JP2013115799A - Ear-hooked hearing aid - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ear-hooked hearing aid for which the freedom of overall aesthetic designing to make it inconspicuous as a hearing aid is increased and whose body, even if the user significantly moves his or her own body as in an athletic exercise or sweat flows down to the root of the ear, can be kept in a stable state with the result that the user is relieved of the load of wearing the aid, can feel comfortable and wear or remove it easily.SOLUTION: An ear-hooked hearing aid comprises: a loudspeaker front part 10 that is hooked onto an external acoustic foramen or an open periphery 81 thereof when the aid is used and outputs oscillation from a bone conduction driver 23; a body part 11 extending backward from the loudspeaker front part 10 along the outside of the ear; and a curved part 12 formed in a curved shape from the rear of the body part 11 toward a temporal region 9 and, when the aid is used, is hooked on an auricle 82 from a rear end edge 82a of the auricle 82, extends toward the temporal region 9, which is the rear side of the ear, to be hooked onto the auricle 82.

Description

  The present invention makes the presence as a hearing aid inconspicuous due to a novel wearing form, has a high degree of freedom in design, and is worn in a stable state with respect to the ear, eliminating the burden on the user and reassuring. The present invention relates to a behind-the-ear hearing aid that can give a feeling and can be easily mounted / removed.

  Conventionally, an ear-mounted hearing aid is composed of a hearing aid body having upper and lower surfaces that are circularly curved in a side view, and a sound path hook extending from the front end of the housing to the outer ear hole. Various things which are used on the root portion of the ear between the intermediary and the temporal region are provided (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 4). In such a conventional ear-type hearing aid, the output sound of the built-in acoustic speaker is guided to the distal end portion through the hook and output to the outer ear hole, or the earphone having the acoustic speaker is provided at the distal end portion of the hook to the outer ear hole. Two types of structures for insertion are provided. In addition, a hook-type hearing aid has also been proposed in which an earphone incorporating a bone conduction driver is provided at the hook tip (see Patent Document 5). According to this, it is possible to hear by bone conduction just by placing the earphone on the outer ear canal, and the problem that the output from the acoustic speaker enters the microphone via the air and howling can be solved, and waterproofing is also given. can do.

JP 60-261296 A JP-A-1-300800 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-23599 JP 2007-31372 A JP 2010-192975 A

  However, in any conventional ear-hook type hearing aid, there is a hook extending from the front of the hearing aid main body to the outer ear hole, so even if the hearing aid main body is hidden by hair, the presence of the hearing aid is inevitably noticeable, together with glasses and sunglasses. There was also a problem that it could not be used.

  In addition, the hearing aid main body mounted between the auricle and the head itself has low holdability and is unstable, and the hook extending from the outer ear hole prevents the hearing aid main body from slipping backward to the head. . Therefore, for example, when the movement of the user increases, for example, the hearing aid main body also moves back and forth, particularly rearward, and pulls to the outer ear canal through the hook, resulting in a burden on the user. In particular, when the sweat flows from the head during summer or when the user exercises, it adheres to the body of the hearing aid, and the holdability is further reduced, so that it tends to slip.

  Further, when the conventional ear-mounted hearing aid is worn on the ear, the hearing aid body is temporarily placed on the ear, the hook or earphone is inserted into the ear, and the hearing aid body is adjusted again to a position where the hook is not pulled. It is necessary to work, and also when removing, it is necessary to remove the hook or earphone from the outer ear hole while holding it by hand so that the hearing aid body does not fall first.

  Therefore, in view of the situation described above, the present invention intends to solve the problem that howling can be prevented and waterproofness can be imparted, and at the same time, the degree of freedom of the overall design can be increased as a hearing aid. The presence of the hearing aid can be made inconspicuous, and the hearing aid body can be held in a stable state even when large movements such as exercise or sweat sweats from the head to the base of the ear. The object of the present invention is to provide an ear-hook type hearing aid that can provide a sense of security without being used and can be easily attached / detached.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is an ear-mounted hearing aid that is used by being attached to an ear and includes at least a microphone, a control unit, a power supply unit, and a bone conduction driver. A speaker front part that is hooked around the opening and outputs vibration from the bone conduction driver, a main body part that extends rearwardly outward from the front part of the speaker, and from the rear part of the main body part to the temporal region An ear-hook type hearing aid characterized by comprising a bent portion that is bent and is bent from the rear edge of the auricle to the temporal side, which is the back side of the ear, and is hooked to the auricle when used. Configured.

  Here, it is continuously provided at the end of the bent part, and is inserted between the auricle and the temporal region and clamped between them at the time of use, so that the rear part of the hearing aid is stably held at the site. What further has the insertion part for doing is preferable.

  In particular, it is preferable that at least the surface portion of the insertion portion that contacts the auricle and the temporal region is formed of a member made of a soft synthetic resin, a synthetic rubber, or a thermoplastic elastomer.

  Further, it is preferable that the bent portion has elasticity and is hooked on the auricle in a state where the auricle is sandwiched in use.

  According to the ear-mounted hearing aid according to the present invention as described above, the hook inserted into the outer ear hole and the earphone at the tip thereof are omitted, and the bone conduction sound is reliably transmitted from the front part of the speaker to the cartilage around the outer ear hole, A clear sound can be provided, howling can be prevented, and a product that can be used for bathing and swimming can be provided with waterproofness. In addition, the entire front of the hearing aid is held in a stable posture outside the ear by the front part of the speaker and the bent part, so there is no feeling of pressure on the base of the ear and it can be used simultaneously with glasses and sunglasses. It can be used comfortably without being affected by sweat from the head, and the burden during use can be greatly reduced.

  In addition, there is no burden such as pulling to the outer ear canal through the conventional hook, and the holdability is good, so the user has a sense of stability and security, the holdability does not deteriorate due to sweat from the head, sports and Work with large movements can be performed freely without worrying about the hearing aid body falling from the ear. Furthermore, since it was possible to provide a hearing aid with a novel design that could not be imagined from the conventional ear-hung hearing aid that was placed on the base of the ear, it was possible to eliminate the presence as a hearing aid at all. The degree of freedom in design is high, and it is easy to make a stylish appearance.

  Furthermore, when wearing, you can hold the body part with one hand, hook the bent part to the auricle, and simply attach the front part of the speaker around the outer ear hole. Since there is no need to adjust the position of the earpiece, it can be attached to and detached from the ear with a single touch, providing products with excellent wearability. Further, the bent portion can be stored as a clip easily by being hooked in a pocket or the like without being lost.

  In addition, it is provided continuously at the end of the bent part, and is inserted between the auricle and the temporal region and clamped between them during use, so that the rear part of the hearing aid is stably held at the site. Since the insertion portion is further provided, the entire hearing aid can be held in a more stable posture, and the internal space of the insertion portion can be used as a device built-in space. Moreover, since the surface part which contacts at least the auricle and the temporal region of the insertion part is composed of a member made of soft synthetic resin, synthetic rubber or thermoplastic elastomer, the burden on the user can be reduced.

  In addition, since the bent portion has elasticity and is hooked on the pinna while being pinched in use, the entire hearing aid can be held in a more stable posture.

The side view which shows the ear-hook type hearing aid which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. The top view which similarly looked at the ear hook type hearing aid from the top. XX end elevation of FIG. Explanatory drawing which similarly shows the use condition of an ear hook type hearing aid. (A) is a side view which shows the ear-hook type hearing aid which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention, (b) is a top view similarly. Explanatory drawing which similarly shows the use condition of an ear hook type hearing aid. (A) is a perspective view which shows the ear-hook type hearing aid which concerns on 3rd Embodiment of this invention, (b) is a top view similarly. Explanatory drawing which similarly shows the use condition of an ear hook type hearing aid. (A) is a perspective view which shows the ear-hook type hearing aid which concerns on 4th Embodiment of this invention, (b) is a top view similarly. Explanatory drawing which similarly shows the use condition of an ear hook type hearing aid. (A) is a top view which similarly shows the modification of an ear hook type hearing aid, (b) is a top view which shows another modification.

  Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  1 to 4 show the first embodiment of the present invention, FIGS. 5 and 6 show the second embodiment, FIGS. 7 and 8 show the third embodiment, FIGS. 9 to 11 show the fourth embodiment, In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes an ear-mounted hearing aid, 10 denotes a speaker front part, 11 denotes a main body part, 12 denotes a bent part, and 20 denotes a housing.

  First, a first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 4, the ear-hook type hearing aid 1 of the present embodiment includes a speaker front portion 10 that is hooked on an outer ear hole of a user's ear 8 or an opening peripheral portion 81 thereof, A main body portion 11 extending rearwardly from the front of the speaker 10 to the outer side of the ear, and bent from the rear portion of the main body portion 11 to the side of the temporal region 9, and in use, from the rear end edge 82a of the auricle 82 to the back side of the ear It is comprised from the bending part 12 which wraps around the side head 9 side which is and is latched by the pinna 82. Then, it vibrates and outputs from the built-in bone conduction driver 23 and generates bone conduction sound in the cartilage of the ear 8 through the front part 10 of the speaker, which is a product that is extremely advantageous for conductive hearing loss and mixed hearing loss.

  The speaker front portion 10 and the main body portion 11 connected to the speaker front portion 10 house various devices inside the housing 20, and specifically, a microphone 21 for collecting external sound as shown in FIG. A control unit 22 for controlling each circuit based on a control program stored in a ROM having an amplifier, an A / D converter, and the like for amplifying a sound signal that has been sung with a constant gain, and an amplified output from the control unit 22 A bone conduction driver 23 that converts an electrical signal into mechanical vibration, a power source (button battery 24), and an operation unit 25 that includes operation buttons for controlling volume level and power on / off are incorporated. The arrangement of each device is an example, and other arrangements are of course possible.

  A conventionally known microphone can be adopted as the microphone 21 and receives external sound propagating in the air and converts it into an electric signal. As a result, ambient sounds including the user's voice are input. The process of the control unit 22 can be basically the same as the hearing aid process in the conventional digital hearing aid. As the bone conduction driver 23, various types such as a conventionally known electromagnetic type, electrodynamic type, electrostatic type, and piezoelectric type can be used. For example, a voice coil is attached to the central magnetic pole of the yoke, and the yoke A conventionally known bone conduction driver in which magnets are arranged on the short side end portions on both sides of the magnet and a diaphragm fixing portion is arranged outside each magnet on the magnet arrangement axis can be employed.

  The operation unit 25 is provided with operation buttons such as a volume operated by the user on the lower surface of the housing 20. However, you may make it operate by an operation part with the switch of the remote control apparatus at hand. In this case, a short-range wireless communication unit may be provided in each of the control unit of the hearing aid main body and a remote control device provided separately to transmit and receive control signals related to the operation content by the operation unit. Although the example of the button battery 24 was shown as a power supply, it is not limited to this. In the case of a rechargeable type, a charging adapter may be provided in the housing 20 or a charging circuit may be provided to employ a non-contact charging method.

  The speaker front portion 10 is a portion that is formed in a convex curved surface having a gently curved lower end portion 10b on the front end side, and is hooked in a state in which the lower end portion 10b is in contact with the outer ear hole opening peripheral portion 81. In this example, the bone conduction driver 23 is disposed in contact with the inner surface of the side wall at a position corresponding to the speaker front portion 10 in the housing 20, and is configured to efficiently output vibration from the speaker front portion 10. However, the arrangement of the bone conduction driver 23 is not limited to this. For example, the bone conduction driver 23 may be built in the main body 11 side of the housing 20 and the vibration thereof may be transmitted to the speaker front portion 10 and output to the outside.

  Further, the main body 11 continuously extends rearward from the front part 10 of the speaker to the outside of the ear, and the inside of the housing 2 is formed with a vertically long and flat space in a sectional view, and the bone conduction driver is formed in the inside. Devices other than 23 are built in. Thus, the outer shape of the main body 11 has a flat plate-like structure in which the width of the left and right is kept as small as possible and the vertical width is relatively large and the control unit 22 and the button battery 24 are accommodated therein. It is configured to be held in a posture as stable as possible with respect to the ear in terms of weight balance.

  The bent part 12 is a plate-like part formed continuously from the rear part of the main body part 11 and has elasticity by being thinly formed. The bent part 12 sandwiches the user's auricle 82 and is located on the rear end side of the hearing aid. It has the function of hanging gravity on the pinna 82. At the time of wearing, the user can complete the wearing simply by sandwiching the bent portion 12 between the auricles 82 and then placing the speaker front portion 10 on the outer ear hole peripheral portion 81 and hanging it.

  The material of the housing 20 and the bent portion 12 is not particularly limited, and an appropriate material such as a metal or a synthetic resin can be used. For example, a material in which a thermoplastic elastomer layer is provided on the outer surface of a base made of polycarbonate is strong. It is preferable in that it can be reduced in weight. In this example, it is configured by assembling a casing main body 30 that forms the side of the casing 20 and a plate-like body 31 that covers the opening on the outside of the casing 20 and extends backward to form the bent portion 12. The plate-like body 31 is configured so that the design can be easily changed by simply replacing (changing) the plate-like body 31 with a different one. Therefore, it can be used as an accessory rather than a hearing aid, and can meet a wide range of needs, both young and old, and can be used for a long time.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIGS.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in the plan view of FIG. 5B, the shape of the casing 20 constituting the speaker front portion 10 and the main body portion 11 is curved so as to be convex outward, thereby decorating. The structure has a design closer to the product. Thus, the present invention is a hearing aid with a high degree of freedom in design. Other configurations are basically the same as those in the first embodiment.

  Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIGS.

  In this embodiment, the shape of the housing 20 constituting the speaker front part 10 and the main body part 11 is made to be a structure in which the vertical dimension is made small and inconspicuous from the outside, and the right and left widths are increased accordingly, thereby securing a device storage space. It is a thing. As described above, in this embodiment, since the vertical dimension is smaller than that of the first embodiment, the contact area of the bent portion 12 with the auricle 82 is also small, and there is a possibility that the frictional force may be shifted slightly. In order to compensate, a flat contact piece 13 that contacts the back side of the auricle is provided at a portion that goes around the back side of the auricle of the bent portion 12. Further, in this example, a bent linear hooking piece 14 is also provided which wraps around the auricle 82 again from the contact piece 13 and sandwiches the auricle 82, so that the rear part of the hearing aid is stably hooked by the auricle 82. It is configured to be able to stop.

  Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  This embodiment is provided continuously at the end of the bent portion 12 that wraps around the back side of the auricle, and is inserted between the auricle 82 and the temporal region 9 during use and is sandwiched therebetween. Thus, an insertion portion 15 for stably holding the rear part of the hearing aid at the site is further provided. The surface portion of the insertion portion 15 that contacts at least the auricle and the temporal region is preferably composed of a member made of a soft synthetic resin, a synthetic rubber, or a thermoplastic elastomer so that the user is not burdened with a soft touch. Composed. It is also a preferred embodiment that the contact surface 15c on the side of the temporal head 9 is made sticky with, for example, a soft silicone resin.

  FIG. 11A shows an example in which a convex portion 11 a is provided in a portion located in the concha cavity on the ear side of the main body portion 11. By providing such a convex portion 11a, it can be hooked in a more stable posture with respect to the ear, and it is also possible to provide a space inside the convex portion 11a to store the device, In terms of weight balance, the structure can be more stably hooked to the ear. Of course, such a convex part 11a can be similarly provided also in the first to third embodiments.

  FIG. 11B shows a speaker front portion 10 provided with an insertion portion 10a to be inserted into the outer ear canal, whereby bone conduction sound can be transmitted from the cartilage around the outer ear canal and the insertion portion 10a. Thus, the front part of the hearing aid can be held in a more stable posture. Such an insertion portion 10a can be similarly provided in the first to third embodiments. In this case, the lower end portion 10b of the speaker front portion 10 may not particularly contact the outer ear hole periphery.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and can of course be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Ear hook type hearing aid 2 Case 8 Ear 9 Side head 10 Speaker front part 10a Insertion part 10b Lower end part 11 Main body part 11a Convex part 12 Bending part 13 Contacting piece 14 Latching piece 15 Inserting part 15c Contacting surface 20 Case 21 Microphone 22 Control part 23 Bone conduction driver 24 Button battery 25 Operation part 30 Case body 31 Plate body 81 Peripheral part 82 Auricle 82a Rear edge

Claims (4)

At least a microphone, a control unit, a power supply unit, and a bone conduction driver are built in, and are ear-hook type hearing aids that are used by wearing on an ear,
A speaker front part that is hooked to the outer ear hole or the periphery of the opening at the time of use and outputs vibration from the bone conduction driver;
A main body extending rearwardly outside the ear from the front of the speaker;
A bent portion that is bent from the rear portion of the main body portion toward the temporal region, and is bent from the rear edge of the auricle to the temporal portion, which is the back side of the ear, when used, and is hooked on the auricle. An ear hook type hearing aid characterized by comprising.   It is provided continuously at the end of the bent part, and is inserted between the auricle and the temporal region and clamped between them at the time of use, so that the rear part of the hearing aid is stably held at the site. The ear-hook type hearing aid according to claim 1, further comprising an insertion portion.   The ear-hook type hearing aid according to claim 2, wherein at least a surface portion of the insertion portion that contacts the auricle and the temporal region is made of a member made of a soft synthetic resin, a synthetic rubber, or a thermoplastic elastomer.   The ear-hook type hearing aid according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the bent portion has elasticity, and is hooked to the pinna while being pinched in use.

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