Apple Inc.

Gordon R Dix

Martin E Johnson

Tom-Davy William Jendrik Saux

Michael B Howes

Gary P Geaves

Michael Kai Morishita

Justin Derry Crosby

Vijay G Prabakaran

Tom-Davy William Jendrick Saux

A multi-way speaker array is disclosed that includes rings of transducers of different types. The rings of transducers may encircle the cabinet of the speaker array such that the speaker array is rotationally symmetric. The distance between rings of transducers may be based on a logarithmic scale. By separating rings of transducers using logarithmic spacing, denser transducer spacing at short wavelengths is achieved while limiting the number of transducers needed for longer wavelengths by spacing them in larger and larger logarithmic increments. Transducers with overlapping frequency ranges may be used in the speaker array to avoid initial dips or shortfalls in directivity for corresponding beam patterns.

Rotationally symmetric speaker array

Examples of speaker assemblies are described. A speaker assembly according to some embodiments may include a speaker enclosure with a first opening (e.g., a speaker opening) and a second opening (e.g. a bass reflex port), a speaker unit mounted to the enclosure at the first opening, and an acoustic damping mechanism mounted to the enclosure at the second opening. The acoustic damping mechanism may be a dual-layer mesh screen including a first mesh with a first acoustic resistance (AR) for providing acoustic damping, and a second mesh with a second AR lower than the first AR. The second mesh may be nearly acoustically transparent and may serve to increase the stiffness of the first mesh. The first mesh may be bonded to the second mesh, and the dual-layer mesh screen may be coupled to the bass reflex port for reducing noise associated with turbulence at the port.

Speaker assembly

A directivity pattern generator for producing sound patterns using a modal architecture is described. The directivity pattern generator may include a beam pattern mixing unit, which defines sound patterns to be emitted by an audio system in terms of a set of frequency invariant modes or modal patterns. The beam pattern mixing unit produces a set of modal gains representing the level or degree each of the predefined modal patterns is to be applied to a set of audio streams. Modal filters may be used to modal amplitudes that compensate for inefficiencies of the each modal pattern at low frequencies. The directivity pattern generator may include a modal decomposition unit for generating driving signals for each transducer in one or more loudspeaker arrays based on weighted values for the modal gains/amplitudes.

Modal based architecture for controlling the directivity of loudspeaker arrays

An electronic audio device including an enclosure having an acoustic output opening and a speaker positioned within the enclosure. The speaker and the acoustic output opening are acoustically coupled by an acoustic output pathway. The acoustic output pathway includes a damping chamber to dampen a resonance frequency of the acoustic output pathway. The speaker is between the damping chamber and the acoustic output opening.

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Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Gordon R Dix