HK1214060B - Multi-mode, wearable, wireless microphone - Google Patents

Description

Multi-mode, wearable wireless microphone

Background

Conventional wireless microphones typically have a radio transmitter that transmits an audio signal via analog modulated (e.g., FM or AM) radio waves from a receiver unit near the microphone that receives the audio. Digital wireless microphones are also becoming more popular. For example, bluetooth headsets are commonly available having both a microphone and a headphone. In such bluetooth headsets, audio captured by a microphone is wirelessly transmitted to another piece of electronic equipment (typically a cell phone) via a bluetooth connection. However, such bluetooth headsets typically do not record and store the audio picked up by the microphone, but transmit it in real time. Also, advanced smartphones typically have a microphone and a software application ("app") for capturing and sharing voice recordings. Some such smart phone applications allow audio to be recorded, stored, and sent to other devices via a Wi-Fi network, a cellular network, or a bluetooth connection, such as by email or text messaging.

Disclosure of Invention

In one general aspect, the present invention is directed to microphone assemblies that capture audio/voice recordings and transmit them wirelessly (e.g., via a Wi-Fi network) to different desired network destinations based on an operating mode specified by a user. In various implementations, the microphone assembly includes a processor and a microphone for capturing audio/voice recordings. The microphone assembly also includes wireless communication circuitry in communication with the processor for wirelessly transmitting audio/voice recordings captured by the microphone from the microphone assembly. The microphone assembly also includes a non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit by which a user of the microphone assembly controls operation of the microphone assembly. For example, a user may tap the user interface tap detection circuitry, and different tap sequences may correspond to different modes of operation of the microphone assembly. For example, one tap sequence may correspond to a first mode of operation in which the microphone assembly wirelessly transmits a captured audio recording to a first destination (e.g., an intercom system), and a second tap sequence corresponds to a second mode of operation in which the microphone assembly wirelessly transmits a captured audio recording to a second destination (e.g., a Notes database, a speaker system, an electronic equipment controller, etc.), and so forth. Also, the microphone assembly includes a memory unit in communication with the processor. The memory unit stores instructions that program the processor to determine a network destination to which to wirelessly send, via the wireless communication circuit, a voice recording captured by the microphone based on an operational mode of the microphone assembly, wherein the operational mode is determined based on a tap sequence detected by the user interface tap detection circuit. The microphone assembly may further include a clip for clipping the microphone assembly to a user's clothing.

These and other benefits of the present invention will become apparent from the following description.

Drawings

Various embodiments of the present invention are described herein by way of example in conjunction with the following figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a microphone according to various embodiments of the invention;

fig. 2 is a rear perspective view of the microphone of fig. 1 in accordance with various embodiments of the invention;

fig. 3 is a left side view of the microphone of fig. 1-2 in accordance with various embodiments of the invention;

fig. 4 is a bottom side view of the microphone of fig. 1-3, in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a diagram of a user wearing the microphone of FIGS. 1-4 in accordance with various embodiments of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a microphone according to various embodiments of the invention;

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a process flow of a processor of a microphone according to various embodiments of the invention;

fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating various destinations of audio recorded by a microphone according to various embodiments of the invention;

figures 9 and 10 collectively illustrate a process for configuring a microphone according to various embodiments of the invention.

Detailed Description

The present invention is generally directed to a multi-mode, wearable wireless microphone that wirelessly transmits captured audio or voice recordings to different network destinations based on a user-specified mode of operation. Fig. 1-4 illustrate such a microphone 10 according to various embodiments. The microphone 10 includes a housing 12 and a clip 14. Clip 14 may be connected to housing 12 by a spring-loaded hinge 16 located at one edge of clip 14, wherein hinge 16 biases clip 14 in the closed position (as shown in fig. 3-4). At an opposite edge, clip 14 may include a ridge 18 extending from a rear surface of clip 14 toward housing 12 and contacting a rear surface of housing 12 when clip 14 is in a closed position (as shown in fig. 3-4). The height of the ridge 18 (i.e., its spacing from the rear of the housing 12) may be approximately equal to the height of the spring-loaded hinge 16, such that the clip 14 is generally parallel with the rear of the housing 12 when the clip 14 is in the closed position. In that way, the microphone 10 may be clipped to the clothing or clothing of the user of the microphone 10, preferably near the user's mouth, as shown in fig. 5, to pick up audible speech utterances spoken by the user.

Other external features of the microphone 10 may include: a multi-position slide switch 20, preferably located on one side of the housing 12, as shown in FIG. 3; a light indicator (e.g., LED)22, also preferably located on one side of the housing 12, as shown in FIG. 1; and a connection port 24, also preferably located on one side of the housing 12. For example, the connection port may be on the opposite side of the housing 12 (bottom) from the light indicator 22 (top side). The connection port may be, for example, a micro-USB port to which a user may connect a micro-USB (micro-USB) cable. The micro-USB cable may be connected to a charger for charging the battery of the microphone 12, or the micro-USB cable may be connected to a computer (e.g., a PC, laptop, or tablet), which may also charge the battery of the microphone 12 and/or provide a way to download files from the microphone 12 to the computer. Through the connected computer, the user of the microphone may also specify various remote network destinations for audio recordings captured by the microphone 10 to be wirelessly transmitted by the microphone 10, as explained further below.

The multi-position switch 20 may allow a user to turn the microphone 10 on, off, or switch the microphone 10 to a standby (standby) mode. For example, the switch 20 may slide lengthwise, with one position (e.g., extreme right or up, depending on orientation) turning the microphone on, another position (e.g., center) turning it off, and a third position (extreme left or down) placing the microphone 10 in standby mode. In the standby mode, the microphone 10 remains on for only a limited period of time (e.g., a few minutes) before being turned off. The user may wake up the microphone 10 by tapping on the front face 30 of the housing 12 to wake it up. As described further below, the front face 30 may include non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuitry to detect a tap of the front face 30 by a user, through which the user may control operation of the microphone 10 (such as waking it up in standby mode).

Light indicator 22 may comprise a multi-colored LED, wherein different emission colors of the LED indicate different operations of the microphone. For example, a color may be used to indicate that the microphone is charging; another color may indicate that it is open; yet another color may indicate when it is in standby mode; and another color may be indicated when the microphone is powered down. Of course, in other embodiments, fewer or more colors may be used as the operation indicator depending on the number of different modes or operations of the microphone 10 to be indicated by the LEDs. Also, in other embodiments, multiple LEDs may be used.

As shown in fig. 1-4, the microphone preferably does not have a graphical display screen (or touch screen graphical display user interface). Eliminating the graphical display allows the microphone 10 to be smaller in size and consume less power, thereby extending battery life. For example, the microphone 10 may have a height of 30 to 40mm, a length of 30 to 40mm, and a depth of 8 to 12 mm.

Fig. 6 is a block diagram of electrical components of a microphone according to various embodiments, which may be housed in housing 12. As shown in fig. 6, the microphone 10 may include a processor 60 and a memory. The memory may be embedded in the processor 60 and/or one or more external memory chips 62A-B. For example, in various embodiments, the processor 60 may include embedded RAM and ROM, and the external memory chip may include external RAM 62A (e.g., 128MB) and/or flash memory 62B (e.g., 16 Mb). The processor 60 preferably has embedded audio processing and memory management capabilities, as well as a codec. In various embodiments, the processor 60 may be, for example, an AMS AS3536 processor or any other suitable audio processor. In other (less preferred) embodiments, these various capabilities may be distributed across multiple chips and/or the processor may be implemented by an FPGA or ASIC. The memory (external or embedded) may store instructions (software and/or firmware) for execution by the processor 60. Of course, the housing 12 also includes a microphone 64, which may be a MEMS microphone chip with a built-in analog-to-digital converter (ADC) (and/or the processor 60 may have a built-in ADC) (note that the claims refer to the microphone 10 as a "microphone assembly" to distinguish it from the microphone 64, where the microphone 64 is an acoustic-to-electrical transducer). For example, the processor 60 may control the microphone 64 through an embedded I2S interface and receive audio captured by the microphone 64. As also shown in fig. 6, the microphone assembly 10 may include wireless communication circuitry 66 connected to the processor 60 that handles radio/wireless communications by the microphone 10. In various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 66 may be a separate chip from the processor 60 (as shown in fig. 6), or it may be integrated with the processor 60. Any suitable wireless communication protocol may be used, and preferably a protocol capable of communicating with a packet-switched network (e.g., the internet) over an access point, such as a Wi-Fi protocol (such as IEEE 802.11a, b, g, and/or n) or WiMAX (IEEE 802.16) or any other suitable protocol. In embodiments where the wireless communication circuit 66 is a separate chip from the processor 60, the wireless communication circuit 66 may comprise, for example, a NanoRadioNRG731 chip.

As previously mentioned, the microphone may also include a multi-position switch 20, an LED 22, a USB port 24, and a battery 28 for powering the components of the microphone 10. The USB port 24 (or other external interface) allows the microphone to be connected to an external device, such as a computer or a charger. The battery 28 may comprise, for example, a lithium-ion or other suitable rechargeable battery.

Additionally, the microphone 10 may include a tap detection circuit 68 that may include one or more switches that detect taps by the user on the front face 30 (see fig. 1-4) of the microphone 10. The tap detection circuitry 68 may include any suitable switch (es) for detecting a tap on the front face 30, such as tactile or non-tactile membrane switch (es) or click button type switch (es). Different tap sequences from the user detected by tap detection circuitry 68 may configure the microphone to wirelessly transmit audio (e.g., voice recordings) captured by the microphone from wireless communication circuitry 66 to different remote locations or systems. Since the microphone 10 preferably does not include a graphical user interface or touch display screen, the housing 12 including the front face 30 may be made of plastic and different input tap sequences from the user may control the operation of the microphone.

Fig. 7 and 8 illustrate operation of a microphone according to various embodiments. Fig. 7 is a flow chart illustrating the functionality of the microphone 10, as performed by the processor 60 based on instructions stored in a memory (e.g., external memories 62A-B or embedded memory). As shown in fig. 7 and 8, the microphone 10 records audio from a start time until an end time, and the recorded audio may then be wirelessly transmitted to various remote destinations depending on the mode specified by the user for the microphone 10. The particular remote destination for the recorded audio may be specified by the user, as described further below. As shown in fig. 7 and 8, the user may specify the mode of the microphone 10 through different tap sequences on the front side 30 of the housing 12 that are detected by the tap detection circuitry 68 and interpreted by the processor 60 (based on software and/or firmware stored in memory). The examples of fig. 7 and 8 use four different tap sequences (corresponding to four different remote destinations for recorded audio), however, in other embodiments, more or fewer tap sequences and corresponding destinations may be used.

In the example of FIG. 7, if a first tap sequence is detected, such as a short tap, at step 70, microphone 64 initiates recording audio (step 72) until a second tap is detected at step 74 (the tap indicating the end of recording). The first tap sequence (in this example, a single short tap) may correspond to the mode of operation in which the captured audio/voice recording is wirelessly transmitted to the remote intercom system 100 in step 76. Referring to fig. 8, the wireless microphone 10 transmits recorded audio to the intercom system 100 via a Wi-Fi data link to an access point 102 (e.g., a "hot spot") connected to the internet 104. Microphone 10 may be disposed in communication with access point 102, as described further below. In such embodiments, the intercom system 100 may be connected to the internet 104 through a wired or wireless connection and have the capability to play recorded audio through one or more loudspeakers of the intercom system.

Returning to FIG. 7, if a first tap sequence is not detected, but a second tap sequence is detected (step 78), such as two consecutive, short, closely spaced taps, the microphone 64 initiates recording of audio/speech (step 80) until a second tap is detected (the tap indicating end of recording) at step 82. The second sequence of taps (two consecutive short taps in this example) may correspond to a mode in which the captured audio/voice recording is wirelessly transmitted to the remote Notes database/server system 106 (see fig. 8) at step 84. The Notes database/server system 106 may store the audio/voice recordings as files for later access by the user and/or may automatically transcribe the audio/voice recordings to text, also for later access by the user. In the latter case, Notes database/server system 106 has the ability to recognize utterances in audio/voice recordings and convert them to text. In this manner, a user of the microphone 10 may conveniently convert captured audio annotations into notes for later retrieval, review, and use.

If neither of the first and second tap sequences is detected, but a third tap sequence is detected, such as a long tap followed by a short tap shortly thereafter (step 86), then microphone 64 initiates recording of audio/speech (step 88) until a second tap is detected at step 90 (the tap indicating the end of the recording). A third tap sequence (in this example a long tap followed by a short tap) may correspond to the mode in which the captured audio/voice recording was wirelessly transmitted to the internet-connected speaker system 108 (see fig. 8) at step 92. The internet-connected speaker system 108 may play the transmitted audio and may be, for example, any suitable type of speaker, such as a computer speaker, a microphone, or an earphone (or earphone kit, e.g., a headset). Examples of headsets capable of connecting to the internet are disclosed in us patent 8,190,203 and published PCT application WO/2011/031910a1, both of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Finally, if none of the first through third tap sequences are detected, but a fourth tap sequence is detected, such as two long, consecutive taps (step 93), then microphone 64 initiates recording of audio/speech (step 94) until a second tap is detected (the tap indicating end of recording) at step 95. The fourth tap sequence (two long consecutive taps) may correspond to the mode in which the captured audio/voice recording was sent to the internet-connected controller 110 (see fig. 8) of the electronic equipment at step 96. The controller 110 may be, for example, a thermostat, a light switch controller, a controller for consumer electronics or gaming equipment, a controller for industrial or manufacturing equipment, or any other controller configured to recognize and convert commands in captured audio recordings into commands for controlled equipment. For example, when the controller 110 is a thermostat, the user may record in the microphone 10 like "set temperature to 70 degrees" which audio recording is sent to the controller/thermostat 110, in which case the controller/thermostat 110 recognizes the command in the audio and thus sets the temperature of the thermostat to 70 degrees. As another example, where the controller controls the lighting system, the recorded audio may be said to be "set the lights at fifty percent," in which case the controller 110 recognizes the command in the audio and thus sets the light(s) to 50% of full on. Other suitable commands may be used for other controllers depending on their application.

As mentioned previously, a user of the microphone 10 may connect the microphone 10 to the computer 120 via, for example, the USB port 24, as shown in fig. 9, in order to configure the microphone, including setting Wi-Fi hotspots and destinations for audio recordings captured by the microphone 10. Fig. 10 is a flow diagram of a process for setting up and customizing a microphone 10, in accordance with various embodiments. At step 150, a user (e.g., a user of microphone 10) logs into a website associated with microphone 10 hosted by remote server(s) 122 using internet-enabled computer 120 with a browser, and sets an account if the user does not already have it. On the website, the user may, for example, add a Wi-Fi hotspot, such as the Wi-Fi hotspot associated with access point 102 in fig. 8. To add a Wi-Fi hotspot at step 152, the user may click on (or otherwise activate) a link on the website indicating a desire to add a Wi-Fi hotspot. In various embodiments, JAVA applets from a website may be used by computer 120 to search for nearby Wi-Fi hotspots, which, when detected, may be displayed on the website for the user. The user may then click on (or otherwise select) the desired Wi-Fi hotspot to add. If applicable, the website may prompt the user to enter a password and/or encryption type (e.g., WPA or WPA2) for the selected Wi-Fi hotspot. The SSID, password, and encryption type for the Wi-Fi hotspot are stored by the remote server(s) 122 for the user's account. This process may be repeated as needed to add as many Wi-Fi hotspots as the user desires.

Next, at step 154, the user may specify various remote destinations for the recorded audio for various modes through the website. For example, referring to fig. 8, a user may specify addresses (e.g., IP addresses) of the intercom system 100, the Notes database server 106, the internet-connected speaker system 108, and the controller 110 for the electronic equipment. These addresses may be stored by the web server(s) 122 for the website. In one embodiment, web server(s) 122 may download the address to microphone 10 via computer 120 at step 156. In this way, when the microphone 10 transmits the recorded audio, it transmits the recorded audio to the destination using the address for the desired destination. That is, the data packet from the microphone 10 includes the IP address of the desired location. In another embodiment, the address of the destination is not downloaded to the microphone 10. Instead, remote server(s) 122 store an address, in which case microphone 10 sends data packets for recorded audio to remote server(s) 122, along with data regarding the selected user mode of microphone 10. The remote server(s) 122 then look up the desired destination based on the pattern of the microphones and forward the recorded audio to the desired destination via the internet. This allows the user to easily add, modify and/or update hotspots and network destinations for the microphone 10.

Also, in various embodiments, once the microphone 10 is enabled for wireless communication (e.g., a hotspot is set), network addresses for various destinations may be downloaded to the microphone 10 wirelessly from the remote server(s) 122, rather than through the computer 120. More details regarding CONFIGURING a wireless device such as microphone 10 may be found in U.S. patent application serial No.13/832,719 entitled "CONFIGURING WIRELESS DEVICES FOR a wireless device and method of operation," filed on 2013, month 3, 15, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Accordingly, in one general aspect, the present invention is directed to a microphone assembly comprising: a processor; a microphone in communication with the processor; wireless communication circuitry in communication with the processor for wirelessly transmitting from the microphone a voice recording captured by the microphone; a non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit in communication with the processor; and a memory unit in communication with the processor. A user controls operation of the microphone assembly through one or more taps of the user interface tap detection circuitry, where different tap sequences correspond to different modes of operation of the microphone assembly. The memory unit stores instructions that program the processor to determine a network destination to which to wirelessly send via the wireless communication circuit a voice recording captured by the microphone based on an operational mode of the microphone assembly, wherein the operational mode is determined based on a tap sequence detected by the user interface tap detection circuit.

In various implementations, the wireless communication circuitry is to wirelessly transmit the voice recording to a network destination through a wireless access point in communication with the wireless communication circuitry. Further, the memory unit may store instructions that program the processor to: (i) wirelessly transmitting, via the wireless communication circuitry, the captured voice recording to a first network destination when a first tap sequence corresponding to a first mode of operation is detected by the user interface tap detection circuitry; and (ii) wirelessly transmit the captured voice recording to a second network destination different from the first network destination via the wireless communication circuitry when a second tap sequence corresponding to a second mode of operation is detected by the user interface tap detection circuitry, and so on. The memory unit may store addresses for the first and second network destinations, and the wireless communication circuit may wirelessly transmit the captured voice to the first or second network destinations using the stored addresses for the first and second network destinations, depending on the mode of operation.

In another variation, the wireless communication circuit is for wirelessly transmitting the captured voice recording to a remote server along with data indicative of the operational mode of the microphone assembly determined by the tap sequence circuit. In this case, the remote server is operable to send the captured voice recording to the first or second network destination in dependence upon the operating mode data received from the microphone assembly.

In various implementations, the microphone assembly may also include a housing and a clip. The housing houses a processor, a microphone, wireless communication circuitry, a non-graphical display user interface, and a memory unit. A clip is attached to the housing and is used to clip the housing to the clothing of a user of the microphone assembly.

In yet another aspect, the present invention is directed to a method of wirelessly transmitting a voice recording. The method may include the step of detecting, by a non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit of the microphone assembly, a first start recording tap sequence made by a user of the microphone assembly. The first start recording tap sequence corresponds to one of a plurality of modes of operation of the microphone assembly. After detecting the first start recording tap sequence, the method includes capturing, by a microphone of the microphone assembly, a voice recording until detecting an end recording tap sequence corresponding to a command to end recording. After detecting an end record tap sequence corresponding to a command to end recording, the method includes wirelessly transmitting, by the wireless communication circuit of the microphone assembly, the captured voice recording to a first network destination determined based on the detected first start record tap sequence.

In various implementations, the method may further include detecting, by the non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuitry of the microphone assembly, a second start recording tap sequence made by the user of the microphone assembly. The second begin recording tap sequence is different from the first begin recording tap sequence and corresponds to a second of the plurality of modes of operation of the microphone assembly. After detecting the second start recording tap sequence, the method includes capturing, by a microphone of the microphone assembly, a voice recording until detecting an end recording tap sequence corresponding to a command to end recording. After detecting an end record tap sequence corresponding to the command to end recording, the method includes wirelessly transmitting, by the wireless communication circuit of the microphone assembly, the captured voice recording to a second network destination determined based on the detected second start record tap sequence.

It will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that at least some of the embodiments described herein may be implemented in many different embodiments of software, firmware, and/or hardware. The software and firmware code may be executed by a processor circuit or any other similar computing device. Software code or dedicated control hardware that may be used to implement embodiments is not limiting. For example, the embodiments described herein may be implemented in computer software using any suitable type of computer software language, using, for example, conventional or object-oriented techniques. Such software may be stored on any type of suitable computer readable medium, such as, for example, a magnetic or optical storage medium. The operation and behavior of the embodiments were described without specific reference to the specific software code or specialized hardware components. The absence of such specific references is feasible because it should be clearly understood that one of ordinary skill in the art would be able to design software and control hardware to implement the embodiments based on the present description, simply with reasonable effort and without undue experimentation.

Also, the processes associated with the present embodiments may be performed by programmable equipment such as a computer or computer system, a mobile device, a smart phone, and/or a processor. Software that may cause programmable equipment to perform processes may be stored in any storage device, such as, for example, computer system (non-volatile) memory, RAM, ROM, flash memory, etc. Moreover, at least some of the processes may be programmed or stored upon various types of computer-readable media when the computer system is manufactured.

A "computer," "computer system," "host," "server," or "processor" may be, for example but not limited to, a processor, a minicomputer, server, mainframe, laptop, Personal Data Assistant (PDA), wireless email device, cellular telephone, smartphone, tablet, mobile device, pager, processor, facsimile, scanner, or any other programmable device configured to send and/or receive data via a network. The computer systems and computer-based devices disclosed herein may include memory for storing certain software modules or engines used in obtaining, processing, and communicating information. It will be appreciated that such memory may be internal or external with respect to the operation of the disclosed embodiments. The memory may also include any means for storing software, including a hard disk, an optical disk, a floppy disk, a ROM (read only memory), a RAM (random access memory), a PROM (programmable ROM), an EEPROM (electrically erasable PROM), and/or other computer-readable medium. The software modules and engines described herein may be executed by a processor (or multiple processors, as the case may be) of a computer device that accesses memory of a memory module.

In various embodiments disclosed herein, a single component may be replaced by multiple components and multiple components may be replaced by a single component to perform a given function or functions. Unless such substitutions are not feasible, such substitutions are within the intended scope of the examples. For example, any of the servers described herein may be replaced by other groupings of "server farms" (or networked servers, such as server blades) located and configured to cooperate with the functions. It can be appreciated that a server farm can be used to distribute workload among the individual components of the farm, and that the computing process can be accelerated by taking advantage of the aggregate and cooperative capabilities of multiple servers. Such server farms may employ load balancing software that implements tasks such as, for example, tracking demand for processing power from different machines, prioritizing and scheduling tasks based on network demand, and/or providing backup emergencies in the event of component failure or reduced operability.

While various embodiments have been described herein, it will be apparent that various modifications, alterations, and adaptations to those embodiments may occur to persons skilled in the art with the attainment of at least some of the advantages. Accordingly, the disclosed embodiments are intended to embrace all such modifications, alterations, and adaptations without departing from the scope of the embodiments as set forth herein.

Claims (12)

1. A microphone assembly comprising:

a processor;

a microphone in communication with the processor;

wireless communication circuitry in communication with the processor for wirelessly transmitting from the microphone assembly the first voice recording and the second voice recording captured by the microphone;

a non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit in communication with the processor, whereby a user controls operation of the microphone assembly through one or more taps of the user interface tap detection circuit without the graphical display, wherein different tap sequences correspond to different modes of operation of the microphone assembly; and

a memory unit in communication with the processor, wherein the memory unit stores instructions that program the processor to determine a network destination to which to wirelessly send, via the wireless communication circuit, a voice recording captured by the microphone based on an operational mode of the microphone assembly, wherein the operational mode of the microphone assembly is determined based on a tap sequence detected by the user interface tap detection circuit such that:

wirelessly transmitting, via the wireless communication circuitry, the captured first voice recording to the first network destination when a first tap sequence corresponding to the first mode of operation is detected by the user interface tap detection circuitry, wherein the first tap sequence includes a first start record tap sequence and a first end record tap sequence, wherein the microphone starts capturing the voice recording when the non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuitry detects the first start record tap sequence, and wherein the microphone stops capturing the voice recording when the non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuitry detects the first end record tap sequence; and

wirelessly transmitting, via the wireless communication circuit, a captured second voice recording to a second network destination different from the first network destination when a second tap sequence corresponding to a second mode of operation is detected by the user interface tap detection circuit, wherein the second tap sequence includes a second start record tap sequence and a second end record tap sequence, wherein the microphone starts capturing the voice recording when the non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit detects the second start record tap sequence, wherein the microphone stops capturing the voice recording when the non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit detects the second end record tap sequence, and wherein the first start record tap sequence is different from the second start record tap sequence.

2. The microphone assembly of claim 1 wherein the wireless communication circuitry is to wirelessly transmit the voice recording to the network destination through a wireless access point in communication with the wireless communication circuitry.

3. The microphone assembly of claim 1, wherein:

a memory unit stores addresses for a first network destination and a second network destination; and

the wireless communication circuitry is to wirelessly transmit the captured voice recording to the first network destination or the second network destination using the stored addresses for the first network destination and the second network destination, depending on the mode of operation.

4. The microphone assembly of claim 1, further comprising:

a housing containing a processor, a microphone, wireless communication circuitry, non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuitry, and a memory unit; and

a clip connected to the housing for clipping the housing to the clothing of a user of the microphone assembly.

5. The microphone assembly of claim 1, wherein the memory unit stores instructions that program the processor to:

when a third tap sequence corresponding to a third mode of operation is detected by the user interface tap detection circuitry, the captured voice recording is wirelessly transmitted to a third network destination via the wireless communication circuitry.

6. The microphone assembly of claim 5, wherein the memory unit stores instructions that program the processor to:

wirelessly transmitting, via the wireless communication circuitry, the captured voice recording to a fourth network destination when a fourth tap sequence corresponding to a fourth mode of operation is detected by the user interface tap detection circuitry.

7. The microphone assembly of any one of claims 1-6, wherein the user interface tap detection circuitry includes a non-tactile membrane switch to detect a corresponding tap sequence.

8. A method of wirelessly transmitting a voice recording, the method comprising:

detecting, by a non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit of the microphone assembly, a first start recording tap sequence made by a user of the microphone assembly, whereby the user controls the microphone assembly through the non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit without a graphical display, wherein the first start recording tap sequence corresponds to one of a plurality of operating modes of the microphone assembly;

after detecting the first start recording tap sequence, capturing, by a microphone of the microphone assembly, a first voice recording until detecting an end recording tap sequence corresponding to a command to end recording; and

after detecting an end record tap sequence corresponding to the command to end recording, wirelessly transmitting, by the wireless communication circuitry of the microphone assembly, the captured first voice recording to a first network destination determined based on the detected first start record tap sequence;

detecting, by a non-graphical display user interface tap detection circuit of the microphone assembly, a second start recording tap sequence made by a user of the microphone assembly, wherein:

the second begin recording tap sequence is different from the first begin recording tap sequence; and

the second start recording tap sequence corresponds to a second one of the plurality of modes of operation of the microphone assembly;

after detecting the second start recording tap sequence, capturing, by the microphone of the microphone assembly, a second voice recording until detecting an end recording tap sequence corresponding to the command to end recording; and

after detecting an end record tap sequence corresponding to the command to end recording, wirelessly transmitting, by the wireless communication circuitry of the microphone assembly, the captured second voice recording to a second network destination determined based on the detected second start record tap sequence.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

storing, by the microphone assembly, network addresses of the first network destination and the second network destination; and

based on the detected mode of operation, wirelessly transmitting, by the wireless communication circuit, a voice recording to the first network destination or the second network destination using the stored network address of the first network destination or the stored network address of the second network destination.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising storing, by the microphone assembly, a network address of the remote server, an

Wherein wirelessly transmitting, by the wireless communication circuit, the voice recording to the first network destination or the second network destination in dependence on the detected operating mode comprises:

wirelessly transmitting, by the wireless communication circuitry, the voice recording and the detected indication of the mode of operation of the microphone assembly to a remote server; and

depending on the mode of operation of the microphone assembly, the remote server sends the voice recording to either the first network destination or the second network destination.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising, prior to detecting the first start recording tap sequence, clipping, by a user of the microphone assembly, the microphone assembly to the user's clothing with a clip of the microphone assembly.

12. The method of any of claims 8-11, wherein the user interface tap detection circuit comprises a non-tactile membrane switch, the corresponding tap sequence being detected by the non-tactile membrane switch of the user interface tap detection circuit.