WO2000054552A1 - Resonant-mode panel loudspeaker with light emitter - Google Patents

Resonant-mode panel loudspeaker with light emitter Download PDF

Info

Publication number
WO2000054552A1
WO2000054552A1 PCT/GB2000/000801 GB0000801W WO0054552A1 WO 2000054552 A1 WO2000054552 A1 WO 2000054552A1 GB 0000801 W GB0000801 W GB 0000801W WO 0054552 A1 WO0054552 A1 WO 0054552A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
panel
light
combination according
enclosure
loudspeaker
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/GB2000/000801
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Henry Azima
Edward Jarvis
Neil Simon Owen
Kieron Dunk
Original Assignee
New Transducers Limited
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from GBGB9905374.6A external-priority patent/GB9905374D0/en
Priority claimed from GBGB9922511.2A external-priority patent/GB9922511D0/en
Application filed by New Transducers Limited filed Critical New Transducers Limited
Priority to AU29281/00A priority Critical patent/AU2928100A/en
Publication of WO2000054552A1 publication Critical patent/WO2000054552A1/en

Links

Classifications

    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F21—LIGHTING
    • F21V—FUNCTIONAL FEATURES OR DETAILS OF LIGHTING DEVICES OR SYSTEMS THEREOF; STRUCTURAL COMBINATIONS OF LIGHTING DEVICES WITH OTHER ARTICLES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • F21V33/00—Structural combinations of lighting devices with other articles, not otherwise provided for
    • F21V33/0004—Personal or domestic articles
    • F21V33/0052—Audio or video equipment, e.g. televisions, telephones, cameras or computers; Remote control devices therefor
    • F21V33/0056—Audio equipment, e.g. music instruments, radios or speakers
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R1/00—Details of transducers, loudspeakers or microphones
    • H04R1/02—Casings; Cabinets ; Supports therefor; Mountings therein
    • H04R1/028—Casings; Cabinets ; Supports therefor; Mountings therein associated with devices performing functions other than acoustics, e.g. electric candles
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R2201/00—Details of transducers, loudspeakers or microphones covered by H04R1/00 but not provided for in any of its subgroups
    • H04R2201/02—Details casings, cabinets or mounting therein for transducers covered by H04R1/02 but not provided for in any of its subgroups
    • H04R2201/021—Transducers or their casings adapted for mounting in or to a wall or ceiling
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R7/00—Diaphragms for electromechanical transducers; Cones
    • H04R7/02—Diaphragms for electromechanical transducers; Cones characterised by the construction
    • H04R7/04—Plane diaphragms
    • H04R7/045—Plane diaphragms using the distributed mode principle, i.e. whereby the acoustic radiation is emanated from uniformly distributed free bending wave vibration induced in a stiff panel and not from pistonic motion

Definitions

  • Figure 4 is a cross-sectional side view of another embodiment of light fitting or tile for a suspended ceiling
  • Figure 5 is a cross-sectional side view of yet another arrangement of suspended ceiling light fitting or tile

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Multimedia (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Acoustics & Sound (AREA)
  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Details Of Audible-Bandwidth Transducers (AREA)

Abstract

A combination panel-form loudspeaker/light comprising a panel (12) having a front face (14) and rear face (16), a vibration exciter (18, 20) mounted to the member to excite bending-wave vibration in the member, and a light emitter (22) mounted at or adjacent to the panel and arranged to illuminate an area adjacent to the panel.

Description

TITLE: RESONANT-MODE PANEL LOUDSPEAKER WITH LIGHT EMITTER
DESCRIPTION
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates to loudspeakers and more particularly to bending wave panel-form loudspeakers e.g. of the general kind described in International patent application WO97/09842.
BACKGROUND ART The technology described in International Patent application O97/09842 has come to be known as distributed mode or DM technology and among other things, WO97/09842 describes a ceiling tile/loudspeaker combination. A feature of bending wave panel-form loudspeakers is that they may be made flat and of shallow depth and may thus be wall or ceiling mounted in a domestic, or other, environment to occupy a minimum of space. It has also been suggested that the flat front face of the loudspeaker may be disguised as a picture or mural.
It is an object of the invention to extend the utility of such wall or other surface mounting of panel- form loudspeakers for other purposes, by combining such loudspeakers with other devices in synergistic combinations .
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
According to the invention, there is provided a panel-form loudspeaker comprising a bending wave panel having a front face and rear face, a vibration exciter mounted to the panel to excite bending-wave vibration in the panel, and a light emitter mounted at or adjacent to the rear face of the panel and arranged to illuminate an area adjacent to the panel. A light reflector may be provided to direct light from the light emitter. The panel may be transparent or translucent.
The loudspeaker may comprise an enclosure defining a cavity enclosing at least a portion of the rear face of the panel. The light-emitter may be disposed in the cavity and may be arranged to emit light through at least one window therein. The enclosure may be transparent or translucent to light. The enclosure may be moulded from a clear plastic such as polycarbonate. The enclosure may be formed with one or more lenses to direct the emitted light as desired. The lens(es) may be moulded integrally with the enclosure.
The enclosure is preferably acoustically opaque to prevent or reduce acoustic radiation from the rear face of the panel. The cavity may be dimensioned such as to modify the modal behaviour of the member, e.g. as taught in 099/52322.
The light emitter may comprise a fluorescent device, or other device which does not emit significant heat. Such a device may be a low voltage device. Power to the light emitter may be supplied via electrically conductive lead(s) supplying power to the vibration exciter.
The loudspeaker may further comprise a front cover. The front cover will be acoustically transparent to allow acoustic radiation from the panel to pass through. The front cover is preferably opaque to light. The front cover may be arranged to extend beyond the panel perimeter and the enclosure. The loudspeaker may be adapted to be wall mounted or to be ceiling mounted, e.g. as a ceiling tile. Thus, when so mounted, the front cover may at least partly conceal the loudspeaker enclosure from view.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS The invention is diagrammatically illustrated, by way of example, in the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 shows an exploded perspective view of a panel-form loudspeaker embodying the present invention and intended for wall mounting;
Figure 2a is a plan view of a panel-form loudspeaker embodying the present invention and generally as shown in Figure 1; Figure 2b is a cross-section along line AA of Figure 2a;
Figure 2c is a side view of the loudspeaker of Figure 2a;
Figure 3 is a cross-sectional side view of an embodiment of light fitting or tile for a suspended ceiling;
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional side view of another embodiment of light fitting or tile for a suspended ceiling; Figure 5 is a cross-sectional side view of yet another arrangement of suspended ceiling light fitting or tile;
Figure 6 is a cross-sectional side view of a further embodiment of suspended ceiling light fitting or tile, and
Figure 7 is a scrap cross-sectional side view relevant to the embodiments of Figures 3 to 6
BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings show a panel-form loudspeaker/light fitting combination (10) comprising a resonant panel (12) having a front face (14) and rear face (16) and two vibration exciters (18,20) mounted on the panel (12) to excite bending-wave vibration in the panel (12) to cause it to resonate and produce an acoustic output generally as described in WO 97/09842.
The loudspeaker (10) further comprises a shallow rear box-like enclosure (24) which defines a cavity (26) enclosing the rear face (16) of the panel (12). The enclosure (24) is acoustically opaque to prevent or reduce acoustic radiation from the rear face (16) of the panel (12). The panel (12) is mounted to the rear enclosure by means of a resilient suspension (30) extending around the perimeter of the panel (12).
A light-emitter (22) in the form of a fluorescent tube is mounted in a support (32) in the enclosure (24) and at the lower edge thereof, as seen in Figure 1. The enclosure (24) is transparent to light and moulded from a plastics material. The support (32) for the light-emitter
(22) comprises a reflector (48) which directs the emitted light as desired. In this embodiment, the loudspeaker (10) is intended for wall-mounting and thus the light is directed outwardly through the top and sides of the transparent rear enclosure (24) so that the loudspeaker also forms a wall light.
A decorative front cover (28) is mounted to the enclosure (24) to cover the front face (14) of the panel (12) and the support (32) . The front cover (28) is acoustically transparent and opaque to light. Accordingly, acoustic radiation from the panel (12), but not light from the fluorescent tube, is allowed to pass through the cover (28). A lower portion (38) of the front cover is curved to match the profile of the support (32) .
The front cover (28) extends beyond the edges (42) of the rear enclosure (24) so that when the loudspeaker is wall mounted, the front cover (28) conceals the enclosure from view.
Figure 2a is a rear view of the loudspeaker with the outline of internal components, e.g. the perimeter (40) of the panel (12) and the edges (44) of the fluorescent tube shown with dotted line.. The exciters (18, 20) are mounted off-centre of the panel (12) as taught in WO 97/09842. Thus the panel has the capability to sustain and propagate input vibrational energy by a plurality of resonant bending wave modes in at least one operative area extending transversely of thickness, wherein the frequencies of resonant bending wave modes are interleaved in a predetermined frequency range so that the resonant bending wave modes are substantially evenly distributed in frequency and wherein the vibration exciters are mounted on said operative area of the panel at preferential locations or sites for coupling to the resonant bending wave modes, to vibrate the panel and excite said resonant bending wave modes in the panel, the resonant bending wave modes in turn producing an acoustic output.
Figure 2b shows that the exciters (18,20) are mounted on the rear face (16) of the panel (12) and that additional support for the exciters (18,20) may be provided by resiliently suspending them on the rear enclosure (24) e.g. as taught in W098.31188. Accordingly, the rear enclosure comprises two inward projections or bosses (46) which are aligned with the exciters (18,20), so that the resilient suspension, not shown, can be disposed between the projections (46) and the exciters.
Figure 3 shows an embodiment of light fitting or tile/loudspeaker combination (10) for a suspended ceiling
(not shown) comprising a translucent resonant panel (12) having a vibration exciter (18) thereon, e.g. as taught in WO97/09842 mounted in a box-like enclosure (24) to form a cavity (26) in which a fluorescent light fitting
(22) is positioned. The mounting of the panel (12) in the enclosure (24) is indicated by arrows (34) and is described further with reference to Figure 7 below.
Figure 4 shows an embodiment of light fitting/loudspeaker combination (10) generally similar to that of Figure 3 and showing a vibration exciter (18) mounted on a translucent panel (12) at a position adjacent to the edge of the panel, as taught in W099/37121, whereby the exciter can be hidden from view if desired.
Figure 5 shows an arrangement of suspended ceiling/loudspeaker combination (10) light fitting generally similar to that of Figures 3 and 4 and showing the resonant panel (12) mounted above the fluorescent light (22) in the enclosure and with a ceiling tile (36) in the form of an open grille below the light fitting ( 22 )
Figure 6 is a cross-sectional side view of an embodiment of suspended ceiling light fitting/loudspeaker combination (10) similar to those described above in Figures 3 to 5 and comprising a box-like enclosure (24) housing a curved light reflector (48) in the form of a resonant panel (12) excited by vibration exciter (18) and with fluorescent light fitting (22) mounted below the reflector (48) and a ceiling tile (36) in the form of an open grille below the light fittings to close the enclosure (24) .
Figure 7 is a scrap cross-sectional side view showing how the resonant panel (12) and/or tile (36) in the embodiments of Figures 3 to 6 can be supported in the enclosure (24) at its edges by means of brackets (50) mounted on the edges of the panel (12) or tile (36), the brackets being formed with apertures (not shown) which are located and mounted on upstanding pegs (52) in the enclosure (24) .
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The invention thus provides a slim panel-form loudspeaker of increased utility, and which can be used to provide wall or ceiling lighting.

Claims

1. A combination panel-form loudspeaker/light comprising a panel having a front face and rear face, a vibration exciter mounted to the member to excite bending-wave vibration in the member, and a light emitter mounted at or adjacent to the panel and arranged to illuminate an area adjacent to the panel.
2. A combination according to claim 1, comprising a light reflector positioned to direct light from the light emitter.
3. A combination according to claim 1 or claim 2, comprising an enclosure defining a cavity enclosing at least a portion of the rear face of the member.
4. A combination according to claim 3, comprising at least one window in the enclosure and the light-emitter is disposed in the cavity and is arranged to emit light through the at least one window.
5. A combination according to claim 3, wherein the enclosure is transparent or translucent to light.
6. A combination according to claim 5 wherein the enclosure is moulded from a clear plastics.
7. A combination according to any one of claims 3 to 6 wherein the enclosure is formed with at least one lens to direct emitted light.
8. A combination according to claim 7, wherein the lens is moulded integrally with the enclosure.
9. A combination according to any one of claims 3 to 8, wherein the enclosure is acoustically opaque to prevent or reduce acoustic radiation from the rear face of the panel .
10. A combination according to any preceding claim, wherein the panel is translucent.
11. A combination according to any one of claims 1 to 9, comprising an acoustically transparent front cover which is opaque to light.
12. A combination according to claim 11, wherein the front cover is arranged to extend beyond the panel perimeter.
13. A combination according to any preceding claim, adapted to be wall mounted or to be ceiling mounted.
14. A combination according to claim 13, adapted as a fitment for a suspended ceiling.
PCT/GB2000/000801 1999-03-10 2000-03-09 Resonant-mode panel loudspeaker with light emitter WO2000054552A1 (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
AU29281/00A AU2928100A (en) 1999-03-10 2000-03-09 Resonant-mode panel loudspeaker with light emitter

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB9905374.6A GB9905374D0 (en) 1999-03-10 1999-03-10 Loudspeakers
GB9905374.6 1999-03-10
GB9922511.2 1999-09-24
GBGB9922511.2A GB9922511D0 (en) 1999-09-24 1999-09-24 Panel-form loudspeaker

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2000054552A1 true WO2000054552A1 (en) 2000-09-14

Family

ID=26315246

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/GB2000/000801 WO2000054552A1 (en) 1999-03-10 2000-03-09 Resonant-mode panel loudspeaker with light emitter

Country Status (2)

Country Link
AU (1) AU2928100A (en)
WO (1) WO2000054552A1 (en)

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2370939A (en) * 2001-01-04 2002-07-10 New Transducers Ltd A curved or cylindrical bending wave loudspeaker panel
EP1389030A3 (en) * 2002-08-08 2004-06-16 ARTEMIDE GROUP S.p.A. Multifunction lighting fixture
EP1838132A2 (en) * 2006-03-24 2007-09-26 Seven Co.,Ltd. Speaker
GB2436411A (en) * 2006-03-23 2007-09-26 Futuros Ltd Lighting and sound reproduction
WO2009112414A1 (en) * 2008-03-11 2009-09-17 Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Acoustic device

Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4559584A (en) * 1984-05-03 1985-12-17 Victor Company Of Japan, Limited Combination lighting device and loudspeaker
US4820952A (en) * 1986-09-16 1989-04-11 Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd. Film speaker using a piezo-electric element
FR2649575A1 (en) * 1989-07-07 1991-01-11 Thomson Consumer Electronics Display screen with integrated electroacoustic function
WO1997009843A1 (en) * 1995-09-02 1997-03-13 New Transducers Limited Loudspeakers comprising panel-form acoustic radiating elements
WO1997009840A2 (en) * 1995-09-02 1997-03-13 New Transducers Limited Loudspeakers comprising panel-form acoustic radiating elements
WO1999065274A1 (en) * 1998-06-05 1999-12-16 New Transducers Limited Resonant panel-form acoustic devices

Patent Citations (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4559584A (en) * 1984-05-03 1985-12-17 Victor Company Of Japan, Limited Combination lighting device and loudspeaker
US4820952A (en) * 1986-09-16 1989-04-11 Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd. Film speaker using a piezo-electric element
FR2649575A1 (en) * 1989-07-07 1991-01-11 Thomson Consumer Electronics Display screen with integrated electroacoustic function
WO1997009843A1 (en) * 1995-09-02 1997-03-13 New Transducers Limited Loudspeakers comprising panel-form acoustic radiating elements
WO1997009840A2 (en) * 1995-09-02 1997-03-13 New Transducers Limited Loudspeakers comprising panel-form acoustic radiating elements
WO1999065274A1 (en) * 1998-06-05 1999-12-16 New Transducers Limited Resonant panel-form acoustic devices

Cited By (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
GB2370939A (en) * 2001-01-04 2002-07-10 New Transducers Ltd A curved or cylindrical bending wave loudspeaker panel
EP1389030A3 (en) * 2002-08-08 2004-06-16 ARTEMIDE GROUP S.p.A. Multifunction lighting fixture
GB2436411A (en) * 2006-03-23 2007-09-26 Futuros Ltd Lighting and sound reproduction
EP1838132A2 (en) * 2006-03-24 2007-09-26 Seven Co.,Ltd. Speaker
EP1838132A3 (en) * 2006-03-24 2010-01-13 Seven Co.,Ltd. Speaker
WO2009112414A1 (en) * 2008-03-11 2009-09-17 Siemens Aktiengesellschaft Acoustic device

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Publication number Publication date
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