a specific purpose, the footprint of the system increases. The size of the overall system and each component may be limiting factors in the marketability of a speaker system. Specifically, in terms of subwoofers, the speaker drivers are often placed in a box in order to cancel frequencies emanating from the rear of the speaker, so that a better response from the front of the speaker may be achieved. If the driver design is relatively deep, the box must be correspondingly deep, leading to a large footprint. In residential and automotive settings, the footprint of the box can limit the marketability of the speaker driver. Thus, in general, it is better to limit the depth of the speaker driver.
In addition, most speakers have the cone connected directly to the voice coil. As the voice coil moves, so does the speaker cone. However, in this configuration, the movement of the cone is controlled solely from the attachment point at the voice coil.
The present disclosure is directed to a method for manufacture of a shallow speaker, a system for aligning speaker components during assembly of the speaker, and an embodiment of a shallow speaker. According to one method of manufacture, the method may include providing a speaker frame. The speaker frame may include an exterior, an interior, a rear wall, and an external connection terminal. The external connection terminal may include external connection terminal lead wires, and the external connection terminal may be mounted on the exterior of the speaker frame. The method may further include attaching a speaker motor to the speaker frame rear wall in the interior of the frame. The speaker motor may include a front plate and a pole piece. The front plate may include an exterior circumference. The method may further include providing a first alignment jig. The first alignment jig may include an annular support leg and a perimeter flange located circumferentially about the annular support leg. The method may further include aligning the first alignment jig on the speaker motor by placing the annular support leg around the front plate exterior circumference. The method may further include placing an assembly in the speaker frame interior. The assembly may include an edge support, a spider and pins, with each pin possibly including a first end and a second end. The placement of the assembly may be controlled by an abutment of the first alignment jig perimeter flange and the edge support. The method may further include attaching a voice coil support to the edge support. The voice coil support may include a central opening, and the central opening may define a central opening interior circumference. The method may further include removing the assembly and attached voice coil support from the speaker frame interior, as well as removing the first alignment jig from the speaker motor. The method may further include providing a second alignment jig. The second alignment jig may include an exterior surface. The method may further include providing a bobbin. The bobbin may include an outer surface and a bore, and have a voice coil wound around the outer surface, and the voice coil may include voice coil lead wires. The method may further include placing a second alignment jig in the bore of the bobbin. The method may further include attaching the bobbin to the pole piece. The method may further include attaching the assembly and attached voice coil support to the frame. During the attachment, the alignment of the assembly and attached voice coil support may be controlled by the abutment of the central opening interior circumference and second alignment jig exterior surface. The method may further include removing the second alignment jig from the bore. Further, the method may further include attaching each voice coil lead wire to a first end of a corresponding pin, and attaching each external connection terminal lead wire from the external connection terminal to a second end of a corresponding pin. Additionally, the method may further include attaching a cone to the voice coil support and edge support, and may include attaching a dust cap to the cone.
Further disclosed is a system for aligning speaker components during the assembly of the speaker components. The speaker components may include a frame, a motor, an edge support, a spider, a bobbin, a voice coil, and a voice coil support. The frame may include an open end, and the open end may define a speaker front. The motor may include a front plate and a pole piece. The pole piece may define a speaker central axis. The voice coil support may include a central opening, and the voice coil may include a plurality of lead wires. The bobbin may include an inside dimension. The system may include a first alignment jig. The first alignment jig may include a base, and the base may include a first surface, a second surface opposite the first surface, an annular support leg and a perimeter flange circumferentially about the annular support leg. The perimeter flange may abut the edge support, and the abutment may align the edge support during assembly of the speaker. The annular support leg may abut the front plate and may align the first alignment jig to the pole piece during assembly. A central extension may extend from the first surface toward the speaker front, and the central extension may abut the voice coil support central opening and may align the voice coil support with the pole piece during assembly. The system may further include a second alignment jig. The second alignment jig may include an outer surface, a substantially cylindrical body with an outside dimension less than the bobbin inside dimension, and at least one lead wire retention element on the substantially cylindrical body. The at least one lead wire retention element may be configured to engage the plurality of voice coil lead wires and may abut a portion of the lead wires from the end of the voice coil to the at least one lead wire retention element to the second alignment jig outer surface.
Further disclosed is an embodiment of a shallow speaker. The shallow speaker may include a speaker frame defining an interior, the speaker may include an external connection terminal, a lower flange, and an upper flange. The external connection terminal may include a plurality of external connection terminal lead wires. The shallow speaker may further include a speaker motor in the interior of the speaker frame, and the speaker motor may include a pole piece, a bobbin abutting the pole piece, and a voice coil located around the bobbin. The voice coil may include a plurality of voice coil lead wires. The shallow speaker may further include a spider, and the spider may include an inside edge and an outside edge, the outside edge may be attached to the lower flange of the speaker frame, an edge support may attach to the upper flange of the frame and may attach to the inside edge of the spider. A voice coil support may attach to the edge support and the bobbin, and the voice coil support may include channels, each channel may be sized and configured to accommodate one of the plurality of voice coil lead wires. The shallow speaker may further include a plurality of pins, and a portion of each one of the plurality of pins may be located between the voice coil support and the edge support. Each pin may include a vertical element and a horizontal element, a first end may be located on the vertical element, and a second end may be located on the horizontal element. Each one of the plurality of voice coil lead wires may be attached to a corresponding first end of one of the plurality of pins, and each one of the plurality of external connection terminal lead wires may be attached to a corresponding second end of one of the plurality of pins. The shallow speaker may further include a cone connected to the voice coil support, and a dust cap connected to the cone.
These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect to the following description and drawings, in which like numbers refer to like parts throughout, and in which:
Speaker design and manufacture presents several problems. First, speakers are often used in environments where space is at a premium. For example, the speakers may be installed in automobile doors or elsewhere within the interior of the automobile. Or, the speakers might be installed in speaker cabinets which are used in the interior of a building. Space might also be at a premium here. Space constraints may be driven by limited space in the room in which the speaker cabinet is placed, and those space constraints may require a speaker cabinet with a smaller form factor. The smaller form factor, may, in turn, cause space constraints within the speaker cabinet itself.
Even if the space constraints may be designed around, there are still inherent problems with the manufacture of speakers. Specifically, several layers of components need to be aligned to a central axis. Misaligned components can lead to poor speaker performance and undesirable side effects, including operation of the speaker causing the speaker to damage itself. A manufacturing process which can ensure alignment of components means higher quality of each speaker manufactured, conceivably enhancing brand due to the consistent high quality, and less waste, both in quality control or assurance and returns.
For this disclosure, exterior is defined as being on or closer to the outer circumference of the speaker, and interior is defined as being radially at or closer to, the center of the speaker as defined by a speaker central axis. Front is defined as the portion of the speaker corresponding to an opening of a speaker frame, and the rear as corresponding to the portion of the frame opposite the front.
As shown in
The bobbin 42 may be attached to a voice coil support 46, and not directly to a cone 48, at a central opening 50 of the voice coil support 46. The voice coil support 46 may be, in turn, attached to an edge support 52 around an outer perimeter 54 of the voice coil support 46.
The edge support 52 may include a ring 56 which attaches to an upper ledge 58 of the frame 12 along an outer perimeter 60 of the ring 56. The ring 56 may also attach to a rigid frame 62 of the edge support 52 along an inner perimeter 64 of the ring 56. The ring 56 may be made of a pliable material such that would allow the rigid frame 62, and other components attached to the rigid frame 62, to move in and out or back and forth, but provide resistance to side to side movement of the rigid frame 62 and any components attached to the rigid frame 62. An outer surface 64 of a rear aperture 66 of the rigid frame 62 may attach to a spider inner circumference 68. The rigid frame 62 may be made of a lightweight but rigid material, for example a plastic, aluminum, or carbon fiber.
The speaker may also include a spider 69. A spider outer circumference 70 may attach to a lower ledge 72 of the frame 12. One of a plurality of voice coil lead wire 74 may run from the voice coil 36 through the voice coil support 46 and to one of a plurality of pins 76, each of which may be attached to the edge support 52, and each of which may have a portion thereof located between the voice coil support 46 and the rigid frame 62. From a horizontal element 78 of each of the plurality of pins 76, each of a plurality of external connection terminal lead wires 80 may extend to the external connection terminal 22. The spider 69 allows the other speaker structures, specifically the voice coil 36 and the bobbin 42, to move in and out as the voice coil 36 is driven by the motor 24, but to resist movement from side to side. Control of the movement of the speaker 10 is essential, because without controlling the unwanted side to side movement, a speaker 10, simply by operating, could damage itself due to the uncontrolled vibration.
The cone 48 may attach to the rigid frame 62 and to the voice coil support 46 on a front side 82 of the both the rigid frame 62 and the voice coil support 46. A dust cap 84 attaches to the cone 48 on the front side of the cone 48. A dust cap edge 86 may rest in an inner perimeter channel 88 of the cone 48.
The plurality of external connection terminal lead wires 80 may run from the external connector terminal 22 on the exterior 14 of the frame 12, one lead wire 80 to a corresponding one of the plurality of pins 76. The pins 76 may be attached to the rigid frame 62. The pins 76 may be attached, for example, by an adhesive or a mechanical fastener, such as a nut and bolt combination or a screw. The plurality of voice coil lead wires 74 from the voice coil 36 may extend from the bobbin 42, through unobstructed channels 88 in the voice coil support 46, to attach to one of the plurality of pins 76. With this arrangement, an electrical signal may be passed from the external connector terminal 22 to the voice coil 36.
In order to manufacture the speaker, as is shown in
As shown in
The central extension 96 may be located to the interior of the interior portion 102 of the base 94, and may extend orthogonally to the interior portion 102 of the base 94. The central extension 96 may be substantially cylindrical in shape. The central extension 96 may include an annular groove 112 on an outer surface 114 of the central extension 96. The central extension 96 may terminate at a front end 116 with an annular lip 118. The front end 116 of the central extension 96 may include an opening 120. A wall 122 of the central extension may include a bore 124 that extends from the front 116 to a rear 126 of the central extension 96.
With specific reference to
As shown in
The voice coil support 46 may include an annular channel 146 for attaching the cone 48 to the voice coil support 46. The annular channel 146 may include a bottom 148 and two opposed, parallel side walls 150, 152 on either side of the bottom 148. The annular channel 146 may be obstructed by unobstructed channels 88 which are sized and configured to accommodate a plurality of voice coil lead wires 74 (
The next step in manufacture, as shown in
The bobbin 42 and voice coil 36 are placed around the pole piece 32 of the motor 24, with the bobbin 42 next to the pole piece 32 and the voice coil 36 on the outer surface 158 of the bobbin 42. The pole piece 32 of the motor 24 is connected to the rear plate 30 and takes the charge of the portion of the magnet 26 in contact with the rear plate 30. The placement of the bobbin 42 on the pole piece 32 of the motor forms a central structure of the speaker 10 (
The second alignment jig 154 may be placed in a bore 156 of the bobbin. The second alignment jig 154 is substantially cylindrical in shape. On an outer surface 160 of the second alignment jig is an annular groove 162. In the annular groove 162 or elsewhere on the outer surface 160 of the second alignment jig 154 may be at least one lead wire retention element 164, for example, a hole, a pin, or a slot, which extends through a depth of a wall 166 of the second alignment jig 154, from the outer surface 160 to an interior cavity 168 defined by the wall 166 of the second alignment jig 154. The at least one lead wire retention element 164 may be used to removably attach an end of a lead of the voice coil lead wire 74. This keeps the voice coil lead wires 74 from becoming entangled during assembly, as will be described in more detail below.
After the bobbin 42, voice coil 36 and second alignment jig 154 have been placed in the speaker, a band of adhesive may be applied around the circumference of the bobbin 42. The band of adhesive is located on the bobbin 42 to attach the voice coil support 46 (
With reference to
With reference to
With reference to
The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation. Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein, including various ways of connecting the speaker components. Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein. Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments.
