GB2387288A

GB2387288A - Non-electrically conductive connection between user and cellular phone

Info

Publication number: GB2387288A
Application number: GB0308006A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Yaron Mayer; Haim Gadassi; Al J C Baur
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2002-04-07
Filing date: 2003-04-07
Publication date: 2003-10-08
Also published as: GB0308006D0

Abstract

A non-electrically conductive connection 4, 5 is provided to allow the transfer of sound data between the user and the cellular phone 1 whilst keeping the phone 1 away from the user's head. At least two conductors 4, 5 may be used to transfer sound data to an earphone 7 and from a microphone 6, where the conductors 4, 5 comprise either non-electrically conductive solid polymers or fluids, such as water or oil. Digital Signal Processing 2 may be provided for correcting distortions in signals to and from the user. Alternatively, sound data may be transferred to and from the user by means of a directional speaker and microphone or using short distance low energy pulses. A headset may be automatically recharged through coupling to the phone. Radiation to the user maybe reduced by using an antenna having directional transmission or connected via a coaxial cable, or by providing ferrite elements on the wire to the headset.

Description

-f Background of the invention

Field of the invention. 238 7288

The present invention relates to safety in using cellular phones, and more specifically to a system and method for exposing the user's brain to much less microwave radiation than ordinary cellular phones by using an earphone and microphone that do not transmit the microwave radiation to the user's brain and let the user keep the cellular phone away from his head.

Background

Mobile or cellular telephones are becoming more common and popular amongst all sectors of the population for business and private conversations, including many children. There are hundreds of millions of users around the world already, and more than 300,000 new users are joining each day. For example in Britain, cellular phones have become the most popular gift for children and there are now more than 500,000 children in Britain alone who are using cellular phones. There is much concern that the microwave emissions from the cellular antenna that is held close to user's head may have deleterious effects on the user, such as tumors, Altzheimer, and other medical and psychological problems. For example, just on October 1999, Dr. George Carlo, head of the Cellular Research Institute in Washington came up with frightening results: He found that the usage of cellular phones increases the chance for brain tumors and also may cause genetic damage. Altogether, since 1997, more and more research has increased the suspicions that the electromagnetic emissions of cellular phones to the brain are dangerous.

Already in December 1996 an article published in LA Times showed suspicions that it might cause also Altzheimer disease. In Scandinavia in recent years there have been even more warnings about these possible dangers. Also, many people are complaining about headaches after using cellular phones. Recent studies, such as described in an article by Allan Frey in Environmental Health Perspectives of March 1988, and in Dr. George Carlo's book, Cell Phones: Invisible hazards in the wireless age, published in 2001, have shown that even short time exposure to microwave radiation at the level and frequencies typical of cellular phone quickly causes a breakdown of the Blood-Brain-Barrier, which protects the brain from carcinogens and other toxins in the blood stream, and this is suspect of being the main mechanism that might cause both cancer and the headaches. In addition to this, on Dec.

27, 2001 the UK Sunday Mirror reported that new research by Dr. Michael Klieeisen at the Spanish Neuro Diagnostic Research Institute in Marbella shows that using a cellular phone for even just 2 minutes can disturb the natural electrical activity of a child's brain and create an abnormal pattern for

even an hour afterwards. These finding are extremely shocking considering the fact that about the same time a new British survey showed that about 87% of 11-16 year old children there have cellular phones, and 40% of them spend 15 minutes or more using them each day. In addition to this, according to an article in the Sunday Times of Jan 14, 2001, a recent research found a threefold increase in eye cancers among users of cellular phones, probably because the watery contents of the eyes absorb the radiation. Typically the microwave radiation is from the entire phone and not just the antenna, since the phone acts as a counter-base for the antenna.

Many have searched for methods for protecting the cellular phone users from this radiation. One of the most common ways to try to avoid these problems until recently has been the usage of headsets - personal earphones with microphone. On 4/4/2000 it was published worldwide that a research conducted by the "Which?" consumer Magazine in Britain found that unfortunately instead of protecting the users of cellular phones from the electromagnetic radiation (and especially the microwave radiation), in fact the earphone and its cable can act as an Antenna and expose the user to up to even 3 times more dangerous radiation than when using the cellular phone directly without the external earphone. Furthermore, this emission goes directly to the brain. This study was confirmed again by much more thorough tests and reported in more detail in Which? Magazine on Nov. 2000. These studies showed that the actual amount of radiation from the headset depends on the distance and shape of the wire, so the radiation can be also less than when using the phone directly, but it is very hard for the user to control these variables. This finding is extremely shocking and intolerable since so many people have been buying these earphones because of publications that they prevent or reduce the exposure to the radiation of the cellular phones. In addition to this, the report of the independent expert committee on cellular phones hired by the British government, published already on May 11, 2000, estimated that children are even more vulnerable to the effects of the cellular phone radiation than adults.

In addition to this, according to an article in the Israeli newspaper Maariv from August 4, 2000, a medical doctor from Baltimore just sued a number of cellular companies for 800 million dollars, claiming that it caused him brain tumor. He also appeared on TV and called to the public to stop using cellular phones and not to give them to children. Also, according to the Baltimore Sun of Jan. 17, 2001, Peter Angelos recently joined the $800 million lawsuit by the Baltimore neurologist, and plans to file additional class-suits against members of the US mobile phone industry. These latest developments will probably also cause the cellular companies to be much more willing to adopt safer solutions.

One possible solution is using a special headset (with at least 1 earphone and microphone) where the cable is based on non-metallic conductors, such as sound conductors (e.g. a hollow air tube) or optic fiber(s), as described in a separate patent application by the one of the present inventors (Israeli application no. 135556 with priority starting on Apr. 9, 2000, later submitted as PCT application W 00178442).

Another solution, described in PCT application WO0213492 of Aug. 7, 2001, by Mager Elidan is a combination of using a normal electric wire until the microphone, which is typically attached to the user's collar, and from then on just a single hollow air tube leading from an acoustically isolated speaker to the ear. This is a very cheap and efficient solution, however it has a number of disadvantages: 1. In this solution the wire itself still carries the microwave radiation in a standing wave all along the body until the user's neck. Research has shown that other internal organs in the body such as for example the liver and kidneys can also be sensitive to the microwave radiation and thus might be adversely affected by it. Another disadvantage is that the microphone and the electric circuitry coupled to it are either too far from the user's mouth, thus typically reducing the sound quality, or the microphone is close to the user's mouth, thus still risking radiation to the head and brain in general and to the mouth area in particular. Another problem is that a microphone that is attached to the collar is typically not directional since it is very difficult to control its directions, thus it is more sensitive to outside noises than for example a microphone that is at the end of a stick held firmly in position near the mouth (such as for example in pilot headsets, for example like the one depicted in Fig. 3a in the above PCT application WO0178442), which can be easily made more directional. Anyway, there exists already prior art for this, since such a headset has been in use for at least 10 years already by the Israeli Security Agency SHABAK for wireless communications.

Another solution, published already for example by Which? Magazine itself, is adding a ferrite ring at the point where the electric wire connects with the headset, which is supposed to absorb the radiation. However, this has the disadvantage that the efficiency of this absorption is limited and even more limited with the high frequency of cellular phones, and also there is the problem of the radiation remaining along the wire itself, as in the above solution. Another possible solution by AegisóAs using a radiation shield that protects the user from radiation from some sides. However, by definition, the shielding is done only in certain directions and the antenna itself is not shielded,

otherwise the phone would not work properly, so this solution is by definition limited. Another possible solution, offered recently by Ericsson,,. and a few additional companies, is to use a headset based on bluetooth technology.

Bluetooth technology can broadcast only to a small distance (typically up to about 10 meters), and therefore, although it also uses microwave radiation, its levels are much lower than cellular phones - between 1-10 milliwatts, compared to up to 2 watts in cellular phones, so the levels of radiation should be 100-1000 times lower. An additional advantage is that the cellular phone itself can be even in the user's suitcase or bag while answering calls through the headset. On the other hand, if the user wants to initiate a call in this way while the phone is not in his hands (especially when it is for example in his bag or u't,,se), he needs to use voice commands for dialing, which is what Ericsson offers, eventhough probably cheaper versions will be available without this additional option. Bluetooth technology also has a built-in automatic encryption and decryption and a built-in ability to automatically jump between many channels of different frequency (typically at least 80 channels) in order to avoid conflict and interference with other nearby bluetooth devices. This is supposed to be the new state of the art for cellular headsets in about 2 years from now. However, such earphones are still very expensive, and also they typically need recharging every few hours since they use a powerful RISC processor. Obviously cheaper solutions are needed.

Another possible solution is reversing the roles between the phone and the headset, by using a mobile proxy device to communicate with the cells (since many people don't like using headsets at all because they feel they are less convenient and because many cheap headsets use earphones and microphones of poor hearing quality - compared to the level of the built-in microphone and speaker in the phone itself), as described in yet another patent application by one of the present inventors (Israeli application no. 139234 with priority starting at Oct. 24, 2000, later submitted also as PCT application PCT/IL 01/00981).

Summary of the invention

The present invention tries to offer a few more cheap solutions for keeping the cellular phone away from the user's head, preferably without adversely affecting the sound quality, preferably by using cheap elements, and preferably by avoiding the need to use a battery and/or recharge the headset when a headset is used.

A number of solutions are possible:

1. Using better non-electrical sound conductors between the cellular phone and a headset. The idea of using 2 hollow air tubes (one for the earphone and one for the microphone) is not new and in fact has been described already in 1978 in US patent 4,090,042 by Larkin. In this version the connection is through the earphones plug of the phone, by using a small speaker inside one of the tubes and a small microphone inside the other tube. This has the advantage of easy and convenient connection, but the sound quality is typically worse because of the need to use a small earphone and microphone instead of the original speaker and microphone. Another US patent of 1997, no. 5,613,222 by Guenther, describes a similar solution, but uses mechanical coupling of the air tubes to the integral speaker and earphone of the cellular phone respectively. This has the advantage of better quality since the original high quality speaker and microphone of the phone are used, but it is less practical and less convenient to use such coupling with the phone. One of the embodiments of the above Israeli April 9 2000 patent showed a solution of using instead of two tubes a single central tube (or other sound conductor) with branches at both ends, and using connections of:-

either of the above variations. Using a central single sound conductor is lighter and more convenient than having to use two conductors, and has the advantage that a wider central tube can be used. However this mixing of signals in two directions can also reduce quality. However, the very use of one or more air tubes in all of the above solutions has by itself the disadvantage that the sound quality is poor because typically for convenience such air tubes are of a small internal diameter of just a few millimeters at most, and this is much less than optimal according to the wave characteristics of sound propagation in the air. Since sound propagates in the air at typically 300 meters per second, the wavelength is about 33 cm, and therefore for proper propagation preferably a tube width of at least a quarter of the wavelength is used - in other words, for sound quality to be really good the tube is preferably with a diameter of at least 8 cm. However, using such a wide tube is not practical. Therefore, a better solution, described in the present invention, is using two (or more) sound conductors, one for the earphone and one for the microphone, but based not on hollow air tubes but on better sound conductors, such as for example tubes with a non-

electrically-conductive fluid (for example water or oil, which can have a sound speed of about 1000 meters per second, thus having a smaller wavelength) or non-electrically-conductive solids instead of the hollow tubes (such as for example some solid polymer, which can have an even smaller wavelength for sound). If a solid is used (preferably at least two sound conductors), preferably it is as solid as possible, so as to reach as smallest wavelengths as possible, but the wires are preferably still thin

enough to be flexible, such as for example 1-2 mm each, or for example more flexible material is used with a wider diameter. These wires may be for example more or less straight or for example spiral-shaped.

Another possible variation is that preferably the sound quality is further improved by filtering, for example by using the DSP (Digital Signal Processor) of the cellular phone itself to compensate for this for example when it senses that such a sound conductor has been connected. This DSP can be used for example for fixing distortions in amplitude and/or for filtering of white noise (for example by averaging). In this case, preferably the sound from the microphone is filtered by the cellular phone after it reaches the phone, and the output to the earphone is preferably pre-compensated in advance for the predicted distortion, so that all of this can preferably be done by the same DSP at the side of the phone. Another possible variation is that periodically the DSP checks feedback from the headset's sound conductors, and then the DSP uses this info to improve the pre-

correction and/or the post-correction. Another possible variation is to use for example a separate CPU or DSP preferably attached to the earphones jack of the phone and preferably drawing its electricity from the phone's battery, however that is more expensive and therefore less desirable. For example if solid sound conductors are used the DSP has to correct different distortions than if hollow tubes are used. However, since it is more difficult to insert sound from the air into a solid or liquid than the other way around, preferably if the sound conductor is liquid or solid this is facilitated for example by using an acoustic funnel coupled to the sound conductor near the user's mouth and/or near the phone's speaker (or near a special preferably small speaker at the phone side if the connection is through the phone's headset connector).

Another problem is that since the sound's wavelength for example in a solid is shorter, the vibrations at the end of the sound conductor might not be strong enough to create sufficiently strong vibrations in the air.

So preferably membranes are used for vibrating at the output ends of the sound conductors, preferably also in addition to acoustic funnels, at least at the ear side. In other words preferably an acoustic funnel and/or membrane is used in at least one end of at least one of the sound conductors. Another possible variation is that the membrane's movements are increased by using a mechanical lever near the ear's end, so that the solid sound conductor for example moves a small arm on a hinge that moves a longer arm, and the longer arm preferably moves for example a membrane that creates the desired air vibrations, as shown in Fig. 1 a. This way preferably the earpiece can be of the type that sits above the ear, which is more convenient than the types that are inserted into the ear. Another possible variation is to use for the

earpiece (and preferably also for the microphone on the phone side) for example a bunch of layers of materials, preferably each larger than the previous one and preferably each of a material which conducts sound slower, so that gradually the speed of sound is reduced back near its speed in the air, as shown in Fig. lb. Another possible variation is to use for example one or more piezoelectric crystals or elements near the ear so that it for example converts the smaller vibrations from the end of the solid sound conductor into larger vibrations mechanically or for example through generating a current that causes another piezo element to vibrate in the desired way. Another possible variation is for example to apply the DSP pre- and post-correction of distortions also for a sound conductor with a central shared channel like described in the above April 9 patent, for example with an air tube, or with a solid or liquid sound conductor. Another possible variation is to use for example two (or more) hollow air tubes, preferably connected to the phone like in the Larkin patent, but with the above pre- and post- correction preferably by the phone's DSP. Another problem with sound tubes is that much of the distortion is caused by the fact that these tubes are not air tight - so that air can come in and out at least one of the ends of the tubes and thus create various turbulences. Therefore, another possible variation is to use for example two (or more) hollow air tubes like in the Larkin patent, but preferably closed with a membrane on each side, so that these two membranes can move in preferably high synchrony, as shown in Fig. lc. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

2. Another possible solution is optimizing the cellular phone itself so that it can be conveniently held at some distance from the user's head, for example 20-25 cm away, which reduces the radiation by the square of the distance (however, for assessing correctly the reduction in the radiation to the brain the change in the distance is preferably computed from the user's brain and not from his skin). This can be accomplished for example by adding to the phone a unit (which can be for example integral to the phone or external) which preferably when folded occupies little space and when unfolded preferably creates a mechanical extension that helps keep the phone apart from the user's head, for example by a plastic or rubber arm or a plastic or rubber preferably telescopic sleeve or by a light frame (of course other materials and shapes can also be used, but preferably only materials that don't conduct electricity). Anther possible variation is that this sleeve itself also works like a sound conductor (for example just one common wide air conductor or divided into two compartments or two wide pipes, one for the ear and one for the mouth), but in this case preferably more or

- less in the width of the phone itself, so that the sound quality can be much better than with normal air tubes. Another possible variation is to use a speaker and microphone which are preferably optimized for remote use by being directional and/or by being focused at a certain distance from the user's head. For the speaker this can be accomplished for example by using instead of one speakers two or more speakers with a phase-shift and/or frequency shift between them so that the optimal sound level is achieved at certain distances such as for example 20 cm.

Another possible variation is using for example a parabolic or hyperbolic sound reflector around the speaker in order to make the speaker more directional so that the sound level remains relatively with the same strength at the desired distance (if it is a hyperbolic reflector than the speaker is preferably positioned in reverse, so that its back faces the user). Another possible variation is to use for example a preferably small acoustic canal around the speaker which is wider at the speaker and gets smaller at a certain distance from the speaker. Another possible variation is that preferably this reflector is foldable so that it occupies less space when the phone is closed, for example in a concertina- like manner. The directionality of the microphone can be accomplished also for example by using some acoustic shield or preferably parabolic reflector at the sides and/or by using a microphone that is electrically designed to be directional (for example like those used for interviews) and/or by using two or more microphones at a distance of preferably a few cm from each other (either sideways or one in front of each other) and removing electronically noises which come from areas other than the desired direction. Another possible variation is to use the above improved directional speaker and microphone without the aid of a mechanical support, but that is less desirable, since it can quickly tire the user's hand and thus cause a tendency it to attach the phone again to the head. On the other hand, if designed for a distance even greater then 20 cm, it can be conveniently used for example by simply holding it in the hand and resting the hand on the knee. Another possible variation is to use an external more powerful speaker and microphone unit with the above features into which the phone is fitted and connected for example through the phone's headset plug and then no changes are needed in the design of the microphone and speaker of the phone itself, but this is less efficient since in that case this external unit might need its own source of energy. Another possible variation is to plug for example into the phone's headset connector a unit which is for example shaped like a phone's hand held top part or like an earphone or like a bigger unit into which the phone itself fits or is coupled to (or some combination or hybrid of these) which uses the above-described improved directional speaker and

microphone and can therefore be held at the desired distance from the head and preferably draws its energy from the phone's battery. Another possible variation is that the user can electronically and/or mechanically (for example by turning an electrical knob or by keying a certain code in the phone's keyboard and/or by folding or opening the acoustic reflector) easily control the level of directionality of the speaker and/or the microphone (For example in an on/off manner or in a consecutive manner), so that for example if it is desired that the person next to the user will also be able to participate in the conversation, a wide angle is chosen instead. These features can be implemented also for example in car cellular speakers for controlling the level of privacy of the user and/or for reducing external noises. Preferably the user can also control the volume and pitch of the sound. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

3. Another possible solution is to use a wireless headset but preferably one that is much more energy-efficient than bluetooth: use for example UWB communication (or other methods of short low energy pulses without a carrier wave) between the headset and the phone, which can be many times more efficient than bluetooth in terms of energy consumption and much cheaper. Another possible variation is to generate the energy for the earphone (either for the earphone part or for the entire headset) by broadcasting the energy itself for example through electromagnetic energy or for example sonic or ultrasonic energy, so that no battery at all is needed for the headset. In this case either the headset transmits also the information from the microphone though the same circuitry that activates the earphone (for example by low energy short range wireless communication with a normal electromagnetic frequency or by UWB or similar methods), or the microphone does not draw energy from the earphone's circuitry and can be sensed directly by the phone from a distance. This can be done for example by using a microphone that contains two capacitors that are connected preferably to a resonance circuit which changes its resonance as the two capacitors move closer or farther away from each other.

Preferably the phone also has a resonance circuit which senses changes in the resonance circuit of the microphone. Preferably the two resonance circuits are electromagnetically coupled by using the same basic frequency, for example 100 KHz (or any other convenient frequency), and when the user speaks the frequency of the passive resonance circuit of the microphone changes for example in the range of a few KHz, and that reduces its uptake of energy from the phone's active resonance circuit, so that the phone measures changes in the current in its resonance circuit. This is shown in Fig. 3a. Of course such

io a passive microphone can be used also for example with a rechargeable UWB headset, thus increasing further the time until recharge is needed.

Another possible variation is for example to design the microphone so that it is for example coupled directly to the throat (or nose), and in that case preferably it is designed to preferably electronically compensate for the fact that higher frequencies are transmitted at lower volume in the body, and/or for example the phone's DSP corrects these distortions. However, this has the advantage that the microphone can be designed to sense only direct vibrations from the body and thus it automatically ignores other noises. Since non-directional wireless broadcasting of energy to the earphone can typically lose even 90-95% of the energy on the way, preferably this is done in a non-dangerous frequency, such as for example 50 MHz or less. However preferably the efficiency of this is improved by using in the phone an antenna that can electronically change its direction and/or optimize the distance and preferably finds the position of the headset by communication with it.

This way it can for example optimize the distance for example by changing the frequency so that the wave peaks will be more centered on the position of the headset. Another possible variation is to use this principle also when using for example an optic fiber earphone, such as for example the one described in the above April 9 patent. In US patent application 20010034253 by Shlomo Ruschin (filed on April 5, 2001 with priority date of April 5, 2000 in Israel), which describes a similar optic fiber solution, he mentions the possibility of transmitting the power to the headset unit through the optic fibers themselves, but he does not explain how to do it in an efficient way. Since the efficiency of photo-voltaic cells is very low and the energy available per area is limited, and since the area lit by the laser beam exiting the fiber is very small, it is difficult to use this energy for powering the headset circuitry unless this is done in a more sophisticated way. A few preferable ways of doing this and additional preferable ways of transmitting the energy are shown in Fig. 3b. (These ways are preferably used in combination with the methods described in the above April 9, 2000 patent for saving energy on the circuitry of the headset unit, so that preferably only a few milliampere are needed to activate the headset properly), howeversufficient energy might be transferred this way to activate also a headset without special energy saving. The above methods, such as for example using a solid sound conductor or a hollow air conductor can be used also in combination for example with a wireless headset just to power it, so that for example a bluetooth or similar headset or more preferably a UVVB headset, which requires much less energy than a bluetooth headset, can be powered like this and this way never needs recharging.

Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can

also be used, which is even more preferable, such as for example a UWB headset that does not need a power supply of its own. Another possible variation is to use for example a rechargeable bluetooth or UWB headset or optic fiber headset, but simply connect it to the earphone plug (in phones where the power connector is combined with the earphone plug) or directly to the phone's power coestor (if the headset plug is separate, like for example in Startec^lones) for recharging, so that it is recharged automatically together with the phone while the phone recharges or whenever it is connected to the phone even when the phone is not recharging (this means including the recharging circuitry in the headset itself and/or in the phone). Another possible variation is to design both the phone's rechargeable battery and the headset's rechargeable battery so that they are coupled electromagnetically and thus whenever the phone recharges (or even when it is not recharging) simply attaching the headset to it recharges also the headset electromagnetically without the need for any special connection for this. Preferably these methods are used in combination with the variation where the headset looks like a cover of the phone,,as described in the 135556 & 139234 patents. Of course, vario s combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

4. Another possible solution is to use also a hybrid variation where the length of the sound conductors can be made shorter by using an electrical wire for at least part of the way, like for example in the SHABAK earphone, but use a solid or liquid sound conductor instead of a hollow air tube, or to use instead of it optic fiber communication for example just from an interface at the microphone's position to the ear. However this is less desirable since it still has the above disadvantages of leaving the radiation along the wire. A better variation is to use also a short non-electrically-conductive sound conductor between the microphone and the mouth, so that preferably this additional conductor also helps keep the wire as far away from the body as possible. This additional sound conductor can be either for example an air tube or non-electricallyconductive solid or non-electrically-

conductive liquid. This way, preferably a normal wired earphone and microphone are used, but preferably both the mouth and ear ends of it are kept away from the user by sound conductors, and preferably the wire itself is also kept away from the user's body for example by the sound conductor that is attached to the microphone and/or by additional mechanical distance-keepers. This way the microphone can reach much closer to the mouth without the radiation problem and the sound conductor or tube is preferably held in a fixed position at a short distance from the mouth, like in pilot headsets (also called Madonna

\4 style headsets), which also improves sound quality by making it more directional, and preferably the microphone itself is electronically and/or mechanically designed to be more directional. In order to accomplish this, for example special cellular headsets can be designed which have the sound conductors already connected to them, or the sound conductors are designed so that they can be easily coupled with a preferably large number of existing headsets, by using for example a preferably small number of versions that can fit each a preferably large number of headsets, with the main difference for example being between earphones that go into the ear and earphones that sit on the ear from outside. This has the advantage that there is no need to deal with the problem that so many different headset connectors exist for different phones, and that users can add this to headsets that they already have. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

5. Another possible solution, shown in Fig. 5, is to use a preferably strongly directional radiation shield that shields not only the phone but also the antenna. Of course this creates the problem that if the shield is indeed efficient, the antenna becomes at least partially directional and so the user will be able to use the phone only in certain orientations relative to the nearest cells. However, this problem might not be so severe since typically there are more than one cells near enough to the user so if some directions are blocked the phone will communicate with other cells which are perhaps somewhat more distant but are in the direction that hasn't been blocked, and also, especially for example in buildings, there are typically many reflections, so many directions are available for the antenna to use. Another possible variation is to use in addition to this a preferably passive energy reflector unit that can be for example at a distance of 20 or more cm from the antenna, so that the microwave energy that was diverted in only one direction is then restored to wider angles but now from a point of origin that is less close to the user's head. This can be accomplished for example by encasing the phone in a radiation shield at least on its back and sides, and inserting the antenna for example into a preferably non-electrically-

conducting tube or parabolic cover, so that all or most of the radiation is diverted into the tube and the reflector is preferably coupled to the end of the tube so at the end of the tube the energy is again allowed to go in wider angles. Another possible variation is that the antenna is inherently designed to be unidirectional. Another possible variation is that the 2nd dispersing unit is at a distance from the antenna in free space without any mechanical connection between them. Another possible variation is to design the antenna electronically to radiate only from its tip at the

in end, for example by using an antenna with a length of exactly a quarter of the wavelength. This is shown in Fig. 5. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

6. Another possible solution is to use a ferrite all over the electrical wire in headsets with electrical wires and not just at the end. In order to do this efficiently, preferably the wire is covered (preferably above its insulating coating) by alternating layers of ferrite, so that preferably some of the layers efficiently resonate in the frequency of the transmission and some layers are not efficient in this frequency. This way some of the layers capture the energy that is in the area of the wire and the other layers act as the block that absorbs this radiation, converting it to heat. This is shown if Fig. 6. Another possible variation, which is simpler and even more effective, is to use such alterations along the length of the wire instead of in layers, so that for example every cm the cover changes between the two types of ferrite, as shown in Fig. 6b. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used. i:; 7. Another possible variation is to use near the cellular phone's antenna or for example near the speaker side closer to the user's head, a 2n -

antenna that broadcasts a signal that cancels and reduces to 0 or at least to a very low level the microwave radiation in the direction of the brain by creating an appropriate interference pattern, as shown in Fig. 7. This way the radiation can be reduced for example at an angle of 45 degrees or even more than 90 degrees near the brain in a way that allows cheap electronic control of the angle and without the need for a shield that occupies space. Other ways for creating a partly directional antenna are also possible, such as for example by using a parabolic reHector of the appropriate material and diameter or other shapes. This should not be too much of a problem since an angle can be chosen that still leaves sufficient angles for the antenna to operate, and also, at least in buildings, typically there are many reflections, so the antenna can use a large number of angles to reach the near cells. However, in order for this to work properly for example when the user rotates, especially in open areas where there are less reflections, preferably the network itself is changed so that the cells expect such effects and not just effects of normal movement over a distance, so when a partially directional antenna rotates the cells can preferably instantly switch over.

8. Another possible variation, shown in Fig. 8, is to connect the antenna through a coaxial cable like in cellular speakers of cars and keep the antenna away from the user's head at the end of a preferably telescopic

tube. This way the cellular antenna can be activated at a distance of for example 20-30 cm from the user's head, and along the coaxial cable the radiation leak is supposed to be relatively low and when connected like this the phone itself also can radiate much less. Preferably this is done in combination with improving the insulation or shielding of the phone itself 9. Another possible solution is to add at least in closely populated areas a large number of preferably cheap short-distance cells or simple repeaters for example to the top of the poles of the power supply network at least in cities, so that most phones will typically need only much lower radiation to communicate with the cells at least in areas of dense population such as for example in cities. Another possible variation is to install for example preferably cheap short-distance cells or simple repeaters in almost every building or at least large buildings, so that the cellular phones in the building can communicate with it with very low energy. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

lO.Another possible solution is to change the whole cellular network to broadcast at much higher frequencies that are far less damaging to living organisms, such as for example a few dozen GHz or more. This has also the further advantage that much wider bandwidth becomes available, which can make for example G3 and the following Generations of cellular networks much more capable of supplying faster Internet connections, streaming audio and Video, etc. Although this may sound a simple solution, it is non-obvious and very different from the current state of the art of broadcasting at the most dangerous frequencies and then trying to find ways of reducing the danger.

Preferably this is used also in combination with more preferably cheaper and smaller power cells and/or repeaters like in solution 9 above. Of course, various combinations of this with the above and other variations can also be used.

Of course the possible combinations mentioned above can refer also to combinations between the various solutions or various elements of them.

Brief description of the drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a preferable arrangement of using 2 sound conductors between the phone and the headset, with various sound quality improvements over ordinary air tubes.

1' Fig. la is an illustration of a preferable example of using a lever and membrane for improving the sound output from a solid or liquid sound conductor. Fig. 1 b is an illustartion of a preferable example of using for the earpiece of a liquid or solid sound conductor, layers of materials, each preferably larger than the previous one and preferably each of a material which conducts sound slower Fig. to is an illustration of a preferable example of using for sound transfer two hollow air tubes like in the Larkin patent, but preferably closed with a membrane on each side, so that these two membranes can move in preferably high synchrony.

Figs. 2 & 2a are an illustration of preferable methods of conveniently using the phone at a certain distance from the head, preferably in combination with directional speaker and microphone.

Fig. 3a is an illustration of a preferable way that the phone can sense the user's microphone at some distance wirelessly and without the need to provide the microphone with a power source.

Fig. 3b is an illustration of a few preferable examples for supplying energy from the phone to the headset end of an optic fiber headset without the need for a battery on the head side end.

Fig. 4 is an illustration of a few preferable variations of a hybrid system where a normal wired earphone and microphone are used but two short sounds conductors are added both between the earphone to the user and between the microphone to the user.

Fig. 5 is an illustration of a preferable variation where the cellular antenna transmits only at a certain direction, and another unit at some distance, which is either mechanically attached or in free space, then converts the radiation to all directions.

Fig. 6 is an illustration of a preferable way of using alternating layers of ferrite around a normal earphone's wire, for reducing the radiating from the wire much more efficiently than a ferrite ring.

Fig. 6b is an illustration of a preferable variation in which the alterations between the two types of ferrite are along the length of the wire instead of in layers.

id Fig. 7 is an illustration of a preferable example of using a 2nd antenna that broadcasts a signal that cancels and reduces to O or at least to a very low level the microwave radiation in the direction of the brain.

Fig. 8 is an illustration of a preferable variation wherein the cellular antenna is connected through a coaxial cable like in cellular speakers of cars and is kept away Dom the user's head at the end of a preferably telescopic tube.

Important Clarification and glossary: Throughout the patent when variations or various solutions are mentioned, it is also possible to use various combinations of these variations or of elements in them, and when combinations are used, it is also possible to use at least some elements in them separately or in other combinations. These variations are preferably in different embodiments.

In other words: certain features of the invention, which are described in the context of separate embodiments, may also be provided in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention, which are described in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in any suitable sub-combination. All these drawings are just exemplary diagrams. They should not be interpreted as literal positioning, shapes, angles, or sizes of the various elements. Also, throughout this patent including its summary and the

claims, whenever the word "bluetooth" is used it means either bluetooth or any other device for short range low energy wireless communication at any acceptable frequency (including, for example, also infra-red). Also, whenever the word "cell" or "cells" is used throughout this patent, including the summary and the claims, it means interchangeably either

cell or cells and it means all types of communication cells wherever they are, such as for example cells on the ground, cells in the air, such as for example on balloons, satellites, etc. Also, the term "optic fiber" or "optic fibers" or "fiber optic" as used throughout the text, including the claims, are always meant interchangeably to be either optic fiber or optic fibers.

Also, the term "cellular phone" or "mobile phone" or "wireless phone" or "phone" or "telephone" as used throughout the patent, including the claims, can mean any device for communications through wireless and/or cellular technology, including for example Interneabled cellular phones, such as for example the Japanese DoCoMo',, bird Generation cellular communication devices, palm computers communicating by cellular and/or wireless technology, etc. Whenever the words "he" or "his" or "him" is used about the user, it is just for clarity and convenience, and it refers of course also to female users. Throughout the

Jo patent including the claims, when electrical wire or wires are mentioned, it can mean either single or plural wires or the cable that contains the wires including the wires.

Detailed description of the preferred embodiments

All of the descriptions in this and other sections are intended to be illustrative

examples and not limiting.

Referring to Fig. 1, we show a schematic block diagram of a preferable arrangement of using 2 sound conductors (4 & 5) between the phone and the headset, with various sound quality improvements over ordinary air tubes. The interface (3) with the phone is either by acoustic coupling to the phone's original speaker and microphone or though the phone's earphone plug, with additional preferably small speaker and microphone. Preferably two (or more) sound conductors are used, one (4) for the earphone (7) and one (5) for the microphone (6), but based not on hollow air tubes but on better sound conductors, such as for example tubes with a fluid (for example water or oil, which can have a sound speed of about 1000 meters per second, thus having; a smaller wavelength) or solids instead of the hollow tubes (such as for example some solid polymer, which can have an even smaller wavelength for sound).

If a solid is used, preferably it is as solid as possible, so as to reach as smallest wavelengths as possible, but the wires are preferably still thin enough to be flexible, such as for example 1-2 mm each, or more flexible material is used with a wider diameter. These wires may be for example more or less straight or for example spiral-shaped. Another possible variation is that in addition to this, preferably the sound quality is further improved by filtering, for example by using the DSP (2) (Digital Signal Processor) of the cellular phone itselfto compensate for this for example when it senses that such a sound conductor has been connected. This DSP can be used for example for fixing distortions in amplitude and for filtering of white noise (for example by averaging). In this case, preferably the sound from the microphone is filtered by the cellular phone after it reaches the phone, and the output to the earphone is preferably pre-compensated in advance for the predicted distortion, so that all of this can preferably done by the same DSP at the side of the phone. Another possible variation is that periodically the DSP checks feedback from the headset's sound conductors, for example by the partial echo that returns from the headset's speaker to the phone, and then the DSP uses this info to improve the pre-correction and/or the postcorrection. Another possible variation is that the DSP can for example notice the difference between distortions on the way to the headset and distortions on the way from the headset to the phone, for example by using also the normal microphone to sense the user's voice through the air and (eventhough it is weaker since the phone is away from the

user's mouth) compare it to the user's sound that reaches the phone through the sound conductor, and preferably compare these distortions for example also with the distortions when the sound comes back through echo from the headset's speaker. However, typically the distortions should be the same in both directions. Another possible variation is to use for example a separate CPU or DSP preferably attached to the earphones jack of the phone and preferably drawing its electricity from the phone's battery, however that is more expensive and therefore less desirable. However, since it is more difficult to insert sound from the air into a solid or liquid than the other way around, preferably this is facilitated for example by using an acoustic funnel coupled to the sound conductor near the user's mouth and/or near the phone's speaker (or near a special small speaker at the phone side if the connection is through the phone's headset connector). Another possible variation is for example to apply the DSP pre- and post-correction of distortions also for a sound conductor with a central shared channel like described in the above April 9 patent, for example with an air tube, or with a solid or liquid sound conductor. Another possible variation is to use for example two hollow air tubes like in the Larkin patent, but with the above pre- and post- correction preferably by the phone's DSP. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

Referring to Fig. la, we show an illustration of a preferable example of using a lever (8a & b) and membrane (10) for improving the sound output from a solid or liquid sound conductor (4). Since the sound's wavelength for example in a solid is shorter, the vibrations at the end of the sound conductor might not be strong enough to create sufficiently strong vibrations in the air. This can be solved for example by using a mechanical lever near the ear's end, so that the solid sound conductor (4) for example moves a small arm (8a) on a hinge (9) that moves a longer arm (8b), and the longer arm preferably moves for example a membrane (10) that creates the desired air vibrations. This way preferably the earpiece (7) can be of the type that sits above the ear, which is more convenient than the types that are inserted into the ear. Preferably the arms are from a very solid and lightweight material, so as to reduce the momentum problems.

Referring to Fig. lb, we show an illustartion of a side-view of a preferable example of using for the earpiece of a liquid or solid sound conductor (4), layers of materials (11-15), each larger than the previous one and preferably each of a material which conducts sound slower, so that the transfer back to the speed of sound in the air is more gradual. Preferably each such layer is round like a disc, and preferably this creates an earpiece that sits on the ear instead of the type that goes into the ear, which is much less convenient and less hygienic. Of course, this is just an example and more or less layers and/or

In other shapes can be used. Another possible variation is to use a similar preferably layered construction also near the user's mouth, in order to facilitate better transfer from the air into the sound conductor, but preferably in this case it is shaped more like a funnel.

Referring to Fig. 1 c, we show an illustration of a preferable example of using for sound transfer two (or more) hollow air tubes (4 & 5) which preferably connect to the phone through the phone's earphone plug, like in the Larkin patent, but preferably closed with a membrane on each side (4a,4b,5a,5b), so that the two membranes at the ends of the tube can move in preferably high synchrony. Preferably the tubes become wider at the ends so that wider membranes can be used, and preferably the membranes at both ends are of the same material and same size. (However it can work reasonably well even if they are not the same size, so that for convenience reasons for example the membrane near the user's ear is bigger if a "Madonna style" earphone is used, and the membrane near the phone's plug is smaller in order to be more compact). An additional advantage of using the membrane pairs is that this way the tube can be even narrower, which can even improve the energy transfer between the two membranes, whereas with a normal sound tube-the quality becomes worth as the tube becomes narrower. Another possible variation is to use even more than two membranes in each tube. This is even better than attaching an acoustic cap to the phone itself, since external air can still move for example between the membrane of the phone's speaker and the acoustic cup. In the tube (4) that goes to the ear the membrane at the phone end of the tube (4b) is preferably an integral part of a special speaker, so that this membrane itself contains a magnetic or electromagnetic element that is affected by the special speaker. Another possible variation is that the tube surrounds closely the special speaker (which is preferably connectedtothe phone through the earphone plug or through any other means or is an integral part of the phone) in an airtight fashion, in which case of course there is no need for an additional membrane. In this case the speaker can either be in a funnel or a small preferably directional speaker is used to insert sound directly into the tube. In the tube (5) that goes from the user's mouth to the phone preferably the membrane at the phone end (5b) is an integrated part of a special microphone so that this membrane itself contains a magnetic or electromagnetic element that affects the circuitry of a special microphone.

This way there is no radiation problem also at the mouth end (5a) and it is preferably fitted in a stable position near the user's mouth, like in a pilot's headset ("Madonna" style headset). In addition, the use of the membrane (4a) near the ear allows a convenient earphone that sits on the ear instead of being inserted into the ear, as is typically done when using normal air tubes. (of course, another possible variation is that it can be fitted into the ear, if so desired, if a smaller membrane is used). Preferably the membrane at the ear

side is encased in an expanding acoustic fimnel in order to further improve the sound quality. Another possible variation is to make this interface on the phone side an integral part of the phone itself, for example as an additional plug, so that the tubes only need to be connected for example mechanically to two protruding small hollow rods. On the other hand, using a membrane near the user's mouth might be problematic, since unless the membrane is very sensitive and very close to the user's mouth or has an additional funnel that is closely attached around the mouth, the membrane might transfer too little energy into the tube or enter distortions. Therefore, another possible variation is to use the end of the tube near the user's mouth without the membrane, but preferably with the widening funnel Therefore, another possible variation is that the microphone at the end of the tube on the phone side is able to significantly amplify the sound and/or can correct for the typical distortions that are created in this configuration, with or without a membrane near the user's mouth. Another preferable variation is to use some hybrid of the optic fiber solution and the acoustic conductor solution. For example, the microphone on the user's side can be a passive microphone which reflects back a signal on one or more optic fibers, combined with a sound conductor for the user's ear (or ears), preferably based on the two-membrane solution described above or at least one membrane near the user's ear, or for example a solid sound conductor. In this case, if for example a hollow tube is used, the optic fiber(s) can be for example outside the hollow tube (for example in a jacket of it's own), or within it, or for example incorporated into the material of the tube itself, so that the tube's material also acts as the protective jacket for the fibers, and for example near the user's mouth the optic fiber or fibers preferably branch out of the tube in order to reach the passive microphone.

Another possible variation is that the optic fiber or fibers are outside the sound conductor and both the fibers and the sound conductor are wrapped for example in a common jacket that surrounds both of them. The use of at least two optic fibers - one for the signal and one for the reflection is more preferable, since otherwise optical splitters are needed at least on the phone side. This can also be looked at as another way of solving the energy transfer problem when using optic fibers. Another possible variation is to use at least one air tube with the membrane pair in combination with any other solution, such as for example in combination with the "SHABAK" type headset or for example use the "SHABAK" type headset with at least one membrane near the user's ear.Another possible variation is to use for example a single air tube or other sound conductor preferably with at least one membrane to transfer sound to the ear, in combination with a passive microphone that is sensed by changes in capacitance, as explained elsewhere in this application.

Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

Referring to Figs. 2 & 2a, we show an illustration of preferable methods of conveniently using the phone at a certain distance from the head, preferably in combination with directional speaker and microphone. This can be accomplished for example by adding to the phone (21) a unit (26) (which can be for example integral to the phone or external) which preferably when folded occupies little space and when unfolded preferably creates a mechanical extension from the user's head, for example by a plastic or rubber arm or a plastic or rubber sleeve or by a light frame (26) which ends with a piece (27) that can be conveniently held by the user near the head without effort to the hand. (Of course other materials and shapes can also be used, but preferably only materials that don't conduct electricity). This has the advantage that the sound can be tuned to be optimal at exactly the distance and angle enforced by this mechanical part. Another possible variation is that the phone itself senses the distance and/or angle from the user's head for example by infrared or by electromagnetic or sound echo, and electronically and/or mechanically adjusts the speaker and/or the microphone to be optimally directed to the required distance and/or angle. Anther possible variation is that this sleeve itself also works like a sound conductor (ford example just one common wide air conductor or divided intuit two-; compartments or two wide pipes, one for the ear and one for the mouth), but in this case preferably more or less in the width of the phone itself, so that the I--: sound quality can be much better. Another possible variation is to use a speaker (22) and microphone (25) which are preferably optimized for remote use by being directional and/or by being focused at a certain distance from the user's head. For the speaker this can be accomplished for example by using instead of one speaker, two or more preferably directional preferably ultrasound speakers with a phase- shift and/or frequency and/or amplitude shift between them so that the optimal sound level is achieved at certain distances.

such as for example 20 cm. For example, one speaker can broadcast at 30KHz and the other at 30KHz+ the frequency range needed for the speech, for example 300-5000 Herz (or other preferably higher frequencies of ultrasound are used), and the user hears only the difference between them as a result of the frequency mixing and interference. By changing for example the angle of the speakers the crossing point where the sound will be heard can be changed and for example by changing the directionality of the speakers the size of the hearing area can be changed, and this change can be done for example by the user and/or automatically by the phone. If normal (non ultrasound) speakers are used then preferably they are directional and their crossing point simply creates an area with higher sound. Another possible variation is using for example a parabolic or hyperbolic sound reflector around the speaker in order to make the speaker more directional so that the sound level remains almost with the same strength at the desired distance. Another possible variation is to use for example a preferably small acoustic canal around the speaker which is

wider at the speaker and gets smaller at a certain distance from the speaker.

Another possible variation is that preferably this reflector is foldable so that it occupies less space when the phone is closed, for example in a concertina-like manner. The directionality of the microphone can be accomplished also for example by using some acoustic shield or preferably parabolic reflector at the sides of the microphone and/or by using a microphone that is electrically designed to be directional (for example like those used for interviews) and/or by using two or more microphones (preferably three) at a distance of preferably at few cm from each other (either sideways or one in front of each other) and removing noises which come from areas other then their near intersection. However, there is a problem that theoretically the distance between the two or more speakers (and similarly - between the two or more microphones) should be at least a quarter of the wavelength through the air, which is about 7 cm. Therefore, one solution is that when the phone is held like this at a distance there is for example an additional microphone (25a) near the speaker (22) and an additional speaker (22a) near the microphone (25), so the length of the phone can be used for creating this distance. However if higher ultrasound speakers are used then the distance needed between them becomes smaller. Similarly, a combination of two or more (preferably 3) ultrasound microphones can be used for a more directional detection of sounds, such as for example described in Israeli application 152439 of Oct.

23, 2002, by one of the present inventors, which can be a directional microphone that can be small and have a very high quality. Another possible solution for this is to correct this electronically. Another possible variation is to use the above improved directional speaker and microphone without the aid of the mechanical support for holding the phone at a fixed position away from the user's head, but that is less desirable, since it can quickly tire the user's hand and thus cause a tendency to attach the phone again to the head. On the other hand, if designed for a distance even greater then 20 cm, it can be conveniently used for example by simply holding it in the hand and resting the hand on the knee. Another possible variation is to use an external more powerful speaker and microphone unit with these features into which the phone is fitted and connected for example through the phone's headset plug and then no changes are needed in the design of the microphone and speaker of the phone itself, but this is less efficient since in that case this external unit might need its own source of energy. Another possible variation is to plug for example into the phone's headset connector a unit which is for example shaped like a phone's hand held top part or like an earphone or like a bigger unit into which the phone itself fits or is coupled to (or some combination or hybrid of these) which uses the above-described improved directional speaker and microphone and can therefore be held at the desired distance from the head and preferably draws its energy from the phone's battery. Another possible variation is that the user can electronically and/or mechanically (for

r-^d example by turning an electrical knob or by keying a certain code in the phone's keyboard or by folding or opening the acoustic reflector) easily control the level of directionality of the speaker and/or the microphone (For example in an on/off manner or in a consecutive manner), so that for example if it is desired that the person next to the user will also be able to participate in the conversation, a wide angle is chosen instead. (Preferably the microphone in the car speaker can also filter away electronically typical car noises, for example by removing the typical frequencies of car noises). These features can be implemented also for example in car cellular speakers for controlling the level of privacy of the user and/or for reducing external noises. Preferably the user can also control the volume and pitch of the sound. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

Referring to Fig. 3a, we show an illustration of a preferable way that the phone (35) can sense the user's microphone (31) at some distance wirelessly and without the need to provide the microphone with a power source. This can be done for example by using a microphone that contains two capacitors (32) that are connected preferably to a resonance circuit (33) which changes its resonance as the two capacitors move closer or farther away from each other. i\ Preferably the phone also has a resonance circuit (34) which senses changes in the resonance circuit of the microphone. Preferably the two resonance circuits are electromagnetically coupled by using the same basic frequency, for example 100 KHz (or any other convenient frequency), and when the user speaks the frequency of the passive resonance circuit (33) of the microphone changes for example in the range of a few KHz, and that reduces its uptake of energy from the phone's active resonance circuit (34), so that the phone measures changes in the current in its resonance circuit. Of course, the effect depends also on changes in the distance between the phone and there microphone, but this is no problem since this change (caused for example by the user moving the phone in his hand or moving his head) are much slower than the changes caused by the speech frequency, so the system can easily ignore changes below this threshold. Another possible variation is for example to design the microphone so that it is for example coupled directly to the throat, and in that case preferably it is designed preferably electronically to compensate for the fact that higher frequencies are transmitted at lower volume in the human body, and/or for example the phone's DSP (36) corrects these distortions. However, this has the advantage that the microphone can be designed to sense only direct vibrations from the body and thus it automatically ignores other noises.

Referring to Fig. 3b, we show a few preferable ways for transmitting energy more efficiently from the phone-side unit (35) to the headset unit (49) when an optic fiber headset is used, so that no battery (rechargeable or non

rechargeable) is needed on the headset side. One possible variation is to transmit this energy for example by the same fiber that broadcasts the signal to the headset (38) (by either using a stronger signal with the data itself or by using a separate signal for example at another lambda, multiplexed into the same fiber), or by using a separate fiber (37) just for this, which is cheaper since it saves additional optics for the multiplexing. A number of methods can be used for improving this efficiently, such as for example using a diffractive lens at the headset side that can diffract the energy over a larger area so that a photovoltaic cell or solar cell (or any other device for converting light into usable energy) can take better advantage of this energy, since otherwise the resulting narrow beam of light might be too concentrated in a small area.

However, the disadvantage of this is that it creates an expanded area at the headset side. Another possible variation is to use instead of the lens for example a Fresnel flat lens or a series of smaller lenses, so that the expansion is only sideways, which can then fit conveniently in an earphone of the type that sits on the ear. Another possible variation is to use an optic fiber that becomes wider in the edge, as described in the above PCT application WO0178442. Another possible variation is to preferably keep the laser beam concentrated as it is and use for example fast pulses or a constant pulse (preferably only during the time that the earphone needs to transfer speech), preferably with a signal of higher power (for example up to even a few hundred milliwatts) and use it for example to heat a bimetal which exerts pressure over a piezoelectric element, which thus creates the electricity needed or to heat a thermo- coupler which generates electricity. Another possible variation is to use preferably high pulses for creating vibrations directly in a piezoelectric element or any other element that can create electricity out of heat. Preferably an infra-red lambda is used so that almost no attenuation of the signal occurs in the optic fiber, and preferably the exact lambda is chosen to be optimal for the medium, so that if a plastic optic fiber is used instead of glass the appropriate lambda is used. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations are also possible. Another possible variation is to use for example along the optic fiber or fibers also a hollow air tube or liquid-filled tube or solid sound conductor (37), but use it only for transferring energy such as for example by vibrating a membrane at the phone-end which then through the air (or liquid) motions vibrates correspondingly for example another membrane at the headset end, which then for example moves a magnet through a coil or a coil near a magnet, or otherwise manipulates an electromagnetic field, to create electric energy to

power the headset or at least the earphone's circuitry. In order to optimize this, preferably the frequency of transmitting the energy is more or less at the natural resonance frequency of the membranes, so that the energy transfer can become much more efficient, and preferably the membranes' size and material are chosen so as to have a natural resonance at a convenient frequency.

Preferably the tube gets wider at the ends where the membranes are connected. Preferably this vibration is ultrasonic or for example infrasonic, so that is does not disturb the hearing at the user' head side, and/or the membrane at the head side is within an acoustically isolated chamber or preferably at the speaker side or for example on a generator unit attached to the users' collar (For example like in Fig. 3b of the above WO0178442 PCT application), so that its is sufficiently away from the user's ear. Another possible variation is to use such an air tube but with a preferably small winged rotor or propeller at each end of the tube so that the air flow caused by the phone-side propeller or rotor transfers through the air flow the motion to the 2n passive propeller or rotor - on the headset end, which then generates electricity. If a hollow tube is used, the optic fibers can be for example outside the hollow tube, or within it, or for example incorporated into the material of the tube itself, so that the tube's material also acts as the protective jacket for the fibers. Another possible variation is to use for example a solid sound conductor (37) along the optic fiber which is used only for energy transfer for example by coupling to its end at the headset side a magnetic element which moves back and forth through a coil according to these vibrations, or a coil which moves Heard magnet, or other means for manipulating an electromagnetic field (another-

possible variation is to connect the end at the headset side for example to piezoelectric crystal or crystals). This sound conductor can be for example -

like another wire beside the optic fibers, outside their protective jacket, or be for example beside them within the jacket or even for example incorporated into the material of the jacket itself. For efficiency of the energy transfer and to avoid sound interference, preferably the sound conductor is vibrated at a high rate, such as for example 50 KHz or more or any other convenient preferably ultrasound frequency, and preferably the material of the conductor -it (and preferably also its shape and size) and the frequency are chosen sofas to be at or near the natural resonance frequency of the material. The above variations are preferably used in combination for example with the methods described in the above April 9, 2000 patent for saving energy on the circuitry of the headset unit, so that preferably only a few milliampere are needed to activate the headset properly, however sufficient energy might be transferred this way to activate also a headset without special energy saving. Another possible variation is to use for example the vibrations of this sound conductor to transfer preferably digital data in addition to the energy itself, so the optical fibers are not needed at all. In this case if for example a piezo element is used at the head side, to save momentum preferably the vibrations are at the natural resonance frequency of the piezo element, and the modulation is preferably by a small shift in frequency or for example by using two levels of volume. This way for example even O's are preferably still encoded with energy, and in addition, preferably the energy can be sent when needed, even when there is no sound signal. In this case, a 2n sound conductor might be used in order to

transfer data the same way back Mom the mouth to the phone, or the same conductor might be used for example to transfer digital data in both directions.

In this case preferably 100KHZ or more is used since for digital encoding of the data a higher frequency is needed than for analog data. Another possible variation is to use for example the optic fibers themselves or bundles of them as the solid sound conductor. Another possible variation is to use for example a hollow tube with preferably low friction (for example internally covered by Teflon or other low friction materials or with some liquid lubricant) in which a smaller wire, such as for example nylon string (for example of the kind used with fishing rods) is rotated by a preferably small motor at the phone side, and at the user side it rotates a passive magnetic element that rotates inside electromagnetic coils (or for example rotates a coil around the magnetic element), thus generating electricity. With sufficiently strong and flexible materials this can work OK even when the tube is bent, as long as it is not with too sharp angles, and this can transfer energy relatively very efficiently.

These methods, such as for example using a solid sound conductor or a hollow air conductor can be used also in combination with a wireless headset just to power it, so that for example a bluetooth or similar headset or more preferably a UVVB headset, which requires much less energy than a bluetooth headset, can be powered like this and this way never needs recharging. In an optic fiber headset the microphone can for example use energy from the headset circuitry, or be a passive microphone that reflects a light beam sent from the phone, as described in one of the variations of the 135556 patent. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

Referring to Fig. 4, we show an illustration of a few preferable variations of a hybrid system where a normal wired earphone (44) and microphone (45) are used, connected to the phone (41) through wire (of course, the wire of a cellular headset typically includes at least 2 or 3 electrical lines in it) (43) and earphone plug (42), but two short sound conductors (46 and 47) are added -

both between the earphone to the user and between the microphone to the user. Preferably the additional sound conductor between the user and the microphone and/or other mechanical non-metallic elements help keep the wire as far away from the body as possible. This additional sound conductor can be either air or solid or liquid. This way, preferably a normal wired earphone and microphone are used, but preferably both the mouth and ear ends of it are kept away from the user by sound conductors, and preferably the wire itself is also kept away from the user's body for example by the sound conductor that is attached to the microphone and/or by the ear's sound conductor and/or by one or more additional mechanical distance-keepers. This way the microphone can reach much closer to the mouth without the radiation problem and the sound conductor or tube is preferably held in a fixed position at a short distance from the mouth, lilts in pilot earphones, which also improves sound quality by

- '9 allowing it to be more directional. Preferably this is used in combination with a more directional microphone, which is made directional for example electronically and/or mechanically. The use of these shorter sound conductors in this hybrid version is thus both safer than the SHABAK version and also can thus improve the sound quality of the microphone. Furthermore it has an advantage over the Larkin patent in that the sound conductors are considerably shorter, which reduces the distortions, and also for example wider tubes can be used for even improving further the quality since it is a shorter distance, which can even further improve the sound quality, and also it has the advantage of the light weight and flexibility of using normal wires most of the way, combined preferably with the means for keeping the wire away from the body or at least at the upper part of the body. In order to accomplish this, for example special cellular headsets can be designed which have the sound conductors already connected to them, or the sound conductors are designed so that they can be easily coupled with a preferably large number of existing headsets, by using for example a preferably small number of versions that can fit each a preferably large number of headsets, with the main difference for example being between earphones that go into the ear arid earphones that sit on the ear from outside. This can be easily accomplished since in most cellular headset the part that plugs into the ear is more or less of the same shape and size, and also the microphone is typically of a similar oval -I shape and size, and thus the coupling can be easily done for example by two preferably flexible funnels that fit one over the microphone and one over the ear piece. This has the advantage that there is no need to deal with the problem that so many different headset connectors exist for different phones, and that users can add this to headsets that they already have. Another advantage is this can be used for example to convert earphones that plug into -

the ear to earphones that sit on the ear, which is more convenient and more hygienic. Preferably this is done with short hollow air tubes. The ear unit preferably ends with an expanding funnel, preferably with a membrane, and is preferably attached to the electronic earphone in an airtight manner. The sound conductor that goes to the user's mouth preferably also ends with an expanding funnel near the mouth but without a membrane. Since this is preferably used with the "Madonna-style" earphones, the part that ends near the user's mouth is preferably connected to the earpiece by a solid non metallic arm, preferably for example made of plastic, and the sound tube of the microphone preferably reaches the mouth through this earpiece for example by either allowing the sound tube to go through a hollow solid arm, or for example a hollow solid arm is used itself as the final piece of the mouth tube. Another possible variation is that the microphone's sound tube for example enters the end of the arm that reaches the mouth from below or from the side or Tom any other convenient direction, and is either a flexible tube or is a solid tube which preferably forces the wire to remain away from at least

s the upper part of the body. If the microphone's sound tube goes through the arm that connects between the earpiece and the microphone, then both this tube and the ear's sound tube preferably go down together from the earpiece, preferably side by side. Various combinations of solid and flexible tubes can be used in this structure in order to achieve the best results preferably both in terms of convenience and in terms of keeping the electrical wires sufficiently away at least from the upper part of the body. Preferably the electrical wire goes down from the headset for example diagonally so that there is some distance between it and the body preferably at least most of the way. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used. Referring to Fig. 5, we show an illustration of a preferable variation where the cellular antenna (52) transmits only at a certain direction with or without another unit (53) at some distance, which is either mechanically attached to the antenna or to the phone or is in free space, then converts the radiation to preferably all directions. One way of doing this is for example to use a strongly directional radiation shield that shields not only the--phone but also the antenna preferably in the direction of the user's head. Of course this creates the problem that if the shield is indeed efficient, the antenna becomes directional and so the user will be able to use the phone only in certain orientations relative to the nearest cells. However, this problem might not be so severe since typically there are more than one cells near enough to the user so if some directions are blocked the phone will communicated with other cells which are perhaps somewhat more distant but are in the direction that hasn't been blocked. On the other hand, in open areas where the reflections are negligible, such a solution might indeed create problems with the cellular network since if the user for example turns or rotates while talking it can confuse the cells, so preferably the network itself is changed so that the cells expect such effects and not just effects of normal movement over a distance, so when a semi-directional antenna is rotated the cells can preferably instantly switch over. Another possible variation is to use in addition to this an energy reflector unit (53) that can be for example at a distance of 20 or more cm from the antenna, so that the microwave energy that was diverted in only one direction is than restored to wider angles but now from a point of origin that is less close to the user's head. Preferably this is done by a passive reflector, so that no additional energy supply is needed for it, and preferably this 2nd reflector is semi-transparent, so that it lets part of the radiation pass through and part to go back, thus creating back a more or less even distribution in all directions. This can be accomplished for example by encasing the phone in a radiation shield at least on its back and sides, and inserting the antenna for example into a preferably non-electrically-conducting tube or parabolic cover, so that all or most of the radiation is diverted into the tube and the reflector is

preferably coupled to the end of the tube so at the end of the tube the energy is again allowed to go in wider angles. Another possible variation is that the antenna is inherently designed to be unidirectional. Another possible variation is that the 2n dispersing unit is at a distance from the antenna in free space without any mechanical connection between them. Another possible variation is to design the antenna electronically to radiate only from its tip at the end, for example by using an antenna with a length of exactly a quarter of the wavelength. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

Referring to Fig. 6, we show a preferable variation of using a ferrite cover all over the electrical wire in headsets with electrical wires and not just at the end. In order to do this efficiently, preferably the wire (60) is covered (preferably above its insulating coating) by alternating layers of ferrite, so that preferably some of the layers (for example 61 and 63) efficiently resonate in the frequency of the transmission and some layers (for example 62 and 64) are not efficient in this frequency. This way some of the layers capture the energy that is in the area of the wire and the other layers act as the block that absorbs this radiation, converting it to heat. Another possible variation is to use between the layers of ferrite layers of other material or materials. Of course this is just an example and other numbers or configurations of layers can also be used. However this layered structure is less preferable since it might absorb two much energy from the cellular antenna, so the variation shown in Fig. 6b is more preferable. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

Referring to Fig. 6b, we show an illustration of a preferable variation in which the alterations between the two types of ferrite (60a & 60b) are along the length of the wire (60) instead of in layers, so that for example every cm the cover changes between the two types of ferrite, as shown in Fig. 6b. Since at about 950Mhz the wavelength is about 34 cm, alength of about 1/10 of the quarter-wavelength can effectively prevent the wave from forming. This can effectively prevent the standing wave from forming on the wire. Another possible variation is to use for example alternating sections of ferrite-metal-

ferrite-metal, or other material or materials between the Ferrites. Of course this is just an example of a few links, but the wire is preferably covered like all along its length or at least along the parts that are near the user's body.

Referring to Fig. 7, we show a preferable example of using near the cellular phone's (71) antenna (72) or for example near the speaker side closer to the user's head, a 2n antenna (73) that broadcasts a signal that cancels and reduces to O or at least to a very low level the microwave radiation in the direction of the brain by creating an appropriate interference pattern. This way

. 3= the radiation can be reduced for example at an angle of 45 degrees or even 90 degrees or more near the brain in a way that allows cheap electronic control of the angle and without the need for a shield that occupies space. This should not be too much of a problem since an angle can be chosen that still leaves sufficient angles for the antenna to operate, and also, at least in buildings, typically there are many reflections, so the antenna can use a large number of angles to reach the near cells. For example, if there are two transmitters that work simultaneously with the same frequency but 180 degrees out of phase, the total transmitted energy will be zero. Based on this principle it is possible to bring the energy that is transmitted to the brain to zero or close to zero or at least to very low levels. The energy that is needed for the second transmitter is the same as the absorption of the brain and lower than the normal antenna.

This is like using a directional transmitter that sends a mirror-image canceling wave to the brain. Depending on the distance between the two antennas, the canceling signal at the brain's area can be even for example 5-10 times weaker than the main antenna's signal, so that it creates the very high cancellation mainly in the desired area (74). Preferably the two antennas are in full synchronization, and preferably integrated into the same circuitry, and also the 2nd antenna raises or lowers its level of radiation preferably in complete synchrony with the real antenna. Another possible variation is to create directionality of the antenna by transmitting the same (and not a phase shifted) signal at a distance of half the wavelength from the original antenna, however this 2nd variation is not practical in cellular phones since there is not enough room for this manipulation. However, this and the previous variations can be used for example also in Radars and other systems where it is desired to avoid the radiation in the direction of the persons operating these devices.

However, there are a number of problems with this: a. Since both the antenna and the phone radiate and since the radiation is all over the antenna, it is hard to create an exactly matching signal. b. Unless there is a directionality of the canceling signal, it will weaken the signal of the original antenna also in all the other directions, so some shield is needed between them. Therefor, a better variation is to make the antenna partly directional for example by the use of a metal parabolic small dish, like in solution no. 5. This is also much more efficient in terms of energy than broadcasting a double signal that partly cancels itself. On the other hand, in open areas where the reflections are negligible, such a solution might indeed create problems with the cellular network since if the user for example turns or rotates while talking it can confuse the cells, so like in Solution 5, unless a correcting reflector is used, preferably the network itself is changed so that the cells expect such effects and not just effects of normal movement over a distance, so when a semi-

directional antenna is rotated the cells can preferably instantly switch over. Of course, various combinations of the above and other variations can also be used.

Referring to fig. 8, we show an illustration of a preferable variation wherein the cellular antenna (83) is connected to the phone (81) through a coaxial cable like in cellular speakers of cars and is kept away from the user's head at the end of a preferably telescopic tube (82), or a flexible element that can be easily folded and preferably opens automatically when the phone is used. This way the cellular antenna (83) can be activated at a distance of for example 20-

30 cm from the user's head, and along the coaxial cable the radiation leak is supposed to be relatively low, so that its acts like a wave guide, and when connected like this the phone itself also can radiate much less. Preferably this is done in combination with improving the insulation or shielding of the phone itself or by using an external shield between the phone and the user. However, this can still have the basic problem of becoming an antenna by resonating win the radiation, as happens with ordinary earphones, so preferably this is done in combination with alternating layers or sections of ferrite like those described in the reference to Figs. 6 & fib. Therefore this type of solution is less preferable.

:,.. While the invention has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, it will be appreciated that many variations, modifications, expansions and other applications of the invention may be made which are included within the scope of the present invention, as; would be obvious to those skilled in the art.

,,4: -

Claims

2;L CLAIMS We claim:

1. A system for reducing the level of microwave radiation that the user's brain is exposed to while using cellular phones, without sacrificing sound quality and without the need for a power-source at the headset side, and without using simple air tubes, comprising: A cellular phone; Connecting means for keeping the phone away from the user's head without an electrically conductive connection to the head side, while allowing the transferring of sound data between the user and the phone.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the connecting means is at least two solid or liquid sound conductors.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein at least one of: a. A DSP (Digital Signal Processor) is used for pre-correcting distortions in signals sent from the phone to the ear.

b. A DSP (Digital Signal Processor) is used for post-correcting distortions in signals moving from the user's mouth to the phone.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein at least one of: a. Said DSP is the phone's own DSP.

b. Periodically the DSP checks feedback from the headset's sound conductor, and uses this info to improve the pre-

correction and/or the post-correction.

5. The system of any of claims 2-4 wherein at least one of: a. An Acoustic funnel is used in at least one end of at least one of the sound conductors.

b. A membrane is used in at least one end of at least one of the sound conductors.

c. A membrane is used in at least one end of at least one of the sound conductors, and a mechanical lever is used near the membrane, so that the sound conductor moves a small arm on a hinge that moves a longer arm, and the longer arm moves the membrane.

d. At least at the ear side a bunch of layers of materials is used, each larger than the previous one and/or each of a material which conducts sound slower, so that gradually the speed of sound is reduced back near its speed in the air.

e. At least one piezoelectric element is used near the ear so that it converts the smaller vibrations from the end of the sound conductor into larger vibrations by at least one of: mechanically and through generating a current that causes another piezo element to vibrate in the desired way.

6. The system of any of the above claims wherein at least one of: a. A single central sound conductor is used and a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) is used for at least one of: Pre-correcting possible distortions in signals sent from the phone to the ear, and Postcorrecting possible distortions in signals moving from the user's mouth to the phone b. At least two hollow air tubes are used and a DSP (Digital Signal Processor) is used for at least one of: Pre-correcting possible distortions in signals sent from the phone to the ear, and Postcorrecting possible distortions in signals moving from the user's mouth to the phone.

c. Said DSP is the phone's own DSP.

d. Periodically the DSP checks feedback from the headset's sound conductor, and uses this info to improve the pre-

correction and/or the post-correction.

e. At least two hollow air tubes are used for transferring the sound acoustically, but closed with a membrane on each side, so that these two membranes can move in high synchrony.

7. The system of any of the above claims wherein the connecting means is the air itself and at least one of the cellular phone and a unit with a speaker and microphone attached to it through its earphone plug is optimized for remote use by being directional and/or by being focused at a certain distance from the user's head so that it can be conveniently held at some distance from the user's head.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein said optimization accomplished by at least one of: a. Adding to the phone a unit which when folded occupies little space and when unfolded creates a mechanical extension that at least one of: Helps keep the phone apart from the user's head, and Works like a wide short-distance sound conductor so that the sound quality can be better than with normal air tubes. b. Using a speaker and microphone which are optimized for remote use by at least one of being directional and being focused at a certain distance from the user's head.

c. The speaker is made directional by using at least two speakers with at least one of phase-shift, frequency shift and amplitude shift between them so that the optimal sound level is achieved at certain distances, and wherein at least one of: The speakers use ultrasound and the interference creates the audible sound, and The speakers use normal sound at the intersection area the sound is increased.

d. At least one of a parabolic and hyperbolic sound reflector is used around the speaker in order to make the speaker more directional. e. An acoustic canal is used around the speaker which is wider at the speaker and gets smaller at a certain distance from the speaker. f. The directionality of the microphone is accomplished by using an acoustic shield.

The directionality of the microphone is accomplished by using a reflector at the sides of the microphone.

h. The directionality of the microphone is accomplished by using a microphone that is electrically designed to be directional.

i. The directionality of the microphone is accomplished by using at least two microphones at some distance from each other and removing electronically noises which come from areas other than the desired direction, wherein the microphones are at least one of normal microphones or based on ultrasound.

9. The system of any of claims 7 and 8 wherein at least one of: a. The user can by at least one of electronically and mechanically control the level of directionality of the speaker and/or the microphone.

b. The phone itself senses the distance and/or angle from the user's head for, and electronically andlor mechanically adjusts the microphone and/or speaker to be optimally directed to the required distance and/or angle.

10. A car cellular speaker wherein a directional speaker and microphone are used and the user can by at least one of electronically and mechanically control the level of directionality of the speaker and/or the microphone.

11. A wireless cellular headset based on short distance low energy pulses without a carrier wave.

12. The system of any of the above claims wherein the energy for the headset is transmitted to it from the phone without an electrically conducting wire between them and said energy is used to power at least the ear-side part of the headset.

13. The system of claim 12 wherein at least one of: a. The headset is at least one of a normal short range wireless headset, a wireless cellular headset based on short distance low energy pulses without a carrier wave, and an optic fiber headset. b. Energy is transmitted fiom the phone to the headset through at least one of electromagnetic energy, sonic energy, and ultrasonic energy.

c. The microphone does not draw energy from the earphone's circuitry and can be sensed by the phone from a distance.

d. The microphone contains two capacitors that are connected to a resonance circuit which changes its resonance as the two capacitors move closer or farther away from each other and'-;-

the phone also has a resonance circuit which senses changed -I-: in the resonance circuit of the microphone, and the slow changes caused by the user's movement are ignored.

e. The phone has an antenna that can electronically change at least one of its directionality and spatial distance of the wave peaks distance and can find the position of the headset by communication with it.

14. The system of claim 13 wherein said two resonance circuits are electromagnetically coupled by using the same basic frequency, and< when the user speaks the frequency of the passive resonance circuit of the microphone changes and that reduces its uptake of energy from the phone's active resonance circuit.

15. The system of any of the above claims wherein the microphone is coupled directly to the throat and wherein at least one of: a. The microphone is designed to electronically compensate for the fact that higher frequencies are transmitted at lower volume in the body.

b. The phone's DSP corrects the distortions caused by coupling the microphone to the throat.

16. A cellular headset that can be automatically recharged by placing it on the phone without a special recharge plug, wherein the recharge is done by at least one of:

3G a. Electromagnetic coupling without the need for any special connection for this.

b. Connecting the part of the headset that needs to be recharged to the existing external plug of the phone.

17. The system of any of the above claims wherein an electrical wire is used between the phone and the microphone, and from the microphone's position to the ear at least one of optic fiber, liquid sound conductor, and solid sound conductor is used.

18. The system of any of the above claims wherein at least two sound conductors are used but they are made shorter by using at least one electrical wire for at least part of the way.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein at least one of: a. Special cellular headsets are designed which have the sound conductors already connected to them.

b. The sound conductors are designed so that they can be easily coupled with existing headsets.

c. The sound conductors are designed so that they can be easily coupled with a large number of existing headsets by two flexible funnels that fit one over the microphone and one over the ear piece.

20. The system of any of the above claims wherein at least one hollow air tube is used but with an airtight membrane at each end of each tube, so that no external air can enter the tubes and the two membranes at the ends of the tube can move in synchrony.

21. The system of claim 20 wherein at least one of: a. The output membrane near the user's ear is an integral part of the speaker.

b. The output membrane near the phone's microphone is an integral part ofthe phone's microphone.

c. The tubes become wider at the ends so that wider membranes can be used.

22. The system of claim 12 wherein at least one of: a. The headset is an optic fiber headset and at least one diffractive lens is used at the headset side that can diffract the energy over a larger distance so that at least one of a photo-

voltaic cell, solar cell and any other device for converting light to usable energy can take better advantage of this energy

b. The headset is an optic fiber headset and fast pulses of light energy are used to affect at least one of a bimetal, piezoelectric element, and thermo-coupler.

c. At least one of a hollow air tube, liquid-filled tube, and solid sound conductor is used for transferring energy from the phone to the headset.

d. At least one of a hollow air tube and liquid-filled tube is used for transferring energy from the phone to the headset, and the energy transfer is done by vibrating a membrane at the phone-

end which then through the air/liquid motions vibrates correspondingly another membrane at the headset end, which changes an electromagnetic field to create electric energy to

power at least the earphone's circuitry.

e. A hollow air tube is used with a propeller at each end of the tube so that the air flow caused by the phone-side propeller transfers through the air flow the motion to the 2n passive propeller on the headset end.

f. A solid sound conductor is used for energy transfer bye coupling to its end at the headset side at least one of a;.; magnetic element which moves back and forth through a coil, a coil which moves near a magnet, and a piezoelectric element. A solid sound conductor is used for the energy transfer by transmitting ultrasound at or near the natural resonance frequency of the sound conductor.

h. A hollow tube is used in which a smaller wire is rotated by a motor at the phone side and at the user side it rotates a passive magnetic element that rotates inside electromagnetic coiIs, thus generating electricity.

23. The system of claim 22 wherein the vibrations of the sound conductor are used also to transfer digital data in addition to the energy itself, and wherein at least one of: a. Even O's are encoded with energy.

b. The energy can be sent when needed even when there is no sound signal.

c. A 2nd sound conductor is used in order to transfer data the same way back from the mouth to the phone.

d. The same conductor is used to transfer digital data in both directions.

r S

24. A cellular phone that exposes the user's brain to less radiation by using an antenna that transmits only at a certain direction or at a limited direction.

25. The system of claim 24 wherein at least one of: a. Another unit is used at some distance, and is either in free space or mechanically attached or physically attached to the phone's antenna, and converts the radiation to other directions. b. A strongly directional radiation shield is used that shields not only the phone but also the antenna in the direction of the user's head.

c. The antenna's directionality is controlled by a reflector.

d. The antenna's directionality is controlled electronically.

e. The antenna's directionality is controlled by using a 2 antenna that uses a canceling signal near the user's brain.

f. The network itself is changed so that the cells expect effects of change in reception due to rotation and not just effects of normal movement over a distance, so when a semi-directional antenna is rotated the cells can quickly switch over.

26. A cellular headset that reduces the amount of radiation picked up by the headset's wire by alternating elements of ferrite.

27. The system of claim 26 wherein at least one of: a. The wire is covered by alternating layers of ferrite, so that some of the layers efficiently resonate in the frequency of the transmission and some layers are not efficient in this frequency. b. The wire is covered by sections of ferrite alternating along the length of the wire, so that some of the sections are of ferrite that efficiently resonates in the frequency of the transmission and some sections (made of at least one of other ferrite or metal) are not efficient in this frequency.

c. The elements that are not efficient at the transmitted frequency are at least one of other type of Ferrite and other materials.

28. A cellular phone that reduces the radiation to the user's brain wherein the cellular antenna is connected to the phone through a coaxial cable like in cellular speakers of cars and is kept away from the user's head.

29. The system of claim 28 where at least one of:

a. This is done in combination with improving the shielding of the phone itself.

b. This is done in combination with covering the coaxial cable with alternating sections of ferrite.

30. A cellular network that reduces the dangerous radiation to the user's brain wherein a large number of at least one of cheap short-distance cells and simple repeaters is used at least in closely populated areas.

31. The system of claim 30 wherein at least one of: a. Said short distance elements are coupled to poles of at least one of the power supply network and many buildings.

b. The broadcasting is done at much higher frequencies that are far less damaging to living organisms.

32. A cellular network that reduces the dangerous radiation to the user's, brain wherein the broadcasting is done at much higher frequencies that;' are far less damaging to living organisms.

33. The system of claim 22 wherein at least two membranes are used for transferring the energy and wherein at least one of: a. The frequency of transmitting the energy is near or at the natural resonance frequency of the membranes, so that the energy transfer can become much more efficient.

b. The frequency used is at least one of ultrasonic and infrasonic.

c. The membranes are acoustically isolated so as not to disturb the sound transfer. =: d. The two membranes are of the same size.

34. The system of claim 5 wherein the air tube is used in combination with a "SHABAK" type headset.

35. The system of any of the above claims wherein the microphone on the phone side can at least one of amplify the sound and correct for the typical distortions caused by the air tube.

36. The system of any of the above claims wherein a hybrid system is used for reducing the user's exposure to radiation when using cellular phones, by using at least one sound conductor and at least one optic fiber for connecting between the phone and the headset.

37. The system of claim 36 wherein at least one of:

a. The microphone on the user's side is a passive microphone which reflects back a signal using at least one optic fiber, and at least one sound conductor is used for transferring sound -

from the phone to the user's ear.

b. The sound conductor uses at least one membrane.

c. The sound conductor is a hollow tube and the at least one optic fiber is at least one of outside the hollow tube, within it, and incorporated into the material of the tube itself, so that the tube also acts as the protective jacket for the fiber, or the at least one optic fiber is outside the sound conductor and both the fibers and the sound conductor are wrapped in a common jacket that surrounds them.

38. The system of any of claims 18 and 19, wherein at least one of: a. At least one of the additional sound conductor between the user and the microphone, the ear's sound conductor, and other non-metallic elements, help keep the electrical wires away from at least the upper part of the body.

b. A directional microphone is used.

c. An earphone that plugs into the ear is converted into an earphone that sits on the ear.

d. At least two short hollow air tubes are used, and the ear unit ends with at least one of an expanding funnel and a membrane. e. The sound conductor that goes to the user's mouth also ends with an expanding tunnel near the mouth.

f. The part that ends near the user's mouth is connected to the earpiece by a solid non-metallic arm, and the sound tube of the microphone reaches the end of said arm by at least one of going through the arm, being part of the arm, coming from below, and coming from other directions.

At least one of solid and flexible tubes or tube-parts are used or combined in order to achieve the best results both in terms of convenience and in terms of keeping the electrical wires sufficiently away at least from the upper part of the body.