Summary
In the 21st century, sound transducers became the most important building block in all electronic devices. This element is employed into many products such as microphones, cellphones, radios, probes, etc. Headphones, for instance, are based on the loudspeaker system which works thanks to the acoustic transducer. They may look mundane in our daily life, but each element inside the headphones denotes significant innovations in human history. How do headphones work and what are the secrets that lie inside?
The objective of this essay is to describe and clarify the main technology that headphones employ. Therefore, it will be explored different elements that make headphones so much used today such as history, function principles, manufacturing and future development.
The history behind the headphones
The statement of the first headphones inventor can be a fine debatable topic, which is not the goal of this essay. Thus, the historical background will be reviewed only to obtain the engineering improvement for the acoustic transducer, while the statement for the creator of “first true headphones” will be left at the reader’s belief. Some people may associate headphones’ origin to the engineering of the first Walkman in 1979, while others instead, declare that Beyerdynamic should be taking the credit. Most of archives and encyclopaedias, such as Wikipedia, say that the first working headphones were created and sold to the US Navy by Nathaniel Baldwin, in 1910. (Figure 1
The headpiece sends the signal through the skin and to the implant to pick up. Than the implant picks up the sound and sends it through the lead and to the electrode array. Finally, the sound is picked up by the hearing nerve and the message is sent to the brain.
Basically how sound travels through the ear is a process of many steps. The sound waves are gathered by the pinna and then funneled into the meatus. Those waves then begin to vibrate the tympanic membrane which in turn hits against the malleus. The ossicle bones then vibrate like a chain reaction. The footplate will hit the oval window which triggers the fluid in the cochlea to move. The movement sways across the different hair cells creating impulses that are sent to the brain through the eighth cranial nerve.
Heffernan also illustrates how headphones work, stating, “when an audio current passes through the device’s voice coil, it creates an alternating magnetic field that moves a stiff, light diaphragm” (Heffernan, 2011). Describing the history of headphones and how the technology works portrays Heffernan as a reasonable author with a deep understanding of her subject matter, which earns the trust and respect of the audience.
Revealed Object and Speaker Credibility: Headphones are a pair of listening devices with speakers that are most commonly used to listen to music. The reason why this invention exists is because it helps you block out any distractions/noise from you and it prevents others from hearing what you hear.
The process of refining and marketing the phonograph is similar to the development of the Audio Spotlight. The articles “The Incredible Talking Machine”, “History of the Cylinder Phonograph” and “Psst . . . Hey, You.” discuss these topics. All inventions discussed in the articles were creations of active imaginations, development of workable models, and the push to perfect the model.
Jennifer Dignan prompts us to Throw Away Your Earbuds Now in the scholastic article she wrote, Throw Away Your Earbuds Now. She separates her article into three parts: an example of the problem, addressing the problem, and explaining how we can prevent the problem from happening to us. In this instance, the problem is that young people are losing their hearing quicker and quicker due to the fact that they’re blasting literally deafening music through their earbuds. This article ties in with an ABC video our class watched concerning the same topic. Jennifer Dignan wrote this article to teach teens that would be reading the scholastic magazine to educate them on how they can preserve their hearing, an extremely important skill, for the long future ahead of them.
Different frequencies reach their peak at different positions along the tube, which allows the cochlea to distinguish them. Researchers have found that the spiral shape significantly enhances the “vibrational motions” that translate into nerve signals. However, if the cochlear is damaged it is obvious how important the development of the cochlear implant is. Essentially the cochlear implant serves as a bypass for damaged sections of the ear, replacing the function of the ineffective hair cells.
Advancements in Information Technology have now made it possible to restore hearing to the profoundly deaf by inserting a prosthetic device called the Bionic Ear (also known as the Cochlear Implant) in an individual’s inner ear. The Bionic Ear technology is an example of design and innovation combined with information processing, software design and development. Since it was first invented, technology advancements proceeded on a parallel track in terms of miniaturisation and increasing sophistication of this Bionic Ear technology. This particular technology operates by delivering electrical stimuli to the auditory nerve which then triggers auditory
It all started in 1958 with the creation of the first headphone to now Shure recently releasing the SE846 with Quad High-Definition MicroDrivers and detachable cables with formable wires. Earphones have been able to advance so rapidly because of public demand for their capability to express the struggles of a generation, to being able to improve people’s lives with the changes that go on in the brain when exposed to music. Shure Earphones are important because they have all the technology for a genius sound with the portability of being an in-ear monitor. Music is something to listen to daily, as it can help performance in workouts, express emotions, and help to keep calm and focused throughout the day. Playing music also can help the brain develop quicker and helps it become more accurate to details. Without Shure Earphones people would not be able to do any of this with the detail they do now. Shure Earphones have greatly impacted American’s
Audio and video has been used since 1850’s. Over the past years look at the first Star wars to now the last star wars and the difference between them of the quality, have we really came that far in technology? Has dated back to the first phonogram to mp3 players. First invention was from thomas edison by creating the very first phonogram. This paper is over the advancement of audio and video since the beginning to modern day.
Headphones are a necessity for many people in today’s society. Headphones allow a person to listen to music without disturbing others; therefore people are listening to music all day while they eat, sleep, or work. In Derek Thompson’s essay, “How Headphones Changed the World”, Thompson addresses the problem of why workers use headphones even if studies have shown that it interferes with their productivity levels. Thompson effectively uses precise language and organizes his essay in a way that shows a breakdown of his thoughts on this topic. These two elements make the essay easy to understand, which enhances the audience’s reading experience.
Earplugs are placed into the ear canal in order to block the entrance of sound by forming a hermetic seal. Earplugs are better suited for longer use for those individuals who are exposed to noise throughout their workday, and provide a significant amount of attenuation. However, the effectiveness of the earplugs depends on proper insertion, and requires training employees on how to correctly place them in the canal. The level of attenuation can vary depending on how well the earplug is fit, as well as the motivation of the employee to wear them consistently (Berger, 2003).
phonograph in 1877, people have felt the need to create and record music. People have different
In a world of massive technological development, the expansion of the "electric sound" and the growing cultural society behind it have led to the construction of a number of prominent digitally devised genres seen worldwide. This new music has taken a rise of popularity at an exponential rate and has been accepted and adapted culturally in the mass majorities of today’s population. Though the music today has its different and specific sound to it, some of the original qualities still are very prominent in the genre of the now. To bridge the connection between the initial electronic sound and the contemporary take on it, one could look at groups who currently practice this music, such as the University of Pennsylvania’s student DJ group dubbed “The Collectve”, and compare the quality and details of their music with artists and groups existing in the birth age of electronic music and continuing through the its progression until the current state. This, in addition to reviewing the global expansion and acceptance of the genre worldwide throughout the years, will collectively work towards summarizing what EDM/house music is as a whole.
Oticon, a Danish company founded in 1904 was the first company in the world to invent an instrument to help the hearing impaired. In the 1970's, Oticon was the world's number one manufacturer of the "behind the ear" hearing aids. During the 1970's and 1980's as the market for "in the ear" hearing aid grew, Oticon's fortune suddenly declined and they lost money and market share. The main problem for all of this was that Oticon was a very traditional, departmentalized and slow-moving company. Even though Oticon had 15 sites and 95 distributorships around the world, Oticon was operating in a market dominated by Siemens, Phillips, Sony, 3M and Panasonic and most importantly, Oticon manufactured the "behind the