Electro-acoustic transducer
An electro-acoustic transducer with a front part having an acoustically radiating surface, a supporting part that supports the front part and that extends from a peripheral region of the front part in a direction away from the acoustically radiating surface, and a reinforcing part that provides rigidity to the transducer. The reinforcing part extends from the supporting part to the front part such that a portion of the reinforcing part is spaced from the front part and/or the supporting part.
1. An electro-acoustic transducer, comprising:
a front part having an acoustically radiating surface;
a supporting part that supports the front part and that extends from a peripheral region of the front part in a direction away from the acoustically radiating surface; and
a reinforcing part that provides rigidity to the transducer by extending from tangential engagement with the supporting part to tangential engagement with the front part such that a portion of the reinforcing part is spaced from the front part and the supporting part.
2. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the supporting part extends from the peripheral region of the front part.
3. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the peripheral region of the front part is circular.
4. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the peripheral region of the front part is cylindrical.
5. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein:
at least the portion of the reinforcing part that is spaced from the front part and the supporting part has a truncated dome shape.
6. A transducer according to claim 5 , wherein the truncated dome of the reinforcing part has a spherical curvature.
7. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein at least the portion of the reinforcing part that is spaced from the front part and the supporting part is continuous.
8. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the reinforcing part, the supporting part, and the front part is formed from one or more sheets of material.
9. A transducer according to any one of claim 1 , wherein at least the portion of the reinforcing part that is spaced from the front part and the supporting part comprises a plurality of sections.
10. A transducer according to claim 9 , wherein at least some of the plurality of sections are spaced apart from each other.
11. A transducer according to claim 9 , wherein at least some of the plurality of sections comprise reinforcing struts.
12. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the reinforcing part is perforated.
13. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the front part is dome-shaped.
14. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the acoustically radiating surface of the front part is dome-shaped.
15. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the acoustically radiating surface of the front part has a shape of a segment of a sphere.
16. A transducer according to claim 1 , wherein a minimum radius of the acoustically radiating surface of the front part is greater than a maximum radius of at least the portion of the reinforcing part that is spaced from the front part and the supporting part.
17. A transducer according to claim 1 , further comprising a coiled electrical conductor carried by the supporting part.
18. A transducer according to claim 1 , further comprising a magnet forming part of a drive unit for the transducer.
19. A loudspeaker comprising a transducer according to claim 1 , wherein the loudspeaker further comprises at least one of a plurality of transducers and a plurality of acoustically radiating diaphragms.
20. A loudspeaker system comprising a plurality of loudspeakers, wherein each of the plurality of loudspeakers comprises:
a front part having an acoustically radiating surface;
a supporting part that supports the front part and that extends from a peripheral region of the front part in a direction away from the acoustically radiating surface; and
a reinforcing part that provides rigidity to the loudspeaker by extending from tangential engagement with the supporting part to tangential engagement with the front part such that a portion of the reinforcing part is spaced from the front part and the supporting part.