515
`United States Patent
`6,097,809
`(11] Patent Number:
`
`[45] Date of Patent: *Aug. 1, 2000
`Luceyet al.
`
`US006097809A
`
`[54]
`
`[75]
`
`ADJUSTABLE TELEPHONE HEADSET
`
`Inventors: Robert E. Lucey, Sudbury, Mass.;
`John Ela, Atkinson, N.H.; Christopher
`QO. Lada, Palo Alto, Calif.; Lawrence
`G. Shubert, Palo Alto, Calif.;
`Christopher Loew, San Francisco,
`Calif.
`
`Assignee: UNEX Corporation, Nashua, N.H.
`
`Notice:
`
`This patent issued on a continued pros-
`ecution application filed under 37 CFR
`1.53(d), and is subject to the twenty year
`patent
`term provisions of 35 U.S.C.
`154(a)(2).
`This patent is subject to a terminal dis-
`claimer.
`
`Appl. No.: 08/668,599
`
`Filed:
`
`Jun. 18, 1996
`
`Related U.S. Application Data
`
`Continuation of application No. 08/505,115, Jul. 21, 1995,
`abandoned, which is a division of application No. 08/231,
`981, Apr. 21, 1994, Pat. No. 5,446,788, which is a continu-
`ation of application No. 07/952,967, Sep. 29, 1992, aban-
`doned.
`
`Tint, C07 ieececeeecccccc cess sesseetesessseeseeseeneens H04M 1/00
`TLS. CU cece ececcessenceceseseeceeceeseencneeesenenesenenee 379/430
`Field of Search 0...ee 379/430; 381/370,
`381/374, 376, 379, 381
`
`References Cited
`
`U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS
`
`oerAanCONFeS
`
`[56]
`
`Primary Examiner—Jack Chiang
`Attorney, Agent, or Firm—Weingarten, Schurgin, Gagnebin
`& Hayes LLP
`
`[57]
`
`ABSTRACT
`
`including a boom microphone, a
`A telephone headset
`earphone, and an ear support constructed and arranged to be
`adjustable and comfortable for a wearer. The headset
`is
`configured with an adjustable ear support to fit a variety of
`ear sizes without affecting the balance of the ear support on
`the ear of the wearer. The ear support includes a rotational
`hinge whichis biased into a given position by a compression
`washer. The earphone is removably and adjustably attached
`to a mounting ring which in turn is movably attached to the
`ear support by a spring biased ball and socket joint. The
`combination of flexible joints and removability of the ear-
`phoneprovides the degrees of freedom and stiction neces-
`sary to permit the earphone to be worn comfortably on either
`ear of the wearer. A strainrelief for the electrical connections
`
`is attached to the earphone which directs the electrical
`connections toward the plane of the head, thereby eliminat-
`ing a torque which otherwise would tend to dislodge the ear
`support from the ear. The earphone includes a series of
`openings in its rear surface to maximize its acoustics. The
`boom microphone includes a spring biased ball and socket
`joint to movably fix the orientation of the microphone with
`respect to the wearer to a good comfort level. The boom
`microphoneball and socketjoint is configured with a tab and
`stop to prohibit 360 degree rotation of the boom to prevent
`strain on the electrical connections to the microphone.
`
`5,260,997 11/1993 Gattey et al.ee 379/430
`
`2 Claims, 6 Drawing Sheets
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`APPLE 1127
`APPLE 1127
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`1
`ADJUSTABLE TELEPHONE HEADSET
`
`This application is a continuation of application Ser. No.
`08/505,115, filed Jul 21, 1995, now abandoned, whichis a
`division of application Ser. No. 08/231,981, filed Apr. 21,
`1994, now USS. Pat. No. 5,446,788, which was a continu-
`ation of Ser. No. 07/952,967, filed Sep. 29, 1992, now
`abandoned.
`
`FIELD OF THE INVENTION
`
`The invention relates to the field of telephone headsets
`and more particularly to telephone headsets having an ear
`support.
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`Telephone headsets permit the use of a telephone micro-
`phoneand earphonewhile freeing the user’s hands for other
`activities such as note taking and computer keyboard entry.
`The earliest forms of headsets included an earphone portion
`which included an over-the-head band which positioned a
`speaker adjacent the ear of a user and a microphoneportion
`whichrested on the user’s chest and which included a “horn”
`
`to conduct sound from the user’s mouth to the microphone.
`Asthe technology progressed, the headsets became smaller
`and lighter and the modern headsct now includes a car
`support portion which rests on the ear of a user and which
`positions an earphone against the ear of a user without the
`use of an over-the-head band. The microphoneportion of a
`modern headset may include a microphoneat the end of a
`boom attached to the ear support,or alternatively the micro-
`phone may be positioned within the ear support and sound
`brought to it from the user’s mouth by way of a hollow
`boom.
`
`The concern today is to make the headset as non-intrusive
`and comfortable as possible. In such an attempt to make the
`new headsets more comfortable, the ear support has been
`contoured to better fit between the pinna of the ear and the
`mastoid process of the skull and has been made to adjust to
`a wide variety of ear sizes. However, the boom microphone
`and the clectrical cable apply torques to the car support
`which tends to dislodge the headset from the ear of the
`wearer. This tendency reduces the comfort
`level of the
`wearer.
`
`The present invention provides a headset in which the ear
`support is adjustable to fit a variety of ear sizes without
`affecting the balance of the ear support on the ear of the
`wearer.
`
`SUMMARYOF THE INVENTION
`
`The invention relates to telephone headsets having an ear
`support, earphone and boom microphone. In one embodi-
`mentthe headsetis configured with an adjustable ear support
`to fit a variety of ear sizes without affecting the balance of
`the ear support on the ear of the wearer. One aspect of the
`invention is that the ear support includes a rotational hinge
`which is biased into a given position by a compression
`washer, thereby providing a durable joint.
`Another aspect of the invention is that the earphone is
`removably and adjustably attached to a mounting ring. The
`earphone includes a housing which includes detents which
`engage a channel in the mounting ring to permit the ear-
`phone to rotate within the mounting ring.
`Yet another aspect of the invention is that the mounting
`ring is movably attached to the ear support by a spring
`biased ball and socket joint. The combination of flexible
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`joints and removability of the earphone provides the degrees
`of freedom necessary to permit the earphone to be worn
`comfortably on either ear of the wearer. The earphone is
`biased toward the plane of the head to provide good acoustic
`coupling with the ear.
`Still another aspect of the invention is that a strain rclicf
`for the electrical connections is attached to the earphone
`whichdirects the electrical connections toward the plane of
`the head. This configuration eliminates a torque which
`otherwise would tend to dislodge the ear support from the
`ear of the wearer.
`
`Sull yet another aspect of the invention is that the ear-
`phone housing, which is sized for the ear, includes a series
`of openings in its rear surface to maximize its acoustic
`performance.
`Another aspect of the invention is that the boom micro-
`phone includes a spring biased ball and socket joint to
`movably fix the orientation of the microphone with respect
`to the wearer. The boom microphoneball and socketjoint is
`configured with a tab and stop to prohibit 360 degree
`rotation of the boom thereby to prevent strain on the
`electrical connections to the microphone. The spring biased
`ball and socket joint provides long-term position retention.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
`
`Other features and benefits of the invention can be more
`clearly understood with reference to the specification and the
`accompanying drawings in which:
`FIG. 1 is a drawing of an embodiment of the telephone
`headset of the invention positioned on the head of a wearer;
`FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the boom microphone and
`earphone portion of the embodimentof the invention shown
`in FIG. 1;
`FIG. 2a is a side view of the boom microphone and
`carphonce portion of the embodimentof the invention shown
`in FIG. 1;
`FIG. 3 is a side view of the boom microphoneportion of
`the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1;
`FIG. 3a is an exploded diagram of the ball joint of the
`boom microphoneportion of the embodiment of the inven-
`tion shown in FIG. 3;
`TIG. 35 is a cross-sectional diagram ofthe ball joint of the
`boom microphoneportion of the embodimentof the inven-
`tion shown in FIG. 3;
`
`FIG. 4 is a diagram of an exploded view of the boom
`microphone and earphoneportion of the embodimentof the
`invention shownin FIG. 1;
`FIG. 5 is a diagram of an exploded view of the ear support
`portion of the embodiment of the telephone headset of the
`invention shown in FIG. 1; and
`FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional diagram of the ear support
`portion of the embodiment of the telephone headset of the
`invention shown in FIG. 5.
`
`DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED
`EMBODIMENT
`
`In brief overview, and referring to FIG. 1, a telephone
`headset 10 constructed in accordance with the invention,
`includes a boom microphoneportion 12; a earphone portion
`18; and an ear support portion 20. The boom microphone
`portion 12 includes a microphone portion 14 (shown in
`phantom enclosed in a foam shield 22) positioned at one end
`of a hollow microphone boom 16. The other end of the
`microphone boom 16 is movably attached to the earphone
`
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`6,097,809
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`3
`portion 18. The ear support portion 20, which is removably
`attached to the earphone portion 18, rests on the operator’s
`ear in a manner that positions the earphone portion 18
`adjacent the operator’s ear and the microphone portion 14
`adjacent the operator’s mouth.
`Referring to FIGS. 2 and 2a, the microphone boom 16 is
`attached to one side of an earphone housing assembly 30 of
`the earphone portion 18 by a ball joint assembly 32 about
`which more will be said below. Electrical signals are sup-
`plied to the earphoneportion 18 and received from the boom
`microphoneportion 12 by way of a multiconductor wire 34
`which enters the earphone housing assembly 30 through a
`strain relief 36.
`
`the ball joint
`Referring also to FIGS. 3, 3a and 35,
`assembly 32 of the boom microphoneportion 12 includes a
`cup-shaped canister 40,
`through which the microphone
`boom 16 passes, which retains the other components of the
`ball joint assembly 32 and anchorsthe ball joint assembly 32
`to the earphone portion 18. A ball 44 of plastic is molded to
`the end of the microphone boom 16 opposite to the end of
`the microphone boom 16 to which the microphone portion
`14is attached. The end of the microphone boom 16 to which
`the ball 44 is attached includes two tabs 55 (one shown in
`phantom in FIG. 3b) formed from a flat bar welded to the
`boom, which prevent
`the ball 44 from rotating on the
`microphone boom 16. The ball 44 has a hollow diameter 46
`which permits wires 34' to pass through the ball 44 and the
`microphone boom 16 to the microphone portion 14.
`The microphone portion 14 includes a plastic forward
`housing 15 which is molded to the other end of the micro-
`phone boom 16. Once the wires enter the forward housing
`15, the opening to the microphone boom 16 is sealed with
`a low viscosity RTVplastic to prevent acoustic waves from
`traveling up the microphone boom 16. When the micro-
`phoneelectronics (not shown) have been electrically con-
`nected to the wires from the microphone boom 16, the rear
`cover 17 of the microphone portion 14 is attached to the
`forward housing 15.
`Whenassembled,the ball 44 rests against a cup portion 50
`of a socket assembly 52 thus forminga ball and socketjoint.
`The socket assembly 52 includes a tab 54 which engages a
`slot 56 in the wall of the canister 40 and prevents the socket
`assembly 52 from rotating with the ball 44. A spring 58,
`retained within the canister 40 by a retaining plate 60, biases
`the socket assembly 52 toward the ball 44. The ball 44 is
`pressed, between the cup portion 50 of the socket assembly
`52 and the partially closed end 62 of the canister 40, with a
`force sufficient to maintain a given orientation of the micro-
`phone boom 16 with respect to the canister 40, when the
`microphone boom 16 is positioned by the operator. The ball
`44 includes a tab 64 extending radially from the outer
`surface of the ball 44. This tab 64 abuts a rotation preventing
`tab 68 of the socket assembly 52 as the microphone boom 16
`is rotated a predetermined amount, thus preventing full 360
`degree rotation of the microphone boom 16. Complete
`rotation is prevented so that the multiconductor wire 34’,
`entering the microphone boom 16, is prevented from twist-
`ing and breaking.
`Referring also to FIG. 4, the canister 40 fits into a canister
`opening 78 in the rear cover 80 of the earphone housing
`assembly 30. A canister locking tab 72 in the canister
`opening 78 engages a canister locking cavity 70 in the
`canister 40, and prevents the canister 40 from rotating within
`the canister opening 78.
`The forward portion 86 of the strain relief 36 engages a
`strain relief opening 82 (shown in phantom) opposite the
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`canister opening 78 in the rear cover 80 of the earphone
`housing assembly 30. Once the forward portion 86 of the
`strain relief 36 is positioned in the strain relief opening 82,
`a strain relief clip 90 retains the forward portion 86 ofstrain
`relief 36 within the rear cover 80 of the earphone housing
`assembly 30. A wire-retainer 92 holds the wire 34 within the
`strain relief 36. The shape of the strain relief 36 is such that
`the wire 34 is angled toward the plane of the head adjacent
`the ear in order to prevent the wire 34 from extending
`beyondthe plane of the pinna of the ear of the wearer. This
`reduces the torque on the ear support portion 20 which
`would tend to dislodge the ear support portion 20 from the
`ear.
`
`The carphone housing assembly 30 is formed by the
`attachment of a forward housing 100 to the rear cover 80.
`The rear cover 80 includes a series of openings 81 which
`provide the proper acoustic impedance for high speaker
`efficiency and frequency response while also providing good
`high voltage breakdown protection. Additional openings 83,
`whichare not through holes, provide aesthetic design with-
`out affecting acoustic impedance and without providing an
`additional electrostatic breakdown path to the speakerter-
`minals of the headset. An earphone speaker 102, with the
`desired high frequency and low frequency rolloff
`characteristics, is positioned within the forward housing 100
`and isolated from the rear cover 80 by an open foam insert
`110. Similarly, the earphone speaker 102 is isolated from the
`inside surface of the forward face 104 of the forward
`
`housing 100 by a cloth dustfilter 108 attached to the forward
`housing 100 by an adhesive ring 109 positioned about the
`perimeter of the cloth filter 108. The earphone speaker 102
`is attached to the housing 100 by an adhesive ring 110. A
`compressive spring 112, cach end of which is scated in a
`dimple 105 in a respective resilient member 103 in the
`forward housing 100, biases the resilient members 103 in a
`radially outward direction.
`Referring to FIG. 5, the ear support portion 20 includes a
`fixed curvilinear member 120, assembled from a base por-
`tion 124 and a cover 122, and a hollow adjustable curvilinear
`member 126 having an end cover 130 and an engagement
`portion 132 defining a hole 134. One end ofthe base portion
`124 includes a metal shaft 136, upon which the hole 134 of
`the engagement portion 132 is located and about which the
`adjustable curvilinear member 126 rotates. The engagement
`portion 132 of the adjustable curvilinear member 126 also
`includes a rotation tab 131. The rotation tab 131 rests in a
`rotation tab recess 133 when the engagementportion 132 of
`the adjustable curvilinear member 126 is positioned on the
`metal shaft 136. The interaction of the engagement tab 131
`and the engagement tab recess 133 restricts the amount the
`adjustable curvilinear member 126 can rotate about
`the
`metal shaft 136 and hence limits how [ar the ear support 20
`can be opened. This limitation prevents the ear support 20
`from opening too far and thus aids the operator in position-
`ing the ear support 20 on the ear.
`The adjustable curvilinear member 126 is retained on the
`metal shaft 136 of the base portion 124 by the cover portion
`122. To permit the adjustable curvilinear member 126 to be
`maintained in any orientation relative to the fixed curvilinear
`member 120, the engagement portion 132 of the adjustable
`curvilinear member 126 is biased against the base portion
`124 of the fixed curvilinear member 120 by a compression
`washer 138 located between two washers 140, 142 and held
`on the metal shaft 136 by a clamp ring 144 positioned in a
`groove 137 in the metal shaft 136. ‘The use of the compres-
`sion washer 138 permits the easy adjustment of the adjust-
`able curvilinear member126 relative to the fixed curvilinear
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`surface 190 subtends an angle @ and the metal shaft 136 is
`located at an angle $B with respect to the positive x-axis.
`Whenin its most closed position (shown in phantom 192),
`the inner surface 193 of the adjustable curvilinear member
`126 forms a continuous curve with other extreme 194 of the
`inner curved surface 190.
`
`the features of the telephone
`The combination of all
`headset 10 herein described produces an extremely comfort-
`able and individually adjustable headset.
`These and other examples of the concept of the invention
`illustrated above are intended by way of example and the
`actual scope of the invention is to be determined solely from
`the following claims.
`Weclaim:
`
`1. Anarticulated headset support, to be worn on anear,
`comprising:
`a main housing having an arcuate surfacc that rests on top
`of the ear and extendsto the back of the ear behind the
`pinna;
`a secondary housing having an arcuate surface that adjust-
`ably contacts the lower-back portion of the ear behind
`the pinna; and
`friction hinge meansfor pivotally connecting said main
`housing in frictional communication with said second-
`ary housing via a compression member, said hinge
`meansbeing located behind the pinnaat the back of the
`ear, said hinge meansallowing the position of the main
`housing to be adjusted with respect to the secondary
`housing to permit the respective arcuate surfaces to be
`drawn closer together in a clamping motion;
`an engagement tab limiting adjustment of said pivotal
`connection to a range in an engagement tab recess so
`that a tight fit around the ear is achieved thereby
`providing enhancedstability.
`2. An articulated headset support, to be worn on an ear,
`comprising:
`a main housing having an arcuate surface that rests on top
`of the ear and extends to the back of the ear behind the
`
`5
`120 while permitting the orientation to be maintained once
`the relative positions have been adjusted.
`In one
`embodiment,
`the compression washer 138 is chosen to
`provide about 5.5 inch-oz. of force.
`The earphone portion 18 is attached to the ear support
`portion 20 by mcans of a mounting ring 150, into whichfits
`the forward housing 100 of the earphone housing assembly
`30. Extending radially outwardly from the circumference of
`mounting ring 150 is a ball 152 at the end of a ball stem 153.
`The ball 152 in conjunction with a cup socket 154 forms a
`ball and socket joint which permits rotation (Arrow R)of the
`mounting ring 150, and hence the earphone housing assem-
`bly 30, about an axis A of the ball 152. The ball 152 and cup
`socket 154 are positioned within the base portion 124 in a
`channel 156. The ball 152 and cup socket 154 are biased
`toward one outer end 160 of the base portion 124 by a spring
`162. One end of the spring 162 is held in a spring retainer
`164 at one end of the channel 156. The other end of the
`
`spring 162 is retained by the cup socket 154. A notch 168 in
`the base portion 124 permits the ball and socket joint formed
`of the ball 152 and cup socket 154 to rotate (Arrow T) about
`the long axis B of the base portion 124 without interference
`from the ball stem 153. In one embodiment, the combination
`of stiction produced by the ball 152 and cup socket 154 and
`the resilicncy of the car of the operator produces a force of
`about 2 oz. holding the ear support 20 on the ear of the
`operator and providing good acoustic coupling to the ear.
`It is the ability of the mounting ring 150 to rotate about
`both axes A and B, which contributes the same headset to be
`used on either ear. In addition, the forward housing 100
`includes a pair of detents 101, each mounted on the out-
`wardly resilient member 103, which engage a channel 170
`along a portion of the inner circumference of the mounting
`ring 150. This engagement permits the forward housing 100
`to rotate (Arrow P) about an axis C perpendicular to the
`plane of the mounting ring 150. Depressions at each end of
`the channel 170 engage the detents 101 at the limit of travel
`and prevent full 360 degree rotation about axis C.
`By removing the earphone portion 18 from the mounting
`ring 150 and rotating the mounting ring 150 one hundred and
`eighty degrees about axis A prior to reinserting the earphone
`portion 18 into the mounting ring 150, the wearer is per-
`mitted to change upon which ear the headset is worn. The
`ability to rotate the earphone portion 18 about the B and C
`axes provides the additional degrees of freedom which
`permit the telephone headset 10 to be worn comfortably on
`either ear while still permitting the microphone 14 to be
`positioned adjacent the mouth of the wearer.
`An external open foam ear cushion 114 (FIG. 4) may be
`attached to the outside surface of the forward housing 100 by
`fitting the ear cushion 114 over a lip 172 located on the
`forward outside perimeter of the mounting ring 150.
`Referring to FIG. 6, the ear support portion 20 is precisely
`shaped for comfort. Aligning the ear support portion 20 such
`that the axis of the ball stem 152 defines an x-axis and a
`perpendicular line through the center of the mounting ring
`150 defines a y-axis, one extreme 180 of the inner curved
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`pinna;
`a secondary housing having an arcuate surface that adjust-
`ably contacts the lower-back portion of the ear behind
`the pinna; and
`biased hinge means for pivotally connecting said main
`housing in frictional communication with said second-
`ary housing via a compression member, said hinge
`means being located behind the pinnaat the back of the
`ear, said hinge means allowing the position of the main
`housing to be adjusted with respect to the secondary
`housing to permit the respective arcuate surfaces to be
`drawn closer together in a clamping motion;
`an engagement
`tab limiting adjustment of said hinge
`meansto a range in an engagementtab recess so that a
`tight fit around the ear is achieved thereby providing
`enhancedstability.
`*
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`10
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