CN108337591B

CN108337591B - Headset

Info

Publication number: CN108337591B
Application number: CN201810097305.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 褚衍栋
Original assignee: Goertek Techology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Goertek Techology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-01-31
Filing date: 2018-01-31
Publication date: 2024-04-02
Anticipated expiration: 2038-01-31
Also published as: CN108337591A

Abstract

The invention discloses a headset which is used for solving the technical problems that a rotatable connection structure between an ear bag and a headband is complex and the steering operation is complex. The headset comprises a head band, wherein a sliding support is arranged at the end part of the head band, an ear-pack rear shell is arranged on the sliding support, a rotating shaft is arranged on the ear-pack rear shell, and the ear-pack rear shell is connected with the sliding support through the rotating shaft; the utility model discloses a rotary shaft, including the shell, the shell is fixed on the shell, the pivot with the one end of sliding support connection is provided with the bulb perpendicular on the bulb the axis of pivot is provided with spacing axle, centers on the axis direction of spacing axle the shell is relative the rotation of the shell is gone on from top to bottom or left and right directions relative the sliding support is gone on to the shell is gone on to the center of axis direction of spacing axle the shell is relative the shell is gone on from top to bottom or left and right directions.

Description

Headset

Technical Field

The invention belongs to the technical field of acoustics, and particularly relates to a headphone.

Background

Headphones are increasingly favored by people as a music transmission device, especially young people, and are an indispensable daily necessity in life. The existing headset has high requirements on the tone quality of the headset and the wearing comfort and the aesthetic property. Therefore, the ear-packs of the headphones are required to be rotatable for optimal comfort of the user wearing the headphones.

At present, common mechanisms for headphones are: the earphone comprises a head band, an earphone support and an earphone bag, wherein the two ends of the head band are respectively provided with the earphone support, and the earphone bag is arranged on the earphone support. The rotation of the ear cup is generally achieved in two positions, namely, the position between the earphone bracket and the headband and the position between the earphone bracket and the ear cup.

Specifically, be provided with rotatable connection structure between earphone support top and the bandeau, earphone support can realize the rotation of left and right directions for the bandeau, is provided with rotatable connection structure between earphone support both sides and the ear package, and the ear package can realize the rotation of upper and lower direction for the earphone support.

Above-mentioned structure needs to realize rotating at earphone support both ends, and the structure is complicated, and complex operation, user experience is not good.

Disclosure of Invention

In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a headphone in which the ear cup can be rotated in four degrees of freedom in the left-right and up-down directions at one position with respect to the headband.

In order to achieve the above purpose, the present invention adopts the following technical scheme:

the headset comprises a head band, wherein a sliding support is arranged at the end part of the head band, an ear-pack rear shell is arranged on the sliding support, a rotating shaft is arranged on the ear-pack rear shell, and the ear-pack rear shell is connected with the sliding support through the rotating shaft; the utility model discloses a rotary shaft, including the shell, the shell is fixed on the shell, the pivot with the one end of sliding support connection is provided with the bulb perpendicular on the bulb the axis of pivot is provided with spacing axle, centers on the axis direction of spacing axle the shell is relative the rotation of the shell is gone on from top to bottom or left and right directions relative the sliding support is gone on to the shell is gone on to the center of axis direction of spacing axle the shell is relative the shell is gone on from top to bottom or left and right directions.

Optionally, a sliding rail is provided on the headband, and the sliding bracket can slide on the headband along the sliding rail. Through this structure setting, can adjust the position of ear package on the head area to adjust the distance size between the ear package, the adaptation is different users.

Optionally, a rotating shaft base is installed on the sliding support, the rotating shaft is connected with the rotating shaft base, the ball head is located in the rotating shaft base, and the limiting shaft comprises two sections of shafts symmetrically arranged on two sides of the ball head. The rotating shaft base is arranged by matching with the ball head and the limiting shaft of the rotating shaft and is used for guiding the rotation of the rotating shaft.

Optionally, a first through hole is formed in the bottom of the rotating shaft base, the rotating shaft penetrates through the first through hole, the first through hole is conical, and the rotating angle of the rotating shaft is limited. Through this structure setting, can avoid the ear-bag to make unnecessary, too big turned angle, avoid the shape of headphone to become uncoordinated, inconvenient wearing.

Optionally, a limiting groove is formed in the rotating shaft base, the shape of the limiting groove is matched with the ball head of the rotating shaft and the limiting shaft, and the ball head can rotate around the axis direction of the limiting shaft and rotate around the axis direction vertical to the limiting shaft in the limiting groove. The limiting groove forms a rotating guide part of the ball head so as to guide the rotation of the rotating shaft.

Optionally, the sliding support comprises an outer clamping plate, an inner clamping plate and a decorative cover, wherein the outer clamping plate and the inner clamping plate are respectively positioned at the outer side and the inner side of the headband, the outer clamping plate and the inner clamping plate are combined through first screws, the decorative cover is combined with the inner clamping plate through clamping, the rotating shaft base is positioned in the decorative cover, and the rotating shaft base is fixedly connected with the inner clamping plate through second screws; the ball head of the rotating shaft is pressed by the positioning block on the inner clamping plate, the ball head is kept in the rotating shaft base, and one surface of the positioning block, which is in contact with the ball head, is in a concave spherical shape.

The outer clamping plate and the inner clamping plate are arranged, and the headband is clamped by the outer clamping plate and the inner clamping plate so as to facilitate the installation of the sliding support on the headband. The outer clamping plate and/or the inner clamping plate can be provided with guide blocks which can slide and guide in the guide rail of the headband. The decorative cover can cover the rotating shaft base, so that the appearance of the rotating shaft base is improved, and the appearance is tidy.

Optionally, the upper side and the lower side of the decorative cover are inclined planes, so that the upper and lower rotation process of the ear drum rear shell is avoided. Through this structure setting, both can realize decorating the covering effect of lid oneself, can reserve the rotation space for the ear drum again.

The upper side of the decorative cover is provided with a first threading hole for introducing a power line and/or a signal line, and one side of the decorative cover adjacent to the ear-bag rear shell is provided with a second threading hole for introducing the power line and/or the signal line. This is the structure provided for the wiring between the ear bags.

Optionally, a second through hole is formed in one side, adjacent to the ear shell rear shell, of the decorative cover, the rotating shaft penetrates through the second through hole, and a damping sponge is arranged between the decorative cover and the ear shell rear shell around the second through hole. The damping sponge can be fixed on the decorative cover or on the rear shell of the ear bag, and can absorb the rotation shock of the ear bag and can also avoid hard friction between the rear shell of the ear bag and the decorative cover.

Optionally, one end that the pivot with ear package backshell is connected is provided with axial screw hole, the pivot with ear package backshell passes through third screw connection fixed, the third screw is provided with anti-skidding structure.

Because the ball end diameter of the rotating shaft is larger, the other end of the rotating shaft needs to pass through the first through hole of the rotating shaft base, and therefore the rotating shaft and the ear-pack rear shell are of a detachable connection structure.

The third screw is subjected to anti-skid treatment, so that the stability of the connecting structure of the rotating shaft and the rear shell of the ear drum can be improved.

Optionally, an anti-rotation protrusion and a positioning block are arranged at one end of the rotating shaft, where the threaded hole is formed, a positioning groove is formed in the rear shell of the ear bag, an anti-rotation groove is formed in the positioning groove, one end of the rotating shaft, where the threaded hole is formed, is installed in the positioning groove, and a third through hole is formed in the bottom of the positioning groove and used for the third screw to pass through; and a third threading hole is formed in the rear shell of the ear bag for introducing a power line and/or a signal line.

The structure of locating piece and constant head tank can make things convenient for the connection combination of pivot and ear package backshell.

The rotation preventing protrusions are arranged on the rotating shaft, the rotation preventing grooves are formed in the positioning grooves of the rear shell of the ear bag, and the rotation between the rotating shaft and the rear shell of the ear bag in the rotation process of the ear bag can be prevented through the rotation preventing structure, so that the stability of the connecting structure of the rotating shaft and the rear shell of the ear bag is improved.

The invention has the advantages and beneficial effects that:

according to the invention, the rear ear shell is connected with the head band through the rotating shaft, the ball head is arranged at one end of the rotating shaft connected with the head band, the limiting shaft is arranged on the ball head, the characteristics of the ball head are utilized, and meanwhile, under the limiting effect of the limiting shaft, the rear ear shell can rotate in four degrees of freedom in the left-right direction and the up-down direction relative to the head band, so that the rear ear shell can realize the requirements of left-right rotation and up-down rotation at one position.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a headset (a cradle position) in an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is an exploded view (partial, cradle position) of a headset according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a spindle according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a top view of a spindle and a spindle base according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 6;

fig. 8 is a perspective view of a decorative cover in an embodiment of the invention.

In the figure: 1. an outer clamping plate; 2. a decorative cover; 21. a second through hole; 22. a second threading hole; 23. a first threading hole; 3. a headband; 4. damping sponge; 5. a rotating shaft; 51. ball head; 52. a limiting shaft; 53. a threaded hole; 54. positioning blocks; 55. an anti-rotation protrusion; 6. a third screw, 7. An ear-pack backshell; 71. a positioning groove; 72. an anti-rotation groove; 73. a third through hole; 8. a spindle base; 81. spherical limit grooves; 82. a linear limit groove; 83. limiting inclined planes; 84. a first through hole; 9. an inner clamping plate; 10. and a second screw.

Detailed Description

The design concept of the invention is as follows:

aiming at the defects of the rotating structure of the middle ear drum in the prior art, the invention provides the headphone, the rear ear drum shell is connected with the head band through the rotating shaft, the ball head is arranged at one end of the rotating shaft connected with the head band, the limiting shaft is arranged on the ball head, and the rear ear drum shell can rotate left and right and up and down relative to the head band under the limiting action of the limiting shaft by utilizing the characteristics of the ball head, so that the rear ear drum shell can rotate left and right and up and down at one position.

For the purpose of making the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention more apparent, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Example 1

In this embodiment, a headphone according to an embodiment 1 of the present invention is shown in fig. 1, 2 and 4, and includes a headband 3, a sliding bracket is disposed at an end of the headband 3, an ear-pack rear case 7 is mounted on the sliding bracket, the ear-pack rear case 7 is a part of an ear pack, and is a base of the ear pack, a rotating shaft 5 is mounted on the ear-pack rear case 7, and the ear-pack rear case 7 is connected with the sliding bracket through the rotating shaft 5.

One end of the rotating shaft 5 connected with the sliding support is provided with a ball head 51, a limiting shaft 52 is arranged on the ball head 51 and perpendicular to the axis of the rotating shaft 5, the ear-bag rear shell 7 rotates vertically relative to the sliding support around the axis direction of the limiting shaft 52 (the direction indicated by an arc arrow M in fig. 1), and the ear-bag rear shell 7 rotates left and right relative to the sliding support around the axis direction of the perpendicular limiting shaft 52 (the direction indicated by an arc arrow N in fig. 2).

As shown in fig. 5, the axis of the rotation shaft 5 is a Z axis, the axis about which the ear cup rear case 7 rotates in the up-down direction is a Y axis, and the axis about which the ear cup rear case 7 rotates in the left-right direction is an X axis.

The axis of the left-right rotation of the ear-pack rear shell 7 passes through the center of the ball head and is vertical to the axis of the limiting shaft 52.

The limiting shaft 52 mainly prevents the rotating shaft 5 from rotating 360 degrees, because the ear-pack can rotate around the axis of the rotating shaft 5 without limitation, the ear-pack is inconvenient to wear and use, and the power line and the signal line in the ear-pack are twisted.

The headband 3 is provided with a sliding rail, the sliding rail can be formed by a long hole on the headband 3, and the sliding bracket can slide on the headband 3 along the sliding rail to adjust the position on the headband 3. Through this structural arrangement, the position of the ear packs on the headband 3 can be adjusted, thereby adjusting the distance between the ear packs, adapting to different users.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the sliding support is provided with a rotating shaft base 8, the rotating shaft 5 is connected with the rotating shaft base 8, the ball head 51 is positioned in the rotating shaft base 8, and the limiting shaft 52 comprises two sections of shafts symmetrically arranged on two sides of the ball head 51. The rotating shaft base 8 is arranged in cooperation with the ball head 51 and the limiting shaft 52 of the rotating shaft 5 and guides the rotating shaft 5 to rotate.

As shown in fig. 7, a first through hole 84 is provided at the bottom of the spindle base 8, the spindle 5 passes through the first through hole 84, and the first through hole 84 is tapered to limit the rotation angle of the spindle 5. Through this structure setting, can avoid the ear-bag to make unnecessary, too big turned angle, avoid the shape of headphone to become uncoordinated, inconvenient wearing.

The rotary shaft base 8 is provided with a limit groove, the shape of the limit groove is matched with the ball head of the rotary shaft 5 and the limit shaft 52, the limit groove comprises a spherical limit groove 81 and a linear limit groove 82, and the ball head 51 can rotate around the axis direction of the limit shaft 52 and around the axis direction of the vertical limit shaft 52 in the limit groove 81. The limit groove constitutes a rotation guide member of the ball head 51, thereby guiding the rotation of the rotation shaft 5.

The ball head 51 is provided with a spherical limit groove 81, the limit shaft 52 is provided with a linear limit groove 82, the bottom of the linear limit groove 82 is provided with a limit inclined surface 83, and the end of the limit shaft 52 is just inclined when rotating to the position.

In this embodiment, the sliding support includes an outer clamping plate 1, an inner clamping plate 9 and a decorative cover 2, the outer clamping plate 1 and the inner clamping plate 9 are respectively located at the outer side and the inner side of the headband 3, the outer clamping plate 1 and the inner clamping plate 9 are combined through screws, the decorative cover 2 and the inner clamping plate 9 are combined through clamping, a rotating shaft base 8 is located in the decorative cover 2, and the rotating shaft base 8 and the inner clamping plate 9 are connected and fixed through second screws 10.

As shown in fig. 6, three mounting holes are formed in three corners of the shaft base 8, and three second screws 10 can be mounted, and one corner is missing, where the third threading hole is formed in the rear shell 7 of the ear drum.

The second screw 10 can also function as a combination of the outer clamping plate 1 and the inner clamping plate 9 at the same time, thus omitting one set of screws.

As shown in fig. 1 and 2, the inner clamping plate 9 is provided with a ball head 51 for pressing the rotating shaft 5 by a positioning block, the ball head 51 is held in the rotating shaft base 8, and a surface of the positioning block 54, which is in contact with the ball head 51, is in a concave spherical shape.

The outer clamping plate 1 and the inner clamping plate 9 are arranged, and the outer clamping plate 1 and the inner clamping plate 9 clamp the headband 3 so as to facilitate the installation of the sliding bracket on the headband 3.

Guide blocks may be provided on the outer clamp plate 1 and/or the inner clamp plate 9 to slidably guide in the guide rails of the headband 3. The decorative cover 2 can cover the rotating shaft base 8, so that the appearance of the part is improved, and the appearance is tidy.

The upper side and the lower side of the decorative cover 2 are inclined planes, so that the upper and lower rotation process of the ear-bag rear shell 7 is avoided. Through this structure setting, both can realize decorating lid 2 self covering effect, can reserve the rotation space for the ear drum again.

The upper side of the decorative cover 2 is provided with a first threading hole 23 for introducing a power line and/or a signal line, and the side of the decorative cover 2 adjacent to the ear-pack rear case 7 is provided with a second threading hole 22 for introducing a power line and/or a signal line, which is a structure provided for connecting lines between ear packs, as shown in fig. 7.

As shown in fig. 8, a second through hole 21 is provided on the side of the decorative cover 2 adjacent to the ear-pack rear case 7, the rotation shaft 5 passes through the second through hole 21, and a shock absorbing sponge 4 is provided around the second through hole 21 between the decorative cover 2 and the ear-pack rear case 7. The damping sponge 4 can be fixed on the decorative cover 2 or on the ear-pack rear shell 7, and the damping sponge 4 can absorb the rotation shock of the ear-pack, and can also avoid hard friction between the ear-pack rear shell 7 and the decorative cover 2.

As shown in fig. 1, 2 and 7, an axial threaded hole 53 is formed at one end of the rotating shaft 5 connected with the ear-pack rear shell 7, the rotating shaft 5 is fixedly connected with the ear-pack rear shell 7 through a third screw 6, and the third screw 6 is provided with an anti-slip structure.

Because the diameter of the ball end of the rotating shaft 5 is larger, the other end of the rotating shaft 5 needs to pass through the first through hole 84 of the rotating shaft base 8, so the rotating shaft 5 and the ear-pack rear shell 7 are in a detachable connection structure.

The third screw 6 may be a non-slip screw with its own non-slip structure, for example, a ring of protrusions on the bottom surface of the nut, so as to prevent the third screw 6 from being loosened from the shaft 5. The stability of the connection structure of the rotating shaft 5 and the ear-bag rear shell 7 can be improved by performing anti-skid treatment on the third screw 6.

As shown in fig. 5 and 7, the end of the rotating shaft 5 provided with the threaded hole 53 is provided with an anti-rotation protrusion 55 and a positioning block 54, and the anti-rotation protrusion 55 and the positioning block 54 are also symmetrically arranged on the rotating shaft 5.

The back shell 7 of the ear bag is provided with a positioning groove 71, an anti-rotation groove 72 is arranged in the positioning groove 71, one end of the rotating shaft 5 provided with the threaded hole 53 is arranged in the positioning groove 71, and a third through hole 73 is arranged at the bottom of the positioning groove 71 for the third screw 6 to pass through, as shown in fig. 3.

The positioning block 54 and the positioning groove 71 can be conveniently connected and combined with the rotating shaft 5 and the ear-bag rear shell 7.

The rotation preventing protrusions 55 are arranged on the rotating shaft 5, the rotation preventing grooves 72 are arranged in the positioning grooves 71 of the ear-pack rear shell 7, and rotation between the rotating shaft 5 and the ear-pack rear shell 7 in the rotation process of the ear-pack can be prevented through the rotation preventing structure, so that the stability of the connecting structure of the rotating shaft 5 and the ear-pack rear shell 7 is improved.

The ear-pack rear case 7 is provided with a third threading hole for introducing a power supply line and/or a signal line (the third threading hole is not shown).

The assembly process of the sliding support, the ear shell rear shell 7 and the headband 3 of the invention comprises the following steps:

1) Mounting the outer and inner clips 1, 9 to the headband 3;

2) Mounting the spindle 5 into the spindle base 8;

3) The rotating shaft base 8 is fixed on the sliding base plate 9 through three second screws 10;

4) Mounting the decorative cover 2 to the inner clamping plate 9;

5) The damping sponge 4 is mounted on the decorative cover 2 or the ear-bag rear shell 7 and is adhered and fixed;

6) The ear-pack rear shell 7 is fixedly connected with the rotating shaft 5 through a third screw 6, and the third screw 6 is subjected to necessary anti-skid wire treatment.

In order to ensure sufficient strength of the rotating shaft 5, MIM (metal injection molded) members or stainless steel workpieces can be selected; in order to ensure smooth sliding of the spindle base 8, the spindle base 8 is made of a POM (thermoplastic crystalline polymer) member or a PA (polyamide) member.

According to the invention, one end of the rotating shaft 5, which is connected with the rotating shaft base 8, is designed into a ball head structure, the ball head structure can realize 360-degree rotation, but a limiting shaft 52 is additionally arranged on the ball head structure, and a limiting groove is arranged in the rotating shaft base 8, so that the ear drum can be prevented from rotating for 360 degrees, the ear drum is allowed to rotate up and down and left and right, and meanwhile, the rotating angle is limited by utilizing a through hole on the rotating shaft base 8. The structure saves installation space, the ear drum steering operation is simple, and the wearing experience of a user is improved.

Example 2

In this embodiment, unlike embodiment 1, the following is: the position of the limiting shaft 52 on the ball head 51 is rotated by 90 degrees, the ear-pack rear case 7 rotates in the left-right direction relative to the sliding bracket around the axis direction of the limiting shaft 52, and the ear-pack rear case 7 rotates in the up-down direction relative to the sliding bracket around the axis direction of the vertical limiting shaft 52.

Accordingly, the spindle base 8 also needs to be rotated 90 degrees.

The axis of up-and-down rotation of the ear-pack rear case 7 passes through the center of the ball head 51 and is perpendicular to the axis of the limit shaft 52.

Other structures of the headphone in this embodiment are the same as those in embodiment 1, and a description thereof will not be repeated here.

Example 3

In this embodiment, unlike embodiment 1, the following is: after the third screw 6 is installed, the third screw 6 may be spot-glued, thereby preventing the third screw 6 from loosening.

The foregoing is merely an embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, expansion, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention are included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. The headset comprises a head band, and is characterized in that a sliding support is arranged at the end part of the head band, an ear-pack rear shell is arranged on the sliding support, a rotating shaft is arranged on the ear-pack rear shell, and the ear-pack rear shell is connected with the sliding support through the rotating shaft;

a ball head is arranged at one end of the rotating shaft, which is connected with the sliding support, a limiting shaft is arranged on the ball head and perpendicular to the axis of the rotating shaft, the ear shell rear shell rotates up and down or left and right relative to the sliding support around the axis direction of the limiting shaft, and the ear shell rear shell rotates left and right or up and down relative to the sliding support around the axis direction of the limiting shaft;

the sliding support is provided with a rotating shaft base, the rotating shaft is connected with the rotating shaft base, the ball head is positioned in the rotating shaft base, and the limiting shaft comprises two sections of shafts symmetrically arranged on two sides of the ball head;

the bottom of the rotating shaft base is provided with a first through hole, the rotating shaft penetrates through the first through hole, the first through hole is conical, and the rotating angle of the rotating shaft is limited;

the rotating shaft base is internally provided with a limiting groove, the shape of the limiting groove is matched with the ball head of the rotating shaft and the limiting shaft, and the ball head can rotate around the axis direction of the limiting shaft and rotate around the axis direction vertical to the limiting shaft in the limiting groove;

the sliding support comprises an outer clamping plate, an inner clamping plate and a decorative cover, wherein the outer clamping plate and the inner clamping plate are respectively positioned at the outer side and the inner side of the headband, the outer clamping plate and the inner clamping plate are combined through first screws, the decorative cover is combined with the inner clamping plate through clamping, the rotating shaft base is positioned in the decorative cover, and the rotating shaft base is fixedly connected with the inner clamping plate through second screws;

the ball head of the rotating shaft is pressed by the positioning block on the inner clamping plate, the ball head is kept in the rotating shaft base, and one surface of the positioning block, which is in contact with the ball head, is in a concave spherical shape.

2. The headphone according to claim 1, wherein the headband is provided with a slide rail, and the slide bracket is slidable on the headband along the slide rail.

3. The headphone according to claim 1, wherein the upper side and the lower side of the decorative cover are inclined surfaces, so as to avoid the up-and-down rotation process of the rear shell of the ear bag;

the upper side of the decorative cover is provided with a first threading hole for introducing a power line and/or a signal line, and one side of the decorative cover adjacent to the ear-bag rear shell is provided with a second threading hole for introducing the power line and/or the signal line.

4. The headphone according to claim 1, wherein a second through hole is provided on a side of the decorative cover adjacent to the ear-pack rear case, the rotation shaft penetrates through the second through hole, and a shock absorbing sponge is provided between the decorative cover and the ear-pack rear case around the second through hole.

5. The headphone according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that an axial threaded hole is provided at the end of the shaft connected to the rear ear shell, the shaft being fixed to the rear ear shell by a third screw, the third screw being provided with an anti-slip structure.

6. The headphone according to claim 5, wherein an anti-rotation protrusion and a positioning block are arranged at one end of the rotating shaft, where the threaded hole is formed, a positioning groove is formed in the rear shell of the ear drum, an anti-rotation groove is formed in the positioning groove, one end of the rotating shaft, where the threaded hole is formed, is installed in the positioning groove, and a third through hole is formed in the bottom of the positioning groove for the third screw to pass through;

and a third threading hole is formed in the rear shell of the ear bag for introducing a power line and/or a signal line.