JPS6141199B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a holding member for holding an electroacoustic transducer by the ear, and the holding member is attached as a pin-shaped projection to a protective cap that covers the diaphragm of the electroacoustic transducer. Alternatively, it may be of the type that is provided with a particularly sound-permeable flexible covering which is arranged on the corresponding housing part or transducer part.

Holding elements of the above-mentioned design are already known and are described, for example, in Austrian Patent No. 325-693 or in German Patent Application No. 325-693.
It is proposed in the specification of No. 2353708 in connection with headphone. In both cases, the retaining element is constructed as a pin-shaped rigid rotating body, which is perforated or tubed in its longitudinal axis to allow the passage of sound. It is. However, also the Republic of Austria patent no.
It is known from document 325693 that the retaining element is designed as an internal body and that the sound is guided through the outside.

The disadvantages associated with these known retaining members are as follows. In other words, if the holding element is a tubular sound guide, the holding element causes a resonance phenomenon, which resonance phenomenon deteriorates the reproduction characteristics of the electroacoustic transducer associated with the holding element. In addition, this known holding element generates echoes in the immediate vicinity of the ear canal, which have an adverse effect on the sense of direction and distance of the sound transmitted in stereo. This is because the reflected sound impairs the acoustic properties of the ear canal and pinna.

The object of the invention is to provide a holding element that does not have the disadvantages of known constructions. This object is achieved in the embodiment of the invention in that the retaining element is designed as a support that is completely sound-permeable and sound-proof in all directions.

A holding element constructed according to the invention does not produce acoustic phenomena. It does not cause significant sound reduction or any reverberation. Therefore, neither the resonant characteristics of the auditory canal nor the reverberant characteristics of the pinna are impaired, and therefore the resonance of the ear, which is essential for three-dimensional hearing, is not impaired. In particular, by being combined with an open-cell foam pad, the holding element according to the invention obtains advantageous preconditions for a listening phenomenon that corresponds to natural hearing.
This is because open-cell foams or similar materials do not cause acoustic disturbances in the sound field either at the entrance of the auditory canal or in the pinna. With the retaining element according to the invention, the ear can therefore be used in combination with the use of a foam material or the like in a manner known per se between the ear and the retaining element to create an ear resonance. It is possible to quote the diaphragm at least in its inner range, so that the signal radiated from the diaphragm of the transducer and reaching the tympanic membrane follows a perfectly natural straight line, as also occurs when listening with the free ear. distorted into a shape. The invention also provides significant improvements even when the diaphragm is relatively small, ie smaller than the pinna. This is because the sound waves can reverberate within the outer region of the pinna and then return to the central part of the pinna, which results in an advantageous three-dimensional listening impression. . In order to obtain a flexible contact of the retaining member in the recess in front of the auditory canal, a thin foam layer or textile material is used. The holding element according to the invention may be constructed in various structural ways. The cheapest and simplest construction is a plastic tube whose circumferential wall has large-area longitudinal slits, which are separated from each other only by narrow webs. In order to prevent heat from building up in the ear when using a hearing device having a retaining element according to the invention, it is advantageous to manufacture the retaining element from a material that conducts heat well.

In this case, first of all, a metal is provided, for example in the form of a wire mesh, which wire mesh forms a molded body which can optionally form an integral unit with a protective cap covering the diaphragm of the transducer. This structure not only provides very good heat dissipation, but also can be manufactured relatively cheaply.

Another possibility for the construction of this holding element arises from the use of metal wires, which protrude approximately in the form of a bundle from a protective cap covering the diaphragm, the casing part or the transducer part. Finally, the retaining element may consist of a thin plate which is perforated as an approximately semi-cylindrical piece of tubing, and which, like a bundle of wire or wire mesh, is formed of a foam material or It draws out the heat that accumulates in similar objects, and uses it to hold this hearing instrument and eliminate it. A particularly inexpensive construction of the retaining element according to the invention is obtained if the retaining element is manufactured from a rigid foam material with a lid-like base, which can be used to hold the electroacoustic transducer during use.
Even though the hearing device is fitted in a frictional manner on the side of the ear, it can therefore be replaced at any time, which is very advantageous for hygienic reasons when the hearing device is used by several people.

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

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 indicates a bowl-shaped hearing device. A protective cap 2 having an opening 3 is attached to the ear side of the hearing device, that is, the side having the diaphragm of the electroacoustic transducer.
The dimensions of the aperture are such that the aperture offers virtually no resistance to the passage of sound. This protective cap 2 can be made of metal or of another solid material, for example plastic. A retaining element 4 is preferably arranged in the center of the protective cap 2, which in the case of plastic construction can also be manufactured in one piece with the protective cap 2. The holding member 4, which is easily fitted into the concave cavity of the auricle in front of the external auditory canal (medical terminology) during use of the hearing device, has a substantially tube-like shape, and the peripheral wall surface of the tube has large-area cutouts 5, which are separated from each other only by a thin web. It is clear that the object formed in this way has no acoustic effect at all and serves only as a support for the foam cap 6, which likewise has no acoustic effect. It is. Similarly, the plastic retaining element 4 shown in FIG. They are separated from each other by a web. Of course, also in the embodiment shown in FIG.
and optionally partially cover the side portions of the hearing device 1. The interposition of foam material between the pinna and the hearing device can in some cases generate unwanted heat within the pinna, which may be of concern to the hearing device user. It can be tough. In order to prevent or at least reduce such heat build-up, it is proposed according to the invention that the holding element be manufactured from metal, in which case again different embodiments are possible. Thus, for example, in FIG. 3 a retaining element 4 is shown which is manufactured from wire mesh together with a protective cap 2 which must be made sound-permeable. Another embodiment having a metal retaining member is illustrated in perspective view in FIG. In this case, the holding element 4 consists of a piece of wire bent into the shape of a hairpin, the end of which is fixed in the protective cap 2. If the protective cap 2 is made of plastic, the wire ends can be molded together during the manufacture of the protective cap, so that they once again form an integral unit with the protective cap. In the case of metal protective caps, the wire ends are press-fitted or
They may also be welded or, if appropriate, soldered. A third embodiment with a metal retaining member is illustrated in FIG. This holding member is manufactured from a thin plate with many holes,
The sheet is bent into an approximately semi-cylindrical shaped body. In order to improve the retention of the hearing device in the ear, this semi-cylindrical shaped body 4 may be divided into two sections, one section 4a of which has a smaller radius of curvature than the other section 4b. are doing. Such a configuration, when a conventional foam cap is fitted over it, creates a knob-like structure that easily catches within the pinna during use of the hearing device.

Finally, even more rigid foam materials have become known, which are penetrated by a large number of through passages that maintain their shape well and have a relatively large cross-section, and thus The foam can be considered as having no acoustic effect in the sound field. Such a foam material can therefore also be used for the holding element according to the invention, as shown in the embodiment shown in FIG. Advantageously, in this case also the retaining element 4 is attached to the protective cap 2.
will be manufactured in one piece. This is because only one operation step is required for the production of both. Although this is probably the least expensive embodiment of the invention, it does have the disadvantage of poor heat dissipation, which can be overcome in some cases by coating the surface with metal. can be reduced. In FIG. 7, a retaining member 4 constructed in accordance with an embodiment of the invention and which is entirely sound-transmissive is inserted into the recess 8 of a human ear 7.
is shown engaged within. For the sake of clarity, the electroacoustic transducer associated with the holding element 4 is not shown. The retaining element according to the invention is advantageously used in light compound hearing instruments in which the U-shaped element is supported under the chin or in the cervical region. Hearing devices known in the art that allow for this type of support are provided with: in order to prevent the hearing device from slipping out of the ear due to gravity or from placing its U-shaped member in an undesirable position; Requires a relatively strong pressing force to be provided from the U-shaped member. In a hearing device equipped with a retaining member according to the invention and a conventional foam pad, a secure retention between the pinna and the hearing device is achieved even with very slight pressure on the U-shaped member as follows. can get. That is, in contrast to the known constructions, even if the hearing device is supported by a U-shaped element under the chin or by a U-shaped element in the neck, the user hardly has to worry about it.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show a plurality of embodiments of a holding member for holding an electroacoustic transducer in the ear according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a hearing device equipped with a holding member according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a holding member made of wire mesh according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 is an embodiment in which the holding member is made of bundled wire rods. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the retaining member as a semi-cylindrical perforated tube; FIG. 6 is a sectional view of an embodiment made of rigid foam; FIG. FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of an auricle with a retaining member engaged therein; DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Bowl-shaped hearing device, 2... Protective cap, 3... Opening, 4... Holding member, 4a, 4b... Division, 5... Notch, 6... Foam material cap, 7... Ear, 8...
dimple.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A holding member for holding an electroacoustic transducer by the ear, the holding member being a pin-shaped protrusion that covers a diaphragm of the electroacoustic transducer and serves as a protective cap that allows sound to pass through. In the version in which the retaining element 4 is provided with a sound-permeable flexible covering which is arranged on the corresponding housing part or transducer part and which is oriented in all directions as a sound-permeable and satisfactorily reverberant shaped body. A holding member for holding an electroacoustic transducer with an ear, characterized in that: 2. The holding element is constructed as a plastic tube 4, the peripheral wall of which has large-area cutouts 5, which are separated from each other only by a narrow web. A holding member for holding the electroacoustic transducer according to claim 1 by the ear, which is not held by the ear. 3. A holding member for holding an electroacoustic transducer in the ear according to claim 1, wherein the holding member 4 is made of a material that conducts heat well, such as metal. 4. A holding member for holding the electroacoustic transducer in the ear according to claim 3, wherein the holding member 4 is a molded body made of wire mesh. 5. The holding element 4 consists of individual wires arranged in a bundle, the ends of which are fixed in a protective cap 2 surrounding the diaphragm of the electroacoustic transducer. , a holding member for holding the electroacoustic transducer according to claim 3 with the ear. 6. Holding in the ear an electroacoustic transducer according to claim 3, in which the holding member 4 is manufactured from a perforated sheet metal, which sheet metal sheet is bent into an approximately semi-cylindrical shaped body. Holding member. 7. A holding member for holding an electroacoustic transducer in the ear according to claim 1, wherein the holding member 4 is integrally coupled with the protective cap 2.