Audio speakers have long been mounted to conceal the speaker from view in the passenger compartment. Speakers have been mounted behind instrument panels, door trim panels and trim panels adjacent a rear seat. A popular mounting position for large speakers is underneath the horizontal package tray behind the rear seat and adjacent the rear window to take acoustic advantage of the enclosed trunk space.
Typically, audio speakers include an integral metal frame including two or more flanges permitting the speaker to be screwed or bolted to nearby sheet metal vehicle structure placing the open part of the speaker cone adjacent to, or flush with, the trim panel. A speaker grille is then placed over the hole in the trim panel to conceal the speaker cone and protect the speaker from damage by the occupants and from parcels or other debris.
Alternatively, a speaker bracket which is separate from the speaker may be used to position and secure the speaker to the vehicle supporting structure, for example, where suitable integrated attachment flanges cannot be incorporated with the speaker. These brackets may be attached at the time the speaker is installed or come pre-assembled with the speaker at the point of installation.
Recent developments on the installation of speakers have included integrated attachment clips or other types of integrated fastening schemes to eliminate separate mechanical fasteners such as screws, bolts or attachment clips. These integrated fastening systems coordinate with adjoining vehicle structure to frictionally or lockingly engage the speaker to the vehicle structure. These attaching systems were designed to eliminate the need for separate fasteners which, in theory, reduced the number of vehicle parts and reduced installation time. These systems have found to not work well in certain applications where large, heavy audio speakers are used.
A particularly difficult area in which to install audio speakers is in the package tray area which is typically a substantially horizontal panel behind the rear seat partially covering the trunk compartment. In this area, particularly in sedan-type vehicles, the back window of the vehicle is positioned at a fairly low angle with respect to the package tray. This small angle between the package tray and the rear window makes it difficult to efficiently align the mounting holes in the tray with the speaker attachment holes and drive the mechanical fasteners down through the package tray into the speaker frame or speaker bracket. Prior to securing the speaker, it is further challenging to position the speaker on the underside of the packaging tray which is typically deep inside the trunk compartment. The difficult ergonomics and relatively heavy speakers make it difficult for installers to position, align and hold the heavy speakers in place until they are secured to the package tray. In this application, it is typically necessary for one installer to hold the speaker in place and a second installer to align and drive the fasteners to secure the speaker. Often two speakers are installed which takes a considerable amount of physical effort and installation time.
Adding to this challenge is the ever-growing demand for higher quality audio systems which include large, oversized speakers having heavier magnets thereby greatly increasing the weight of the speakers and burdens to install them.
It would therefore be advantageous to design a speaker and/or bracket and method of installation which improves on these disadvantages in prior designs and installation techniques.