JP2006157397A - Sound reproducing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sound reproducing device which can form an excellent sound field and can be made small with excellent operability maintained as it is. <P>SOLUTION: The sound reproducing device has at least one speaker 13, a cradle 100 that contains the speaker 13 with an opening 13-1 of the speaker 13 located at the back, and a sound reflecting plate 12 attached to the cradle 100 to reflect sound generated from the speaker 13 in the front direction of the cradle 100. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a sound reproducing device that reproduces sound including, for example, voice and music.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-298385 discloses a technique for reflecting the sound of a speaker by a reflecting member and delivering it to a listener. In this technique, sounds from left and right speakers respectively provided on the side surfaces of the casing are reflected by left and right acoustic reflectors attached to the casing and delivered to the listener.
JP 7-298385 A

  However, in the above prior art, since the opening of the speaker is on the side surface of the housing, the sound reaching the listener is not only the sound reflected by the reflector, but also a part of the sound directly reaching from the speaker. For this reason, the sound quality was somewhat disturbed.

  In addition, at least during use, the reflectors are projected to the left and right, and the area where the apparatus is placed is relatively large.

  Further, since the opening of the speaker occupies a wide area on the side surface, the operation unit has been pushed into a small area on the apparatus.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to such a problem, and the object of the present invention is to form a good sound field and maintain good operability while maintaining the operability of the apparatus. An object of the present invention is to provide an audio reproducing apparatus that can be miniaturized.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sound reproducing device, comprising: at least one speaker; and a housing that houses the speaker in a manner in which an opening of the speaker is located on the back surface. And an acoustic reflection member that is attached to the casing and reflects sound generated from the speaker in the forward direction of the casing.

(Function and effect)
A speaker opening is disposed on the rear surface of the housing, and the sound is reflected by the acoustic reflecting member and guided to the front surface. In this case, since the speaker is disposed on the back surface of the housing, the sound that reaches the listener is basically only the sound reflected by the acoustic reflecting member, and a good sound field is formed.

  In addition, since there is no need to arrange speakers on the front and side surfaces of the housing, the degree of freedom in design increases. For example, it is preferable in terms of ease of use to provide an operation unit on the front and side surfaces and a display unit on the front surface, but since the speaker opening is on the back surface, a large area is not required on the front surface or side surface. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the size of the apparatus while maintaining good operability. For example, in an embodiment described later, an electronic device is placed on the front surface. However, even with such a configuration, a good sound field can be obtained with a compact housing.

  Conventionally, the utilization of the back surface and the bottom surface has been low compared to the front surface, side surface, and top surface, but the present invention opens the way to effective utilization of the back surface by a combination of a speaker and an acoustic reflection member.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the sound reproducing device further has a function of moving a sound image of the speaker.

(Function and effect)
If a function for moving a sound image (for example, “surround function”) is used, it is possible to make it easier for sound to jump over the housing on the front surface of the reflector. For this reason, a better sound can be obtained.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect, the sound reproducing device further includes a second speaker having a function of outputting a bass sound in a certain frequency range.

(Function and effect)
As described in the first effect, the present invention can provide a sound reproducing apparatus having a compact housing. In this case, although the size of the speaker is also limited, more suitable sound quality can be obtained by providing another speaker (for example, a subwoofer) for low sound.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect, the second speaker emits sound downward.

(Function and effect)
By releasing the bass in the downward direction, a more suitable sound quality can be obtained.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the acoustic reflection member is movably attached to the housing.

(Function and effect)
When the sound is not reproduced, the sound reflecting member can be stored so as not to get in the way. Further, a more preferable sound field can be generated by adjusting the position of the reflecting member.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the acoustic reflecting member is bent such that a surface that reflects sound has a reflection direction of a parabola.

(Function and effect)
This is a favorable sound field for a listener in front of the housing.

  According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the sixth aspect, the cross-sectional shape of the surface that reflects the sound is a part of a parabola.

(Function and effect)
In particular, it produces an excellent sound field.

  According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the speaker is housed in the housing so as to emit sound toward a diagonally upper portion of the back surface.

(Function and effect)
The position of the acoustic reflection member can be provided upward with respect to the housing. For this reason, the sound reflected by the acoustic reflecting member is likely to pass over the housing.

  According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the electronic device is provided on a surface other than the back surface of the casing to place an electronic device that acts as a sound signal supply source for the speaker. It further has a mounting part which has an electrical contact which electrically connects with.

(Function and effect)
Electronic equipment that is an audio signal source can be stored in a well-organized manner. In addition, the sound reproducing apparatus can provide a service (for example, charging) to the electronic apparatus, and improvement in convenience can be expected.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the housing is configured such that the acoustic reflection member is detachable and an acoustic reflection member selected by an operator can be attached.

(Function and effect)
Since an acoustic reflecting member suitable for the situation can be selected, a sound field according to various situations can be generated.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, at least a surface that reflects sound is deformable in the acoustic reflection member.

(Function and effect)
Since the acoustic reflecting surface can be deformed into a shape suitable for the situation, a sound field according to various situations can be generated.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to form a good sound field and to reduce the size of the apparatus while maintaining good operability.

  FIG. 1 is a front view of a sound reproducing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view. As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the housing (hereinafter referred to as a cradle) 100 of the present sound reproducing device has a shape that lays a triangular prism as a whole, and an electronic device (for example, A placement unit 10 on which a digital camera) is placed is provided. An electrical contact 11 is disposed on the bottom surface of the mounting portion 10 so that an electric signal or power can be exchanged and transmitted with the mounted electronic device. 3 and 4 are views showing a state in which the electronic device 13 is placed on the placement unit 10 of the cradle 100, FIG. 3 is a front view, and FIG. 4 is a side view.

  In the sound reproducing device of the present embodiment, the mounted electronic device 13 can be charged through the electrical contact 11 and also has a function as a charging table. The electrical contact 11 is also an interface for transmitting acoustic data recorded on a recording medium accommodated in the electronic device 13 to the acoustic reproduction apparatus. The operator of the sound reproduction device according to the present embodiment can charge the electronic device 200 and reproduce the sound data stored in the electronic device 200 by placing the electronic device 200. . Of course, it is easily understood by those skilled in the art that a variety of functions can be provided by installing a USB terminal or a LAN terminal in the sound reproducing apparatus.

  Now, on the back of the cradle 100, an opening 13-1 of the speaker 13 for sound reproduction is provided. A pair of left and right speakers 13 are housed inside the housing. Since each speaker 13 is attached at an angle as shown in the figure, the sound emitted from the speaker 13 travels generally obliquely upward. In the present embodiment, since the opening 13-1 is covered with the speaker cover (cloth) 13-2, the opening 13-1 of the speaker 13 does not appear on the appearance.

  A sound release hole 13-3 is provided at the upper portion where the front slope and the rear slope of the cradle 100 intersect.

  Now, in the lower part of the back of the cradle 100, an acoustic reflector 12 that is an acoustic reflector is attached in a movable manner. In the present embodiment, the acoustic reflector 12 is rotatable at the hinge portion 12-1 at the lower back. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a mode in which the acoustic reflector 12 slides is also possible. In any case, by making the acoustic reflector 12 movable, the position and inclination can be adjusted so that an appropriate sound field is obtained, and the acoustic reflector 12 can be stored so that it does not get in the way when not in use. .

  The acoustic reflector 12 reflects the sound emitted from the speaker 13 toward the rear obliquely upward of the cradle 100 in the forward direction. The acoustic reflector 12 is detachable at the hinge portion 12-1, and the operator can select and attach the acoustic reflector 12 having an appropriate shape according to the situation in which the present sound reproducing device is used. ing. In this embodiment, the acoustic reflector 12 is made of plastic. However, the acoustic reflector 12 may be made of, for example, a metal material so that it can be deformed and maintained in a desired shape.

  The shape of the acoustic reflector 12 is preferably a shape in which the reflection direction is a parabola, from the viewpoint of sound localization, and in particular, a shape whose cross-sectional shape is a parabola is preferable.

  A speaker drive circuit (not shown) is housed in the housing, and the housing circuit has a function of moving the sound image of the speaker 13 (for example, surround). This function makes it easier for the sound to reach the listener by jumping over the housing located in front of the acoustic reflector 12.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing three different positions (A), (B), and (C) that can be taken when the acoustic reflector 12 is attached to the cradle 100. (C) shows a state where the acoustic reflector 12 is upright, (A) shows a state where the acoustic reflector 12 is inclined backward by a predetermined angle from the upright state, and (B) is inclined forward by a predetermined angle from the upright state. Indicates the state. 6A, 6B, and 6C show frequency characteristics when the acoustic reflector 12 is located at each of the positions (A), (B), and (C) shown in FIG. . The vertical axis is power (P), and the horizontal axis is frequency (f). As shown in FIG. 6, the frequency characteristic of the present apparatus changes depending on the inclination position of the acoustic reflector 12, and it can be seen that the characteristic of the high sound region becomes good and flat in the upright state of (B).

  7A and 7B are diagrams showing a schematic configuration of a subwoofer 300 as a second speaker that can be connected to the sound reproducing device, and FIG. 7A is a top cross-sectional view. (B) is a side sectional view. The subwoofer 300 is provided with a pair of speakers 301-1 and 301-2, each capable of outputting a low frequency in a certain frequency range of L channel + R channel. By connecting such a subwoofer 300, more suitable sound quality can be obtained. In addition, the bottom part of the subwoofer 300 is provided with a sound release hole 302 for emitting a bass sound downward.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram comparing frequency characteristics that change according to the arrangement of the subwoofer 300. When the subwoofer 300 is placed sideways (FIG. 8A), the frequency characteristics shown in FIG. 8B are obtained, and when the subwoofer 300 is placed on the floor (FIG. 8C), the frequency characteristic is obtained. A frequency characteristic such as 8 (D) is obtained. As can be seen by comparing the two frequency characteristics, it can be seen that when the subwoofer 300 is placed on the floor and the sound release hole 302 is directed downward, the power in the bass (low frequency) region is larger and the frequency characteristics become smoother.

  FIG. 9 is a system block diagram when sound reproduction is performed by the sound reproduction apparatus. An electronic device 200 such as a digital camera is placed on the cradle 100, and a subwoofer 300 serving as a second speaker is connected. The control unit 101 in the cradle 100 is a part that controls the operation of each unit described below. In addition, power is supplied from the power source 105 in the cradle 100 to the electronic device 200 and the subwoofer 300.

  The acoustic data transferred from the electronic device 200 is converted into an analog signal and separated into an L channel signal and an R channel signal by an interface (IF) unit 102 in the cradle 100. A high frequency component is extracted from the L channel signal by a high pass filter (HPF) 103, amplified by an amplifier 106, and output from an L speaker 108. The R channel signal is extracted by a high pass filter (HPF) 104 and then amplified by an amplifier 106 and output from an R speaker 109.

  A switch 110 provided in the cradle 100 is a switch for turning on and off the surround function. Therefore, when the surround function is turned on by the switch 110, the surround processing for moving the sound image is performed on the acoustic data input in the surround processing unit 102-1 in the IF unit 102. The switch 111 is a mode changeover switch. When the switch 111 is turned off, the switch 111 is switched to the theater mode to widen the sound range by shifting the phase of the acoustic data by 90 degrees. Further, when it is turned on, the mode is switched to the music mode. In this case, the phase of the acoustic data is not shifted.

  When the subwoofer 300 is connected, an L channel + R channel signal is input to the subwoofer 300, a low-frequency component is extracted by a low-pass filter (LPF) 310, amplified by an amplifier 311, and output from a speaker 312. Is done.

  Below, the procedure in which an operator (listener) listens to sound using this sound reproduction apparatus is demonstrated. First, the operator places an electronic device 200 such as a digital camera that stores acoustic data on the placement unit 10 of the cradle 100. Thereby, the electrical contact on the electronic device side and the electrical contact 11 of the cradle 100 described above come into contact with each other, and electrical conduction is established between them. Then, the operation of the sound reproduction device can be performed using the operation member on the electronic device 200 side.

  While referring to the liquid crystal display unit on the electronic device 200 side, the operator selects the sound data to be played back by the sound playback device from the sound data group recorded in the storage medium (for example, XD picture card) accommodated therein. When the selection is made, the selected sound data is transferred from the electronic device 200 to a recording medium in the sound playback device, and preparation for playback is made.

  Next, the operator uses the operation unit on the electronic device 200 side to refer to the display unit on the electronic device 200 side and use a function for moving the position of the sound image (for example, a surround function) to form a desired sound field. Make adjustments as follows. Then, a playback start button on the electronic device 200 side is pressed.

  Then, on the sound reproduction apparatus side, the sound data transferred from the electronic device 200 is read out to the IF unit 102 and necessary processing such as position adjustment of the designated sound image is performed. This processing includes release of compression, DA conversion, amplification, adjustment of amplification factor according to frequency, and the like. The acoustic signal is finally arranged in a form capable of driving the speakers 108 and 109 via the HPFs 103 and 104 and the amplifiers 106 and 107, and drives the speakers 108 and 109.

  From the speakers 108 and 109, sound corresponding to the drive signal is emitted, but as described above, the sound once travels in an obliquely upward direction behind the apparatus. The acoustic reflector 12 disposed behind the speakers 108 and 109 reflects the sound and advances the sound toward an operator (listener) in front of the apparatus.

  In this case, the operator can adjust the sound reflection plate 12 by moving it, replacing it with another sound reflection plate 12, or changing the shape of the sound reflection plate 12 so as to obtain a desired sound field. Further, the sound field may be changed by using a function of moving the sound field.

It is a front view of the sound reproduction apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a side view of the sound reproduction apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. 4 is a front view showing a state where the electronic device 13 is placed on the placement unit 10 of the cradle 100. FIG. 3 is a side view showing a state where the electronic device 13 is placed on the placement unit 10 of the cradle 100. FIG. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing three different positions that can be taken when the acoustic reflector 12 is attached to the cradle 100. It is a figure which shows a frequency characteristic when the acoustic reflector 12 exists in each inclination position (A), (B), (C) shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the subwoofer 300 as a 2nd speaker which can be connected to this sound reproduction apparatus. It is a figure which compares and shows the frequency characteristic which changes according to arrangement | positioning of the subwoofer. It is a system block diagram when performing sound reproduction by this sound reproducing apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Mounting part 11 Electrical contact 12 Acoustic reflector 12-1 Hinge part 13 Speaker 13-1 Speaker opening 13-2 Speaker cover 13-3 Sound release hole 100 Cradle 200 Electronic device (digital camera)
300 subwoofer

Claims (11)

A sound reproducing device,
At least one speaker;
A housing for housing the speaker in a manner in which the opening of the speaker is located on the back;
An acoustic reflection member that is attached to the housing and reflects sound generated from the speaker in a forward direction of the housing;
A sound reproducing device comprising: The sound reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a function of moving a sound image of the speaker. 3. The sound reproducing device according to claim 2, further comprising a second speaker having a function of outputting a bass in a certain frequency range. The sound reproducing device according to claim 3, wherein the second speaker emits sound downward. The sound reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the acoustic reflecting member is movably attached to the housing. The sound reproducing device according to claim 1, wherein the sound reflecting member is bent such that a surface that reflects sound is a parabola in a reflecting direction. The sound reproducing device according to claim 6, wherein a cross-sectional shape of the sound reflecting surface is a part of a parabola. 2. The sound reproducing device according to claim 1, wherein the speaker is housed in the housing so as to emit sound toward a diagonally upper side of the back surface. There is further provided a mounting portion that is provided on a surface other than the back surface of the housing for mounting an electronic device that acts as a sound signal supply source for the speaker and has an electrical contact that is electrically connected to the electronic device. The sound reproducing apparatus according to claim 1. The sound reproducing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the housing is configured such that the sound reflecting member is detachable and an acoustic reflecting member selected by an operator can be attached. The sound reproducing device according to claim 1, wherein at least a surface of the sound reflecting member that reflects sound is deformable.

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