JP6016236B2 - Microphone - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a microphone including a switch for turning on / off an electroacoustic converted audio signal, such as a conference microphone installed on a table or desk in a conference hall or classroom.

  In a conference hall or classroom, a microphone that is installed and used on a top board such as a table or desk so as not to stand out is called a boundary microphone. There are two types of boundary microphones: one that is flat and placed on the top plate, and one that is embedded on the top plate with the majority of the microphone embedded in the top plate. There is.

  Multiple boundary microphones are installed so that multiple attendees can be accommodated in conference halls and classrooms, and only the boundary microphones corresponding to the person who speaks are selected and their output signals are turned on. It is like that. Some gooseneck type microphones for conference systems include a light emitting unit provided in a microphone case in order to visually display whether or not a speech is being made. The light emitting unit distinguishes whether the output signal is on or off by the emission color, such that a microphone whose output signal is on emits light in green, for example, and other microphones emit light in red, for example.

  There is an invention described in Patent Document 1 as a conventional example of a flat-type boundary microphone that is placed and used in a top plate shape. The boundary microphone described in Patent Document 1 includes a flat base in which a microphone unit is incorporated, a pedestal arranged at the bottom of the base, and a pressure-sensitive switch that turns on and off the output signal of the microphone unit. . At least one of the pressure sensitive switches is arranged so as to be pressed between the base and the pedestal. When the boundary microphone main body is pressed, the microphone sinks as a whole, and the switch can be operated.

  Patent Document 1 describes that the output signal of the microphone unit is turned on and off with a pressure-sensitive switch, but there is no description regarding displaying whether the boundary microphone is on or off.

  Next, a conventional example of an embedded type boundary microphone will be described. In FIG. 7, a microphone unit 102 is attached to an upper end portion of a cylindrical microphone case 101 with a cushion material 113 interposed. A microphone connector 115 is attached to the lower end of the microphone case 101. The upper end of the microphone case 101 is a flange 111, and a front cover 105 is attached so as to be embedded in the flange 111. The front cover 105 is made of a metal mesh and shaped like a bowl so that sound waves can pass through. The open end of the front cover 105 is fixed to the flange 111. The front cover 105 surrounds the microphone unit 102.

  A microphone case 101 constituting most of the boundary microphones is embedded in a top plate such as a table, and the flange 111 of the microphone case 101 is placed on the top plate and fixed to the top plate. The front cover 105 is exposed on the top plate, and sound waves that have passed through the front cover 105 enter the microphone unit 102 and are electroacoustic converted. In the microphone case 101, a circuit board 114 incorporating a microphone circuit is fixed. This conventional example does not include a switch for turning on and off the output signal of the microphone unit 102, and there is no description regarding on / off display. A boundary microphone having almost the same configuration as the conventional example shown in FIG.

  In the embedded boundary microphone as described in FIG. 7 and Patent Document 2, it is not impossible to add an on / off switch for the output signal and to display on / off. For example, it is conceivable that a part of the flange of the microphone case is enlarged to the outer peripheral side, and an ON / OFF switching operation switch is provided in the enlarged part. Further, it is conceivable that a light emitting element such as an LED whose emission color is switched by the operation switch switching operation is incorporated in the microphone case.

  As described above, when a switch for turning on / off an output signal is added to the embedded boundary microphone, and a light emitting element whose emission color is switched is incorporated in the microphone case, the following problems occur. That is, in order to add a switching operation switch, the idea of enlarging a part of the microphone case to the outer peripheral side increases the space occupied by the operation switch to be added and the space occupied by the microphone case, resulting in an increase in the size of the boundary microphone. .

  As a technical problem required for a boundary microphone in recent years, there is an improvement in resistance to electromagnetic waves. In recent years, when mobile phones become widespread, there are frequent cases where the mobile phone is placed in the immediate vicinity of the boundary microphone and the mobile phone is used in the immediate vicinity of the boundary microphone. A situation in which the boundary microphone is exposed to electromagnetic waves radiated from a mobile phone is generated on a daily basis, and there is a need for a device that enhances the shielding effect so that the electromagnetic waves do not enter the microphone unit.

  The outline of the conventional boundary microphone and the technical problem have been described above. However, the technical problem is not limited to the boundary microphone, and is common to all types of microphones.

JP 2010-278988 A Japanese Patent No. 4638853

  An object of the present invention is to provide a microphone capable of avoiding an increase in size while including a switch for switching on / off of signal output.

The microphone according to the present invention is
A microphone case,
A microphone unit attached to one end of the microphone case;
A front cover that covers the microphone unit on one end side of the microphone case and is attached so as to be movable relative to the microphone case;
A switch that operates by moving the front cover relative to the microphone case to turn on and off the output signal of the microphone unit;
A conductive cushion material interposed between the front cover and the microphone case;
It has the most important feature.

  Since the front cover can be moved relative to the microphone case and the front cover serves as a switch operating member, it is possible to avoid an increase in the size of the microphone provided with the switch.

It is side surface sectional drawing which shows the Example of the microphone which concerns on this invention. It is a front view of the said Example. It is side surface sectional drawing which shows the switch operation | movement aspect of the said Example. The light ring in the said Example is shown, (a) is a top view, (b) is a side view, (c) is a bottom view, (d) is sectional drawing which follows the AA line in (a). It is. It is a front view which expands and shows the light ring, light emitting element, and circuit board in the said Example. It is a top view which expands and shows the light ring in the said Example, a light emitting element, and a circuit board. It is side surface sectional drawing which shows the example of the conventional boundary microphone.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a microphone according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The illustrated embodiment is an embodiment of a boundary microphone, but the microphone according to the present invention is not limited to the boundary microphone, and can be applied to any type of microphone.

  1 and 2, the microphone unit 2 is attached to the upper end portion of the microphone case 1 with a cushion material 13 fixed to the inner periphery of the microphone case 1 interposed therebetween. Although the electroacoustic conversion method of the microphone unit 2 is not limited, in the illustrated embodiment, a condenser microphone unit is used. A microphone connector 15 is attached to the lower end portion of the microphone case 1. The microphone case 1 is made of a conductive material.

  A flange 11 is integrally formed at the upper end of the cylindrical microphone case 1. On the upper surface of the flange 11, a ring-shaped conductive cushion material 8 is disposed along the inner periphery of the flange 11 at a position near the inner periphery of the flange 11. The conductive cushion material 8 is made of a material having both cushioning properties and conductivity. In this example, a conductive foam (for example, Sui-78-5030T manufactured by Seiren Co., Ltd.) was used.

  A conductive ring 9 is disposed on the upper surface of the conductive cushion material 8, and the lower end of the front cover 5 is in contact with the conductive ring 9. The front cover 5 is formed by forming a metal mesh into a bowl shape, and is arranged in a posture in which the bowl is turned down. Therefore, the lower end of the front cover 5 is an open end, and the conductive ring 9 is fixed to the open end of the front cover 5. The conductive ring 9 and the conductive cushion material 8 may be fixed to each other, or only the conductive ring 9 may be placed on the conductive cushion material 8. A conductive ring 9 is interposed between the front cover 5 and the conductive cushion material 8, and the front cover 5, the conductive ring 9, the conductive cushion material 8, and the microphone case 1 are electrically connected.

  The front cover 5 surrounds the microphone unit 2 with an appropriate space between it and the microphone unit 2. The front cover 5 has a structure that allows sound waves to pass through, for example, a metal mesh. The conductive cushion material 8 is interposed between the front cover 5 and the microphone case 1 and urges the front cover 5 away from the microphone case 1 by an elastic force. The front cover 5 is configured to be movable relative to the microphone case 1 by being pressed against the elastic force of the conductive cushion material 8.

  On the upper surface of the flange 11 of the microphone case 1, a ring-shaped circuit board 3 is fixed to the outside of the conductive cushion material 8 and adjacent to the outer periphery of the conductive cushion material 8. A light emitting element is mounted on the circuit board 3. A light ring 4 is disposed on the circuit board 3 with the light emitting element interposed therebetween.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the light ring 4 is formed in an arc shape along the outer periphery of the front cover 5, and a part of the arc is cut to have a C shape when viewed from the plane. In the embodiment, an integral molded product made of acrylic resin was used as the light ring 4. The lower portions at both ends of the C-shaped light ring 4 are cut off to form hook-like cut surfaces 41. The bottom surface of the light ring 4 is a flat bottom surface 44 from both ends to a certain distance, and the cut surface 41 is formed in parallel with the flat bottom surface 44. The cut surface 41 is mirror-finished.

  The flat bottom surface 44 of the light ring 4 is disposed in close contact with the top surface of the circuit board 3. Two light emitting elements 31 and 32 are mounted on the circuit board 3 at positions corresponding to the cut surfaces 41 at both ends of the light ring 4 with the light emitting surfaces facing upward. In the present embodiment, an LED that emits green light is used as the light emitting element 31, and an LED that emits red light is used as the light emitting element 32.

  The upper surface of both end portions of the light ring 4, and hence the surface facing the light emitting surfaces of the cut surface 41 and the light emitting elements 31 and 32, are inclined surfaces 42 of about 45 degrees, and each inclined surface 42 is also mirror-finished. Yes. Each inclined surface 42 is a reflecting surface that reflects light emitted from the light emitting elements 31 and 32 toward the inside of the light ring 4. For example, a reflective seal may be attached to each inclined surface 42.

  The upper part of the vertical cross section of the light ring 4 has a semicircular shape as shown in FIG. 4D, and the semicircular upper surface 43 is roughened by blasting to form a light diffusion surface. The bottom surface of the light ring 4 is also roughened by blasting to form a light diffusion surface.

  Light emitted from the light emitting elements 31 and 32 is guided into the light ring 4 from the cut surfaces 41 at both ends of the light ring 4, and is reflected toward the inside of the light ring 4 by the inclined surfaces 42. The reflected light travels in the light ring 4 while being irregularly reflected on the upper surface 43 or the lower surface of the light ring 4 which is a light diffusing surface, and the entire light ring 4 is brightened by the emission color of the light emitting elements 31 and 32. When the light emitting element 31 emits light, the entire upper surface 43 of the light ring 4 glows green, and when the light emitting element 32 emits light, the entire upper surface 43 of the light ring 4 glows red.

  The bottom surface of the light ring 4 is a flat bottom surface 44 as described above up to a certain distance from both ends. However, the light ring 4 is gently inverted V-shaped so that the thickness of the light ring 4 decreases as the distance from the bottom surface increases. The inclined surface 45 is drawn. As the distance from the light-emitting elements 31 and 32 increases, the amount of light that arrives decreases. Therefore, the bottom surface of the light ring 4 is formed as an inclined surface 45, and the light ring 4 is made thinner as it goes away from the light emitting elements 31 and 32 to collect light, thereby eliminating variations in the amount of light emitted from the light ring 4.

  When the microphone is on, the light emitting element 31 is turned on to light the light ring 4 in green, and when the audio signal output is off, the light emitting element 32 is turned on to light the light ring 4 in red. In this way, the operation state of the microphone can be displayed. The number of light emitting elements is arbitrary. The operating state can be displayed if there is at least one light emitting element, such as when the light emitting element is on, the microphone is on, and when the light emitting element is off, the microphone is off.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the conductive ring 9 has a protruding portion 91, part of which is formed outward in the radial direction. A switch 7 is disposed on the flange 11 of the microphone case 1 below the protrusion 91, and an operation button of the switch 7 is close to the lower surface of the protrusion 91. The positional relationship between the conductive ring 9 and the switch 7 is set so that the switch 7 is activated by the movement of the protruding portion 91 of the conductive ring 9.

  Each time the switch 7 is operated, the light emitting elements 31 and 32 are alternately switched so that the light emission color is switched between red and green, and the color of light emitted from the light ring 4 is also switched to the same color as the light emission color of the light emitting element. Alternatively, the light emitting element may be switched between on and off by the operation of the switch 7. In short, the operation of the light emitting element is switched when the output signal of the microphone is turned on and off by the operation of the switch 7.

  The flange 11 of the microphone case 1 is covered with a side cover 6 that covers the flange 11 from the outer peripheral side. The side cover 6 has a cylindrical portion that fits on the outer periphery of the flange 11 and a conical portion that follows the cylindrical portion, and the inner peripheral edge at the upper end of the conical portion is along the outer periphery of the upper end portion of the light ring 4. The upper end portion of the light ring 4 is exposed from between the inner peripheral edge of the upper end of the side cover 6 and the outer periphery of the front cover 5.

  The side cover 6 integrally has a complementary portion 16 that enters the cut portion of the light ring 4 having a C-shaped planar shape and covers the cut portion. The complementary portion 16 of the side cover 6 is formed such that a part of the conical shape of the side cover 6 protrudes inward, has an arc shape in the circumferential direction, and upper and lower surfaces are flat surfaces. The upper surface of the projecting portion 91 of the conductive ring 9 hits the lower surface of the complementary portion 16 to restrict the upward movement of the conductive ring 9 and the front cover 5 due to the repulsive force of the conductive cushion material 8.

  A microphone case 1 that constitutes most of the boundary microphones is embedded in a top plate such as a table. The flange 11 of the microphone case 1 is placed on the top plate with a buffer material 12 interposed, and is fixed to the top plate. The front cover 5, the side cover 6, and the light ring 4 are exposed on the top plate. Sound waves that have passed through the front cover 5 enter the microphone unit 2 and undergo electroacoustic conversion. By observing the glowing color of the light ring 4, it is possible to determine whether the microphone is operating, that is, whether an audio signal is being output or is waiting. A circuit board 14 incorporating a microphone circuit is fixed in the microphone case 1.

  As can be seen from the above description, the switch 7 is switched by pressing the front cover 5, and by switching the switch 7, the output of the audio signal that is electroacoustic converted by the microphone unit 2 is turned on and off. Yes. The front cover 5 of the microphone is generally made of a metal mesh, and there has conventionally been no idea of using the front cover 5 as a switch operating member. According to the embodiment of the present invention, the front cover 5 made of a metal mesh is used as the switch operating member. Therefore, as shown by a broken line in FIG. 2, if the pressing operation plate 18 is attached to the front surface of the front cover 5, it is possible to reduce a sense of resistance against direct operation of the front cover 5. For example, a character such as “Push” may be written on the pressing operation plate 18.

  The mode shown in FIG. 1 shows a normal state where the front cover 5 is not pushed. In this state, the conductive ring 9 and the front cover 5 are pushed up by the repulsive force of the conductive cushion material 8, and the switch 7 is in an inoperative state.

  When the front cover 5 is pushed down against the repulsive force of the conductive cushion material 8, the protrusion 91 of the conductive ring 9 substantially integrated with the front cover 5 pushes the operation button of the switch 7 as shown in FIG. 7 is activated. When the switch 7 is actuated, the microphone circuit incorporated in the circuit board 14 switches the microphone to the on state and maintains this state, and outputs a sound signal that has been subjected to electroacoustic conversion by the microphone unit 2. In addition, the light emitting element 31 is caused to emit light, and the emission color is switched to, for example, green to indicate that the microphone is on. When the switch 7 is actuated again, the microphone circuit switches the microphone to the off state and cuts off the output of the audio signal. Further, the light emitting element 32 is caused to emit light, and the light emission color is switched to red to indicate that the microphone is off.

  As described above, every time the front cover 5 is pushed and the switch 7 is operated, the sound output of the microphone is alternately switched on and off. The light emitting elements 31 and 32 are alternately turned on in response to the on / off of the audio output, and light having the same color as the light emitting element 31 or the light emitting element 32 is emitted from the light ring 4. The operation or non-operation of the microphone can be discriminated based on the emission color of the light ring 4.

  According to the embodiment described above, since the front cover 5 provided in the microphone is also used as the operation member of the switch 7 for turning on / off the sound output, it is not necessary to newly provide a switch operation member, and the microphone is used. Can be avoided.

  The front cover 5, the conductive cushion material 8, and the microphone case 1 are made of a conductive material, and these members are electrically connected and surround the microphone unit 2. Therefore, the front cover 5, the conductive cushion material 8, and the microphone case 1 electromagnetically shield the microphone unit 2 and enhance the shielding effect against electromagnetic waves. Even when a mobile phone or the like is used in the vicinity of the microphone according to the present embodiment, it is possible to prevent noise caused by electromagnetic waves from being mixed into the audio signal.

  In the illustrated embodiment, the circuit board 3 is disposed on the flange 11 of the microphone case 1, and the conductive cushion material 8, the light emitting elements 31 and 32, and the switch 7 are disposed on the circuit board 3. With such a configuration, the electrical connection of each of the above components can be simplified.

  A feature of the microphone according to the present invention is that the front cover can be moved relative to the microphone case, and the front cover also serves as a switch operation member. Therefore, as long as the above-described features are provided, the present invention can be applied not only to the embedded type boundary microphone as in the illustrated embodiment but also to the type of boundary microphone used by being placed on a table. Further, the present invention is not limited to boundary microphones, and can be applied to all types of microphones including handheld microphones. In addition, the design can be arbitrarily changed without departing from the technical idea described in the claims.

  The switch 7 in the illustrated embodiment is a push switch that switches when pressed and returns when released. There is provided a self-holding circuit configured to hold the state switched by pressing the push switch in a circuit and to release the holding when pressed again. Alternatively, it may be a push / push switch having a mechanism in which the state is maintained by pressing once and maintained, and the state is maintained by pressing again. In this case, the self-holding circuit is not necessary.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Microphone case 2 Microphone unit 3 Circuit board 4 Light ring 5 Front cover 6 Side cover 7 Switch 8 Conductive cushion material 9 Conductive ring 11 Flange 12 Buffer material 15 Connector 18 Press operation board 31 Light emitting element 32 Light emitting element 41 Inclined surface 42 Light emission Surface 43 Slightly inclined surface

Claims (10)

A microphone case,
A microphone unit attached to one end of the microphone case;
A front cover that covers the microphone unit on one end side of the microphone case and is attached so as to be movable relative to the microphone case;
A switch that operates by moving the front cover relative to the microphone case to turn on and off the output signal of the microphone unit;
A conductive cushion material interposed between the front cover and the microphone case;
Microphone equipped with.   The microphone according to claim 1, wherein the front cover is movable relative to the microphone case by being pressed against the elastic force of the conductive cushion material.   3. The microphone according to claim 1, wherein a conductive ring is interposed between the front cover and the conductive cushion material.   4. The microphone according to claim 3, wherein the positional relationship between the conductive ring and the switch is set so that the switch is activated by movement of the conductive ring.   The microphone according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a light emitting element whose operation is switched by turning on and off the output signal.   The microphone according to claim 5, wherein a light ring formed in an arc shape along the outer periphery of the front cover is disposed so as to overlap the light emitting element.   The microphone according to claim 6, wherein the light ring is formed in a C shape by cutting a part of an arc, and the switch is arranged in the cut part. The microphone according to claim 5 , wherein the microphone case has a flange on one end side, and the conductive cushion material and the light emitting element are arranged on the flange.   The microphone according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the front cover is made of a metal mesh, and a pressing operation plate is fixed to the metal mesh. The microphone case and the front cover are made of a conductive material, the microphone case and the front cover are electrically connected via the conductive cushion material, and the microphone case, the conductive cushion material, and the front cover are connected to the microphone. The microphone according to claim 1, wherein the unit is electromagnetically shielded.

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