EP2007173A2 - Closing element for housing openings in a tumbling process - Google Patents

Abstract

The closing element (20) comprises a disk-shaped central part (21) and a column part (15), which stands before one side of the disk-shaped central part. The column part is provided at a free end of the disk-shaped central part. Another column part (24) stands before another side of the disk-shaped central part, where another column parts (25,26) are provided at another free end of the disk-shaped central part. An independent claim is also included for a method for smoothing or coating two casings for a hearing device in a tumbling process.

Description

The present invention relates to a closure element for closing openings of housing parts for a hearing device in a tumbling process. Moreover, the present invention relates to a corresponding method for producing housing parts of hearing devices. The term hearing device is understood here to be particularly portable devices such as hearing aids, headsets, headphones and the like.

Hearing aids are portable hearing aids that are used to care for the hearing impaired. In order to meet the numerous individual needs, different types of hearing aids such as behind-the-ear hearing aids (BTE) and in-the-ear hearing aids (ITO), e.g. Concha hearing aids or canal hearing aids (ITE, CIC). The hearing aids listed by way of example are worn on the outer ear or in the ear canal. In addition, bone conduction hearing aids, implantable or vibrotactile hearing aids are also available on the market. The stimulation of the damaged hearing takes place either mechanically or electrically.

Hearing aids have in principle as essential components an input transducer, an amplifier and an output transducer. The input transducer is usually a sound receiver, z. As a microphone, and / or an electromagnetic receiver, for. B. an induction coil. The output transducer is usually used as an electroacoustic transducer, z. As miniature speaker, or as an electromechanical transducer, z. B. bone conduction, realized. The amplifier is usually integrated in a signal processing unit. This basic structure is in FIG. 1 shown using the example of a behind-the-ear hearing aid. In a hearing aid housing 1 for carrying behind the ear are one or more microphones 2 to Built-in sound recording from the environment. A signal processing unit 3, which is also integrated in the hearing aid housing 1, processes the microphone signals and amplifies them. The output signal of the signal processing unit 3 is transmitted to a loudspeaker or earpiece 4, which outputs an acoustic signal. The sound is optionally transmitted via a sound tube, which is fixed with an earmold in the ear canal, to the eardrum of the device carrier. The power supply of the hearing device and in particular of the signal processing unit 3 is carried out by a likewise integrated into the hearing aid housing 1 battery. 5

An adapted to a user IdO hearing aid usually consists of a lower part (shell) and an upper part (faceplate or cap). After loading the shell or the cap with corresponding hearing aid components, the cap or the upper part is glued to the shell. It is necessary that both parts lie close to each other, so that no foreign body can get into the hearing aid.

Hearing aid cups, but also caps, are often manufactured using stereolithography (SLA) techniques. After this manufacturing step, however, they must be smoothed, i. sanded or polished, but also possibly coated. These process steps can be carried out in a so-called tumbling machine. In doing so, the entire surface of the workpiece is treated. Thus, surfaces and edges are sanded, where it is undesirable. In particular, however, the openings for components, but also the openings on which the housing parts are joined together, after their manufacture may no longer be damaged or destroyed.

From the DE 10 2005 013 834 A1 For example, there are known a method for producing a hearing aid component and a corresponding hearing aid component in which a stereolithographic method is used for the production.

According to internal knowledge, at present only the lower parts, i. the bowls produced by stereolithography. Here, the cutting edge, where the shell is joined to the cap, reinforced with material, so that various polishing and smoothing methods can be performed easily. In a later manual step then the unnecessary material must be removed.

The upper part, namely the faceplate, is currently typically manufactured as an injection molding plate. No tumbling process is necessary. After the cap or faceplate has been glued to the shell, protruding parts of the cap must be manually cut off. This represents a very high cost in terms of the production of a hearing aid.

The object of the present invention is thus to reduce the manufacturing effort in manufacturing a housing of a hearing device.

• ein scheibenförmiges Mittelteil,
• ein erstes Säulenteil, das von der einen Seite des scheibenförmigen Mittelteils absteht und an seinem freien Ende eine erste Verdickung aufweist, und
• ein zweites Säulenteil, das von der anderen Seite des scheibenförmigen Mittelteils absteht und an seinem freien Ende eine zweite Verdickung aufweist.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by a closure element for closing openings of housing parts for a hearing device in a tumbling process, comprising

• a disc-shaped middle part,
• a first pillar part projecting from the one side of the disk-shaped central part and having a first thickening at its free end, and
• a second pillar member projecting from the other side of the disc-shaped central part and having a second thickening at its free end.

• Bereitstellen eines oben beschriebenen Verschlusselements,
• Aufstecken des ersten Gehäuseteils, das eine erste und eine zweite Öffnung aufweist, auf das Verschlusselement, so dass die erste Verdickung des Verschlusselements die erste Öffnung und der Mitteilteil mit der einen Seite die zweite Öffnung verschließt,
• Aufstecken des zweiten Gehäuseteils, das eine erste und eine zweite Öffnung aufweist, auf das Verschlusselement, so dass die zweite Verdickung des Verschlusselements die erste Öffnung und der Mittelteil mit seiner anderen Seite die zweite Öffnung verschließt, und
• Einlegen des bestückten Verschlusselements in eine Tumbling-Maschine.

In addition, the invention provides a method for smoothing or coating a first and a second housing part for a hearing device in a tumbling process

• Providing a closure element as described above,
• Attaching the first housing part, which has a first and a second opening, on the closure element, so that the first thickening of the closure element, the first opening and the Mitteilteil closes with the one side, the second opening,
• Attaching the second housing part, which has a first and a second opening, on the closure element, so that the second thickening of the closure element closes the first opening and the middle part with its other side, the second opening, and
• Inserting the equipped closure element into a tumbling machine.

Advantageously, closes the closure element with its disc-shaped central part of the second opening, which usually serves for mating with another housing part. The thickening on the first pillar part of the closure element closes off another opening of the housing part, so that the inside of the housing and in particular inner holders and not yet continuous, preformed openings are not damaged by the tumbling granules.

However, a particular advantage of the closure element according to the invention consists in that two housing parts can be fastened to it at the same time and these are protected by the attachment during the tumbling process.

The closure element may be constructed symmetrically with respect to the main plane of the disc-shaped middle part. This means that on both sides of the middle part the same pillar parts are facing outwards. Thus, for example, two caps or two shells of the same or similar design for the tumbling process can be joined together by the closure element.

Preferably, the closure element consists of a rubber-elastic material. This material allows the body parts under train and yet easy to assemble or disassemble together.

The first column may have at least one further thickening between the middle part and the first thickening. The second pillar can also be designed in this way. These additional thickening give the possibility to attach housing parts of different depth or height to the closure element.

Particularly advantageously, the closure element according to the invention or the inventive method for producing the two shell halves of a hearing aid housing is used, wherein the two shell halves represent the first and second housing part. This has the logistical advantage that after the joint production of the two shell halves they are held together in a further process step. Furthermore, this saves clear assignment work, because it is avoided that the two shell halves, for example, have to be reassigned to each other after tumbling, which is often very tedious because of their similarity.

Specifically, the two housing parts may be the two shell halves of an ITE hearing aid housing, wherein the first pillar part is inserted through a module opening and the second pillar part through a sound exit opening. The thickenings on the column parts are adapted to the sizes of the openings. In the same way, the two housing parts can also represent halves of a CIC hearing aid housing.

FIG 1

den prinzipiellen Aufbau eines Hörgeräts mit seinen wesentlichen Komponenten gemäß dem Stand der Technik;

FIG 2

ein erfindungsgemäßes Verschlusselement mit aufgesteckten Hörgerätekappen und

FIG 3

ein erfindungsgemäßes Verschlusselement einer weiteren Ausführungsform mit einer aufgesteckten Kappe und einer aufgesteckten Schale eines Hörgerätegehäuses.

The present invention is explained in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1

the basic structure of a hearing aid with its essential components according to the prior art;

FIG. 2

an inventive closure element with attached hearing aid caps and

FIG. 3

an inventive closure element of another embodiment with an attached cap and a plugged shell of a hearing aid housing.

The embodiments described below represent preferred embodiments of the present invention.

When producing an upper part or a cap 10 (see. FIG. 2 ), only the module opening 11 (apart from the second opening 12 mentioned below) should be continuous. Through this module opening an amplifier module is optionally used with battery or programming contacts, possibly the battery axis, with handset and microphones in the hearing aid housing or can be removed from it. Likewise, the battery of the hearing aid can be inserted or replaced by this opening. The remaining component openings on the cap 10 are closed from the outside with a defined material blanket. They are drilled as far as necessary after the tumbling process.

The cap 10 will eventually be placed on a tray and glued to it. For this purpose, the cap 10 is open at the bottom. In other words, it has an opening which is referred to as a second opening 12 in this document.

In order to protect the edge of the second opening 12 and the module opening 11 during the tumbling process, the cap 10 is plugged onto a plug or closure element 13. This closure element 13 is made of a rubber-elastic material and has a disk-shaped central part 14. Perpendicular to this is a first column 15 and a first column part 15 from which has a thickening 16 at its free end. The first or module opening 11 is thus through the first column part 15 and the thickening 16 and the second Opening 12 of the cap 10 is closed by the middle part 14. This protects the interior of the cap 10 as well as the edges of the two openings 11 and 12 during the tumbling process.

On the other side of the central part 14, a column part 17 is also provided with a thickening 18 at the end. On the second column part 17, a second cap 19 is inserted, the openings are also closed and protected by the column part 17 itself or the thickening 18 and the middle part 14.

In the example of FIG. 2 Thus, the closure element 13 is symmetrical and can accommodate two caps 10 and 19. This has advantages, in particular in the case of a binaural supply, since it is thus possible to jointly work the caps 10, 19 of the left and right sides.

In FIG. 3 a further embodiment of a closure element 20 according to the invention is shown. The closure element 20 in turn has a disc-shaped central part 21 and on one side a first column part 22 with a thickening 23 at the end. In that regard, the closure element 20 corresponds to the closure element 13 of FIG. 2 , On the other side of the middle part 21, however, another column part 24 is formed here. It also has a plurality of thickenings 25, 26 at regular intervals. In addition, it has a smaller diameter than the column part 22. This second column part 24 is here designed to accommodate a hearing aid shell 27 matching the cap 28 fastened on the other side of the closure element 20. In particular, the hearing device shell 27 is plugged with its earphone opening, ie the sound exit opening 29, onto the pillar part 24. In this case, the second column part 24 closes and protects the sound outlet opening 29 with the thickening 25, while the second opening 30, to which the cap 28 is joined, is protected and closed by the middle part 21. The thickenings 23, 25 and 26 also ensure here that neither the shell 27 nor the cap 28 slip from the closure element 20. Because of the Elasticity of the closure member 20 also both the shell 27 and the cap 28 are pressed to the respective side of the central part 21.

This second embodiment of a closure element 20 is particularly advantageous for the joint manufacturing of the upper and lower part of a hearing device. In this case, not only the module opening of the cap and the other opening are protected, but also the receiver opening 29. When using such a closure element 20 so a reinforcement of the cutting edge between shell 27 and cap 28 is not necessary, so that a subsequent manual removal of this Reinforcement can be omitted.

Claims (8)

Closing element 13, 20 for closing openings of housing parts for a hearing device in a tumbling process,
marked by a disc-shaped middle part (14, 21), - A first column part (15, 22) which projects from one side of the disc-shaped central part (14, 21) and at its free end a first thickening (16, 23), and - A second column part (17, 24) which projects from the other side of the disc-shaped central part (14, 21) and at its free end a second thickening (18; 25, 26). A closure element according to claim 1 which is symmetrical with respect to. the main plane of the disc-shaped central part (14, 21) is constructed. Closure element according to claim 1 or 2, which consists of a rubber-elastic material. Closure element according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the second column part (17, 24) between the central part (14, 21) and the second thickening (25, 26) has at least one further thickening. A method for smoothing or coating a first and a second housing part (10, 19, 27, 28) for a hearing device in a tumbling process
marked by Providing a closure element (13, 20) according to one of the preceding claims, - Attaching the first housing part (10, 28), which has a first and a second opening (11, 12), on the closure element, so that the first thickening (16, 23) of the closure element (13, 20), the first opening ( 11) and that Mitteilteil (14, 21) with the one side closes the second opening (12), - attaching the second housing part (19, 27), which has a first and a second opening, to the closure element, so that the second thickening (18; 25, 26) of the closure element (13, 20) the first opening and the middle part ( 14, 21) with its other side closes the second opening, and - Inserting the equipped closure element (13, 20) in a tumbling machine. The method of claim 5, wherein the first housing part (10, 28) and the second housing part (19, 27) are each shell halves of a hearing aid housing. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein the two housing parts (10, 19, 27, 28) are the two halves of a common housing. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein the two housing parts (10, 19, 27, 28) are the two shell halves of an ITE hearing aid housing, and wherein the first column part (15, 22) through a module opening and the second column part (17, 24 ) is inserted through a sound output port.

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