WHAT ARE HEADPHONES?
Headphones are a pair of small loudspeaker drivers worn on or around the head over a user's ears. They are electroacoustic transducers, which convert an electrical signal to a corresponding sound. Headphones are also known as earphones or, colloquially, cans. Headphones connect to a signal source such as an audio amplifier, radio, CD player, portable media player, mobile phone, video game console, or electronic musical instrument, either directly using a cord, or using wireless technology such as Bluetooth, DECT or FM radio.
MANUFACTURING PROCESS:
How to Waterproof Headphones
Headphone manufacturing comes down to two main parts. The first is to produce two miniaturized versions of loudspeakers using a combination of metal compounds and either plastic or paper. The second is to produce a housing for the speakers that fits comfortably on or in the ear, with plastics, rubber and foam all key components depending on the design.
Speaker Basics
While a great deal of technology goes into making headphones small and comfortable, in principle they are simply two miniature loudspeakers. This involves three key components: a permanent magnet (which is locked in place), a coiled electromagnet and a cone. The electrical signal from the audio device (such as your MP3 player) passes through the electromagnet and causes its magnetic field to change direction. This means the electromagnet switches rapidly between being attracted to or repelled by the permanent magnet and thus moves about. The electromagnet is attached to the cone, which magnifies the movement and causes air to vibrate in and toward your ear as sound waves.
Speaker Materials
Originally the metal parts of headphone speakers were made of iron, which made for poor sound quality. Today they are normally ferrite or neodymium, which are both compound materials that include iron and other elements. In the coiled electromagnet, these materials have the big advantage that they can change magnetic field directions with only a minimal loss of energy. The cone in headphones is commonly made of plastic and/or paper rather than metal. This is because flexibility is more important than strength at this size. Some researchers have explored using a new compound material, graphene, to try to get increased strength and flexibility at the same time.
Headphone Casings
The material that surrounds the speakers in headphones varies depending on the design and budget. For on-ear headphones, the usual design is a rigid plastic casing with a rubber or PVC layer to act as a cushion on the ear. For in-ear headphones, rubber or silicone is common, as it has more flexibility and can thus fit comfortably but snugly into the ear or ear canal. More expensive in-ear models use a form of foam which can adjust to the specific shape of the user's ear canal. Headphones are made by a combination of hand and machine methods. The internal speaker configuration on the headphones must be wired first before being placed in the headphone casing.
This is generally done in an assembly line manner with several workers being responsible for a small part of the process. One worker may wire the speaker configuration into the headset while another may be responsible for just assembling the parts of the pre-molded casing. Most headphone casings are made by machines to save time and money. The outer casings of most headphones is made of molded plastic and thus created by a set of molds at the factory. After a pair of headphones has been completely assembled they are tested in the factory. Nowadays the testing is done by a computer. The computer program sends sound waves through the headphones to test the frequency response.
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DISCLAIMER
The information is provided by Tecquisition for general informational and educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal advice. If you have any feedback, comments, requests for technical support or other inquiries, please mail us by tecqusition@gmail.com.
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