JP3774158B2 - Earphone device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an earphone device that vibrates a tragus with a vibration means and listens to it as sound.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The earphones and headphones are equipped with an electroacoustic transducer near the entrance to the ear canal, and the sound is heard by making a sound. Bone-conducting headphones transmit vibrations to the skull so that they can be heard as sound. In these earphones or headphones, it is necessary to attach a sound generator or a vibrator to the vicinity of the ear and the skull. In these devices, as a method of mounting a sound generator and a vibrator, a method of hooking to a pinna, a method of inserting into an ear canal entrance, and the like are used.
FIG. 14 shows an example of a conventional earphone that is hooked on an auricle. The sounding device 1 is mounted on the front surface of the ear canal entrance by placing the sounding device 1 on the front surface of the ear hole and hanging the ear hook 2 around the auricle 3 behind. A force is applied so that the pinna 3 is sandwiched between the ear hook 2 and the sound generator 1, and the sound generator 1 is held so as not to be displaced.
[0003]
In the case of a bone-conducted headphone, the head can be vibrated by pressing the vibrator against the skin around the entrance to the ear canal.
FIG. 15 shows an example of a conventional ear canal entrance insertion type earphone. 15A is a front view of the ear, and FIG. 15B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line YY shown in FIG. 15A. When the sound generator 1 is inserted into the ear canal entrance 4 in such a manner as to enter, the sound generator 1 itself is fixedly held by frictional engagement between the wall surface of the ear canal entrance 4 and the sound generator 1. In the case of a bone-conducted earphone, the head is vibrated by applying vibration to the bone in the ear canal entrance 4.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
A conventional earphone of the ear type is fixed in such a manner as to sandwich the back side of the auricle 3 and the outside of the auricle 3 as described above. Therefore, it is necessary for the device to contact several points outside the pinna 3, and as a result, the entire ear or the upper part of the ear canal entrance 4 is almost closed. The conventional ear hole insertion type earphone fixes the device by completely closing the ear canal entrance 4. Therefore, these devices have a first problem that it is difficult to hear external sounds when they are mounted.
[0005]
Conventional earphones have a second problem that it is difficult to absorb individual differences in the size of the pinna 3.
In the conventional ear-guided bone-conducting earphone, the third problem is that an exciter (not shown in particular) can be brought into contact only outside the tragus 5 (see FIG. 15B), and the output cannot be increased. was there.
[0006]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In this invention, two support portions that are arranged with one surface being connected via an elastic body and facing the other surfaces,
An excitation unit disposed on at least one of the other surfaces;
We propose an earphone device composed of
In the present invention, an elastic body whose both ends face each other by bending or folding, and
An excitation unit disposed on at least one of both ends;
We propose an earphone device composed of
The present invention further proposes an earphone device having a structure in which the facing surface is covered with rubber or an uneven member.
Further, in the present invention, at least the outer surface of the folded portion of the elastic body or the front end surface of the protrusion that is in contact with the outer surface of the curved surface of the elastic body, or a substantially entire protrusion including the front end surface is a rubber or a member having irregularities on the surface. We propose an earphone device covered with
[0007]
Action According to the earphone device of the present invention, the earphone device is fixed in a form in which the tragus is sandwiched by the other surface of the two support portions or the elasticity of the elastic body, and thus the device is attached to the other part of the auricle. There is no need to make contact. Therefore, the ear canal entrance is not blocked and the first problem can be solved.
In addition, since the portion in contact with the human body is a part of the tragus and the ear canal entrance, it is not affected by individual differences such as the size of the auricle. As a result, the second problem can also be solved.
Furthermore, according to the earphone device of the present invention, sufficient vibration power can be applied to the tragus if the vibration parts are attached to both of the two support parts or both ends of the elastic body. As a result, the third problem can also be solved.
[0008]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of an earphone device proposed in claim 1 of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 10 denotes an entire earphone device according to the present invention. Reference numerals 11A and 11B denote two supports having a substantially disk-shaped surface a and another surface b, and 12 denotes an elastic body that connects the surfaces a to each other.
The other surfaces b of the supports 11A and 11B are arranged facing each other with an interval of about 2 to 5 mm, for example. The vibration unit 13 is mounted on at least one surface of the other surface b.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, a case where the vibration exciter 13 is attached to the support 11 </ b> A is shown. The vibration unit 13 can be constituted by a so-called electroacoustic transducer that converts an electric signal into vibration by an electromagnetic force or a piezoelectric element, for example. Reference numeral 14 denotes a code for sending an electric signal to the vibration exciter 13. The diameter R of the support 11A on the side on which the vibration unit 13 is mounted is about 1.5 cm, and the diameter of the other support 11B is about 5 mm.
[0009]
The elastic body 12 is formed of a resin material such as plastic having elasticity, but the supports 11A and 11B may be integrally formed of the same material as the elastic body 12. A dimension L from each center position of the supports 11A and 11B to the outer surface 12A of the curved portion of the elastic body 12 is set to about 2 cm. When the dimension L is set to about 2 cm, an earphone device of a type in which the outer surface 12A of the curved portion does not contact the inner side of the auricle 3 can be configured. For example, rubber is coated with a thickness of about 0.1 to 0.5 mm on the other surfaces b of the supports 11 </ b> A and 11 </ b> B including the exposed surface of the vibrating portion 13. For example, the rubber surface is formed with irregularities with an interval of about 1 mm or a rough surface to increase the engagement force with the tragus 5.
[0010]
2 to 6 show an embodiment of the earphone device proposed in claim 2 of the present invention. The earphone device 10 proposed in claim 2 has a structure in which an elastic body 15 having a length of, for example, about 4 to 6 cm is curved or folded so that both ends thereof face each other and at least one of the both ends is provided with a vibrating portion 13. Is.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 6, the vibration unit 13 is attached to one end 15 </ b> A of the elastic body 15, and the other end 15 </ b> B is opposed to the vibration unit 13 and arranged with an interval of about 2 to 5 mm. Show. As in FIG. 1, the vibration unit 13 can be configured by an electroacoustic transducer that converts an electric signal into vibration by an electromagnetic force or a piezoelectric element. This embodiment also shows a case where the distance L between the outer side surface 15c of the curved portion of the elastic body 15 and the center of the vibrating portion 13 is about 2 cm. Accordingly, in this case as well, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, it is possible to provide an earphone device in which the outer side surface 15 c of the curved portion of the elastic body 15 does not come into contact with the recess 6 around the ear canal entrance.
[0011]
In addition, for example, rubber | gum etc. are coated to the thickness of about 0.1-0.5 mm on the exposed surface of the vibration part 13, and the opposing surface of the both ends of the elastic body 15, and a retention strength with respect to the tragus 5 is improved. be able to. Further, the holding force can be further improved by forming irregularities on the coated surface at intervals of, for example, about 1 mm, or forming it on a rough surface.
FIG. 7 shows a modified embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a case where the vibrating portion 13 is mounted on both ends 15A and 15B of the elastic body 15 is shown. As shown in this embodiment, a vibration with a large power can be applied to the tragus 5 by adopting a structure in which the excitation unit 13 is mounted on both ends 15A and 15B of the elastic body 15. Therefore, for example, it can be used for an earphone device used in a place where noise is intense.
[0012]
8 to 11 show a modified embodiment of the embodiment shown in FIGS. In this embodiment, the elastic body 15 is constituted by two strip elastic bodies 15d and 15e. The two strip elastic bodies 15d and 15e protrude from one end 15A storing the vibrating portion 13 and are extended to, for example, about 4 to 6 cm, folded back in the vicinity of the center of the extended portion, and united at the other end 15B side. The joined other end 15B is arranged with a distance of about 2 to 5 mm from the one end 15A.
As in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, the vibration unit 13 can be constituted by an electroacoustic transducer using electromagnetic force or a piezoelectric element. Also in this embodiment, the both ends 15A and 15B of the elastic body 15 and the exposed surface of the vibrating portion 13 are coated with a member such as rubber to a thickness of about 0.1 to 0.5 mm, or further, The mounting state can be further stabilized by forming irregularities or rough surfaces on the surface.
[0013]
Further, in this embodiment, a case is shown in which the cord 14 is drawn upward, and the drawn cord is connected around the outside of the pinna 3 and connected to the device as shown in FIG. By adopting this structure, the tension applied to the cord 14 is once applied to the auricle 3, buffered and transmitted to the earphone device 10, so that the effect of making it difficult for the earphone device 10 to be detached from the tragus 5 is obtained.
8 to 10 shows a case where the dimension L from the center of the vibration portion 13 shown in FIG. 9 to the outer side surface 15c of the folded portion of the elastic body 15 is set to about 2 to 3 cm. . Thus, by setting the dimension L to about 2 to 3 cm, the outer ear canal entrance facing the tragus 3 of the auricle 3 that faces the outer surface 15c of the folded portion of the elastic body 15 to the tragus 5 as shown in FIG. It can be brought into contact with the surrounding recess 6. In this way, by bringing the outer side surface 15c of the folded portion of the elastic body 15 into contact with the inner surface of the auricle 3, an effect that the wearing state of the earphone device 10 can be stably maintained is obtained. Also in this case, by coating the outer surface 15c of the folded portion of the elastic body 15 with rubber or a member having irregularities on the surface, the contact resistance with the concave portion 6 is increased, and the stability of the adhesive state can be further enhanced. .
[0014]
FIG. 12 shows an embodiment devised so as to obtain the same function and effect as described in FIG. 11 with respect to the embodiment shown in FIGS. That is, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 12, in addition to the structure of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 to 6, the protrusion 16 having an outward length of about 1.5 to 2 cm is formed on the outer surface 15c of the folded portion of the elastic body 15. It is characterized by the point that the structure is provided. By providing the protrusion 16, the end face 16A of the protrusion 16 is brought into contact with the recess 6 around the ear canal 5 facing the tragus 5 inside the ear, and the protrusion 16 and the recess 6 around the ear canal are frictionally engaged. Can be combined. As a result, as described with reference to FIG. 11, it is possible to obtain an operational effect that can stably maintain the wearing state of the earphone device 10.
[0015]
Also in this case, the holding force of the earphone device 10 can be increased by coating rubber or the like over almost the entire end surface 16A of the protrusion 16 or the end surface 16A of the protrusion 16.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 12, the example in which the vibration unit 13 is mounted on one end 15A of the elastic body 15 is shown, but as shown in FIG. 13, the vibration unit 13 is provided on both the one end 15A and the other end 15B of the elastic body 15. Can also be installed.
[0016]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, the earphone device 10 can be fixed only around one ear, and a small-sized bone-conducting earphone that does not block the ear canal entrance 4 can be provided. This provides an advantage of providing an earphone device that can simultaneously listen to the sound of the outside world and the sound of the earphone without blocking the ear canal entrance 4 when worn.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan view showing one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a modified embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a front view of FIG. 2;
4 is a rear view of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a front view for explaining a situation where the earphone device according to the present invention shown in FIGS. 2 to 4 is mounted;
6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line YY shown in FIG.
7 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a modified embodiment of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 to 6. FIG.
FIG. 8 is a plan view for explaining a modified embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a front view of FIG. 8. FIG.
10 is a rear view of FIG. 9. FIG.
11 is a front view for explaining a situation in which the earphone device according to the present invention shown in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 to 10 is mounted. FIG.
FIG. 12 is a sectional view for explaining still another embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 13 is a sectional view for explaining still another embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 14 is a front view for explaining a conventional technique.
15A is a front view and B is a cross-sectional view for explaining another example of the prior art. FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 Auricle 13 Excitation part 4 External ear canal entrance 14 Code 5 Tragus 15 Elastic body 10 Earphone apparatus 15A, 15B Both ends 11A of an elastic body, 11B Support part 16 Protrusion part 12 Elastic body

Claims (5)

A pair of support portions provided opposite to both ends of the elastic body having a curved or folded portion, and sandwiching the tragus by the elastic force of the elastic body;
An excitation unit that is disposed on at least one of the opposing surfaces of the pair of support units and that vibrates the tragus ;
An earphone device characterized by comprising: Both ends are confronted by bending or folding, and an elastic body that holds the tragus between the confronting surfaces by elastic force ,
An excitation unit that is disposed on at least one of the opposite ends of the both ends and that vibrates the tragus ,
An earphone device characterized by comprising: Earphone device according to claim 1 or 2 before SL facing, characterized in that the covering of a member having an uneven rubber or surface. The outer surface of the curved or folded portion of the elastic body or the front end surface of the protrusion provided on the outer side of the curved or folded portion of the elastic body is frictionally engaged with a recess around the ear canal entrance. The earphone device according to any one of 1 and 2. Outer side of the curved or folded portion of the front Symbol elastic body, or the distal end surface of the protrusion provided on the outer side of the curved or folded portion of the front Symbol elastic, or substantially the entire rubber or the surface of the protruding portion including the distal end surface The earphone device according to claim 4 , wherein the earphone device is covered with an uneven member.

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