Harman International Industries, Inc.

David Mossington

Riley Winton

Christopher Michael Trestain

Chris Ludwig

Matthew Christopher Marrocco

Rishi Daftuar

Christopher Ludwig

Lars Goller

Adam Michael Sachs

Martin Olsen

Tingli Cai

Rui Edson Justino De Oliveira

Riley Iakovidis

Gerhard Doberstein

At least one loudspeaker module having a loudspeaker driver mounted inside a headrest behind a lateral non-contact surface of the headrest and is oriented so that a central axis of radiation is along a lateral direction, x, of the headrest. A waveguide has an opening in the lateral direction, x, and an exit opening in a forward direction, y. The forward direction, y, is generally perpendicular to the lateral direction, x. The waveguide is mounted to the loudspeaker driver so that the opening aligns with a radiating surface of the loudspeaker driver and the exit opening extends along the lateral non-contact surface of the headrest exteriorly to the headrest. The opening is vertically oriented on the lateral non-contact surface of the headrest so that a central axis of radiation of the waveguide is directed toward the forward direction, y. The loudspeaker has an acoustic lens above the loudspeaker driver.

Headrest with side-firing loudspeakers

A modular audio assembly for use with a vehicle headrest includes a speaker assembly including a support member arranged to be rotatably mounted to the vehicle headrest, and a speaker module coupled to the support member, the speaker module including a housing having a front face and at least one speaker mounted therein for generating audio output. An actuator is operably connected to the speaker assembly and configured to position the speaker assembly in an inactive position with the front face generally adjacent a lateral side of the vehicle headrest and in an active position with the speaker assembly rotated away from the lateral side of the vehicle headrest and the front face oriented in an inward direction.

Modular audio assembly for use with vehicle headrest

A headrest assembly for a vehicle includes a head support having a front side, a back side, a left side, and a right side. A left support arm is coupled to the left side and aright support aim is coupled to the right side. A left speaker module is coupled to the left support arm and a right speaker module is coupled to the right support arm, the left and right speaker modules each including a housing having a front face with at least one speaker mounted therein for generating audio output. The left and right support arms are arranged to position the left and right speaker modules in a retracted position with respect to the head support to provide a surround sound mode, a first extended position to provide an individual sound zone (ISZ) mode, and a second extended position to provide a binaural mode.

Vehicle headrest assembly with configurable speaker modules and control for multiple audio modes

In at least one embodiment, a loudspeaker assembly is provided. The loudspeaker assembly includes a loudspeaker and a waveguide. The loudspeaker includes a diaphragm to transmit an audio output. The waveguide being asymmetrical and at least partially surrounding the diaphragm. The waveguide being configured to control a directivity of the audio output.

Loudspeaker assembly with a waveguide

In at least one embodiment, a loudspeaker assembly including a first loudspeaker and a first acoustic lens is provided. The first loudspeaker is positioned on a first side of a headrest of a first vehicle seat for transmitting a first audio output toward one of a side pillar and a door of a vehicle. The first acoustic lens is coupled to the first loudspeaker and defining a first opening to enable the first audio output to pass from the first opening at a first predetermined angle. The first acoustic lens is positioned between the first loudspeaker and the one of the side pillar and the door of the vehicle.

Side-firing headrest loudspeaker with omnidirectional lens

Speaker or waveguide

The present disclosure relates to loudspeaker devices and configurations. In at least one embodiment, a loudspeaker includes a housing structure having a multi-sided cross-sectional profile, a first speaker configuration coupled to a first face of the housing structure, and a second speaker configuration coupled to a second face of the housing structure. The first face of the housing structure and the second face of the housing structure may be adjacent to each other, and the first face of the housing structure and the second face of the housing structure may be substantially planar, in one or more examples. The loudspeaker may further comprise a controller configured to rotate the housing structure. For example, the housing structure may be rotated about a central axis of the housing structure. Further, the housing may be an elongated triangular structure in at least one example.

Rotating loudspeaker

The present disclosure relates to vehicle speaker systems and configurations. In one embodiment, a vehicle headrest is provided including a head support, loudspeakers, and loudspeaker supports. The loudspeaker supports can position and direct the loudspeakers in at least one of a retracted and extended position.

Vehicle headrest with speakers and control for adaptive spatial performance

The present disclosure relates to loudspeaker devices and configurations. In one embodiment, a loudspeaker includes a housing structure having multiple faces. A first face and second face of the housing are between first and second ends to arrange speaker configurations. The housing structure is configured to rotate to direct at least one of the first speaker configuration and the second speaker configuration for output of audio. In one embodiment, the housing structure is an elongated triangular structure. Loudspeaker configurations can include one or more elements to rotate the housing structure to direct at least one of the first speaker configuration and the second speaker configuration for output of audio. Loudspeaker configurations may also include a controller to operate at least one of the first speaker configuration and the second speaker configuration for output of audio based on position of the housing structure.

Speaker

Soundbar

The present disclosure relates to loudspeakers and loudspeaker configurations. In one embodiment, a loudspeaker includes a driver, a basket structure and an acoustic interface surrounding the driver. The outer portion of the acoustic interface can be supported by the basket structure. Loudspeaker configurations provided herein can include a positioning element configured to position the driver in at least one of a first position relative to the basket structure, and a second position relative to the basket structure. Other embodiments are directed to loudspeaker components and configurations. In one embodiment, loudspeaker includes a housing structure and a flexible (e.g., stretch) acoustic interface to surround a driver of the loudspeaker.

Growing community of inventors

Novi, MI, United States of America

David Mossington