Patent Grant
9161143
This application claims the priority, under 35 U.S.C. ยง119, of German application DE 10 2014 200 917.0, filed Jan. 20, 2014; the prior application is herewith incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The invention relates to a hearing instrument to be worn behind the ear (BTE) having a coupling between a housing and a sound tube, and a housing and a sound tube of such a hearing instrument.
Hearing instruments can be embodied for instance as hearing devices. A hearing device is used to supply a hearing-impaired person with acoustic ambient signals which are processed and amplified in order to compensate for or treat the respective hearing impairment. It consists, in principle, of one or a number of input transducers, a signal processing facility, an amplifier and an output transducer. The input transducer is generally a sound receiver, e.g. a microphone, and/or an electromagnetic receiver, e.g. an induction coil. The output transducer is usually implemented as an electroacoustic converter, e.g. a miniature loudspeaker, or as an electromechanical converter, e.g. a bone conduction earpiece. It is also referred to as an earpiece or receiver. The output transducer generates output signals, which are routed to the ear of the patient and are to generate a hearing perception in the patient. The amplifier is generally integrated in the signal processing facility. Power is supplied to the hearing device by a battery integrated in the hearing device housing. The main components of a hearing device are generally arranged on a printed circuit board as a circuit substrate or connected thereto.
Besides hearing devices, hearing instruments can also be embodied as so-called tinnitus maskers. Tinnitus maskers are used to treat tinnitus patients. They generate acoustic output signals dependent on the respective hearing impairment and, depending on the working principle, also on ambient noises, the output signals possibly contributing to reducing the perception of interfering tinnitus or other ear noises.
Furthermore, hearing instruments can also be embodied as telephones, cell phones, headsets, earphones, MP3 players or other electronic telecommunication or entertainment systems.
The term hearing instrument is to be understood below both as hearing devices, and also tinnitus maskers, comparable devices of such type as well as electronic telecommunication and entertainment systems.
Hearing instruments, in particular hearing devices, are known in various basic types. With in-the-ear (ITE) hearing devices, a housing containing all functional components including a microphone and a receiver is worn at least partially in the auditory canal. Completely-in-canal (CIC) hearing devices are similar to ITE hearing devices, but are worn entirely in the auditory canal. With behind the ear (BTE) hearing devices, a housing with components such as a battery and a signal processing facility is worn behind the ear and a flexible sound tube, also referred to as a tube, routes the acoustic output signals of a receiver from the housing to the auditory canal, where an earpiece on the tube is frequently provided to reliably position the tube end in the auditory canal. Receiver in canal, behind the ear (RIC-BTE) hearing devices are similar to BTE hearing devices, but the receiver is worn in the auditory canal and instead of a sound tube, a flexible receiver tube routes electrical signals, instead of acoustic signals, to the receiver, which is attached to the front of the receiver tube, in most instances in an earpiece used for reliable positioning within the auditory canal. RIC-BTE hearing devices are frequently used as so-called open-fit devices, in which the auditory canal remains open for the passage of sound and air in order to reduce the interfering occlusion effect.
It is common to all hearing device types that the smallest possible housing or designs are sought in order to increase wearing comfort, if applicable to improve the implantability and if applicable to reduce the visibility of the hearing device for cosmetic reasons. The smallest possible design is also sought for most other hearing instruments.
It is known how to assemble BTE hearing instruments from a housing to be worn behind the ear and a receiver tube for connecting a receiver (with RIC-BTE hearing instruments) or a sound tube as an acoustic signal line (with BTE hearing instruments). The tube and housing can be connected removably to each other for example by a screw-in, snap-in or plug-in coupling. On the one hand, the coupling must be mechanically sufficiently stable so as not to be removed unintentionally during everyday use. On the other hand, the coupling should not impair wearing comfort and should be visually inconspicuous. A sufficiently easy removability of the coupling for maintenance and adjustment purposes is frequently also desired. With BTE hearing instruments the sound tube must additionally be connected in a soundproof manner, in other words the coupling must be soundproof.
A RIC-BTE hearing instrument, in which an earpiece tube is connected to a BTE housing by a plug-in connector, is known from the publication U.S. patent publication No. 2013/0004005 A1. The plug-in connector is disposed on an underside of the BTE housing. It can be locked with a pin or by an elastic snap-in catch. A sound tube is not provided on this hearing instrument and consequently the plug connector is not configured so as to be acoustically sealed.
A BTE hearing instrument, in which a sound tube is connected to a wearing hook of the hearing instrument, is known from the publication European patent application EP 1 487 237 A1. By use of a flange, a thickening or a threaded tube on the wearing hook, over which the sound tube is sheathed, the connection is configured so as to be mechanically stable and acoustically sealed.
A BTE hearing instrument, in which a sound tube is connected to a front side of the BTE housing by a plug, is known from the publication U.S. patent publication No. 2006/0171550 A1.
The object underlying the invention is to disclose a coupling that is slimline, easy-to-use and low-cost in installation, for the sound-insulated connection of sound tube and housing of a BTE hearing instrument.
The invention achieves this object by a hearing instrument and a housing and a sound tube with a corresponding coupling having the features of the independent claims.
A basic idea of the invention consists in a BTE hearing instrument containing a housing and a sound tube that is removably connected to the housing by a coupling connected to the sound tube in a sound-insulated manner. The coupling has a lug and an abutment corresponding to the lug and an additional locking device. A sound-tube-side coupling component has a sound channel leading to the sound tube and a housing-side coupling component has a sound channel leading to a receiver, which, when the coupling is closed, are connected to each other in an insulated manner by an acoustic seal. The lug including the corresponding abutment connect the sound-tube-side coupling component to the housing-side coupling component in a form-fit and movable manner, in at least one spatial direction relative to each other. The additional locking device, when it is closed, impedes a movement of the coupling components relative to each other in the at least one spatial direction. The lug including the corresponding abutment on the one hand, and locking device on the other hand, are disposed spatially separated from each other in the coupling.
Through the combination of a form-fit connection on the one hand with a locking device on the other hand, a particularly simple closing of the coupling is made possible. It is of no concern here whether the lug is on the housing-side coupling component and the abutment on the sound-tube-side coupling component or vice versa. It is important merely that a connection is created thereby that is on the one hand form-fit, but is on the other hand removable. The additional locking device can be embodied in a conventional manner, for example with a slider, a connecting pin or a screw connection. It serves to lock the connection overall, as it inhibits the residual movement in the form-fit connection. In other words, when closing the coupling, the form-fit connection is first created and then locked in place by the locking device. The housing-side coupling component is thus formed by the housing-side sound-channel seal and by the housing-side part of the locking device and, depending on the arrangement, the lug or the corresponding abutment.
An advantageous further development of the basic idea consists in the seal containing an elastic component that, when the coupling is closed, is compressed so that it causes an elastic force in the opening direction of the coupling components relative to each other, and so that the additional locking device counteracts the elastic force such that an opening of the coupling is impeded. Thus in a simple, uncomplicated manner a blocking effect is achieved so that the additional locking device in turn does not need to be of a self-locking design.
A further advantageous development of the basic idea consists in the coupling containing an additional snap-in locking device that snaps in when the coupling is closed. The additional snap-in locking device on the one hand provides the coupling with additional protection against unintentional and undesired opening. On the other hand, snapping-in the snap-in locking device can cause a provisional closing of the coupling before the final closing is affected by the additional locking device. Here the provisional snap-in locking device facilitates closing of the additional locking device or handling while closing.
A further advantageous development of the basic idea consists in the additional snap-in locking device being disposed spatially closer in the coupling to the additional locking device than to the lug including corresponding abutment. The spatially distanced arrangement results in a mechanically stable arrangement that is not prone to buckling or twisting. It also makes handling easier as the coupling is first closed provisionally on the side by lug and abutment and then, once already provisionally fixed, is finally locked on the other side. By virtue of the form-fit connection, the provisionally-fixed coupling has less freedom of movement and is therefore easy to hold.
A further advantageous development of the basic idea consists in the additional locking device contains a hole and a corresponding locking pin. This provides for a particularly simple yet also reliable locking device that has been tested in handling.
A further basic idea of the invention consists in a sound tube for a BTE hearing instrument that is embodied as described above, which can be removably connected to the housing by a coupling connected to the sound tube in a sound-insulated manner. The coupling has a lug and an abutment corresponding to the lug and an additional locking device. The sound-tube-side coupling component has a sound channel leading to the sound tube. The lug including the corresponding abutment can connect the sound-tube-side coupling component to the housing-side coupling component in a form-fit and movable, in at least one spatial direction relative to each other. The additional locking device, when it is closed, impedes a movement of the coupling components relative to each other in the at least one spatial direction. The lug including corresponding abutment on the one hand, and the locking device on the other hand, are disposed spatially separated from each other in the coupling.
A further basic idea of the invention consists in a housing for a BTE hearing instrument that is realized as described above, which can be removably connected thereto by a coupling connected to the sound tube in a sound-insulated manner. The coupling has a lug and an abutment corresponding to the lug and an additional locking device, wherein the housing-side coupling component has a sound channel leading to a receiver. The lug including corresponding abutment can connect the sound-tube-side coupling component to the housing-side coupling component in a form-fit and movable, in at least one spatial direction relative to each other. The additional locking device, when it is closed, impedes a movement of the coupling components relative to each other in the at least one spatial direction. The lug including the corresponding abutment on the one hand, and locking device on the other hand, are disposed spatially separated from each other in the coupling.
Other features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims.
Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in a BTE hearing instrument with a housing and a sound tube, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.
The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.
Referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first, particularly to
The acoustic signals that the receiver 10 generates are routed by way of a tube (not shown in the figure) to a housing-side sound channel 20. The acoustic signals leave the housing via the housing-side sound channel 20. Disposed around the housing-side sound channel 20 or its output opening is a sealing surface 19 that provides for a sound-insulated connection of a sound-tube-side sound channel.
Connected to the sound tube 3 is the sound-tube-side coupling component 4. This contains two holes 5 that can be made to overlap with the hole 6 of the housing in which the coupling is enclosed. Two snap-in catches 8 are also identifiable that snap into the snap-in catch receivers 9 when the coupling is closed. This provides a snap-in locking measure for the coupling. Finally two lugs 11 are disposed at the end of the sound-tube-side coupling component 4 that is shown on the right in the figure, which are mutually engaged with two abutments 12 on the housing.
In the figure just one lug 11 and one abutment 12 respectively are identifiable.
The sound-tube-side coupling component 4 is inserted into the corresponding abutments 12 with the lugs 11. This can be achieved by moving down and to the right (with reference to the figure) the sound-tube-side coupling component 4. Conversely it can be released from the abutments 12 by an opposite movement. When the lugs 11 are inserted into the abutments 12, a form-fit connection is created between these that impedes a movement away from the housing, in other words down and to the left (with reference to the figure). As shown, however, a rotation or pivoting of the sound-tube-side coupling component 4 about the form-fit connection of the lugs 11 and corresponding abutments 12 is possible. In other words, to close the coupling the sound-tube-side coupling component 4 can first be inserted into the abutments 12 in order then to be mounted or pivoted about the abutments 12 on to the housing. During mounting on the housing, the snap-in locking device, which is formed by the snap-in catches 8 and the snap-in catch receivers 9, snaps in.
In the closed position of the coupling, the holes 5 overlap with the hole 6 or are aligned with each other. A locking pin can then be pushed through the holes 5, 6 as an additional locking device to finally lock the coupling.
Once the snap-in locking device formed by the snap-in catches 8 has snapped in, the holes 5 are located such that they overlap with the housing-side hole described above, or the holes are aligned.
From the explanation above it will be clear that the housing-side coupling component contains at least the hole 6, the sealing surface (not shown in the figure) around the sound channel, the snap-in catch receivers 9 and the abutments 12. While the sound-tube-side coupling component 4 is connected to the sound tube 3 as an autonomous component, the housing-side coupling component is integrated into the housing 2 and cannot be separated from the housing as an independent component.
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|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2014 200 917 | Jan 2014 | DE | national |
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| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20150208182 A1 | Jul 2015 | US |
