A New Medical Patent Allows You to Listen to Music and Limit the Inhalation of Air Pollution and Viruses

In an age where technologies converge and companies constantly re-invent themselves, Dyson has signaled its intent to be a front-runner, with a new patent for air-purifier headphones that include a face mask.

With the coronavirus recently causing world-wide alarm as it approaches pandemic levels, Dyson confirmed the mask will limit the spread of flu viruses. Whether it will be 100% effective against the coronavirus is not yet known but the engineering team will obviously work towards that goal as they scope out final designs before heading into production.

This makes it a breakout advice for a company synonymous with home appliances such as vacuums.  The two-in-one device reflects the incredible feats of engineering underway at a number of top international brands, as they use technology to reach new markets and consumers.

The underlying intellectual property builds on previous patents in the air purifier arena and includes references to speaker and  filter assemblies allied to an impeller used for creating air flow and filtering out contaminants. In China, Dyson has made a name for itself as a reliable supplier of air purifiers in a nation linked to some of the worst pollution levels in the world.

With the coronavirus  adding to China’s woes, health experts confirm that there is currently no vaccine to prevent 2019-nCoV infection. The Centers for Disease Control in the United States state that “the best way to prevent infection is to avoid being exposed to this virus.”

While there is some debate as to whether face masks offer optimal protection against airborne viruses, the CDC does ask  patients to wear a face mask as soon as they are identified with symptoms.  This makes novel new inventions such as air purifier headphones a potential mechanism to support limiting the spread of viruses.

The patent, in particular, states that “airflow from the first speaker assembly, the nozzle 1300 comprising an air outlet arranged to emit the received filtered airflow from the head wearable air purifier.”

The carefully worded patent confirms that head phones include a speaker assembly and speaker driver nested behind the impeller which is behind the filter. The speaker assembly contains control circuitry for a speaker driver.

Meanwhile, Mashable reports a growing shortage of face masks in North America which could make the headphones a popular purchase once production begins.   Increasingly, our patent law firm sees companies branching out into new sectors using the power of technology. Apple is a good example of this as it makes forays into self-driving cars.  In fact, Dyson at one point was examining a similar approach but abandoned its plans.

The interplay between Elon Musk’s various companies including Tesla and SpaceX, show how there is virtually no limit to the way’s technology can be repurposed in the computer age.

In virtually all of these of the scenarios, patents are used to protect these groundbreaking ideas, a particular concern in the medical arena where competition is fierce and regulatory requirements intimidating.

While there is no guarantee that Dyson will move ahead with building the headphones based on the current patent drawings, you can be sure it will open up a new plethora of possibilities for inventors seeking to disrupt the medical device arena.