FR2475344A1 - ELEMENT FOR FIXING AN ELECTROACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER IN THE EAR - Google Patents

Abstract

ELEMENT FOR FIXING AN ELECTROACOUSTIC TRANSDUCER IN THE EAR, CONSTITUTED BY A CAP MOUNTED IN PROJECT ON THE HOOD WITH GOOD ACOUSTIC TRANSMISSION COVERING THE TRANSDUCER MEMBRANE OR ON AN APPROPRIATE PART OF THE BOX OR TRANSDUCER, AND FITTED WITH A HAS GOOD ACOUSTIC TRANSMISSION. NOZZLE 4 IS MADE AS A SHAPED PART WITH GOOD ACOUSTIC TRANSMISSION IN ALL DIRECTIONS AND PRACTICALLY NON-REFLECTIVE. SUCH A FIXING ELEMENT DOES NOT ACOUSTICALLY INTERVENE AND PRODUCES NO SIGNIFICANT CUSHIONING OR ACOUSTIC REFLECTION.

Description

The present invention relates to a transducer

  an electroacoustic transducer in the ear, consisting of a cap mounted on the cap with good acoustic transmission overlying the transducer membrane or on a suitable part of the casing or transducer and preferably provided with a soft to good coating;

acoustic transmission.

  Fasteners of the aforementioned type are known and described for example, in connection with the headphones, by the Austrian patent

  325 693 or the patent application of the Federal Republic of Germany

  In both cases, the fastening element is in the form of a rotationally symmetrical body, rigid, protruding and pierced along the longitudinal axis or constituting a tube to enable the passage of sound. Austrian Patent No. 325 693 also discloses the embodiment of the fastener in the form of a massive piece on the outside of which the sound is transmitted. The known fasteners have the following disadvantage

  in the case of tubular guidance of sound, they produce phenomena

  resonance, which interferes with the reproductive quality of the trans-

  corresponding electroacoustic conductor. The known fixation elements are also accompanied by acoustic reflection in the immediate vicinity of the external auditory canal, which disturbs the perception of the

  direction and distance in stereophony, because it reduces the

  Acoustic properties of the auditory canal and conch.

  The subject of the invention is a fastening element which does not have

  the disadvantages of known models. According to an essential characteristic

  of the invention, the fastening element is in the form of a shaped part with good acoustic transmission in all

  directions and practically non-reflective.

  A fastening element according to the invention does not intervene acous-

  matically. It produces neither significant damping nor acoustic reflection. It does not therefore result in any influence on the resonance of the auditory canal or the reflection properties of the conch, and

  hence the essential ear resonances for the audi

  space. Especially used with open cell foam earpieces, the fastener according to the invention creates favorable conditions for natural hearing, since open cell foam or similar material does not disturb the field.

  acoustic at the entrance of the auditory canal or in the conch. The the-

  Thus, in connection with the known use of foam or a similar material between the ear and said element, the fixation device according to the invention makes it possible to use at least the inner zone of the conch for the production of resonances in the ear. the ear, so that the signals radiated by the transducer membrane and reaching the eardrum undergo to a large extent the same distortions

  natural linear only in the case of unassisted hearing. Linen-

  vention produces significant improvements even in the case of small membranes, ie membranes smaller than the conch, because the acoustic waves can return to the central part of the conch after their reflection on the outer zones of the conch.

  the latter, which is favorable to the acoustic perception

  tial. A thin layer of foam or a textile fabric is used to provide a flexible support of the fastener in the conch, upstream of the ear canal. The fastening element according to the invention is feasible in various ways. The simplest and most economical model consists of a small plastic tube, the envelope of which has longitudinal slots of large area, separated only by narrow ligaments. In order to prevent heat build-up in the ear, during the use of a

  earpiece provided with the fastening element according to the invention, it is advantageous

  taggy to realize this = to deny in a material good conductor of the heat. Metals are particularly suitable for this purpose, for example in the form of a lattice constituting a shaped part, which can if necessary be made in one piece with the hood

  protecting the membrane of the transducer. This model presents not only

  very good dissipation of heat, but also allows

  a relatively economical production.

  Another possible embodiment of the fastening element lies in the use of metal wires, forming substantially a projecting beam on the cover covering the membrane or on a part of the housing or the transducer. The fastening element can finally also be produced in the form of a semi-cylindrical perforated sheet tube which, like the bundled wires or the wire mesh, dissipates the heat accumulating in the foam or the material similar to the inside the conch and thus making the wearing of the earphone more enjoyable. A particularly economical embodiment of the fastening element according to the invention is obtained by its production of rigid foam with a base forming a cover and frictionally fastened to the face of the electroacoustic transducer directed towards the ear in use. This element can be replaced at any time, which is very favorable from the point of view

  hygienic when using the earphone by several people.

  Other features and advantages of the invention will be

  better understood using the detailed description below and

  attached drawings in which: Figure 1 is the side elevation of an earphone provided with a fastener according to the invention, shown in section; Figure 2 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the invention; Figure 3 is the section of a fastening element according to the invention in wire mesh; FIG. 4 is the axonometric view of an exemplary embodiment, in which the fixing element is constituted by a bundle of metal wires;

  FIG. 5 is the axonometric view of a fastener element

  staggered by a perforated semi-cylindrical tube; Figure 6 is a section of an embodiment of rigid foam; and

  FIG. 7 represents a fastening element introduced into the frame

of the conch.

  An earphone 1, in the form of a capsule, is shown in FIG.

  On its side facing the ear, that is to say the face presenting the membrane of the electroacoustic transducer, is placed a cover 2 provided with openings 3 large enough to oppose virtually no resistance to the passage of sound. The hood 2 is achievable in

  metal or other resistant material, such as a plastics material.

  The fastening element 4 is preferably arranged in the center of the cover 2 and can, in the case of a plastic-plastic embodiment, form a single piece with the cover 2. The fastening element 4, simply introduced for the use of the earpiece in the cavity of the conch (cavum conchae), upstream of the external auditory canal, has substantially the shape of a tube whose envelope presents

  openings 5 of large area, separated only by ligaments

  narrow It goes without saying that such a structure has no acoustic action and serves only to support the foam tip 6, also having no acoustic action. It is the same for the fixing element 4 according to Figure 2, made of plastic material and whose openings 5 are longitudinal slots, separated by narrow ligaments, parallel to the axis. The embodiment according to FIG. 2 obviously also comprises a coating of the fastening element, preferably made of open-cell foam, which can also cover the cover 2 and partially cover the side parts of the earphone 1. interposition of foam between the conch

  and the earphone may under certain conditions

  the heat of the conch, which may impede the user of the earphone. In order to prevent, or at least to reduce, such heat accumulation, and according to another characteristic of the invention, the fastening element is made of metal, in various forms. FIG. 3 thus represents for example a fixing element 4 made in one piece of a wire mesh, with the cover 2 which must also transmit the sound. FIG. 4 is the axonometric view of another exemplary embodiment with an element

  metal fastener. The latter consists of metal wires

  The ends of the wires may be fixed in the hood, at the moment of its production and provided that it is made of plastic material, so as to form parts of the body. new one piece with this hood. In the case of metal covers, the ends of the son can be fitted, welded or soldered. FIG. 5 represents a third exemplary embodiment with an element of

  metal fixation. The latter is produced from a sheet metal

  perforated and bent to form a semi- shaped piece

  cylindrical. To improve the behavior of the earpiece in the ear, the semi-cylindrical shaped part 4 can be divided into two sections, the section 4a having a smaller radius of curvature than that of the section 4b. After mounting the classic plastic tip, this model forms a kind of button, which remains well in place in

  the shell while using the earphone.

  Finally, rigid foams are known which have good stability.

  dimensional capacity and many relatively high cross-sectional channels, which allows them to be considered as having no acoustic action in an acoustic field. Such a foam therefore also lends itself to use for the fastening element according to the invention, as shown in the embodiment of FIG. 6. The fastening element 4 is again preferably made in a single part with the cover 2, so that a single production operation is sufficient. This is the most economical exemplary embodiment of the invention, but with the disadvantage of a bad

  heat dissipation, which a metallization of the surface makes it possible

  times to improve where appropriate. Figure 7 illustrates the introduction

  in the cavity 8 of a human ear 7 of the tip 4 according to the invention.

  vention, transmitting the sound in all directions. The transduc-

  The electroacoustic transducer corresponding to the endpiece 4 is not shown for clarity. The invention is advantageously applicable to lightweight stereo headphones, whose stirrup is worn under the chin or on the neck. Known earphones of this type require a relatively high application pressure, produced by the stirrup, so that the earpiece does not slip from the ear or that the stirrup does not come in an awkward position under the action of gravity. In the case of an earphone equipped with the fastening element according to the invention and a conventional foam earpiece, a very low pressure of the stirrup produces such a secure seat between the conch of the ear and the earpiece that the door of the latter, with the stirrup under the chin

  or on the back of the neck, hardly disturbs the user, contrary-

in the case of known models.

  Of course, various modifications may be made by those skilled in the art to the principle and the devices which have just been described as non-limiting examples, without leaving

of the scope of the invention.

Claims (7)

claims   1. Element for fixing an electroacoustic transducer in the ear, constituted by a tip mounted on the cover   good acoustic transmission covering the membrane of the transduc-   or a suitable part of the stacker or transducer, provided with a flexible coating with good acoustic transmission and characterized by the realization of the tip (4) in the form of a shaped part with good acoustic transmission in all directions   and practically non-reflective.   Fastening element according to claim 1, characterized by its   embodiment in the form of a tube (4) made of plastic material, the   Veloppe has openings (3) large area, only   separated by narrow ligaments.   3. Fastening element according to claim 1, characterized by the embodiment of the tip <4) in a good conductive material of the heat, such as a metal.   4. Fastening element according to claims 1 and 3, characterized   in that the end piece (4) is a piece shaped in a metal lattice lic.   Fastening element according to claims 1 and 3, characterized by   the making of the end piece (4) from metallic threads arranged in a bundle and whose ends are anchored in the cover (2)   covering the membrane of the transducer.   Fastening element according to claims 1 and 3, characterized by   the realization of the tip <4) from a perforated sheet, curved   to form a substantially semi-cylindrical shaped part.   7. Fastening element according to any one of claims 1 to   6, characterized in that the end piece <4) and the cover (2) form a single piece.