JPS59180474A - Annunciator - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The primary object of the present invention is to provide a means for locating items that cannot be immediately found visually.

The invention can also be used to assist a person asked to operate a control element or the like to identify that element.

An example of the first application is when you know that a small item you need is nearby, but it is placed in the wrong place or hidden behind other items, and you are temporarily unable to find it. I can cite common situations where there is no such thing. Examples of a painting room include a bunch of keys in the back of a jacket pocket placed nearby, or a mirror case in a crowded desk drawer. It would be a hassle and a waste of time to have to search around for such things. The present invention facilitates locating such items. The second example of the field of application of the invention is a machine having an emergency stop button, one of a number of control buttons, which is unlikely to be easily identified by an unskilled operator. I can do it.

All the cases shown above have one thing in common.

In other words, since a person who wishes to search for or identify an object must accomplish his goal by himself, any means to assist him will operate without any additional human assistance. There should be no sway in Noh.

Accordingly, the present invention is adapted to be attached to or incorporated into an article whose location is to be determined.
The annunciator provides an output signal in response to an audible trigger signal that can be emitted by a human without using mechanical or electrical means.

Preferably, the annunciator only responds to trigger signals within a predetermined narrow frequency band in the audible range. In that case, it is desirable to select a frequency band that can be emitted by humans, for example, by whistling.

When used to locate hidden items, the annunciator of the present invention emits an audible output signal. The output signal is preferably outside the predetermined frequency of the trigger signal to prevent acoustic feedback. When using the invention to identify control elements, the output signal can be a visible signal from the lamp. In either case, the output signal preferably persists for some time after the trigger signal stops.

Thus, assuming that the annunciator of the present invention is attached to a bunch of keys, if you want to know whether the key is in the bedroom, you can go into the bedroom and whistle briefly. For example, you may hear a beeping sound. You may have to repeat this action until you find your keychain. If the switch is equipped with an annunciator of the present invention that emits a light as a signal when the ignition is turned off, a short whistle will cause a light to appear near the ignition switch.

Although the annunciator of the present invention is preferably responsive to a human whistle, it can also be configured to operate in response to an audible trigger signal generated in other ways, such as by clapping hands.

One embodiment of the invention breaks down the generally columnar bullet-shaped case with a hole at one end that can be used to attach it to a key ring, and the key ring can then be used to attach it to another item. . The other end of the body is closed by a removable, preferably threaded cap, forming a battery chamber for accommodating one or several high-power, small-volume batteries, such as so-called mercury cells, ponds, etc. 8. An input transducer, such as an electret microphone, that converts the received sound into an audio frequency electrical signal;
Circuit means, preferably comprising an integrated circuit chip, and an output transducer capable of receiving electrical signals from the circuit means and transmitting pJs in a pJ-efficient manner are housed within the body. Both the inlet and outlet transducers are preferably mounted near the opening of the case to facilitate the passage of sound through the case. Circuit means is connected to the input and output transducers as well as to the battery. The circuit means may be, for example, a band-pass amplifier circuit which, in conjunction with a filter circuit, receives the output of the input transducer and provides a band-pass output response in accordance with the frequency range of human whistling. The output of this amplifier circuit is connected to a detection circuit. The detector circuit is connected to a first location where the battery voltage is applied to the capacitor to charge it, and a second location where the capacitor can be discharged via an output transducer (in this case, a buzzer). Controls an electronic switch with two positions, 1d and 1d.

8. When it is not obscene, for example, just before the annunciator puts the connected key ring in his pocket. An on/off switch is preferably provided to enable the annunciator to be turned off. One suitable example of an on/off switch is a rotary switch that can be actuated by a ring surrounding the body of the annunciator.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained in more detail using the attached drawings.

The case IAA of the annunciator according to the embodiment has a cylindrical shape, and has a length of 62** and a diameter of 15 mm, for example.

-@2AA of the cylinder is tapered at 18°, and gold J! A frame is provided for attaching a 4-piece split ring.

The other end of the cylinder has a removable end cap 3AA for battery handling.

☆1゛The section cag 3AA is adapted to rotate within a 40' arc and is fitted with contacts to form a complete rotary on/off switch.

The case IAA is preferably injection molded from a durable glass material such as polycarbonate.

The electronic circuit 4AA of the embodiment annunciator is preferably assembled from commercially available components and is housed immediately before the battery 5AA. This circuit consists of an input transducer 6AA, an output transducer 7AA, and an integrated circuit 8.
It consists of three parts: AA.

The input quadrature transducer consists of a small condenser microphone insert and has the function of detecting the sound waves of a human whistle and converting them into electrical energy.

The maximum sensitivity of this microphone is 660 Hz and 1980 Hz.
It is desirable to have a band between H and 7.

Preferably, the response curve of the microphone drops off sharply outside of this band to reduce the nature of the annunciator operating in response to young signals and the amount of signal processing required.

The output transducer 7AA is a well-known small sound source, such as those used in computer-controlled cash registers and digital alarm clocks. This is high output 3.3KH
z cr) To emit an audible alarm.

The following items are included in the list of items to configure the annunciator: I) Battery contacts; 11) Switch contacts; 111) Ring mounting.

The annunciator has 2 flill battery contacts 9AA.

One contact is inserted into a removable end cap, which can be made from a plated metal strip (eg phosphor bronze).

This contact also forms one half of the switch contact on the lip of end cap 3AA.

The other battery contact is located inside the case body.
The squirrel contacts inserted into the l0AA can also consist of plated metal strips or nickel-plated steel wires in the form of coiled springs.

There are two switches 5 points 11AA for on/off control.

One is located on the edge of the removable end cap and forms part of the battery contacts. consisting of a tamping wire extending from the outer edge of the end cap into the chamber containing the electronic device;
Configured to engage flat contacts in the end camps. On-off operation is obtained by rotating the end cap 3A.

Integrated circuit 8AA is preferably a dedicated, low power, monolithic component. The function of this circuit is to receive and take electrical energy from the input quadrature transducer 6AA.
This information should be processed and an audible alarm 4, in response to a predetermined acoustic signal, such as a human whistle, by supplying the acoustic signal to the output transducer 7AA.The energy supply for the circuit is of type It is commonly referred to as S76 and is used in cameras, cameras, etc., 2
1 or 4 15 volt silver oxide (Ag20) - 11A, pond 5.

The preferred form of the integrated circuit is connected in two ways, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. A block diagram of this circuit is also shown in FIG. 6. First, please refer to FIGS. 4 and 5. Terminal 1 and! I to j
The power supply connected between the terminals 2 is responsible for the operation of the circuit. The positive pole of the power supply should be connected to terminal 1 and the negative pole to terminal 2. The power source is a power source obtained from a primary or secondary battery or a remote power source, and is preferably in the range of 2.4 to 7.0 inches.

Under such conditions the leakage current should be less than 50 μA.

consisting of a resistor and a capacitor connected between terminals 3 and 40) i! The tl wavenumber setting path is common to both methods using the integrated circuit. This frequency setting circuit must be stable for steady-state operation of the integrated circuit.

In Figure 4, the input quadrature transducer 6AA is connected between the terminals 5 and 2, and the output quadrature transducer 7AA is connected between the terminals 5 and 2.
is connected between terminal 6 and terminal 7.

As shown in FIG. 5, the input transducer 6AA and the output transducer 7AA can be the same element. In this case, the best transducer for this dual purpose is a piezoelectric disk.

Let's take a look at Figure 6 here. The power supply is used for voltage supply and feedback. Preferably, the integrated circuit does not harbor internal regulation devices.

The operation of the integrated circuit essentially depends on the frequency of the oscillator and then on the outputs from the two oscillator dividers.

The output of the microphone 5 is amplified at 8 and a pulse is generated at the output of an oscillator 9 for each positive transition of the microphone voltage.

The period of the incoming signal is determined by counting the number of oscillator clocks between pulses from the amplifier and pulse shaping circuit. The contents of the period determination circuit 10 can be loaded into the period register 11 and the two are compared by the period comparison circuit 12.

Once the output time divider circuit 13 has counted up to a predetermined maximum value and the input signal is out of bounds, the control logic circuit 14 enters an idle state in which the output is disabled and the microphone power 5 is active. Whenever the output of the amplifier and pulse shaping circuit 8 is active, the control logic checks the count of the period determination circuit and if it falls within the limits for the first time after the idle state, its contents are stored in the period register. loaded into.

This is the transition state between the idle state and the sound output state. The duration of this transition state is determined by the contents of the acoustic master A: counter 15.

The period measured by the period determining circuit 10 for each of the outputs of the amplifier circuit/pulse shaping circuit 8 is compared with the contents of the period register 11. (If they are equal for 64 consecutive periods as measured by the f9 duration counter 15, then f)1 circuit enters the acoustic output state.

If the input coefficient is out of bounds during the idle transition state, the circuit returns to the idle state. If the contents of the period register 11 and the period determining circuit 10 are not equal, the idle state 4 is restarted.

During the 'M t' output state, the output of the amplifier circuit and pulse shaping circuit is disabled. The acoustic divider circuit 16, like the output buffer 17, is activated in the acoustic output state. The output buffer 17 is controlled by the output of the output time frequency divider circuit 13 to generate sound.

The duration of the acoustic output state is determined by an output time divider circuit 13 which resets the integrated circuit to an idle state when the final count is reached.

Since period register 11 and period comparator 12 have a 2-bit resolution, there are four possible values.

Because of the uncertainty involved in quantifying the period of the input waveform, there are four bands to which the integrated circuit responds.

When the oscillator is set to 52.8 KH,z, the integrated circuit has the following characteristics:

Input response: Band 1 is 825Hz to 942.9Hz Band 2 is 942.9Hz to 1100Hz Even band 3 is 11
00) (z to x320.Hz band 4 is 13201-
iz to 1650FLZ minimum duration: 825H
77.6 m at 51650 Hz 38.8 mS at 1650 Hz Output sound: 3.3 KHz Output duration: 1.24 seconds Changing the characteristics of the oscillator changes the above operating parameters.

Please refer to FIG. The three parts of A2 have a period of 18.
It forms an oscillator that oscillates at 52.8 KI-IZ which is 94f microseconds. The two parts of A3 are '132 kHz A3 with a period of 75.76 microseconds.
It is a divide-by-4 ripple counter with an output at P13.

The microphone outputs are each A41 with a gain of 47.
and A13. The bandwidth of this amplifier pair is limited by the three coupling capacitors at the low frequency end and by the slew rate of the LM4250 operational amplifier at the high) ld wavenumber end.

The three parts of A15 form a Schmitt trigger circuit, ensuring amplification of small input coefficients from the microphone by a single logic level. A1602 Part C forms a Norculus shaping circuit together with a part of A19, and Al 6P
A noculus is generated in Al 6P13 with a positive duration of the oscillator signal at 11 and a repetition rate equal to the coefficient at A16P3 obtained from the microphone output.

The oscillator output A3P13 has one stage of O/C flow.
It is supplied to a period determining circuit which is a stage ripple counter. Clock input is A4P3, A4P11, A5P3, A5P
11, and A6P3, all of which are A17
The set signal which is the output of the amplifier circuit/pulse shaping circuit delayed by the 02 part is shared. If the period between the common set pulses in the period determining circuit is within 8 to 16 counts of the oscillator in A3P13, then A
5P13 and A6P2 are at low levels. This occurs whenever the microphone input is between 825 Hz and 1650 Hz. A6P1-6 is a one-stage overflow; once clocked, A6P2 goes high and stays low until set low at the end of the measurement period.
,゛, the idle state is when Al8P1 is at low level and the :M transition state flip-flop (A18
This is when P9 to P13) are maintained in a reset state. A
8P6 changes to high level and microphone is 825 Hz
A18 when indicating that it is between 1650Hz and 1650Hz
P1 changes to leak level and loads the lower 3 bits of the period determining circuit into the period register. The comparison outputs of the first stage A6P9-13 and its A9P3 are not consecutive, so the top two
(A7P5 and A7P9) are active (act
ive).

The period comparator consists of two exclusive OR gates and A1P9~1
3. A18P10 during transition state
is low level and A18P12 is low level as long as the period comparator indicates that the wooden sword period and the period stored in the ML are the same within the resolution of the integrated circuit.

During the transition state, the microphone output is between 825Hz and 1
If outside the 650Hz range, A8P6 goes low, causing the control logic to idle. A
31. A32. And 2ftls of A33 form a 6-stage ripple counter which is a pre-writing continuation counter. This counter is set to a zero count each time the period j comparator output of A20P11 goes low indicating that the stored count and current count are not equal.

When the sound duration counter reaches 64 counts, A20P3
is clocked into the sound output state.

The amplifier circuit output is inhibited by A20P1 at Al 51"l and 5. A20P2 is low level during the acoustic output state and the oscillator signal from A3P13 is sent to A19P6 and then to A34P3. The acoustic divider circuit is Drives the output sofa (AIO) and the output time frequency divider circuit from A34P13.

Since the output buffers of A10P6 and 10 are tristated by A20P1 or 2 during idle states, one transducer can be used as both a microphone and a round speaker. The output sofa is also controlled by a flip-flop in the output time divider circuit to generate 8 bursts during a 124 second output.
s of tone).

The output time frequency divider circuit is 3.3 K) l Z output of 40
Count 96 cycles and clock A20P1112
It is a stage ripple counter. A20P13 pulse is A2
0P4 is reset to terminate the acoustic output state and the integrated circuit returns to the idle state.

Thus, it can be seen that the present invention, at least the disclosed embodiments, provides a new, unique, and extremely useful apparatus for locating misplaced items. It is clear, however, that the embodiment described above is only one possible form of the invention, and that the invention may be applied in any case by making various modifications to the housing and circuitry that will be apparent to those skilled in the art. I can do it.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3 are cross-sectional views, FIG. 4, and FIG. 5 of one embodiment of the annunciator of the present invention. and FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram of a preferred example of circuit means;
FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram of the above circuit means. Code in the figure IAA...Case 3AA...End cap 4AA...Electronic circuit 5AA...Batch IJ-
6AA... Input transducer 7AA... Output transducer 8AA... Integrated circuit 9AA... Battery contact 10AA... Barrier 11AA... Switch contact 8... Amplifier circuit 9... Oscillator 10...
- Period determining circuit 11... Period register 12... Period comparator 13... Output time frequency dividing circuit 14... Control logic circuit 15... Acoustic duration counter 16... Acoustic frequency dividing circuit 17. ...Output Buffer Patent Applicant Nidward, Malcolm, Jeffrey Robert. Alfred. Smith Agent Yoshihisa Oshida iG Songs Australia Country 2094 New South Wales Fairlight Polling Broke Parade 8

Claims (9)

[Claims] (1) Attached to an item whose whereabouts are to be ascertained;
An annunciator for delivering an output signal in response to an audible trigger signal that can be emitted by a human without mechanical or electrical means, the annunciator being configured to be attached or incorporated therein. (2) The annunciator according to claim 1, wherein the audible trigger signal is within a predetermined frequency range above the range of normal speech. (3) The annunciator of claim 2, wherein the audible trigger signal comprises the sound of the human whistling. (4) The annunciator according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the output signal comprises an audible output signal outside the predetermined frequency of the trigger signal to prevent juvenile feedback. (5) The annunciator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the cutting signal is composed of a visual signal 'i5] from a lamp. (6) The annunciator according to any one of the patents, wherein the output signal continues for a while after the trigger signal stops rising. (7) an input transducer for receiving the trigger signal and converting it into a first electrical signal; circuit means for processing the first electrical signal; and upon receiving a second electrical signal from the circuit means; and an output transducer for transmitting the cutting signal. (8) The annunciator according to claim 7, wherein the input transducer and the output transducer both consist of a single element such as a piezoelectric disk. (9) The circuit means, in conjunction with a filter circuit,
A band amplifier circuit receives the output of the input transducer and provides a band output response when driven by the trigger signal in the predetermined frequency range, and the output response is such that the oscillation output buffer outputs the output transducer. 9. An annunciator as claimed in claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the annunciator is supplied to a detection circuit which controls an electronic switch to enable generation of the output signal via the detection circuit. OI Annunciator according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the circuit means comprises an integrated circuit chip.