EARPHONES WITH BIMODALLY FITTING EARBUDS AND BASS PRESERVATION CAPABILITIES

摘要

In one embodiment, earphones with bimodally fitting earbuds enable accurate reproduction of music while exposing a wearer to environmental noises on one side of the wearer. More specifically, an open earbud is designed to create a substantially open (i.e., unsealed) sound chamber around one ear while a closed earbud is designed to create a substantially closed sound chamber around the other ear. Because the open earbud is associated with sound leakage that alters both the intended level and the bass content of the music, the earphones include a signal redistribution subsystem that perspicaciously replaces at least a portion of this lost signal energy. Advantageously, such earphones expose the wearer to useful localized sounds, such as noises from an auto lane adjacent to a bike lane, while conveying the intended mix of music more accurately than conventional earphones with two open earbuds.

主权项

1. An audio device, comprising:
a first earbud configured to create a substantially open sound chamber around a first ear of a user; a second earbud configured to create a substantially closed sound chamber around a second ear of the user; and a signal redistribution subsystem that is coupled to both the first earbud and the second earbud and configured to:
perform one or more compensation operations on a first audio input signal that is targeted for output via the first earbud, wherein the one or more compensation operations produce a compensated signal that mitigates leakage of sound generated by a speaker of the first earbud into a surrounding environment due to the substantially open sound chamber;transmit the compensated signal to the first earbud; andtransmit to the second earbud a second audio input signal that is targeted for output via the second earbud.