WO2005109950A1

WO2005109950A1 - Bone conduction and wireless receiving set

Info

Publication number: WO2005109950A1
Application number: PCT/KR2005/001347
Authority: WO
Inventors: Dae-Sung Lee
Original assignee: Dae-Sung Lee
Priority date: 2004-05-11
Filing date: 2005-05-09
Publication date: 2005-11-17
Also published as: KR200357353Y1

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a bone conduction and wireless reception device. The present invention is used to receive an audio signal from an audio signal generation device and allow a user to hear the audio signal through bone conduction headphones. The above-described present invention includes a transmitter for receiving an audio signal from an audio signal generation device, such as an audio device or a television, modulating the audio signal and transmitting the audio signal in wireless form, a receiver for converting the wireless audio signal, which is received from the transmitter, into a bone conduction signal and outputting the bone conduction signal to bone conduction headphones, and the bone conduction headphones for vibrating the skull using a bone conduction vibrator in response to the bone conduction signal received by the receiver, stimulating auditory nerves and, therefore, allowing a user to hear the audio signal.

Description

Description BONE CONDUCTION AND WIRELESS RECEIVING SET Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a wireless receiving set that wirelessly receives audio signals transmitted from an audio signal generation device and allows a user to hear the audio signals and, more particularly, to a bone conduction and wireless receiving set that receives wireless audio signals through bone conduction headphones. Background Art

[2] In general, a human hears sound based on the principle of air conduction in which sound is transmitted to the internal ear via the external ear and the middle ear. In more detail, sound collected by the auricle and the external auditory canal is transmitted to the middle ear through the vibration of the eardrum and stimulates about 2,000 hair cells of auditory nerves via three auditory ossicles, so that the sound is sensed and analyzed and then transmitted to the brain via nerves.

[3] Hearing impairment originates from a disease that develops in a structure, such as the eardrum or the external ear, that is concerned with such conduction. Of such hearing impairment, conduction-type hearing impairment in which impairment occurs in the external ear or the middle ear is generated due to a problem in a part (external ear or middle ear) that amplifies and transmits sounds. Accordingly, a person having conduction type hearing impairment can hear sound when the sound is amplified to such an extent that it is transmitted to the person and then heard by the person. However, a person, having nerve type-hearing impairment that is caused by nervous system malfunction in which a person cannot hear a sound due to impairment occurring in a nervous path between the cochlear canal or middle ear and the brain, has a weak possibility of hearing sound well through the amplification of the sound. Accordingly, unlike a person having conduction-type hearing impairment, a person having nerve-type hearing impairment cannot distinguish most sounds through the amplification of the sounds. In general, hearing impairment is caused in the internal ear in proportion to the age, and this geriatiric hearing impairment is considered nerve hearing impairment.

[4] A conventional hearing aid is a kind of sound magnifier for a hearing-impaired person, particularly, a person having conduction type hearing impairment, which is worn in the ear to compensate for hearing impairment. The principle of the hearing aid is to receive sound waves via a microphone, convert the sound waves into electrical oscillations, amplify the electrical oscillations, convert the oscillations into sound waves again, and then be heard by the ear via an earphone. [5] The major problem of the conventional hearing aid is that sounds can be heard but cannot be understood. The problem occurs because the user of the convention hearing aid hears only mechanical sounds. Furthermore, the conventional hearing aid, which provides only amplified sounds to a hearing-impaired person who has difficulty hearing sounds through air vibrations and allows the person to hear the sounds through air conduction that transmits sounds to the person via air vibrations, further worsens the hearing impairment of the person, thus resulting in a situation in which the person cannot hear sounds even when using the hearing aid. Additionally, diseases, such as headaches, the inflammation of the middle ear and eczema, are the side effects of wearing the conventional hearing aid.

[6] Accordingly, a device that overcomes the limitations of the conventional hearing aid using air conduction as described above and that has been developed for the cases where hearing impairment cannot be compensated for by the amplification of sounds, such as nerve-type hearing impairment, is a bone conduction hearing aid. The principle of the bone conduction hearing aid is to stimulate a mastoid portion positioned at the back of the ear and allow sounds to be directly transmitted to the cochlear canal. The bone conduction hearing aid is composed of a bone conduction vibrator that converts sounds into mechanical vibrations.

[7] As a result, a hearing-impaired person wearing the bone conduction hearing aid hears sounds in such a way that sounds are received from the outside, a bone conduction vibrator vibrates, the skull vibrates and auditory nerves detect the sounds, so that it can mitigate somewhat the problems caused by wearing the conventional hearing aid and is widely used by persons having nerve-type hearing impairment.

[8] However, in the cases where hearing-impaired persons, even when wearing the bone conduction hearing aids, hear sound signals transmitted from an audio signal generation device, such as a television or an audio device, or a general speaker in a class or a meeting place, the hearing performance of the bone conduction hearing aids is degraded by noise added to the sound signals, and it is difficult for the hearing- impaired persons to hear the sound signals when in the same place as normal persons because the hearing-impaired persons can hear sounds having a volume considerably higher than sounds that can be heard by the normal persons.

[9] Those problems cause hearing-impaired persons to be isolated from other people as well as sounds, thus further increasing hearing-impaired persons' pain due to hearing impairment.

[10] Meanwhile, television broadcasting employs a method of displaying subtitles for hearing-impaired persons or a method of representing the contents of a current program with sign language on the bottom of a screen. However, in this case, both images, and subtitles or sign language must be watched, so that there is still a problem in that concentration on a program is impeded. [11] In the meantime, the bone conduction hearing aids for hearing-impaired persons are provided at the time of performance viewing, such as movie viewing, and hearing- impaired persons may hear sounds through bone conduction. In this case, the transmission volume of movie sounds is set for the general public at the time of movie viewing, so that there are limitations in hearing the sounds using the bone conduction hearing aids. Accordingly, the bone conduction hearing aids are not widely used for movie viewing. Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[12] Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an environment in which a hearing-impaired person can hear audio signals despite a hearing impairment, like normal persons.

[13] Furthermore, another object of the present invention is to provide a bone conduction and wireless reception set that can be used as a hearing aid and a radio receiver as well as an audio signal receiving device according to the selection of a user. Technical Solution

[14] The present invention provides a bone conduction and wireless receiving set including:

[15] a transmitter including an audio signal input terminal for connecting to an audio signal generation device and receiving an audio signal produced by the audio signal generation device, and a transmission unit for modulating the audio signal input through the audio signal input terminal and wirelessly transmitting the modulated signal; and

[16] a receiver including a reception unit having a tuning unit for receiving the wireless signal transmitted by the transmitter, a detection unit for detecting the signal received from the tuning unit, and an amplification unit for amplifying the signal extracted by the detection unit;

[17] wherein the receiver further includes a bone conduction signal conversion unit that is connected to the reception unit and converts a signal, which is output from the reception unit, into a bone conduction signal capable of causing vibration of a bone conduction vibrator, and a bone conduction headphone connection terminal that is connected to the bone conduction conversion unit and outputs the bone conduction signal to bone conduction headphones;

[18] wherein the bone conduction and wireless receiving device further comprises the bone conduction headphones that have the bone conduction vibrator adapted to vibrate in response to the bone conduction signal received from the bone conduction headphones connection terminal.

[19] The bone conduction and wireless receiving set further includes a microphone for receiving one of various external sounds and converting the sound into an electrical signal, a microphone input signal processing unit connected to the microphone to amplify the signal input from the microphone, and a mode selection unit connected to the reception unit and the microphone to allow a mode to be selected from among an external signal input mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is an external signal corresponding to a specific frequency set for the tuning unit, and a hearing mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is a signal output through the microphone.

[20] The tuning unit of the reception unit further includes a frequency conversion unit for selecting a public frequency, and the receiver further includes a mode selection unit for selecting a mode from among an external signal input mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is an external signal corresponding to a specific frequency set for the tuning unit, and a radio reception mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is a signal corresponding to a frequency selected by the frequency conversion unit.

[21] The transmitter and the receiver are respectively contained in toys, such as dolls, robots and character products. Advantageous Effects

[22] As described above, the present invention wirelessly receives audio signals transmitted from a television or a radio that targets normal persons having no hearing impairment and allows a hearing-impaired person to hear the audio signals through bone conduction headphones, so that the hearing-impaired person can hear the audio signals output through the television or the radio and hear the audio signals when in the same place as the general public.

[23] Furthermore, one mode can be selected from among an external signal input mode, a hearing aid mode and a radio receiving mode, so that a single device can be used for various purposes, thus being convenient and efficient.

[24] Furthermore, an audio signal can be wirelessly received and heard through bone conduction headphones, so that highly sensitive hearing can be achieved because external noise is not added to the sound signal, and so that the use of the receiving set is not limited by places as long as wireless signals can be received in those places. Brief Description of the Drawings

[25] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the entire construction of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set according to the present invention;

[26] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the detailed construction of the transmitter of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set;

[27] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the detailed construction of the receiver of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set;

[28] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operating principle of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set of the present invention according to mode selection; and

[29] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set according to the present invention. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[30] With reference to the accompanying drawings, an embodiment of a bone conduction and wireless receiving set according to the present invention is described in detail below.

[31] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the entire construction of the bone conduction and wireless reception set according to the present invention, which includes an audio signal generation device 100, a transmitter 200, a receiver 300 and bone conduction headphones 400.

[32] The audio signal generation device 100 is a device for generating an audio signal, such as a television (TV), an audio device, a computer, a Compact Disk Player (CDP) or a MPEG-1 Audio Layer-3 (MP3) player. An auxiliary terminal (connection terminal for an external device) is formed on the back of the audio signal generation device 100.

[33] The transmitter 200 is connected to the audio signal generation device and is used to modulate the input audio signal into wireless signal and transmit the wireless signal. The construction of the transmitter 200 is described briefly in the following. The transmitter 200 includes an audio signal input terminal 210 for connecting to the AUX terminal (connection terminal for an external device) of the audio signal generation device, a transmission unit 220 coupled to the audio signal input terminal 210 via a wired connection to wirelessly transmit the input audio signal, and a power supply unit 230 for supplying power.

[34] The receiver 300 is used to receive, detect and amplify wireless the signal transmitted from the transmission unit 220. The construction of the receiver 300 is described in brief in the following. The receiver 300 includes a reception unit 310 for receiving, detecting and amplifying the wireless signal transmitted from the transmission unit 220, a bone conduction signal conversion unit 320 connected to the reception unit 310 to convert the input audio signal into bone conduction signal and to output the bone conduction signal, a bone conduction headphone connection terminal 330 connected to the bone conduction conversion unit 320 to output the output bone conduction signal to the bone conduction headphones 400, and a power supply unit 340. [35] The bone conduction headphones 400 are coupled to the bone conduction headphone connection terminal 330 via a wired connection, and vibrate the skull using the bone conduction signal output from the bone conduction connection terminal.

[36] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the detailed construction of the transmitter of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set, which includes the audio signal input terminal 210, an amplitude modulator 221, a crystal oscillation device 222, a mixer unit 223, a frequency multiplier 224, a power amplifier 225 and the power supply unit 230.

[37] The audio signal input terminal 210 is used to connect to the AUX terminal (connection terminal for an external device) of the audio signal generation device via a connection jack so as to receive the audio signal generated by the audio signal generation device.

[38] The amplitude modulator 221 modulates an audio signal input through the audio signal input terminal 210, and transmits the audio signal to the mixer unit 223. Such amplitude modulation is used to vary the amplitude of a carrier according to the amplitude of a signal wave when music, voice or an image is converted into an electrical signal and transmitted to a remote location in a wireless or wired manner.

[39] The crystal oscillation device 222 is used to improve the stability of the frequency at the time of transmitting an audio signal.

[40] The mixer unit 223 mixes the output of the amplitude modulator 221 with the output of the crystal oscillation device 222 and outputs the mixed output to the frequency multiplier 224.

[41] The frequency multiplier 224 is used to acquire stable high-frequency power by multiplying a frequency with respect to the stable output of the crystal oscillation device 222, and is frequently used in transmitters.

[42] The power amplifier 225 is used to perform the amplification of an output signal that is frequently employed in transmitters. The power amplifier 225 modulates the carrier output from the frequency multiplier 224, and transmits the modulated carrier.

[43] The antenna 226 is a means for transmitting the audio signal, which is converted into an electrical signal, in wave form, which transmits the signal amplified and output by the power amplifier 225.

[44] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the detailed construction of the receiver of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set, which includes the reception unit 310, a microphone 360, a microphone input signal processing unit 361, a mode selection unit 350, the bone conduction conversion unit 320, a bone conduction headphone connection terminal 330 and the power supply unit 340.

[45] The reception unit 310 includes, in detail, an antenna 305, a tuning unit 306, a low- noise amplifier 311, a voltage-controlled oscillator 312, a mixer unit 313, an Intermediate Frequency (IF) processing unit 314, a Frequency Modulation (FM) detection unit 315 and a Low Frequency (LF) amplifier 316. The reception unit 310 is described in detail below for respective elements.

[46] The antenna 305 receives a wireless signal that the antenna of the transmitter transmits in wave form, and transfers the wireless signal to the low-noise amplifier 311.

[47] The tuning unit 306 is a tuning circuit for which a specific frequency is set, and receives only the wireless signal corresponding to the set frequency. Furthermore, it is preferred that the frequency be set to a frequency falling within a band identical to an FM radio frequency band. In an embodiment, the frequency may be set to a frequency of 88.3 KHz, to which the frequency is not limited.

[48] The low-noise amplifier 311 amplifies the weak parts of the wireless signal input through the antenna 305, and determines the receiving sensitivity of the receiver.

[49] The voltage-controlled oscillator 312 is used to modulate a baseband signal into a communication frequency signal, or to receive a communication frequency signal and demodulate it into a baseband signal. The voltage-controlled oscillator 312 is an important wireless communication part. The operating principle of the voltage- controlled oscillator 312 is to feed back an output voltage in phase with an input voltage to the input side of the voltage-controlled oscillator 312 and cause oscillation in the state where the total gain is identical to 1 after amplified feedback.

[50] The mixer 313 mixes the output of the low-noise amplifier 311 with the output of the voltage-controlled oscillator 312 and transfers the mixed output to the IF processing unit 314.

[51] The IF processing unit 314 is used to obtain the desired degree of selection and amplification gain by lowering the frequency of a wireless signal.

[52] The FM detection unit 315 extracts an audio signal, to which a user desires to listen via the bone conduction headphones, from the amplified signal using a filter.

[53] The LF amplifier 316 amplifies the signal that is input from the FM detection unit 315, and transmits the amplified signal to the bone conduction signal conversion unit 320.

[54] The microphone 360 converts various external sounds into electrical signals when the external sounds are input.

[55] The microphone input signal processing unit 361 is connected to the microphone 360 and amplifies a signal output from the microphone 360.

[56] The mode selection unit 350 can select a signal, which is converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit 320, in response to the mode selection input signal. The mode is an external signal input mode in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit 320 is a signal corresponding to the specific frequency set for the tuning unit 306, or a hearing aid mode in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit 320 is the signal output through the microphone.

[57] The bone conduction signal conversion unit 320 is connected to the LF amplifier 316 of the reception unit 310 and the microphone input signal processing unit 361. The bone conduction signal conversion unit 320 converts an output signal into a bone conduction signal for causing the vibration of a bone conduction vibrator and outputs the bone conduction signal. The bone conduction signal conversion unit 320 is composed of a bone conduction signal conversion circuit.

[58] The bone conduction headphone connection terminal 330 is used to output the bone conduction signal output from the bone conduction signal conversion unit 320, and is coupled to the bone conduction headphones 400 via a wired connection.

[59] The power supply unit 340 is used to supply power to the reception unit 310, the microphone 360 and the bone conduction signal conversion unit 320, and preferably has an adaptor or a charging battery form.

[60] It is preferred that the reception unit 310 and the microphone input signal processing unit 361 be connected to a sound volume adjustment unit 370 for adjusting the intensity of amplification of a signal output through the bone conduction headphones, and adjust the amount of sound that is output through the bone conduction headphones, according to the hearing ability of a hearing-impaired person.

[61] Furthermore, the bone conduction headphones 400 are coupled to the bone conduction headphone connection terminal 330 of the receiver via a wired connection, vibrates according to a received bone conduction signal and vibrates the skull in close contact with the bone conduction headphones 400, thus allowing the user to hear an audio signal or sound through bone conduction. The principle is that an input electrical signal causes magnetism and the vibrator vibrates due to the attraction and repulsion of magnetism.

[62] In the meantime, although not shown in the drawings, it is preferred that the reception unit 310 further have a radio receiving function in addition to a function of receiving an audio signal produced by the audio signal generation device and a signal input through the microphone.

[63] For this purpose, the tuning unit 306 of the reception unit 310 further includes a frequency conversion unit capable of selecting a public frequency. The mode selection unit 350 is configured to select one from among an external signal input mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is an external signal corresponding to the specific signal set for the tuning unit 306 and a radio reception mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is a signal corresponding to the frequency selected by the frequency conversion unit, the operating principle of which is the same as described above. [64] Furthermore, it is preferred that the reception unit 310 be configured to select the signal, which is converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit 320, from an audio signal produced by the audio signal generating unit, a signal input through the hearing aid and a signal corresponding to a public frequency according to mode selection, thus supporting all of an external signal input mode, a hearing aid mode and a radio reception mode. [65] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operating principle of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set of the present invention according to mode selection. As described in the drawing, modes includes an external signal input mode and a hearing aid mode. [66] First, the user selects a desired one from the external signal input mode and the hearing mode using a mode selection button provided outside the receiver at step SI 00. [67] When the selected mode is the external signal input mode, an audio hearing process is described as below. [68] The transmitter connected to the audio signal generation device receives an audio signal produced by the audio signal generation device, modulates the received audio signal into a wireless signal and transmits the wireless signal at step S120. [69] The receiver receives the wireless signal transmitted by the transmitter, and outputs an audio signal reproduced through detection and amplification at step S122. [70] The output audio signal is converted into a bone conduction signal causing the vibration of the bone conduction vibrator, and is output through the bone conduction headphone connection terminal connected to the bone conduction headphones at step S150. [71] Meanwhile, when the selected mode is the hearing aid mode, the sound input through the microphone is amplified through the microphone input signal processing unit at step SI 30. [72] The amplified signal is converted into a bone conduction signal as in the external signal input mode, and then output through the bone conduction headphone connection terminal at step S140. [73] Then, the bone conduction vibrator of the bone conduction headphones vibrates in response to the output bone conduction signal at step S150. [74] Meanwhile, in the case where the radio reception mode is added, the operating principle based on mode selection is the same. [75] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the bone conduction and wireless receiving set according to the present invention. As shown in the drawing, the present invention provides an environment that enables a hearing-impaired person to hear an audio signal that is produced by the television 100 because the receiver 300 receives a wireless signal transmitted by the transmitter 200 connected to the television 100, detects and amplifies the wireless signal and outputs the detected and amplified signal through the bone conduction headphones 400.

[76] Meanwhile, although not shown in the drawing, another embodiment allows the transmitter and the receiver to be contained in a toy. The present embodiment provides an environment that allows hearing-impaired children to interact with normal children because the embodiment interests growing children who are isolated from external sound due to hearing impairment, allows such children to be accustomed to hearing through the device while playing with the toy and enables such children to hear television programs provided for normal persons.

[77] Furthermore, when the mode of the receiver of the present invention is set to the external signal input mode after the transmitter has been connected to the external device connection terminal formed in a theater speaker or a speaker in each of a variety of meetings, a hearing-impaired person can participate in movie viewing and a variety of meetings.

[78] Although the above-described invention has been described in detail only in conjunction with the above-described specific examples, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that various variations and modifications are possible within the scope of the technical spirit of the present invention and the variations and the modifications fall within the attached claims.

Claims

[1] A bone conduction and wireless receiving set comprising: a transmitter comprising an audio signal input terminal for connecting to an audio signal generation device and receiving an audio signal produced by the audio signal generation device, and a transmission unit for modulating the audio signal input through the audio signal input terminal and wirelessly transmitting the modulated signal; and a receiver comprising a reception unit having a tuning unit for receiving the wireless signal transmitted by the transmitter, a detection unit for detecting the signal received from the tuning unit, and an amplification unit for amplifying the signal extracted by the detection unit; wherein the receiver further comprises a bone conduction signal conversion unit that is connected to the reception unit and converts a signal, which is output from the reception unit, into a bone conduction signal capable of causing vibration of a bone conduction vibrator, and a bone conduction headphone connection terminal that is connected to the bone conduction conversion unit and outputs the bone conduction signal to bone conduction headphones; wherein the bone conduction and wireless receiving device further comprises the bone conduction headphones that have the bone conduction vibrator adapted to vibrate in response to the bone conduction signal received from the bone conduction headphones connection terminal.

[2] The bone conduction and wireless receiving set as set forth in claim 1, wherein the receiver further comprises: a microphone for receiving one of various external sounds and converting the sound into an electrical signal; a microphone input signal processing unit connected to the microphone to amplify the signal input from the microphone; and a mode selection unit connected to the reception unit and the microphone to allow a mode to be selected from among an external signal input mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is an external signal corresponding to a specific frequency set for the tuning unit, and a hearing mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is a signal output through the microphone.

[3] The bone conduction and wireless receiving set as set forth in claim 1, wherein: the tuning unit of the reception unit further comprises a frequency conversion unit for selecting a public frequency; and the receiver further comprises a mode selection unit for selecting a mode from among an external signal input mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is an external signal corresponding to a specific frequency set for the tuning unit, and a radio reception mode, in which the signal to be converted by the bone conduction signal conversion unit is a signal corresponding to a frequency selected by the frequency conversion unit. [4] The bone conduction and wireless receiving set as set forth in claim 1, wherein the transmitter and the receiver are respectively contained in toys, such as dolls, robots and character products.