Granted Patent B2

US 12,231,837 · App. 18/387,317 · Granted Feb 18, 2025

Inventors: M. Evans Hankey (San Francisco, CA); Emery A. Sanford (San Francisco, CA); Christopher D. Prest (San Francisco, CA); Way Chet Lim (San Francisco, CA)

Assignee: Apple Inc.

H04R1/1025H01R13/6205H02J7/00H02J7/0042H04M1/05H04M1/6066H04R1/1016H04R1/1041H04R1/105H04W52/0274H04M1/0262H04M1/0274H04M1/0277H04M1/6058H04M2250/02H04R25/556H04R25/558H04R25/602H04R25/603H04R2201/105H04R2201/107H04R2420/07H04R2420/09H05K1/147H05K1/189Y02D30/70

Abstract

Claims (36)

1. An earbud comprising:

a housing formed from a radio transparent material and having an earbud portion integrally formed with an extending away from a first end of a tubular portion;

a first acoustic port formed through the earbud portion;

a speaker disposed in the earbud portion and aligned to emit sound through the first acoustic port;

wireless communication circuitry disposed within the housing;

an antenna coupled to the wireless communication circuitry;

a rechargeable battery disposed within the housing; and

battery charging circuitry coupled to the rechargeable battery and positioned within the housing, the battery charging circuitry configured to charge the rechargeable battery.

2. The earbud set forth in claim 1 further comprising a second acoustic port formed at a second end of the tubular portion, opposite the first end, and a microphone disposed in the tubular portion and positioned to receive sound through the second acoustic port.

3. The earbud set forth in claim 2 further comprising a third acoustic port positioned on a side surface of the earbud housing.

4. The earbud set forth in claim 2 further comprising a cap coupled to and covering the second end of the tubular portion opposite the first end, and wherein the second acoustic port is formed through the cap.

5. The earbud set forth in claim 2 further comprising first and second electrical contacts positioned at the second end of the tubular portion.

6. The earbud set forth in claim 1 further wherein the wireless communication circuitry is part of a system-on-a-chip.

7. The earbud set forth in claim 1 wherein a cross section of the tubular portion is pill shaped.

8. The earbud set forth in claim 1 further comprising a user-interface touch control disposed along the housing and operable to enable a user to control a function of the earbud.

9. The earbud set forth in claim 1 wherein the antenna comprises a resonating element formed from a flex circuit containing a strip of conductor.

10. The earbud set forth in claim 1 further comprising a plurality of electrical components placed on a circuit board disposed within the housing and having one or more flexible portions, wherein the flexible portions of the circuit board are folded or bent at one or more locations forming a stack of electrical components within the housing.

11. The earbud set forth in claim 1 wherein the housing is formed from a thermos plastic material.

12. The earbud set forth in claim 11 wherein the housing is formed from acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS).

13. The earbud set forth in claim 1 further comprising a screen disposed over the first acoustic port.

14. The earbud set forth in claim 1 further comprising a processor configured to control and coordinate operations of the earbud including wireless communications, battery charging and processing of audio signals.

15. A portable listening device comprising:

a housing formed from a radio transparent material and having a speaker housing portion integrally formed with an extending away from a first end of a tubular portion;

a first acoustic port formed through the speaker housing portion;

a speaker disposed in the speaker housing portion and aligned to emit sound through the first acoustic port;

wireless communication circuitry disposed within the housing;

an antenna coupled to the wireless communication circuitry;

a rechargeable battery disposed within the housing;

battery charging circuitry coupled to the rechargeable battery and positioned within the housing, the battery charging circuitry configured to charge the rechargeable battery when the first and second electrical contacts are coupled to an external power supply;

first and second electrical contacts disposed at an external surface of the housing and electrically coupled to the battery charging circuitry; and

a processor disposed within the housing and configured to control and coordinate operations of the portable listening device.

16. The portable listening device set forth in claim 15 further comprising a user-interface touch control disposed along the housing and operatively coupled to the processor to enable a user to control a function of the portable listening device.

17. The portable listening device set forth in claim 15 wherein the processor is part of a chip that further comprises integrated flash memory and the wireless communication circuitry is part of a system-on-a-chip.

18. The portable listening device set forth in claim 15 wherein a cross section of the tubular portion is pill shaped.

19. The portable listening device set forth in claim 15 wherein an input of the processor is coupled to monitor a temperature of the rechargeable battery and wherein the portable listening device further comprising battery protection circuitry disposed within the housing and configured to prevent malfunction of the rechargeable battery.

20. The portable listening device set forth in claim 15 further comprising a plurality of electrical components placed on a circuit board disposed within the housing and having one or more flexible portions, wherein the flexible portions of the circuit board are folded or bent at one or more locations forming a stack of electrical components within the housing.

Continuity (13)

References Cited (400)