KR20110048331A - Hearing Aid Having Function of Bone Conduction Using Piezoelectric Vibration - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A hearing aid having a function of bone conduction using piezoelectric vibration is provided to select a piezoelectric device arrangement hearing aid proper to hearing difficulty. CONSTITUTION: A body(10) has a sealed hollow(11) therein, and a microphone unit(20) is formed at a rear portion of a body to receive an external sound wave. A signal processor unit(30) receives a sound wave from the microphone unit, and converts an analog sound wave into a digital sound wave. A driver circuit unit(40) generates a driving signal, and a piezoelectric vibration speaker(50) contacts the front follow portion of the body.

Description

Hearing Aid Having Function of Bone Conduction Using Piezoelectric Vibration

The present invention relates to a bone conduction hearing aid using a piezoelectric vibration that can recognize the sound through bone conduction into the ear, and more particularly, it can be used by inserting into the ear. It can be easily used by hearing impaired people, including a piezoelectric element hearing aid according to the configuration of various types of piezoelectric element can be selected according to the degree of hearing impairment relates to a bone conduction hearing aid using a piezoelectric vibration to improve the treatment efficiency. .

Among hearing aids developed or commercially available, hearing aids that physically transmit an acoustic vibration signal to the cochlea by vibrating a human head bone are used to vibrate the temporal bone of the head corresponding to the back of the ear using a vibrator. Hearing aids were being manufactured. The sound pressure signal input to the microphone is amplified by an amplifier and configured to convert an electrical signal into a physical vibration signal through an oscillator. Representative examples of such bone hearing aids are ophthalmic bone hearing aids or temporal bone vibration hearing aids.

However, the ophthalmic bone hearing aid has a problem that the vibrator is located at the end of the spectacles leg, and the joint connecting the spectacle frame and the spectacles leg acts as a pivot.

In addition, the temporal bone oscillation hearing aid requires a medical procedure of directly implanting a screw (screw) into the temporal bone, and the screw inserted into the bone from the outside is not only prone to inflammation in the temporal bone, but also according to the medical procedure Since the implant must be expensive, there was a problem that the hearing impaired according to the procedure.

The present invention has been devised to solve the above problems, so that it can be used in the ear as it can be used by hearing impaired people, including eardrum damage or middle ear bone abnormalities and prenegative deafness, piezoelectric element arrangement of various forms The purpose of the present invention is to provide a piezoelectric element hearing aid suitable for the degree of hearing impairment, and to provide a bone conduction hearing aid using piezoelectric vibration to improve treatment efficiency.

The present invention has the following features to achieve the above object.

The present invention provides a bone density hearing aid that is inserted into the ear and delivers sound in a bone conduction manner, wherein the hearing aid has a hollow portion sealed inside the front and is inserted into the user's ear when in use; A microphone part formed at the rear side of the rear part of the body and receiving external sound waves; A signal processor for receiving a sound wave from the microphone and converting an analog sound wave into digital voice data and amplifying the voice data; A driver circuit unit connected to the signal processor unit to generate a driving signal under control thereof; It is disposed to contact the front hollow portion of the body and the upper surface is exposed to the outside and comprises a piezoelectric vibration speaker for generating a vibration by receiving a drive signal from the driver assembly.

Here, the piezoelectric vibration speaker includes a piezoelectric element which is repeatedly stretched and stretched to generate vibration according to a driving signal transmitted from the driver circuit unit, and an upper electrode which is connected to an upper portion of the piezoelectric element and transmits a driving signal to the piezoelectric element. And a lower electrode bonded to the lower bottom of the piezoelectric element to transmit a driving signal to the piezoelectric element, a support substrate bonded to the lower bottom of the lower electrode to transmit vibrations according to the stretching and stretching of the piezoelectric element, and an external portion. It is bonded to the upper electrode to be exposed to the vibration of the piezoelectric element is transmitted to include a vibration plate for transmitting it to the outside or to the body.

In addition, the piezoelectric vibration speaker is formed to be in contact with the hollow portion formed in the front of the body and may be disposed in each of the top, bottom, left, right of the hollow portion, the piezoelectric vibration speaker is in contact with the hollow portion formed inside the body front. It is formed so as to be in a donut shape so as to contact the outer periphery of the hollow portion.

In addition, the speaker may be formed in a donut shape, and may be disposed in two at the front and the rear of the hollow part, and the hollow part may be disposed between the hollow part and the outside of the body so that sound waves amplified in the hollow part may be transferred to the outside of the front body. A through passage communicating therewith is formed, and when the piezoelectric vibration speaker is coupled to the body, the support substrate and the body are fixedly coupled, and the piezoelectric element, the upper substrate, and the vibration plate are spaced apart from the body at a predetermined distance from the body and the piezoelectric element, the upper substrate, and the like. Groove portions having a predetermined interval are formed between the vibration plates.

In addition, the elastic material containing the elastic material so as not to interfere with the stretching, stretching of the piezoelectric element in the groove portion, the hearing aid is further coupled to the body and the holder for stably fixing the body to be inserted into the ear. Preferably, the end portion of the holder is in contact with the rear portion of the ear contact portion to be fixed to the body, the connection portion is formed between the contact portion and the holder is connected.

According to the present invention can be easily used by the elderly with hearing impairment, according to the configuration of the piezoelectric element arrangement of the various forms, the user can select a piezoelectric element arrangement hearing aid suitable for the degree of hearing impairment has the effect of improving the treatment efficiency.

Hereinafter will be described in detail with the accompanying drawings for the headphones according to the present invention.

1 is a cross-sectional view of the hearing aid according to the present invention, Figure 2 is an internal configuration of the hearing aid according to the invention, Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a coupling configuration of the body and the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to the present invention, Figure 4 Figure is a view showing the coupling arrangement of the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In addition, Figure 5 is a view showing a coupling arrangement configuration of the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to another embodiment of the present invention, Figures 6 and 7 are views showing a coupling arrangement configuration of the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to a deformable embodiment of the present invention. 8 is a view showing a configuration in which the inclusion material according to the present invention is combined.

Referring to the drawings, the hearing aid 100 has a hollow portion 11 sealed inside the front and the body 10 is inserted into the user's ear during use, and formed on the rear side of the rear portion of the body 10 And a microphone 20 for receiving external sound waves, and a signal processor for converting analog sound waves into digital voice data and amplifying voice data by receiving sound waves from the microphone 20. 30, a driver circuit unit 40 connected to the signal processor unit 30 to generate a driving signal according to the control thereof, and formed to be in contact with the front hollow portion 11 of the body 10. The surface is exposed to the outside and is composed of a piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 for generating a vibration by receiving a drive signal to the driver circuit unit 40.

Here, the body 10 is formed in a streamlined cylindrical structure so that the front part can be inserted into the ear, and the diameter is reduced toward the front part, so that the body 10 is similar to the structure of the user's ear formation, so that the body 10 can be mounted on the inner skin and the skeleton when mounted for a long time. Do not cause fatigue or pain.

In addition, the material preferably has a certain strength, but is preferably formed of a flexible plastic material to some extent so as not to overpower the ear.

On the other hand, the body 10 is formed with a hollow portion 11 sealed inside the front, which is a vibration of the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 disposed to contact the hollow portion 11 is amplified in the hollow portion 11 This is to enable the user who recognizes sound through conduction to more accurately sense hearing.

In addition, by adjusting the vibration frequency in accordance with the structure of the hollow portion 11 to analyze the formation structure that is most suitable for the user's hearing impairment may form a different structure accordingly.

In addition, the hollow portion 11 of the body 10 communicates between the hollow portion 11 and the outside of the body 10 so that sound waves amplified by the hollow portion 11 can be transferred to the outside in front of the body 10. Through passages 12 are formed.

As the vibration frequency is adjusted according to the structure of the hollow part 11 described above, the vibration frequency may be adjusted according to the diameter or the structure of the through passage 12.

On the other hand, the microphone unit 20 is formed in the center of the rear side of the rear portion of the body 10 is provided to deliver external sound waves to the microprocessor unit 30 to be described later, the amplification circuit unit in the microphone unit 20 After amplifying an external sound wave, it may be delivered to the microprocessor unit 30. Alternatively, the amplification circuit may be provided in the microprocessor unit 30 to receive and process the sound wave as it is from the microphone unit 20.

Here, the sound waves transmitted from the microphone unit 20 are signal processed by the microprocessor unit 30. The microprocessor unit 30 converts the analog sound waves into digital voice data. The conversion process may be performed, and the voice data may be amplified as necessary, and the driving signal generation of the driver circuit unit 40 for driving the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 is controlled through the driver circuit unit 40 to be described later.

Meanwhile, the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 can recognize a user's sound through vibrations according to the driving signal of the driver circuit unit 40. The piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 is a drive transmitted from the driver circuit unit 40. A piezoelectric element 51 which is repeatedly stretched and stretched according to a signal to generate vibration, an upper electrode 52 which is respectively bonded to the piezoelectric element 51 and transmits a driving signal to the piezoelectric element 51; The lower electrode 53 which is bonded to the lower bottom surface of the piezoelectric element 51 and transmits a driving signal to the piezoelectric element 51 and the lower electrode 53 which is bonded to the lower bottom surface of the lower electrode 53 are stretched and contracted. And a support substrate 54 which transmits vibrations according to elongation, and is joined to an upper portion of the upper electrode so as to be exposed to the outside, and a vibration plate of the piezoelectric element 51 is transmitted to transmit it to the outside or to the body 10. It consists of 55.

The sound wave generation process of the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 causes the piezoelectric element 51 to vibrate through stretching and stretching according to a driving signal applied to the upper / lower electrodes 52 and 53, and the generated vibration is supported on the supporting substrate. The body 10 of the hearing aid 100 is transmitted through the vibration plate 55 and the vibration plate 55 to vibrate together, which is transmitted to the auditory bone in the ear where the body 10 is in contact with and is sensed by the user. It becomes possible.

Voice frequency control of the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 can be implemented freely by adjusting the thickness of the support substrate 54 and the vibration plate 55, the vibration plate 55 according to the present invention is the body 10 Along with vibrations, it can transmit vibrations directly to the ear canal hearing.

In addition, the vibration is transmitted through the sound wave output through the through passage 12, so that even in the case of a hearing impaired person having a high difficulty due to vibration transmission of various paths through the body 10, the vibrating plate 55, and the through passage 12. It can be recognized that the performance of the hearing aid 100 is improved.

On the other hand, when the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 is coupled to the body 10, the support substrate 54 and the body 10 are fixedly coupled, and the piezoelectric element 51, the upper electrode 52, and the vibration plate 55 are A spaced interval between the body 10 and the body 10 and the piezoelectric element 51, the upper electrode 52 and the vibration plate 55 is formed with a groove 60 having a predetermined interval, which is the piezoelectric element 51 This is to avoid interference with the stretching and stretching of the circuit and to induce the effect of amplifying the sound waves vibrated through the hole structure.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 8, the elastic material-containing material 61 is inserted into the groove portion 60 so as not to interfere with the stretching and stretching of the piezoelectric element 51. You could do it.

The above-described upper and lower electrodes 52 and 53 are driven with the driving signal from the driver circuit part 40 to induce the expansion and extension of the piezoelectric element 51. For this purpose, the driver circuit part 40 and the upper and lower electrodes ( Of course, separate lead wires (not shown) connecting the 52 and 53 are formed.

In addition, the support substrate 54 is preferably sus 430 made of stainless steel, but the material is not limited thereto. The piezoelectric element 51 is a piezoelectric type, the thickness of which is preferably 50 to 150㎛. However, the thickness can be changed freely according to the frequency application.

In addition, an epoxy layer 57 may be formed at the outer periphery of the bottom surface of the piezoelectric element 51 for stable bonding with the support substrate 54.

On the other hand, the hearing aid 100 is provided with a power supply unit for supplying power to each of the microphone unit 20, microprocessor unit 30, driver circuit unit 40, piezoelectric vibration speaker 50.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 according to the present invention is formed to be in contact with the hollow part 11 formed inside the front of the body 10, and the top, bottom, left, It can be configured to be disposed to the right respectively.

Of course, the number of arrangement of the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 may be arranged in three, five, six, eight, etc., and the desired intensity intensity and frequency band are changed according to the arrangement rate such as vibration rate and vibration frequency. I can regulate it.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 is formed to be in contact with the hollow part 11 formed inside the front of the body 10, and is formed in a donut shape to be in contact with the outer periphery of the hollow part 11 to increase the vibration strength. As shown in FIG. 7, two piezoelectric vibration speakers 50 formed in a donut shape in the front and the rear may be further increased.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 6, the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 may be further added to one of four arrangements before, after, and left and right as shown in FIG. 4 to form a total of eight arrangements.

9 illustrates a hearing aid according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, the hearing aid according to the present embodiment is configured to be more stably fixed when the user wears by configuring the shape of the body 10 in the form of an earring.

As shown in FIG. 9, when the hearing aid 100 is worn on the ear, the microphone 20 is formed at a point exposed to the outside to transmit sound waves transmitted from the hearing aid 100 to the signal processor 30. As in the above-described embodiment, the driving signal is transmitted to the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 through the driver circuit unit 40.

Meanwhile, in the present embodiment, the key input unit 70 may be further formed, which is difficult to form the key input unit 70 in the above-described embodiment because the area exposed to the outside of the ear when worn is difficult. This can be secured more than a certain amount, thereby enabling more selective operation control such as volume adjustment.

Of course, the user command information signal of the key input unit 70 is transmitted to the signal processor unit 30 to process this.

In addition, the power supply unit 80 is provided to apply power to the signal processor 30 and the driver driver 40, of course.

10 is a view showing another modified embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, the hearing aid according to the present embodiment is configured in a form in which the holder 90 in the form of a clip extends to the body 10, through the holder 90 the body 10 is inserted into the ear, the holder 90 can be stably fixed while wrapping from the front portion to the rear portion of the ear.

Accordingly, the end of the holder 90 is in contact with the rear portion of the ear, but if the hearing aid of this type is used for a long time, the skin of the rear portion of the ear may be sensitive or pain may be caused, the holder 90 according to the present embodiment Of course, the contact portion 92 of the end should be formed of a soft material that can be given a shock or cushion function.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the connection portion 91 is further interposed for smooth coupling of the holder 90 and the contact portion 92.

In addition, the holder 90 is formed in a form surrounding the ear from the front portion to the rear portion will be preferably composed of a synthetic resin material of elastic material so that it can be used without inconvenience depending on the body size of the wearer.

As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to one embodiment shown in the drawings, but this is merely an example, and those skilled in the art may realize various modifications and other equivalent embodiments therefrom. I will understand.

Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention will be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a hearing aid according to the present invention.

Figure 2 is an internal configuration of the hearing aid according to the present invention.

3 is a cross-sectional view showing a coupling configuration of the body and the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to the present invention.

Figure 4 is a view showing a coupling arrangement of the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a view showing a coupling arrangement of the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to another embodiment of the present invention.

6 and 7 are views showing a coupling arrangement of the piezoelectric vibration speaker according to a deformable embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a view showing a configuration in which the inclusion material according to the invention is combined.

9 illustrates a hearing aid according to another embodiment of the present invention.

10 is a view showing another modified embodiment of the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

10 body 11 hollow part

12: through passage 20: microphone

30: signal processor 40: driver circuit

50: piezoelectric vibration speaker 51: piezoelectric element

52: upper electrode 53: lower electrode

54: support substrate 55: vibration plate

60: groove portion 61: containing material

70: key input unit 80: power supply unit

90 holder 90 connecting portion

92 contact portion 100 hearing aid

Claims (10)

In the bone density hearing aid which is inserted into the ear and delivers the sound by the bone conduction method, The hearing aid 100 is A body 10 having a hollow portion 11 sealed inside the front and inserted into the user's ear during use; A microphone part 20 formed at the rear side of the rear part of the body 10 and receiving external sound waves; A signal processor unit 30 which receives sound waves from the microphone unit 20 and converts the analog sound waves into digital voice data and amplifies the voice data; A driver circuit unit 40 connected to the signal processor unit 30 to generate a driving signal under control thereof; It is disposed to contact the front hollow portion 11 of the body 10, the upper surface is exposed to the outside and includes a piezoelectric vibration speaker (50) for generating a vibration by receiving a drive signal to the driver circuit unit 40; Bone conduction hearing aid using a piezoelectric vibration, characterized in that made. The method of claim 1, The piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 A piezoelectric element 51 which generates and vibrates by stretching and stretching repeatedly according to a driving signal transmitted from the driver circuit unit 40; An upper electrode 52 bonded to an upper portion of the piezoelectric element 51 to transmit a driving signal to the piezoelectric element 51; A lower electrode 53 bonded to a lower bottom surface of the piezoelectric element 51 to transmit a driving signal to the piezoelectric element 51; A support substrate 54 which is bonded to the lower bottom surface of the lower electrode 53 and transmits vibrations according to expansion and contraction of the piezoelectric element 51; The piezoelectric vibration is bonded to the upper electrode so as to be exposed to the outside, and the vibration of the piezoelectric element 51 is transmitted and includes a vibration plate 55 for transmitting it to the outside or to the body 10. Bone conduction hearing aids. 3. The method of claim 2, The piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 is formed to be in contact with the hollow portion 11 formed inside the front of the body 10, the piezoelectric vibration, characterized in that arranged in each of the upper, lower, left, right of the hollow portion (11) Bone conduction hearing aid using. 3. The method of claim 2, The piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 is formed to be in contact with the hollow portion 11 formed inside the front of the body 10 and is formed in a donut shape to be in contact with the outer periphery of the hollow portion 11 using piezoelectric vibration. Bone conduction hearing aids. The method of claim 4, wherein The piezoelectric vibrating speaker 50 is formed in a donut shape, the bone conduction hearing aid using a piezoelectric vibration, characterized in that disposed in each of the front and rear of the hollow portion (11). 3. The method of claim 2, The hollow part 11 is formed with a through passage 12 for communicating between the hollow part 11 and the outside of the body 10 so that the sound wave amplified from the hollow part 11 to the outside of the body front can be transmitted to the outside. Bone conduction hearing aid using a piezoelectric vibration, characterized in that. 3. The method of claim 2, When the piezoelectric vibration speaker 50 is coupled to the body 10, the support substrate 54 and the body 10 are fixedly coupled, and the piezoelectric element 51, the upper electrode 52, and the vibration plate 55 have a body. Piezoelectric vibration, characterized in that the groove 10 having a predetermined interval between the body 10 and the body 10 and the piezoelectric element 51, the upper electrode 52 and the vibration plate 55 is formed at a predetermined interval. Bone conduction hearing aid used. The method of claim 7, wherein Bone conduction hearing aid using a piezoelectric vibration, characterized in that the elastic material-containing material 61 is embedded in the groove portion 60 so as not to interfere with the stretching and stretching of the piezoelectric element. The method of claim 1, The hearing aid 100 Bone conduction hearing aid using a piezoelectric vibration, characterized in that it further comprises a holder (90) for extending and coupled to the body and stably fixing the body to be inserted into the ear. The method of claim 9, An end portion of the holder 90 is in contact with the rear portion of the ear contact portion 92 to be fixed to the body, and the connection portion 91 is interposed between the contact portion 92 and the holder 90 is characterized in that it is formed Bone conduction hearing aid using piezoelectric vibration.

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