FR2889798A1 - ARMCHAIR EQUIPPED WITH AN ELECTROACOUSTIC DEVICE - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a chair equipped with an electroacoustic device intended to restore to a listener sitting in this chair a soundtrack of a cinematographic or musical work.This chair (1) comprises a backrest (3) and a seat, an armrest left (4) in which is integrated at least one left speaker (26 ', 27'), and a right armrest (5) in which is integrated at least one right speaker (26, 27). At least one left speaker (26 ', 27') and one right speaker (26, 27) are oriented along oblique axes (AX ', AX) which interpose and which are inscribed in a common plane situated in front of the head of a listener sitting in this chair.The invention applies to the restitution of his high fidelity.

Description

2889798 1

  The invention relates to a chair equipped with an electroacoustic device allowing a listener sitting in this chair to listen to a soundtrack of a cinematographic or musical work in optimal conditions.

  The invention proposes a chair design equipped with an electroacoustic device, in which the quality of sound reproduction is improved and optimized compared to existing devices.

  For this purpose, the subject of the invention is an armchair comprising a backrest and a seat, a left armrest in which at least one left speaker is integrated, and a right armrest in which at least one right speaker is integrated, in which at least one left loudspeaker and one right loudspeaker are oriented obliquely intersecting axes and are inscribed in a common plane located in front of the head of a listener sitting in this chair.

  An orientation of the loudspeakers in directions away from the listener's head renders a sensation of distinct sound sources distributed in the space as well as a very great precision and stability concerning the location of the different sounds. This makes it possible to reproduce a very wide spatial distribution and to increase the realism of the sounds of an acoustic scene.

  According to a characteristic of the invention, the directions of oblique orientations of said loudspeakers are interposed in a region located at the height of the head of a listener sitting in this chair.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, said loudspeakers are capable of reproducing high and / or medium sounds.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the orientation directions of said speakers are inscribed in an inclined transverse plane which is spaced from a front face of the backrest by a distance greater than thirty centimeters in a longitudinal direction of the chair.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the orientation directions of said speakers are inscribed in a transverse common plane which is vertical.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the chair comprises a left front speaker and a left rear speaker integrated in the left armrest, a right front speaker and a right rear speaker integrated in the right armrest, and said speakers oriented according to axes inscribed in a plane in front of the user's head are integrated in the front left and front right speakers.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the left and right rear speakers include a rear left speaker and a rear right speaker oriented oblique axes that are interposed and are inscribed in another common plane which is behind the listener's head.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the chair comprises a right lateral serious enclosure oriented towards the outside of the chair and integrated into the right armrest, and a serious left lateral speaker facing the outside of the chair and integrated into the chair. left armrest.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the chair comprises an enclosure capable of reproducing bass and / or sub-bass sounds located under the seat of the chair.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the chair comprises an integrated multi-channel amplifier which is connected to the various speakers and / or speakers that equip this chair.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the chair comprises a reception and processing unit 35 coupled to the multichannel amplifier.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the chair comprises a battery for supplying the reception and processing unit and / or the multi-channel amplifier.

  The invention also relates to a processing and transmission unit intended to be connected to at least one source generating signals representative of several sound tracks, and wherein this processing and transmission unit is connected to at least one chair such as as defined above.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the processing and transmission unit is connected to the unit for receiving and treating the chair by a wireless link.

  According to another characteristic of the invention, the processing and transmission unit comprises means capable of adding a signal representative of a sub-bass sound track to another signal representative of another sound track to form a signal to emit, and according to which the reception and processing unit comprises means capable of applying to the signal received a high-pass and low-pass type filtering treatment for reconstituting a signal representative of the sub-bass track and a signal representative of the other track.

  The invention will now be described in more detail and with reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate an embodiment thereof by way of non-limiting example.

  Figure 1 is an overview of the chair according to the invention without dressing; Figure 2 is a first view of an armrest of the chair according to the invention without dressing; Figure 3 is a second view of an armrest of the chair according to the invention without dressing; Figure 4 is a rear view of the chair according to the invention Figure 5 is a side view of the chair according to the invention Figure 6 is a top view of the chair according to the invention Figure 7 is a view of a chair. subwoofer equipping the chair according to the invention shown open 2889798 4 Figure 8 is a view of the subwoofer of Figure 7 closed; Figure 9 is a schematic representation of the components of a first system according to the invention; Figure 10 is a schematic representation of the components of a second system according to the invention.

  Figure 1, a chair 1 according to the invention shown in perspective and without cover, comprises a basic structure including a frame 2 adapted to receive a seat not shown, a backrest 3, a left armrest 4, and a right armrest 5.

  The right armrest 5, which is shown alone in FIGS. 2 and 3, has a parallelepipedal general shape delimited by an outer lateral wall 7, an internal lateral wall 8, a front wall 9 and a rear wall 10, as well as a lower wall. 11. The walls 8-11 extend at right angles to each other, and are for example made of suitable wood.

  The right armrest 5 comprises a right front speaker 13 and a right rear speaker 14 integrated in its upper part. These enclosures are separated longitudinally from one another by a transverse partition 15, parallel to the front and rear walls 9 and 10 and located at midence of these walls. The transverse partition 15 is inscribed in a transverse plane of symmetry of the armrest.

  As shown in Figure 2, the inner side wall 8 has a height less than the overall height of the armrest, that is to say less than the height of the walls 7, 9 and 10. But this inner side wall 8 at its upper end extended by a flat wall inclined towards the outer lateral wall 7.

  The enclosures are delimited in the lower part by this plane wall which is inclined at about thirty-five degrees with respect to the internal lateral wall 8, being oriented towards the external lateral wall 7.

  In the example of the figures, the inclined wall is formed in the form of a front inclined plate 18 and a rear inclined plate 19 located in the extension of one another, but it can also be made in the form of a single common plate.

  The inclined wall and the outer side wall 7 are spaced transversely from each other to define an upper longitudinal opening 21 located between their respective upper edges 22 and 23 which are parallel and horizontal.

  The front inclined plate 18 and the rear inclined plate 19 are secured to the outer side wall 7 by triangular reinforcing plates 25 perpendicular to the outer side wall and to these inclined plates 18 and 19.

  The right front speaker 13 comprises a midrange speaker 26 and an acute speaker 27, the right rear speaker 14 also includes a midrange speaker 28 and an acute speaker 29. As shown in Figure 2, the front speakers 26 and 27 are located towards the front of the right front enclosure 13, that is to say close to the front wall 9.

  Similarly, the speakers 28 and 29 of the right rear enclosure 14 are located towards the rear of the right rear enclosure 14, that is, near the rear wall 10 of the armrest. It should also be noted that the high-frequency speakers 27 and 29 are the closest, respectively the front and rear walls 9 and 10.

  These speakers 26, 27, 28, 29 are mounted in corresponding openings formed in the inclined plates 18 and 19. They emit sounds in a central region above the seat not shown.

  These speakers also emit so-called rear sounds, oriented downwards, by the openings in which they are mounted. The sounds thus generated are reflected by the box that constitutes the armrest 5, and are turned vertically upwards by the vent that constitutes the upper longitudinal opening 21 of the armrest 5.

  The armrest 5 is also equipped with a bass side speaker 30 including a bass speaker 31 mounted in an opening of the outer side wall 78 to emit sounds laterally outwardly of the chair. This armrest 5 further includes electrical connectors 34 for connecting the different speakers.

  The left armrest 4 of the chair according to the invention is the symmetrical right armrest 5 which is shown in Figures 2 and 3. It also comprises a front left speaker 13 'and a rear left speaker 14' including high speakers, and a 30 'bass side speaker including a bass speaker 31', as in the case of the right armrest 5.

  In the figures, the numerical references designating elements of the left armrest 4 are the same as those used for the right armrest, supplemented by the premium sign.

  Figures 4 to 6 show symbolically the arrangement of the different speakers and speakers fitted to the chair according to the invention. As visible in these figures, the chair still includes a sub-bass speaker identified by 32 which is located under the seat being oriented towards the ground.

  The inclined plates 18, 19, 18 'and 19' extend longitudinally with respect to the chair, so that the speakers mounted on these plates are oriented along axes inscribed in vertical planes which extend transversely with respect to the chair .

  The orientation axis of a loudspeaker is the preferred axis in which it transmits the acoustic signals it generates. In the case of a conventional speaker with a circular membrane, this axis of orientation coincides with the axis of revolution of the speaker considered.

  More particularly, a loudspeaker produces acoustic signals distributed at a solid angle of emission more or less wide, this solid angle having as a central axis the orientation axis of the speaker. This solid angle has a value conditioned in particular by the shape and the dimensions of the speaker considered, and by the frequency of the transmitted signals.

  The acute front left and front right speakers 27 and 27 'are oriented along axes inscribed in the same vertical transverse plane. These axes are intercepted at a point on a plane of longitudinal symmetry of the chair, in front of the head of a listener sitting in the chair, and substantially at height of this head.

  Similarly, the medium front left and front right speakers 26 and 26 'are also oriented along axes marked by AX and AX', which are inscribed in the same vertical transverse plane. These axes AX and AX 'are also intercepted at a point, marked by P, which is located on a plane of longitudinal symmetry, in front of the head of a listener sitting in the chair, and substantially at height of this head.

  The front speakers 13 and 13 'and their loudspeakers are thus oriented in directions that are distinct from the user's head, so as to constitute for the user a sensation of distinct sound sources distributed in the space as well as a very high accuracy and stability regarding the location of different sounds. This helps to improve the extent of the spatial distribution and the realism of the restored sound stage.

  On the contrary, the orientation of the speakers located at a short distance from the listener towards his head gives a sensation of point sources that is inadequate for restoring sounds having an extended spatial distribution.

  In the example illustrated in the figures, the front speakers are oriented in directions written in transverse planes which are vertical. But these transverse planes can also be substantially inclined, while being located in front of the head of the user, that is to say, at least thirty centimeters from a front not shown the back of the chair, this face before corresponding for example to the outer face of a cushion of the backrest 3.

  The speakers 28, 29 and 28 ', 29' of the left and right rear speakers 14 and 14 'are also oriented along axes inscribed in vertical planes. The medium speakers 28 and 28 'are 2889798 8 oriented in directions written in the same transverse vertical plane. The tweeters 29 and 29 'are oriented along axes inscribed in another transverse vertical plane very close to the plane of orientation of the medium speakers.

  Advantageously, the axes of orientation of the medium and high speakers rear acute are inscribed in planes located at least substantially behind the head of a listener sitting in the chair so as to restore sounds from the rear. In the example of the figures, these planes are also vertical transverse planes.

  The bass side speakers 30 and 30 'generate acoustic signals which are oriented laterally towards the outside of the chair. These acoustic signals are distributed respectively in the left space and in the right space before returning respectively to the left and right ears of the listener, which further contributes to improving the rendering of the acoustic scene restored.

  As shown in Figure 1, the backrest 3 comprises a back 37 in the form of a vertical plate mounted between two triangular sides 38 and 39, extending longitudinally. The two armrests are positioned so as to be placed side by side on the backrest, the left and right rear speakers 14 and 14 'thus being located substantially opposite the triangular sides 38 and 39, respectively.

  These armrests which each have a parallelepipedal general shape are thus arranged vertically, that is to say in such a way that their inner and outer lateral walls as well as their front and rear walls extend in vertical planes.

  As indicated above, the front and rear right and left speakers are open upwards through the vents 21 and 21 'which each run along an outer sidewall of an armrest, to promote an extended distribution of sounds generated by these speakers. The armrests are dressed at these openings with a thickness of foam or wadding chosen to let the acoustic waves.

  The chair further comprises a subwoofer 32 which is mounted in a chamber or subwoofer 33 located under the seat, and emits sounds that are distributed in space before returning to the ear of the speaker. 'auditor.

  The subwoofer 33 is shown alone in FIGS. 7 and 8. It comprises a parallelepipedal outer envelope comprising four lateral walls 41-44 delimiting a rectangular frame, and closed by a first and a second parallel rectangular plate 45 and 46. one to another.

  The enclosure delimited by this envelope is a so-called symmetrical load enclosure comprising a first and a second chamber 47 and 48 having close volumes.

  The first and second chambers 47 and 48 are separated by internal walls. These walls comprise two walls 49 and 50 parallel to the rectangular plates 45 and 46 and located at different heights. These walls are separated from each other by a wall 51 which is perpendicular to them and to which they are secured.

  The loudspeaker 32 is fixed to the first wall 49 which comprises for this purpose an opening, this speaker thus having its body which houses in the first chamber 47. The second chamber, 48, in which the speaker 32 emits its acoustic waves direct communicates with the outside by a vent 52 extending horizontally and passing through the side wall 41.

  This design provides a symmetrical load box having a general height low enough to be placed under the seat of the chair.

  This box 33 can indifferently be placed so that the speaker 32 is oriented towards the ground or upwards.

  The vent 52 is itself oriented horizontally towards the front of the chair so as to limit the influence 40 of the soil in the propagation of the sound generated by the enclosure.

  The various speakers and speakers are fixedly positioned on the chair, their orientations thus being permanently adjusted during the manufacture of the chair, so that the listener has no adjustment to perform to use the chair in optimal conditions.

  The embodiment of the figures is adapted to the reproduction of a six-track soundtrack for a listener sitting in this chair, such as for example a film soundtrack still known as 115.111.

  Such a sound track includes a central track C intended to be reproduced by a sound source located in front of the listener, a front left track AvG and a front right track AvD intended to be reproduced by sound sources located in front of the user. left and right respectively. It also includes a left rear track ArG and rear right ArD intended to be reproduced by sound sources located at the rear left and right of the listener. Finally the sixth track is a sub-bass track, Sub, that is to say including very serious and therefore non-directive sounds intended to be reproduced by a sub-bass speaker.

  The tracks AvD, AvG, ArD, ArG and Sub are respectively reproduced by the loudspeakers 13, 13 ', 14, 14', and 33. The bass components of the tracks AvD and ArD are jointly reproduced by the right lateral right loudspeaker 31 of the speaker 30. The bass components of the tracks AvG and ArG are jointly rendered by the left-side speaker 31 'of the left-side speaker 30'.

  The signal intended for the right lateral enclosure 30 is for example derived from a low pass or bandpass filter, not shown, applied to the sum of the signals AvD, ArD. Similarly, the signal intended for the left side enclosure 30 'is obtained by applying a low-pass filter to the sum of the signals AvG and ArG.

  The front left and front right tracks contain the largest amount of significant signals from the acoustic scene to be rendered. In the context of the invention, it has been found that the implementation of front left and right speakers 13 and 13 'located relatively short distance from the listener, but oriented in directions in front of the head of the listener helps to significantly improve the rendering of the spatial distribution of the sounds of the acoustic scene.

  The central track C is in turn rendered as a ghost channel, by the right and left front speakers 13 and 13 ', so as to restore a sound source located virtually at the intersection of the orientation axes of the speakers and / or front left and right speakers. This zone is located in front of the listener's head sitting in the chair, to improve the rendering of the central track.

  In the example of the figures, the chair is equipped with seven speakers to render a six-track soundtrack, but it can also be equipped more simply. It may for example comprise only a right and left front speaker 13 and 13 'respectively integrated to the right and left armrest for the reproduction of a stereophonic soundtrack.

  The chair according to the invention can be equipped with unrepresented audio connectors by which it is connected by audio cables to a multi-channel amplifier, to restore the various tracks via its speakers.

  Advantageously, the chair according to the invention is equipped with a multi-channel amplifier 55, represented symbolically in FIGS. 9 and 10, able to receive signals representative of different tracks for amplifying them and transmitting them to the speakers.

  This amplifier 55 can be connected to a sound source by audio cables, or by radio in digital or analog form, and this through one or more wireless receivers 56 also integrated into the chair.

  The chair is advantageously equipped with a not shown low voltage battery 40 dedicated to the power supply of the amplifier 55 and the wireless receivers 56, so that the chair is then completely wireless, which facilitates its installation.

  The amplifier 55 and the receivers 56, can also be powered by the sector via a power cable.

  The invention also relates to a system including a processing unit 57 and transmission 58 and at least one chair equipped with a wireless receiver 56 coupled to a multi-channel amplifier 55.

  This system makes it possible, for example, to operate different chairs at different volumes while using a single processing and transmission unit, for example for viewing a movie and listening to its soundtrack by several people each sitting in a chair according to the invention.

  As represented symbolically in FIG. 9, the processing unit 57 comprises means for adding the central track C to the left front tracks AvG and the right line AvD which are transmitted by two separate radio transmission channels by the transmission unit 58. still performs various operations of formatting and / or pre-amplification of the signals representative of the different tracks of the source.

  The signals from the processing unit 57 are transmitted by separate radio channels to the chair. This processing unit 57 and transmission unit 58 can be permanently connected to different sources such as a DVD player, a CD player, SACD or other, to allow the user to select one or the other. other of these sources by means of a remote control.

  The signals received by the receiving unit 56 of the chair are transmitted to the multi-channel amplifier 55 to be applied to the various speakers of the chair.

  In the example of FIG. 9, the number of signals coming from the processing unit and transmitted by radio channels is five. But this number of transmission channels can be reduced to four thanks to the invention, while maintaining an optimal quality of reproduction, which is illustrated schematically in Figure 10.

  The processing unit 57 then comprises means for adding the sub-bass track Sub to the left rear tracks ArG and right ArD, which makes it possible to reduce the number of radio transmission channels to four. The reception unit 56 of the chair then includes high-pass and low-pass filters making it possible to separate the sub-bass component Sub from the rear left ArG and rear right components ArD from the two transmitted signals.

  The signal containing the right rear track ArD and the sub-bass track Sub is injected into a low pass filter to extract the signal representative of the track Sub, and it is injected into a high pass filter to extract the signal representative of the track. rear right ArD.

  The same treatment is applied to the signal containing the left rear track ArD and the sub-bass track Sub. The two components resulting from the two low pass filters are added in the reception unit 56 of the chair before being amplified to be applied to the subwoofer 33.

  The transmission of the signals representative of the different sound tracks of the source can also be performed with a single radio transmission channel having a suitable bit rate, the data representative of the different audio tracks then being serialized to be transmitted by this single channel.

  In this case, the processing unit 57 comprises means able to serialize the various signals coming from the sound source to form the single signal transmitted by the transmission unit 58. The reception unit 56 comprises, for its part, means for applying to the signal received a processing adapted to reform signals corresponding to several signals to be applied to the amplifier 55 which is advantageously of the digital type.

Claims (15)

  1. Armchair (1) comprising a backrest (3) and a seat, a left armrest (4) in which is integrated at least one left speaker (26 ', 27'), and a right armrest (5) in which is integrated at least one right speaker (26, 27), wherein at least one left speaker (26 ', 27') and a right speaker (26, 27) are oriented along oblique axes (AX ', AX) who interject themselves and who are inscribed in a common plane situated in front of the head of an auditor sitting in this armchair.   2. A chair according to claim 1, wherein the directions of oblique directions (AX ', AX) of said speakers (26, 27, 26', 27 ') are interposed in a region (P) located at the height of the head of a listener sitting in this chair.   3. A chair according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said loudspeakers (26, 27, 26 ', 27') are capable of reproducing high and / or medium sounds.   4. Chair according to one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the orientation directions (AX ', AX) of said speakers (26, 27, 26', 27 ') are inscribed in an inclined transverse plane which is spaced a front face of the backrest by a distance greater than thirty centimeters in a longitudinal direction of the chair.   5. Chair according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the orientation directions (AX ', AX) of said speakers (26, 27, 26', 27 ') are inscribed in a transverse plane common which is vertical .   6. Chair according to one of claims 1 to 5, comprising a left front speaker (13 ') and a left rear speaker (14') integrated in the left armrest (4), a right front speaker (13) and a rear right speaker (14) integrated in the right armrest (5), and wherein said speakers (26, 27, 2889798, 26 ', 27') oriented along axes (AX ', AX) inscribed in a plane in front of the user's head are integrated into the front left (13 ') and front right (13) speakers.   The chair according to claim 6, wherein the left (14 ') and right (14) rear enclosures include a left rear speaker (28', 29 ') and a right rear speaker (28, 29) oriented according to oblique axes that intersect and are inscribed in another common plane that is behind the head of the listener.   8. Chair according to one of claims 1 to 7, comprising a right lateral serious enclosure (30) facing the outside of the chair and integrated into the right armrest (5), and a left side grave chamber (30 ') oriented towards the outside of the chair and integrated into the left armrest (4).   9. Chair according to one of claims 1 to 8, comprising an enclosure (33) adapted to restore bass and / or sub-bass sounds located under the seat of the chair.   10. Chair according to one of claims 1 to 9, comprising an integrated multi-channel amplifier (55) which is connected to the various speakers and / or speakers that equip this chair.   The chair of claim 10 including a receiving and processing unit (56) coupled to the multi-channel amplifier (55).   The chair according to claim 11, comprising a battery for powering the receiving and processing unit (56) and / or the multi-channel amplifier (55).   13. System comprising a processing unit (57) and transmission unit (58) intended to be connected to at least one source generating signals representative of several sound tracks, and in which this processing unit (57) and transmission unit (58) is connected to at least one chair according to claim 11.   14. The system of claim 13, wherein the processing unit (57) and emission (58) is connected to the reception unit and treatment (56) of the chair by a wireless link.   15. The system of claim 14, wherein the processing unit (57) and transmission (58) comprises means capable of adding a signal representative of a sub-bass sound track (Sub) to another representative signal. another sound track (ArG, ArD) for forming a signal to be transmitted, and wherein the reception and processing unit (56) comprises means adapted to apply to the received signal a high-pass type filtering processing and low-pass to reconstruct a signal representative of the sub-bass track (Sub) and a signal representative of the other track (ArG, ArD).