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EP-4738886-A2 - CABLE RETRACTION MECHANISM FOR HEADPHONE DEVICES

EP4738886A2EP 4738886 A2EP4738886 A2EP 4738886A2EP-4738886-A2

Abstract

An example headphone device includes a first earpiece and a second earpiece, each earpiece including a respective antenna at least partially disposed within the earpiece. The headphone device includes a headbow adjustably connecting the first earpiece and the second earpiece, where the first earpiece and second earpiece are each extendable from the headbow, which includes an inner cavity. A cable assembly including a cable extends between the first earpiece and the second earpiece. The cable assembly is at least partially formed from an elastomeric material and is positioned within the inner cavity of the headbow in a resting position such that the cable assembly is extendable within the inner cavity of the headbow from the resting position when one or both of the first and second earpieces are extended from the headbow.

Inventors

  • RAPITSCH, DIETER
  • BILLAUDET, PATRICE

Assignees

  • Sonos Inc.

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20210419

Claims (15)

  1. A headphone device (240) comprising: a first earpiece (241a); a second earpiece (241b); a headbow (242, 442, 642) adjustably connecting the first earpiece and the second earpiece, wherein the first earpiece and the second earpiece are each extendable from the headbow, and wherein the headbow comprises (i) an inner cavity (461, 661) and (ii) a fastener disposed at a given position within the inner cavity; and a cable assembly (248, 448a, 448b, 548a, 648) comprising a cable (350, 550), wherein: the cable assembly is at least partially positioned within the inner cavity and is fixed, at the given position within the inner cavity, via the fastener, extension of the first earpiece extends a first portion of the cable assembly, and extension of the second earpiece extends a second portion of the cable assembly.
  2. The headphone device of claim 1, wherein the cable is formed into an S-shape pattern.
  3. The headphone device of claim 1, wherein the cable is formed into a pattern having a series of peaks (553) and valleys (554).
  4. The headphone device of claim 3, wherein the pattern is a sinusoidal pattern.
  5. The headphone device of any one of claims 3 or 4, wherein the cable comprises a cable jacket (352) that is at least partially formed from an elastomeric material.
  6. The headphone device of claim 5, wherein the cable assembly comprises an elastomeric band (555a, 555b, 555c) coupled to the cable jacket at a plurality of connection points between the series of peaks and valleys.
  7. The headphone device of claim 6, wherein the cable jacket passes through pre-formed holes in the elastomeric band (555a) thereby coupling the elastomeric band to the cable jacket at the plurality of connection points between the series of peaks and valleys.
  8. The headphone device of claim 6, wherein the elastomeric band is formed from the elastomeric material and is formed with the cable jacket as an integrated structure.
  9. The headphone device of claim 5, wherein the cable assembly comprises a first elastomeric band (555b) coupled to the cable jacket at a plurality of peaks in the series of peaks and valleys, and a second elastomeric band (555c) coupled to the cable jacket at a plurality of valleys in the series of peaks and valleys.
  10. The headphone device of claim 5, wherein the cable assembly comprises an elastomeric strip (556) having a width that encompasses the series of peaks and valleys , and wherein the elastomeric strip is coupled to the cable jacket at a plurality of points along the pattern of the cable.
  11. The headphone device of any preceding claim, wherein the fastener comprises a rib (663) positioned within the inner cavity, wherein the rib fixes the cable assembly at the given position within the inner cavity via an interference fit with a wall of the inner cavity.
  12. The headphone device of any preceding claim, wherein the given position within the inner cavity is a midpoint along a length of the headbow.
  13. The headphone device of any preceding claim, wherein the first earpiece comprises an antenna (244a) at least partially disposed within the first earpiece.
  14. The headphone device of claim 13, wherein the antenna is a first antenna, wherein the first earpiece further comprises a wireless receiver disposed within the first earpiece, and wherein the second earpiece comprises a second antenna (244b) that is at least partially disposed within the second earpiece and is communicatively coupled to the wireless receiver via the cable assembly.
  15. A method (700) of assembling a headphone device (240), the method comprising: adjustably connecting (706) a first earpiece (241a) and a second earpiece (241b) with a headbow (242, 442, 642) having (i) an inner cavity (461, 661) and (ii) a fastener disposed at a given position within the inner cavity; and extending (708) a cable assembly (248, 448a, 448b, 548a, 648) between the first earpiece and the second earpiece, such that: the cable assembly is at least partially positioned within the inner cavity and is fixed, at the given position within the inner cavity, via the fastener; extension of the first earpiece extends a first portion of the cable assembly, and extension of the second earpiece extends a second portion of the cable assembly.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Patent App. No. 63/013,316, filed April 21, 2020, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE The present disclosure is related to consumer goods and, more particularly, to methods, systems, products, features, services, and other elements directed to media playback or some aspect thereof. BACKGROUND Options for accessing and listening to digital audio in an out-loud setting were limited until in 2002, when SONOS, Inc. began development of a new type of playback system. Sonos then filed one of its first patent applications in 2003, entitled "Method for Synchronizing Audio Playback between Multiple Networked Devices," and began offering its first media playback systems for sale in 2005. The Sonos Wireless Home Sound System enables people to experience music from many sources via one or more networked playback devices. Through a software control application installed on a controller (e.g., smartphone, tablet, computer, voice input device), one can play what she wants in any room having a networked playback device. Media content (e.g., songs, podcasts, video sound) can be streamed to playback devices such that each room with a playback device can play back corresponding different media content. In addition, rooms can be grouped together for synchronous playback of the same media content, and/or the same media content can be heard in all rooms synchronously. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Features, aspects, and advantages of the presently disclosed technology may be better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings, as listed below. A person skilled in the relevant art will understand that the features shown in the drawings are for purposes of illustrations, and variations, including different and/or additional features and arrangements thereof, are possible. Figure 1A is a partial cutaway view of an environment having a media playback system configured in accordance with aspects of the disclosed technology.Figure 1B is a schematic diagram of the media playback system of Figure 1A and one or more networks.Figure 1C is a block diagram of a playback device.Figure 1D is a block diagram of a playback device.Figure 1E is a block diagram of a network microphone device.Figure 1F is a block diagram of a network microphone device.Figure 1G is a block diagram of a playback device.Figure 1H is a partially schematic diagram of a control device.Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a headphone device, according to an example embodiment.Figure 3 is a schematic cross-sectional diagram of a cable, according to an example embodiment.Figure 4A is a partial cutaway view of a headbow of a headphone device, according to an example implementation.Figure 4B is a cross-sectional view of the headbow shown in Figure 4A.Figure 4C is a is a partial cutaway view of a headbow of a headphone device, according to another example implementation.Figure 5A is a cable assembly according to an example implementation.Figure 5B is a cable assembly according to another example implementation.Figure 5C is a cable assembly according to another example implementation.Figure 6A is a partial cutaway view of a headbow of a headphone device, according to another example implementation.Figure 6B is a partial cutaway view of a headbow of a headphone device, according to another example implementation.Figure 7 shows a flowchart of an example method for assembling a headphone device. The drawings are for the purpose of illustrating example embodiments, but those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the technology disclosed herein is not limited to the arrangements and/or instrumentality shown in the drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION I. Overview Building upon its success in networked media players, Sonos has begun researching and developing networked headphone devices to expand upon the listening options available to Sonos users. Embodiments described herein relate to headphone devices with improved wireless capabilities. Consumers typically expect Bluetooth enabled devices, such as Bluetooth headphones, to have a limited communication range. For example, consumers expect that music streaming from their smartphone to a pair of Bluetooth headphones will dropout if they leave the Bluetooth headphones on as they walk away from their smartphone (e.g., they walk out of the room without their smartphone). As a result, consumers generally expect that they need to keep a pair of electronic devices that communicate via Bluetooth within close range of each other (e.g., kept within about 5-15 feet of each other) to maintain the connection. Given this relatively small range expectation for Bluetooth devices, conventional designs for such Bluetooth headphones typically only employ a single antenna that is integrated into the same earpiece as the communication circuitry