CN110933546B

CN110933546B - Earplug tip and in-ear earphone

Info

Publication number: CN110933546B
Application number: CN201910459790.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: J·R·布鲁斯; D·P·勒; S·S·柯尔本; R·A·博伊德
Original assignee: Apple Inc
Current assignee: Apple Inc
Priority date: 2018-09-20
Filing date: 2019-05-30
Publication date: 2021-10-22
Anticipated expiration: 2039-05-30
Also published as: CN110933546A

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an earplug tip and an in-ear headphone. An earbud tip for an in-ear headphone is disclosed, which can include an outer body; an inner tube extending at least partially within the outer body, the tube having first and second opposing ends and first and second openings at the first and second opposing ends, respectively, the first opening configured to emit audio signals provided by a speaker of an in-ear headphone into an ear canal of a user during operation of the in-ear headphone and while an earbud tip seals the ear canal of the user, and the second opening configured to be removably coupled to a portion of the in-ear headphone; and one or more channels extending from the outer periphery of the earplug tip to the inner tube.

Description

Earplug tip and in-ear earphone

Cross Reference to Related Applications

This patent application claims us provisional patent application 62/733,830 entitled "EAR TIP DESIGNED TO ENABLE IN-EAR DETECT WITH PRESSURE CHANGE IN adoustic VOLUME" filed on 20/9/2018; and U.S. patent application 16/272,982 entitled "EAR TIP DESIGNED TO ENABLE IN-EAR DETECT WITH PRESSURE CHANGE IN ACOUSTIC VOLUME" filed on 11/2/2019.

Technical Field

Embodiments described herein relate generally to electronic devices and accessories, such as in-ear headphones and earplug tips thereof designed to enable in-ear detection with pressure changes in an acoustic volume.

Background

Accessories such as in-ear headphones are often used with electronic devices such as media players, cellular telephones, or tablet computers. Such in-ear headphones are often provided with sensors and control circuitry. These features allow the in-ear earpiece to enable in-ear detection of the earpiece when positioned in or near the ear canal of a user. This allows the in-ear headphone or electronic device to initiate media playback, resume a volume level of media playback, or initiate noise cancellation in response to in-ear detection. Similarly, media playback may be cancelled, paused, stopped, volume minimized, or noise cancellation cancelled in response to the in-ear headphone being removed from or positioned outside the user's ear canal. Such in-the-ear detection capabilities may be mis-triggered by earwax, dead skin, or other debris accumulation blocking the sensor or earplug tip from sealing outside the user's ear canal (e.g., when positioned against a flat surface or a user's clothing pocket, positioned within the housing, or when blocked by the user's hand or fingers). This may result in unnecessary power consumption by the electronic device or in-ear headphones or inadvertent media playback.

Accordingly, there remains a need for accessories such as in-ear headphones having features and components designed or configured to enable in-ear detection while reducing, minimizing, or preventing false triggering of in-ear detection systems.

Disclosure of Invention

Some embodiments of the present invention relate to electronic accessories, such as in-ear headphones, having features and components designed or configured to enable in-ear detection while reducing, minimizing, or preventing false triggering of in-ear detection systems. Some embodiments relate to an earplug tip for an in-ear headphone. The earplug tip may include an outer body and an inner tube extending at least partially within the outer body. The tube may include first and second opposing ends and first and second openings at the first and second opposing ends, respectively. The first opening may be configured to emit audio signals provided by a speaker of the in-ear headphone into an ear canal of a user during operation of the in-ear headphone and while the earbud tip seals the ear canal of the user, and the second opening may be configured to be removably coupled to a portion of the in-ear headphone. The earplug tip may further include one or more channels extending from an outer perimeter of the earplug tip to the inner tube. The channel may prevent or reduce the likelihood of inadvertently sealing the earplug tip to a surface other than the user's ear canal, as described herein.

In some embodiments, the one or more channels of the earplug tip include one or more vent holes extending through an outer perimeter of the earplug tip and in fluid communication with the inner tube. In other embodiments, the one or more channels may comprise at least one or more grooves, pockets, depressions, recesses, or dimples at the outer surface of the outer body such that the outer surface comprises a plurality of valleys disposed radially about the first opening at the distal end thereof and between adjacent peaks.

In some embodiments, the one or more channels extend across the top surface of the earplug tip from the outer perimeter of the earplug tip to the first opening. The one or more channels may be formed on a rim of the earplug tip extending circumferentially around the first opening. The one or more channels are configured to prevent inadvertent sealing of the earplug tip against a flat surface outside the ear canal. The one or more channels are configured to prevent inadvertent sealing of the earplug tip against the user's clothing.

Some embodiments of the invention relate to an earplug tip for an in-ear headphone. The earplug tip includes an outer body and an inner tube extending at least partially within the outer body, the tube having opposite first and second ends and first and second openings at the opposite first and second ends, respectively. The first opening is configured to emit an audio signal provided by a speaker of the in-ear headphone into an ear canal of a user during operation of the in-ear headphone and while the earbud tip seals the ear canal of the user, and the second opening is configured to be removably coupled to a portion of the in-ear headphone. The earplug tip includes one or more channels disposed radially about the first opening and extending through an outer periphery of the earplug tip to the inner tube.

In some embodiments, in-ear headphones are provided. An in-ear headphone may include a first earpiece including a housing, a speaker positioned within the housing, a conduit at least partially enclosed by the housing configured to direct an audio signal provided by the speaker into an ear canal of a user, and an earpiece tip described herein coupleable to a portion of the conduit and configured to seal the ear canal of the user when positioned therein.

In some embodiments, the in-ear headphone further comprises one or more ear presence sensors configured to detect when the earbud tip is located near or in the user's ear canal. The one or more ear presence sensors may include at least one of: a force sensor, a mechanical sensor, a capacitive sensor, a resistance-based sensor, a light-based sensor, an accelerometer-based sensor, an acoustic-based sensor, or a pressure sensor.

In some embodiments, the in-ear headphone further comprises control circuitry configured to process signals from the one or more ear presence sensors to detect when the earbud tip is located near or in the user's ear canal. In some embodiments, the one or more ear presence sensors are configured to detect when the earbud tip is located in the user's ear canal by measuring a change in pressure of the acoustic volume from when the earbud tip is not sealed against the user's ear canal to when the earbud tip is sealed against the user's ear canal. In some embodiments, the one or more light-based sensors are configured to detect when the earbud tip is positioned near the user's ear canal before the one or more ear presence sensors detect when the earbud tip is positioned in the user's first ear canal. In some embodiments, the control circuit is configured to at least one of initiate media playback, resume a volume level of media playback, or initiate noise cancellation in response to the one or more ear presence sensors detecting that the earbud tip is located in the user's ear canal.

In some embodiments, the in-ear headphone further comprises a second earpiece including a housing, a speaker positioned within the housing, a conduit at least partially enclosed by the housing configured to direct audio signals provided by the speaker into a second ear canal of the user, and an earpiece tip coupleable to a portion of the conduit and configured to seal the second ear canal of the user when positioned therein. The earplug tip includes an inner tube extending at least partially within an outer body of the earplug tip, the tube having opposite first and second ends and first and second openings at the opposite first and second ends, respectively. The first opening is configured to emit an audio signal provided by the speaker into a first ear canal of a user, and the second opening is configured to be removably coupled to the portion of the conduit. The earplug tip includes one or more channels extending from an outer periphery of the earplug tip to the inner tube.

In some embodiments, an in-ear headphone is provided that includes a first earpiece and a second earpiece. The first earbud can include a first earbud housing, a first speaker positioned within the first earbud housing, a first conduit at least partially enclosed by the first earbud housing and configured to direct an audio signal provided by the first speaker into a first ear canal of a user, and a first earbud tip coupleable to a portion of the first conduit and configured to seal the first ear canal of the user when positioned therein. The second earbud can include a second earbud housing, a second speaker positioned within the second earbud housing, a second conduit at least partially enclosed by the second earbud housing and configured to direct audio signals provided by the second speaker into a second ear canal of the user, and a second earbud tip coupleable to a portion of the second conduit and configured to seal the second ear canal of the user when positioned therein. Each of the first and second earplug tips may include an inner tube extending at least partially within an outer body of the earplug tip, the tube having opposite first and second ends and first and second openings at the opposite first and second ends, respectively. The first opening can be configured to emit audio signals provided by the speaker into an ear canal of a user, and the second opening can be configured to be removably coupled to the portion of the first or second conduit, and the one or more channels can extend from an outer periphery of the earbud tip to the inner tube.

For a better understanding of the nature and advantages of the present invention, reference should be made to the following description and accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present invention. Moreover, as a general rule, and unless clearly contrary to the description, elements in different figures use the same reference numeral, the elements are generally the same or at least similar in function or purpose.

Drawings

FIG. 1 shows an electronic device and associated accessories in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of electronic components of the electronic device and associated accessories shown in FIG. 1, according to an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 3 illustrates a portion of the accessory of fig. 1 including an earplug tip in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 4A-4B illustrate close-up views of the earplug tip of fig. 3, according to an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 5 shows the earplug tip of fig. 3 positioned in the ear canal of a user according to an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 6 shows the earplug tip of fig. 3 with the tip placed on a flat surface according to an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 7 shows an earplug tip according to another embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

An electronic device accessory such as an in-ear headphone may have an ear presence (e.g., in-ear detection) capability or feature. Such features may provide the ability for the in-ear headphone to sense the presence of external objects. For example, an in-ear headphone described herein may be provided with an ear presence sensor configured to determine whether the in-ear headphone is located near or in the user's ear (e.g., ear canal).

The information gathered by the sensor structure can be used to control the operation of an electronic device, such as a media player that communicates with an accessory, either wired or wirelessly. For example, control circuitry in the accessory or in the electronic device may automatically activate or deactivate media playback or noise cancellation features based on whether the in-ear headset is positioned near or in the user's ear. Controlling (e.g., wired or wirelessly) media playback or noise cancellation features in a pair of headphones coupled to an electronic device based on whether the in-ear headphones are in the user's ear (e.g., in the ear canal and ready for media playback or noise cancellation) can reduce power consumption and extend battery life of the headphones and/or electronic device.

Fig. 1 is an illustration of a system of the type that may be provided with an accessory including an ear presence sensor for detecting whether an earbud tip of an in-ear headphone is located near or in the ear of a user. As shown in fig. 1, system 8 may include an electronic device 10 and an accessory 20.

The electronic device 10 may include a display 14 and a housing 12. Display 14 may be a touch screen incorporating layers of conductive capacitive touch sensor electrodes or other touch sensor components, or may be a non-touch sensitive display. Display 14 may include an array of display pixels formed from Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) components, an electrophoretic display pixel array, a plasma display pixel array, an organic light emitting diode display pixel array, an electrowetting display pixel array, or display pixels based on other display technologies. The housing 12, which may sometimes be referred to as a shell or a cage, may be made of plastic, glass, ceramic, fiber composite, metal (e.g., stainless steel, aluminum, etc.), other suitable materials, or a combination of any two or more of these materials. The housing 12 may be integrally formed or constructed from separate components. In some embodiments, the electronic device 10 may include input buttons 16 or a speaker port 18.

As discussed above, the accessory 20 may be an in-ear headphone that includes a pair of earplugs 60. As used herein, "ear bud" includes any small earpiece designed to be worn on a user and placed within the outer ear of the user facing the ear canal with the tip of the ear bud inserted into the ear canal. Each earplug includes a housing 62 and an earplug tip 66 configured to extend partially into a respective left or right ear canal of a user in use or in readiness for use. In other embodiments, accessory 20 may be other audio devices (e.g., an audio device having a single earbud and an earbud tip). The use of an in-ear headphone with a pair of earplugs 60 in the system 8 is described herein as an illustrative example.

As shown in FIG. 1, a wired or wireless communication path (identified by dashed line 26) couples electronic device 10 and accessory 20. The communication path 26 may be used to direct signals (e.g., audio signals) from the device 10 to speakers in respective housings 62 of the earpieces 60, as described in more detail below. The earbud 60 (which may sometimes be referred to as a speaker or an earphone housing) may include a sensor structure for determining when the earbud 60 (e.g., earbud tip 66) has been placed within or inserted into the user's ear canal, as described further below.

A schematic diagram showing illustrative components that may be used in the device 10 and accessory 20 of the system 8 is shown in fig. 2. The electronic device 10 may include a power source (e.g., a battery 47) for powering the device. As shown in FIG. 2, electronic device 10 may include control circuitry 32 and input-output device 34. The control circuitry 32 may include storage and processing circuitry configured to execute software that controls the operation of the electronic device 10. Control circuit 32 may be implemented using one or more integrated circuits such as microprocessors, application specific integrated circuits, memories, and other storage and processing circuits. The control circuit 32 may include noise cancellation circuitry and other audio processing circuitry 46, if desired.

Input-output circuitry 34 may include components for receiving inputs from external devices and for providing outputs. For example, input-output circuitry 34 may include user interface components for providing output to a user of device 10 and for collecting input from the user. As shown in fig. 2, input-output circuitry 34 may include communication circuitry 36. The communication circuitry 36 may include wireless circuitry, such as radio-frequency transceiver circuitry having a radio-frequency receiver and/or a radio-frequency transmitter. Radio frequency transceiver circuitry in wireless circuitry may be used to handle communication bands such as 2.4GHz and 5GHz

Frequency bands, cellular telephone frequency bands, and other wireless communication frequencies of interest. Communication circuitry 36 may also include wired communication circuitry, such as circuitry for communicating with external devices over serial and/or parallel digital data paths.

The input-output devices 38 may include buttons, such as slide switches, push buttons, menu buttons, dome switch-based buttons, keys on a keypad or keyboard, or other switch-based structures. Input-output devices 38 may also include status indicators, vibrators, display touch sensors, speakers, microphones, camera sensors, ambient light sensors, proximity sensors, and other input-output structures.

Electronic device 10 may be coupled to components in accessory 20 with a wired or wireless communication path 26 as described above. The accessory 20 may include a power source such as a battery 57. The accessory 20 may include a speaker, such as a pair of speaker drivers 40 (e.g., a left speaker and a right speaker of each earpiece 60). If desired, the accessory 20 may include more than one driver per earplug 60. For example, each earplug 60 of the accessory 20 may include, for example, a tweeter, a midrange speaker, and a woofer. The speaker driver 40 may be mounted in an earbud housing 62. The use of left and right earplugs to house respective left and right speaker drivers 40 is described herein as an example.

The accessory 20 may include control circuitry, such as control circuitry 45. The control circuit 45 may, for example, comprise storage and processing circuitry formed from one or more integrated or other circuits. Circuitry 45 in accessory 20 may include noise cancellation circuitry and other audio processing circuitry 48, if desired. In some embodiments, communication path 26 may be used to transmit audio from circuitry 32 to speaker driver 40 during playback operations.

Accessory 20 may include a user input device 42 such as a button, a touch-based input device (e.g., touchscreen, touchpad, touch button), one or more microphones 50 (e.g., a microphone for capturing voice input, other microphones such as a noise cancellation microphone), and other user input devices.

To determine whether the earplug 60, or in particular the earplug tip 66, is located in or near the user's ear (e.g., ear canal), the accessory 20 may be provided with one or more ear presence sensors 44. The ear presence sensor 44 may be configured to detect whether the ear plug 60, or in particular the ear plug tip 66, is present near or in the ear of the user. The ear presence sensor may be formed, for example, by a pressure sensor or transducer (e.g., one of microphones 50), by a force sensor, by a switch or other mechanical sensor, by a capacitive sensor, by a resistance-based sensor, by a light-based sensor, by an accelerometer-based sensor, and by an acoustic-based sensor, such as an ultrasonic-acoustic-based sensor.

Control circuitry 45 in accessory 20 and/or control circuitry 32 of electronic device 10 can use information from ear presence sensor 44 to determine which actions (e.g., initiate media playback, resume volume level for media playback, initiate noise cancellation, cancel, pause, stop, minimize volume, or cancel noise cancellation) should be automatically performed by device 10 and/or by accessory 20. The accessory 20 may be provided with a plurality of the same or different ear presence sensors 44.

Referring to fig. 3 and 4A-4B, an earplug tip 66 of the first earplug 60 is shown that can be provided with the accessory 20. When referring to the first earplug 60, the same features can be provided with the second earplug 60. The housing 62 of the first earpiece 60 may enclose the components of the accessory 20 described above (e.g., the speaker driver 40). The first earpiece 60 includes a conduit 68 (e.g., an acoustic or audio channel) configured to direct audio signals provided by the speaker driver 40 into the ear canal of the user. The conduit 68 may be partially or completely enclosed by and extend from the housing 62. The conduit 68 may be formed separately or integrally with the housing 62. The removable earbud tip 66 can be coupled to a portion of the conduit 68 and includes an opening 64 configured to emit audio signals provided by the speaker driver 40 into the ear canal of the user. The first earpiece may include one or more ear presence sensors 44 as described above. The ear presence sensor 44 may be disposed on a portion of the housing 62, the earbud tip 66, or both.

As shown in the front and rear perspective views of fig. 4A-4B, the earplug tip 66 includes an inner tube 74 extending at least partially within the outer body 70 of the earplug tip 66. Although illustrated as having a generally dome-shaped configuration, the earplug tip 66 may have any suitable configuration (e.g., spherical, circular). The inner tube 74 has opposite first and second ends and first and

second openings

64a and 64b at the opposite first and second ends, respectively. The first opening 64a is configured to emit audio signals provided by the speaker driver 40 into the ear canal of the user, and the second opening 64b is configured to be removably coupled to at least a portion of the conduit 68. In some embodiments, the earplug tip 66, when coupled to the conduit 68, may completely encapsulate the conduit 68.

The earplug tip 66 also includes one or more channels 78 (e.g., grooves, dimples, grooves, pockets, depressions) extending from the outer periphery 72 of the earplug tip 66 to the inner tube 74. The channel 78 may prevent or reduce the likelihood of inadvertently sealing the earplug tip 66 (e.g., outside the user's ear canal). Accordingly, in-ear detection based on pressure changes in the acoustic volume detected or measured by the one or more ear presence sensors 44 is less likely to be false-triggered by sealing of the earbud tip 66 against a surface outside the user's ear canal, as described in more detail below. As shown in fig. 4A, the one or more channels 78 may extend across a top or front face or surface (e.g., lip, edge, rim) of the earplug tip 66 from the outer perimeter 72 to the first opening 64A. As such, each channel 78 forms a valley disposed between adjacent peaks (i.e., the distal-most portions of the top surface 76 of the earplug tip 66) around the first opening 64 a. The channel 78 may be disposed radially about the first opening 64a and extend outwardly from the first opening 64 a. In other embodiments, the channel 78 may be a vent extending from the outer perimeter 72 to the inner tube 74 between the top and bottom surfaces of the earplug tip 66 (see fig. 7).

As shown in FIG. 5, when the earplug tip 66 is inserted into the ear canal 82 of a user 80, the outer periphery 72 seals against the inner walls of the ear canal. The earplug tip 66 may be made of a compliant material (e.g., rubber) such that the tip may be placed within the user's ear canal 82 and conform in shape to the user's ear canal 82. The first opening 64a is disposed entirely within the ear canal 82 when sealed against the inner wall of the ear canal. An ear presence sensor 44, such as a pressure transducer (e.g., microphone 50, piezoelectric transducer), may be used to detect changes in pressure (e.g., positive pressure increases) of the acoustic volume when unsealed from the earplug tip 66 (e.g., located outside of the ear canal 82) and sealed within the ear canal 82. For example, pressure changes in the acoustic volume in the audio signal transmitted by the speaker driver 40 when the earbud tip 66 is unsealed (e.g., located outside of the ear canal 82) and sealed within the ear canal 82 may be detected by the ear presence sensor. The control circuitry 45 in the accessory 20 and/or the control circuitry 32 of the electronic device 10 may then use information from the ear presence sensor (e.g., pressure changes or measurements of the acoustic volume) to determine which actions should be automatically performed by the device 10 and/or the accessory 20 (e.g., initiate media playback, resume a volume level for media playback, or initiate noise cancellation) if the pressure changes of the acoustic volume indicate that the earbud tip 66 is sealed within the ear canal 82, or if the earbud tip is not sealed within the ear canal 82 (e.g., cancel, pause, or stop media playback, minimize volume, or cancel noise cancellation). The first earplug 60 may be provided with a plurality of pressure transducers having various sensitivities for detecting different pressure variation ranges of the acoustic volume.

As shown in fig. 6, the one or more channels 78 are configured to prevent or reduce the earplug tip 66 (e.g., the first opening 64a) from inadvertently sealing outside of the ear canal 82. When the top or front surface is placed on or against a planar or flat surface 84 (e.g., a table top, a desk, a floor), the channel 78 provides a gap between the distal surface of the earplug tip 66 (i.e., the top surface 76 shown in fig. 4A) and the surface 84 such that the first opening 64A is not sealed against the surface 84 or is substantially obscured by the surface 84. Thus, when the top or front surface is placed on or against the flat surface 84, the ear presence sensor 44 will not be false triggered by substantial pressure changes in the acoustic volume. Similarly, the channel 78 may provide a gap between the top surfaces 76 or prevent the first opening 64a of the earplug tip 66 from being occluded without significant deformation by a user's hand or finger placed on the top surface 76. Additionally, the channel 78 may provide a gap or opening between the top surface 76 of the earplug tip when positioned within a bag or user's clothing (e.g., a pocket) to prevent or reduce false in-ear detection by the ear presence sensor 44 due to sealing or blocking the first opening 64 a.

As described above, the earbud of the accessory 20 can include other ear presence sensors 44 or other sensors such as a combination of light-based sensors (e.g., optical sensors) or accelerometer-based sensors. These other sensors may be used to determine whether to activate the pressure sensor. For example, the other sensors may be used to determine whether the ear bud 60 is near or adjacent to the user's ear prior to enabling in-ear detection sensing of the pressure sensor. If so, the pressure sensor may be activated to detect whether the earplug tip 66 seals against or within the user's ear canal. The inclusion of an additional sensor for sensing whether the ear bud 60 is near or adjacent to the user's ear canal before enabling or activating the pressure sensor may further reduce or prevent false triggering, as well as minimize or reduce power consumption of the ear presence sensor.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, but that various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the various embodiments of the invention. For example, while one particular configuration of an in-ear headphone is shown in fig. 1, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to such particular implementations. In other embodiments, an earplug tip according to the present disclosure may be used with an in-ear headphone having a configuration completely different from that of the earplug 60. For example, in some embodiments, an in-ear headphone according to the present disclosure may be completely wireless and include first and second earplugs that are not connected to one another with a cable, wire, or similar tethering device and that do not include a loop, hook, or other structure for securing the earplugs to a user's ears. As another example, an earplug according to the present disclosure may include a housing having an ear-entry portion integrally formed with a stem portion extending from the ear-entry portion away from an ear canal of a user. The speaker may be housed within an in-the-ear housing portion, which may also include a channel or nozzle (similar to conduit 68) that directs the audio signal from the speaker toward the ear canal of the user. As disclosed herein, the earbud tip can be coupled to a channel/nozzle to enable insertion of the earbud within the ear canal of a user. The microphone may be positioned at or near the end of the wand portion so that the microphone is closer to the user's mouth. Various other components of the in-ear headphone, such as a wireless antenna, wireless circuitry, a battery, battery charging circuitry, audio processing circuitry, a microphone, etc., may be disposed within the housing in the in-ear portion or stem portion. Moreover, while various advantages associated with certain embodiments of the invention have been described above in the context of those embodiments, other embodiments may also exhibit such advantages, and not all embodiments need necessarily exhibit such advantages to fall within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited except as by the appended claims.

Reference throughout this specification to features, advantages, or similar language does not imply that all of the features and advantages that may be realized with the present invention should be or are in any single embodiment of the invention. Rather, language referring to the features and advantages is understood to mean that a specific feature, advantage, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, discussion of the features and advantages, and similar language, throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, refer to the same embodiment. Moreover, it is well known that the use of personal identification information should follow privacy policies and practices that are recognized as meeting or exceeding industry or government requirements for maintaining user privacy. In particular, personally identifiable information data should be managed and processed to minimize the risk of inadvertent or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of authorized use should be specified to the user.

Furthermore, the described features, advantages, and characteristics of the invention may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. One skilled in the relevant art will recognize that the invention may be practiced without one or more of the specific features or advantages of an embodiment. In other instances, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the invention.

Where the context permits, words in the above detailed description using the singular or plural number may also include the plural or singular number respectively. The word "or" used to reference a list of two or more items encompasses all of the following interpretations of the word: any of the items in the list, all of the items in the list, and any combination of the items in the list.

In addition, spatially relative terms, such as "bottom" or "top," and the like, may be used to describe one element and/or feature's relationship to another element(s) and/or feature(s), as illustrated, for example, in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use and/or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as "bottom" surfaces may then be oriented "above" other elements or features. The device may be otherwise oriented (e.g., rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.

Claims

1. An earbud tip for an in-ear headphone, the earbud tip comprising:

an outer body;

an inner tube extending at least partially within the outer body, the inner tube having opposing first and second ends and first and second openings at the opposing first and second ends, respectively, the first opening being located at an outer surface of the outer body and configured to emit audio signals provided by a speaker of a user of the in-ear headphone into the user's ear canal during operation of the in-ear headphone and while the earbud tip seals the user's ear canal, and the second opening being configured to be removably coupled to a portion of the in-ear headphone; and

wherein the outer surface of the outer body comprises a plurality of peaks and valleys disposed radially about the first opening at the distal end of the outer body,

wherein the plurality of peaks and valleys are radially offset from one another on the top surface of the earplug tip such that the plurality of peaks and valleys prevent inadvertent sealing of the top surface of the earplug tip against outside the ear canal.

2. The earplug tip of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of valleys is a portion of a channel extending from the first opening across a portion of the distal end of the outer body.

3. The earplug tip of claim 1, wherein the plurality of peaks and valleys comprise at least one groove or pocket formed in the outer body.

4. The earplug tip of claim 1, wherein the plurality of valleys in the outer surface of the outer body extend across an outer surface of the earplug tip from an outer perimeter of the earplug tip to the first opening.

5. The earbud tip of claim 1, wherein the plurality of peaks and valleys disposed radially around the first opening are configured to prevent inadvertent sealing of the earbud tip against a flat surface outside of the ear canal or against clothing of a user.

6. The earplug tip of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the plurality of peaks and valleys are formed on a rim of the earplug tip extending circumferentially around the first opening.

7. An in-ear headphone comprising:

an earbud housing, a speaker positioned within the earbud housing, a conduit configured to direct audio signals provided by the speaker into a user's ear canal at least partially enclosed by the earbud housing, and an earbud tip coupleable to a portion of the conduit and configured to seal the ear canal of the user when positioned therein, the earbud tip comprising:

an inner tube extending at least partially within the outer body of the earbud tip, the inner tube having opposing first and second ends and first and second openings at the opposing first and second ends, respectively, the first opening configured to emit audio signals provided by the speaker into the ear canal of the user, and the second opening configured to be removably coupled to the portion of the conduit; and

one or more channels extending from an outer perimeter of the earplug tip to the inner tube, wherein the outer perimeter of the earplug tip is sealable against the user's ear canal when the earplug tip is inserted into the user's ear canal and the one or more channels are resistant to inadvertent sealing of the earplug tip against outside the ear canal when the earplug tip is not inserted into the user's ear canal.

8. The in-ear headphone of claim 7, wherein the one or more channels comprise one or more vent holes extending through the outer perimeter of the earbud tip and in fluid communication with the inner tube.

9. The in-ear headphone of claim 7, wherein the one or more channels comprise at least one groove or depression.

10. The in-ear headphone of claim 7, wherein the one or more channels extend across a top surface of the earbud tip from the outer perimeter of the earbud tip to the first opening.

11. The in-ear headphone of claim 7, wherein the one or more channels are formed on a rim of the earbud tip that extends circumferentially around the first opening.

12. The in-ear headphone of claim 7, wherein the one or more channels are configured to prevent inadvertent sealing of the earbud tip against a flat surface outside of the ear canal.

13. The in-ear headphone of claim 7, wherein the one or more channels are configured to prevent inadvertent sealing of the earbud tip against the user's clothing.

14. The in-ear headphone of any one of claims 7 to 13, further comprising one or more ear presence sensors configured to detect when the earbud tip is located near or in an ear canal of the user.

15. The in-ear headphone of claim 14, wherein the one or more ear presence sensors comprise at least one of: a force sensor, a mechanical sensor, a capacitive sensor, a resistance-based sensor, a light-based sensor, an accelerometer-based sensor, or an acoustic-based sensor.

16. The in-ear headphone of claim 14, further comprising control circuitry configured to process signals from the one or more ear presence sensors to detect when the earbud tip is located near or in an ear canal of the user.

17. The in-ear headphone of claim 14, wherein the one or more ear presence sensors are configured to detect when the earbud tip is located in the user's ear canal by measuring a change in pressure of an acoustic volume from when the earbud tip is not sealed against the user's ear canal to when the earbud tip is sealed against the user's ear canal.

18. The in-ear headphone of claim 17, further comprising one or more light-based sensors configured to detect when the earbud tip is positioned near the user's ear canal before the one or more ear presence sensors detect when the earbud tip is positioned in the user's ear canal.

19. The in-ear headphone of claim 17, further comprising control circuitry configured to at least one of initiate media playback, resume media playback, or initiate noise cancellation in response to the one or more ear presence sensors detecting that the earbud tip is located in the user's ear canal.

20. An earbud tip for an in-ear headphone, the earbud tip comprising:

an outer body;

an inner tube extending at least partially within the outer body, the inner tube having opposing first and second ends and first and second openings at the opposing first and second ends, respectively, the first opening configured to emit audio signals provided by a speaker of a user into the user's ear canal during operation of the in-ear headphone and while the earbud tip seals against the user's ear canal, and the second opening configured to be removably coupled to a portion of the in-ear headphone; and

one or more channels disposed radially about the first opening and extending through an outer perimeter of the earplug tip to the inner tube, wherein the outer perimeter of the earplug tip is sealable against the user's ear canal when the earplug tip is inserted into the user's ear canal and the one or more channels are capable of preventing inadvertent sealing of the earplug tip against the outside of the ear canal when the earplug tip is not inserted into the user's ear canal.