Electronic device accessories formed from intertwined fibers

摘要

Fibers may be intertwined to form structures for electronic devices and other parts. Fibers may be intertwined using computer-controlled braiding, weaving, and knitting equipment. Binder materials may be selectively incorporated into the intertwined fibers. By controlling the properties of the intertwined fibers and the patterns of incorporated binder, structures can be formed that include antenna windows, sound-transparent and sound-blocking structures, structures that have integral rigid and flexible portions, and tubes with seamless forked portions. Fiber-based structures such as these may be used to form cables and other parts of headphones or other electronic device accessories, housings for electronic devices such as housings for portable computers, and other structures.

主权项

1. Headphones, comprising:
a pair of speakers; and a fiber-based cable formed from intertwined fibers including a first flexibility region with a first flexibility and a second flexibility region with a second flexibility wherein the fiber-based cable comprises: a seamless Y-junction; a first branch of the fiber-based cable is connected to an audio plug on one side of the seamless Y-junction; a second branch and a third branch of the fiber-based cable, each connected to a respective one of the pair of speakers on another side of the seamless Y-junction, wherein: at least one speaker of the pair of speakers comprises a respective earbud that is at least partially formed from the intertwined fibers that includes a first acoustic region having a first porosity such that it is transparent to audio and a second acoustic region having a second porosity that is lower than the first acoustic region such that it blocks audio and increases rigidity.