System with wireless earphones
Apparatus comprises adapter and speaker system. Adapter is configured to plug into port of personal digital audio player. Speaker system is in communication with adapter, and comprises multiple acoustic transducers, programmable processor circuit, and wireless communication circuit. In first operational mode, processor circuit receives, via adapter, and processes digital audio content from personal digital audio player into which adapter is plugged, and the multiple acoustic transducers output the received audio content from the personal digital audio player. In second operational mode, wireless communication circuit receives digital audio content from a remote digital audio source over a wireless network, processor circuit processes the digital audio content received from remote digital audio source, and the multiple acoustic transducers output the audio content received from the remote digital audio source.
1. Headphones comprising:
a pair of first and second wireless earphones to be worn simultaneously by a user, wherein each of the first and second wireless earphones comprises at least one acoustic transducer for producing audible sound;
wherein the first wireless earphone comprises a first system-on-chip (SOC), wherein the first SOC comprises:
a first wireless communication circuit for receiving and transmitting wireless signals;
a first processor circuit connected to the first wireless communication circuit; and
a first memory unit in communication with the first processor circuit for storing firmware updates pushed to the headphones from a remote network server;
wherein the first wireless communication circuit is for receiving audio content streamed wirelessly to the headphones from a first audio content source, such that the first and second wireless earphones play the audio content streamed wirelessly to the headphones; and
wherein the first processor circuit is configured to, in response to detecting an incoming wireless communication to the headphones:
mute the audio content streamed wirelessly to the headphone being played by the headphones; and
output audio of the incoming wireless communication circuit via the first and second wireless earphones.
2. The headphones of claim 1 , wherein the second wireless earphone comprises a second SOC, wherein the second SOC comprises:
a second wireless communication circuit for receiving and transmitting wireless signals;
a second processor circuit connected to the second wireless communication circuit of the second wireless earphone; and
a second memory unit in communication with the second processor circuit of the second wireless earphone for storing firmware updates pushed to the headphones from the remote network server.
3. The headphones of claim 2 , wherein the first and second earphones are separate such that when the headphones are worn by the user, the first and second earphones are not physically connected.
4. The headphones of claim 3 , wherein the headphones receive the firmware updates wirelessly.
5. The headphones of claim 4 , wherein:
each of the first and second earphones comprises a rechargeable power source; and
each of the rechargeable power sources comprises a wirelessly chargeable circuit component.
6. The headphones of claim 5 , wherein each of the first and second earphones comprise an earbud.
7. The headphone of claim 3 , wherein:
the first SOC further comprises a first buffer that caches the audio content received wirelessly by the first earphone prior to the audio content being played by the at least one acoustic transducer of the first earphone; and
the second SOC further comprises a second buffer that caches the audio content received wirelessly by the second earphone prior to the audio content being played by the at least on acoustic transducer of the second earphone.
8. The headphones of claim 7 , further comprising a docking station for holding at least one of the wireless earphones, wherein the docking station comprises a power cable for connecting to an external device, and wherein the docking station is for charging the at least one earphone when the docking station holds the at least one earphone.
9. The headphones of claim 8 , wherein each of the first and second earphones comprise an earbud.
10. The headphones of claim 8 , wherein the headphones are configured to receive the firmware updates wirelessly.
11. The headphones of claim 8 , wherein:
the first earphone comprises a microphone; and
the first processor circuit of the first wireless earphone is configured to, upon activation of the microphone by the user, transmit data about the headphones to a remote device.
12. The headphones of claim 11 , wherein the remote device comprises a remote network server.
13. The headphones of claim 12 , wherein:
the first processor circuit of the first SOC comprises:
a first digital signal processor that provides a sound quality enhancement for the audio content played by the at least one acoustic transducer of the first earphone; and
a first baseband processor circuit that is in communication with the first wireless communication circuit of the first SOC; and
the second processor circuit of the second SOC comprises:
a second digital signal processor that provides a sound quality enhancement for the audio content played by the at least one acoustic transducer of the second earphone; and
a second baseband processor circuit that is in communication with the second communication circuit of the second SOC.
14. The headphones of claim 8 , wherein:
the first wireless earphone comprises a first microphone; and
the second wireless earphone comprises a second microphone.
15. The headphones of claim 14 , wherein each of the first and second processor circuits of the first and second SOCs of the first and second wireless earphones is configured to perform noise cancelling on the audible sound produced by the at least one acoustic transducers of the first and second wireless earphones.
16. The headphones of claim 7 , wherein the processor circuit for each earphone is configured to transition from playing the audio content streamed wirelessly to the headphones from the first digital audio source via a first wireless communication link to playing the audio content streamed wirelessly to the headphones from a second digital audio source via a second wireless communication link automatically based on, at least in part, a signal strength for the second wireless communication link.
17. The headphones of claim 3 , wherein each of the first and second earphones comprises a rechargeable power source.
18. The headphones of claim 17 , wherein the rechargeable power source comprises a wirelessly chargeable circuit component.
19. The headphones of claim 3 , wherein:
the first processor circuit of the first SOC comprises:
a first digital signal processor that provides a sound quality enhancement for the audio content played by the at least one acoustic transducer of the first earphone; and
a first baseband processor circuit that is in communication with the first wireless communication circuit of the first SOC; and
the second processor circuit of the second SOC comprises:
a second digital signal processor that provides a sound quality enhancement for the audio content played by the at least one acoustic transducer of the second earphone; and
a second baseband processor circuit that is in communication with the second communication circuit of the second SOC.
20. The headphones of claim 2 , wherein each of the first and second earphones comprise an earbud.
21. The headphones of claim 1 , wherein the processor circuit of the first earphone is for, upon activation of a user control of the headphones, initiating transmission of a request to a remote device.
22. The headphones of claim 21 , wherein the processor circuit of the first earphone is further for receiving a response to the request.
23. The headphones of claim 1 , wherein the processor circuit for each earphone is configured to transition from playing the audio content streamed wirelessly to the headphones from the first digital audio source via a first wireless communication link to playing the audio content streamed wirelessly to the headphones from a second digital audio source via a second wireless communication link automatically based on, at least in part, a signal strength for the second wireless communication link.
24. The headphones of claim 1 , wherein the first earphone comprises a microphone.
25. The headphones of claim 24 , wherein the processor circuit of the first earphone is configured to:
process audible utterances by the user picked by the microphone in response to activation of the microphone by the user; and
transmit a wireless communication from the headphones based on the audible utterances.
26. The headphones of claim 24 , wherein the first processor circuit of the first wireless earphone is configured to, upon activation of the microphone by the user, transmit data about the headphones to a remote device.