IP Library Granted Patent US 12,231,835
Granted Patent B2
US 12,231,835 · App. 18/520,995 · Granted Feb 18, 2025

Visual display panels for integrated audiovisual systems

Inventors: Erik Hockman (New York, NY); Alex Luthwaite (Lancaster, PA); Emad Yacoub Hanna (Berlin, DE)
Assignees: Sphere Entertainment Group, LLC; Holoplot GmbH
H04R1/028G06F3/147H04R1/403H04R3/12H04R2201/403H04R2499/15
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,231,835
App. No.
18/520,995
Granted
Feb 18, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

An integrated audio-visual system is disclosed for delivering an event to one or more spectators. The integrated audio-visual system includes one or more loudspeakers that are positioned behind one or more visual displays to be effectively behind the one or more visual displays to be shielded from the field of view of the one or more spectators. The one or more visual displays are specially designed and manufactured to allow sound associated with the event to propagate from the one or more loudspeakers with minimal acoustical distortion and/or minimum acoustical vibration while presenting a visual representation of the event to the one or more spectators. Moreover, the one or more loudspeakers and the one or more visual displays are situated to be a predetermined displacement from each other to further minimize acoustical distortion.

Claims (39)

1. A visual display for an integrated audio-visual system, the visual display comprising:

a first visual display panel from among a plurality of visual display panels, the first visual display panel comprising:

a plurality of visual emission elements situated along a first plurality of rows of visual emission elements and a first plurality of columns of visual emission elements, the plurality of visual emission elements being grouped into a plurality of first sets of visual emission elements, a plurality of second sets of visual emission elements, and a plurality of third sets of visual emission elements,

a plurality of openings, at least one opening from among the plurality of openings beginning between a corresponding first set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of first sets of visual emission elements and a corresponding second set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of second sets of visual emission elements, traversing along the corresponding second set of visual emission elements, and ending between the corresponding second set of visual elements and a corresponding third set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of third sets of visual emission elements,

wherein the corresponding first set of visual emission elements comprises adjacent visual emission elements along a corresponding first column among the first plurality of columns of visual emission elements,

wherein the corresponding third set of visual emission elements comprises adjacent visual emission elements along a corresponding second column among a second plurality of columns of visual emission elements, and

wherein the corresponding second set of visual emission elements comprises adjacent rows of visual emission elements among the first plurality of rows of visual emission elements situated between the corresponding first column and the corresponding second column; and

a second visual display panel from among the plurality of visual display panels, the first visual display panel and the second visual display panel being arranged along a first plurality of rows of visual display panels and a first plurality of columns of visual display panels to form the visual display.

2. The visual display of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of openings is configured to pass sound that is generated behind the visual display through the first visual display panel.

3. The visual display of claim 2 , wherein the plurality of openings is configured to pass the sound that is generated from a loudspeaker that is behind the visual display, the sound being associated with an event being hosted by a venue.

4. The visual display of claim 1 , wherein the first visual display panel further comprises a substrate, and

wherein the plurality of openings comprises a plurality of geometric regions situated within the substrate having the substrate removed.

5. The visual display of claim 1 , wherein the first plurality of rows of visual emission elements and the first plurality of columns of visual emission elements are arranged to form a rectangular array of visual emission elements.

6. The visual display of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of openings are configured to be a plurality of geometric shapes.

7. The visual display of claim 5 , wherein at least one geometric shape from among the plurality of geometric shapes is radially shaped along the corresponding first column of visual emission elements in accordance with a radius and along the corresponding second column of visual emission elements in accordance with the radius.

8. The visual display of claim 1 , wherein visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along each row from among the first plurality of rows of visual emission elements are separated by a row distance,

wherein visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along each column from among the first plurality of columns of visual emission elements are separated by a column distance, and

wherein the row distance is equal to the column distance.

9. A visual display panel, comprising:

a substrate;

a plurality of visual emission elements situated onto the substrate along a plurality of rows of visual emission elements and a plurality of columns of visual emission elements; and

at least one opening situated within the substrate, the at least one opening comprising a geometric shape situated within the substrate having the substrate removed, the geometric shape beginning between a first set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along a first column of visual emission elements from among the plurality of columns of visual emission elements and a second set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements between the first column of visual emission elements and a second column of visual emission elements from among the plurality of columns of visual emission elements, traversing through the second set of visual emission elements along adjacent rows of visual emission elements from among the plurality of rows of visual emission elements, and ending between the corresponding second set of visual elements and a third set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along the second column of visual emission elements.

10. The visual display panel of claim 9 , wherein the at least one opening is configured to pass sound that is generated behind the visual display panel through the geometric shape.

11. The visual display panel of claim 10 , wherein the at least one opening is configured to pass the sound that is generated from a loudspeaker that is behind the visual display, the sound being associated with an event being hosted by a venue.

12. The visual display panel of claim 9 , wherein the plurality of rows of visual emission elements and the plurality of columns of visual emission elements are arranged to form a rectangular array of visual emission elements.

13. The visual display panel of claim 9 , wherein the geometric shape is radially shaped along the first column of visual emission elements in accordance with a radius and along the second column of visual emission elements in accordance with the radius.

14. The visual display panel of claim 9 , wherein visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along each row from among the plurality of rows of visual emission elements are separated by a row distance,

wherein visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along each column from among the plurality of columns of visual emission elements are separated by a column distance, and

wherein the row distance is equal to the column distance.

15. The visual display panel of claim 14 , wherein the row distance and the column distance is six (6) millimeters (mm) or nine (9) mm.

16. A venue, comprising:

a visual display comprising:

a plurality of visual emission elements situated along a plurality of rows of visual emission elements and a plurality of columns of visual emission elements,

a plurality of openings, at least one opening from among the plurality of openings being configured to pass sound through the visual display, wherein the at least one opening traverses from a corresponding first set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along a corresponding first column of visual emission elements from among the plurality of columns of visual emission elements through a corresponding second set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along corresponding adjacent rows of visual emission elements from among the plurality of rows of visual emission elements to a corresponding third set of visual emission elements from among the plurality of visual emission elements along a corresponding second column of visual emission elements from among the plurality of columns of visual emission elements; and

a loudspeaker situated behind the visual display, the loudspeaker being configured to generate the sound that passes through the visual display.

17. The venue of claim 16 , wherein the plurality of rows of visual elements and the plurality of columns of visual emission elements are arranged to form a rectangular array of visual emission elements.

18. The venue of claim 16 , wherein the plurality of openings are configured to be a plurality of geometric shapes, the plurality of geometric shapes traversing from the corresponding first set of visual emission elements along the corresponding first column of visual emission elements through the corresponding second set of visual emission elements along the corresponding adjacent rows of visual emission elements to the corresponding third set of visual emission elements along the corresponding second column of visual emission elements.

19. The visual display of claim 18 , wherein the plurality of geometric shapes is radially shaped along the corresponding first column of visual emission elements in accordance with a radius and along the corresponding second column of visual emission elements in accordance with the radius.

20. The venue of claim 16 , wherein the loudspeaker is configured to generate the sound that is associated with an event being hosted by the venue.

Assignments (4)
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Apr 29, 2024
From: MSG ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, LLC
To: SPHERE ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, LLC
Reel/Frame 067260/0192 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 28, 2023
From: HOCKMAN, ERIK; LUTHWAITE, ALEX
To: MSG ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, LLC
Reel/Frame 065683/0370 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 28, 2023
From: YACOUB HANNA, EMAD
To: HOLOPLOT GMBH
Reel/Frame 065683/0404 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Nov 28, 2023
From: MSG SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT, LLC
To: MSG ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, LLC
Reel/Frame 065693/0921 →
Continuity (4)
Continuation 17735004 · May 2, 2022
Division 16898142 · Jun 10, 2020
Provisional Application 62859930 · Jun 11, 2019
Related Publication 20240137678A1 · Apr 25, 2024
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