WO2010089422A2 - Appareil auditif - Google Patents

Appareil auditif Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2010089422A2
WO2010089422A2 PCT/EP2010/057175 EP2010057175W WO2010089422A2 WO 2010089422 A2 WO2010089422 A2 WO 2010089422A2 EP 2010057175 W EP2010057175 W EP 2010057175W WO 2010089422 A2 WO2010089422 A2 WO 2010089422A2
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
hearing device
acoustical
sound
housing
sound inlet
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/EP2010/057175
Other languages
English (en)
Other versions
WO2010089422A3 (fr
Inventor
Jan Angst
Erdal Karamuk
Andi Vonlanthen
Hilmar Meier
Roland Hug
Original Assignee
Phonak Ag
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Phonak Ag filed Critical Phonak Ag
Priority to PCT/EP2010/057175 priority Critical patent/WO2010089422A2/fr
Publication of WO2010089422A2 publication Critical patent/WO2010089422A2/fr
Publication of WO2010089422A3 publication Critical patent/WO2010089422A3/fr

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R25/00—Deaf-aid sets, i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception
    • H04R25/45—Prevention of acoustic reaction, i.e. acoustic oscillatory feedback
    • H04R25/456—Prevention of acoustic reaction, i.e. acoustic oscillatory feedback mechanically
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R25/00—Deaf-aid sets, i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception
    • H04R25/40—Arrangements for obtaining a desired directivity characteristic
    • H04R25/405—Arrangements for obtaining a desired directivity characteristic by combining a plurality of transducers
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R25/00—Deaf-aid sets, i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception
    • H04R25/60—Mounting or interconnection of hearing aid parts, e.g. inside tips, housings or to ossicles
    • H04R25/604—Mounting or interconnection of hearing aid parts, e.g. inside tips, housings or to ossicles of acoustic or vibrational transducers
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R2225/00—Details of deaf aids covered by H04R25/00, not provided for in any of its subgroups
    • H04R2225/021—Behind the ear [BTE] hearing aids
    • H04R2225/0213—Constructional details of earhooks, e.g. shape, material
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R2225/00—Details of deaf aids covered by H04R25/00, not provided for in any of its subgroups
    • H04R2225/021—Behind the ear [BTE] hearing aids
    • H04R2225/0216—BTE hearing aids having a receiver in the ear mould
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R2430/00—Signal processing covered by H04R, not provided for in its groups
    • H04R2430/20—Processing of the output signals of the acoustic transducers of an array for obtaining a desired directivity characteristic
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R2460/00—Details of hearing devices, i.e. of ear- or headphones covered by H04R1/10 or H04R5/033 but not provided for in any of their subgroups, or of hearing aids covered by H04R25/00 but not provided for in any of its subgroups
    • H04R2460/17—Hearing device specific tools used for storing or handling hearing devices or parts thereof, e.g. placement in the ear, replacement of cerumen barriers, repair, cleaning hearing devices
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R25/00—Deaf-aid sets, i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception
    • H04R25/60—Mounting or interconnection of hearing aid parts, e.g. inside tips, housings or to ossicles
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R25/00—Deaf-aid sets, i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception
    • H04R25/60—Mounting or interconnection of hearing aid parts, e.g. inside tips, housings or to ossicles
    • H04R25/607—Mounting or interconnection of hearing aid parts, e.g. inside tips, housings or to ossicles of earhooks
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04R—LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; DEAF-AID SETS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS
    • H04R25/00—Deaf-aid sets, i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception
    • H04R25/65—Housing parts, e.g. shells, tips or moulds, or their manufacture

Definitions

  • the present invention is related to a hearing device according to the pre-characterizing part of claim 1.
  • a hearing device is used to improve the hearing of patients having a hearing loss.
  • sound is picked up by a microphone, processed in a signal processing unit, in the simplest case by applying a gain, and the processed sound is then transmitted to a receiver positioned in the ear canal of the patient.
  • a signal processing unit in the simplest case by applying a gain
  • open ear canal hearing devices are also used, as described, for example, in US-5 987 146.
  • BTE- Behind-The-Ear
  • a BTE comprises a housing with a sound inlet, a processing unit and a hook element that is used to transmit the sound into the ear canal.
  • a known BTE is disclosed in US 2004/0057592 Al, for example.
  • Other known hearing devices are disclosed in US-4 291 203, US-5 987 146 and in EP-I 463 375 Bl.
  • the housing behind the ear leads to a covering or at least shadowing of the sound inlet by the ear itself, resulting in a decreased signal quality of the acoustic signal picked up by the microphone.
  • hearing device is not only limited to a device for improving the hearing of a hearing impaired person but must also be understood as a communication device for improving communication or as a hearing protection device for protecting a user from excessive noise.
  • the present invention is directed to a hearing device comprising: - a housing position-able behind an ear of a hearing device user, the housing comprising at least one acoustical/electrical transducer,
  • an ear piece comprising a sound outlet, the ear piece being position-able in the ear canal of the hearing device user, - a connecting element for interconnecting the housing and the ear piece,
  • the connecting element comprises a proximal section and a distal section, one end of the proximal section being connected to the housing and one end of the distal section being connected to the ear piece,
  • a tube element extends along the proximal section, the tube element comprising a first sound inlet, and - that the tube element is operationally connected to one of the at least one acoustical/electrical transducer to pick up sound via the first sound inlet.
  • acoustics of the hearing device can be improved to a large extent.
  • An embodiment of the hearing device according to the present invention is characterized in that the proximal section of the connecting element is preformed such that the proximal section acts as a hook for holding the housing behind the ear of the hearing device user.
  • FIG. 1 A -
  • first sound inlet generally is directed downwardly, moisture and dirt cannot enter the inlet. Therefore, such an arrangement has the advantage that first sound inlet cannot get clogged. In addition, even if the first sound inlet gets clogged, there is no immediate danger that dirt reaches the acoustical/electrical transducer. Once the first sound inlet is clogged, it can be cleaned by washing out the dirt or, if need be, the tube element can simply be replaced.
  • a filter element can be positioned in the sound inlet.
  • the filter element may act for compensating a delay and/or it may act as a protective element to keep off moisture and dirt.
  • the housing comprises a second sound inlet via which sound is directed to one of the at least one acoustical/electrical transducer.
  • the hearing device is very well suitable for implementing beam forming because the sound inlets can very well be positioned to obtain a maximal directionality.
  • the ear piece comprises an electrical/acoustical transducer that is operationally connected to a signal processing unit via wires comprised in the connecting element.
  • the housing comprises an electrical/acoustical transducer that is connected to the connecting element comprising a tube for acoustically transmitting sounds to the ear piece.
  • a horizontal distance D between the first and the second sound inlet is within the range of 8 to 20mm, preferably equal to 12mm, the horizontal distance D being defined by a distance between positions of the first and the second sound inlet projected onto a horizontal plane while the hearing device is worn by the hearing device user and while the hearing device user is upright.
  • FIG. 1 Further embodiments of the hearing device according to the present invention are characterized in that the distal section is adaptable to individual geometry of the hearing device user to provide high wearing comfort for the hearing device user.
  • FIG. 1 Further embodiments of the hearing device according to the present invention are characterized in that at least two acoustical/electrical transducer are provided, that the first sound inlet is operationally connected to one of the at least two acoustical/electrical transducer and that the second sound inlet is operationally connected to another of the at least two acoustical/electrical transducer.
  • FIG. 1 Further embodiments of the hearing device according to the present invention are characterized in that the first sound inlet as well as the second sound inlet is operationally connected to the same acoustical/electrical transducer.
  • FIG. 1 Further embodiments of the hearing device according to the present invention are characterized in that the housing comprises a further sound inlet.
  • Fig. 1 shows a side view of a first embodiment of a hearing device according to the present invention
  • Fig. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of a connecting element at a position A-A indicated in Fig. 1,
  • Fig. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of another connecting element at the position A-A indicated in Fig. 1
  • Fig. 4 shows sections of a side view of a further embodiment of a hearing device according to the present invention.
  • a first embodiment of a hearing device 1 is depicted.
  • the hearing device 1 is of the type Behind-The-Ear or BTE comprising a housing 10 to which a connecting element 6 is attached.
  • the housing 10 comprises an acoustical/electrical transducer, a battery for supplying energy to the components, a signal processing unit for processing sound that is picked up by the acoustical/electrical transducer, and, for some embodiments, an electrical/acoustical transducer for generating output sound.
  • the internal components are not shown in Fig . 1.
  • the connecting element 6 Via the connecting element 6, sound is transmitted from the housing 10 to the ear piece 5 that is positioned within or at the entrance of an ear canal of the hearing device user.
  • the ear piece 5 is adapted to the individual geometry of the ear canal or its entrance of the hearing device user in order to provide a good wearing comfort.
  • the connecting element 6 comprises a tube via which sound generated by the electrical/acoustical transducer is transmitted to the ear piece 5.
  • the connecting element 6 comprises electrically conducting elements, such as wires, to transmit an electrical signal corresponding to sound to the ear piece 5 respectively to the electrical/acoustical transducer in the ear piece 5.
  • the electrical transmission of the signal results in the advantage that the connecting element 6 is less visible due to is tinier realization compared to a connecting element comprising a sound tube for transmitting the sound generated by the electrical/acoustical transducer positioned in the housing 10.
  • the connecting element 6 is divided into two sections, namely a proximal section 3 being attached to the housing 10 and a distal section 4 being arranged subsequently to the proximal section 3. It is pointed out that - according to the present invention - the proximal section 3 extends and forms the hook-type part providing a secure hold for the hearing device at the hearing device user's ear. Therefore, the proximal section 3 of the connecting element 6 is - in one embodiment - preformed, i.e. the proximal section 3 has a rigid form that is not adapted to the individual wearing the hearing device but is rather a standard form manufactured at the manufacturing site of the hearing device. Furthermore, the distal end 4 is connected to the ear piece 5.
  • a tube element 7 is arranged in the proximal section 3 of the connecting element 6.
  • the tube element 7 is connectable to the housing 10 in a similar manner as the connecting element 6, and extends into the proximal section 3. While in one embodiment, the tube element 7 completely extends over the whole proximal section 3, the tube element 7 may only cover a part of the proximal section 3 in another embodiment.
  • the tube element 7 may be attached to the proximal section 3 of the connecting element 6. However, the tube element 7 may also be an independent part that is only attached in subsections of the proximal section 3 or that is not at all attached to the connecting element 6.
  • the tube element 7 is used to pick up sound via a first sound inlet 8 and to transmit the sound to the acoustical/electrical transducer that is comprised in the housing 10.
  • the first sound inlet 8 is positioned clearly apart from a sound inlet of the acoustical/electrical transducer making it much more difficult that the acoustical/electrical transducer gets contaminated by ear wax or other dirt.
  • the tube element 7 can easily get cleaned once it is detached from the housing 10. If cleaning is not possible anymore, the tube element 7 can simply be replaced without replacing the acoustical/electrical transducer itself.
  • the tube element 7 is attached to the proximal section 3 of the connecting element 6 and is long enough that the first sound inlet 8 is directed downwardly if the hearing device 1 is worn by the hearing device user and the hearing device user is in an upright position, i.e. looking straight ahead. Because the first sound inlet 8 is directed downwardly, moisture and dirt cannot easily enter the tube element 7. This is also true even though no protecting membrane or cover is provided over the first sound inlet 8 resulting in a very advantageous sound pick up arrangement.
  • Figs. 2 and 3 show cross-sections A-A of two embodiments of the proximal section 3 of the connecting element 6. The position of the section plane is also indicated in Fig. 1.
  • Fig. 2 shows a proximal section 3 comprising two tubes, one as the tube element 7 and the other as the sound tube 12, Fig. 3 only shows one tube, namely the tube element 7. Instead of the sound tube 12, two wires 11 are indicated by 12 being the electrical conducting elements for transmitting electrical signals representing the sound to be emitted by the electrical/acoustical transducer.
  • FIG. 2 represents an embodiment with a electrical/acoustical transducer in the housing 10 of the hearing device 1
  • Fig. 3 represents an embodiment in which the electrical/acoustical transducer is positioned in the ear piece 5.
  • the tubes as well as the electrically conducting elements are encompassed within a surrounding tube that can be produced, for example, by an extrusion process.
  • Fig. 4 essential parts of a further embodiment according to the present invention are depicted.
  • the reference signs used in connection with Figs. 1 to 3 are again used for the same components.
  • a second sound inlet 2 is provided in the housing 10 of the hearing device 1.
  • a directional acoustical/electrical transducer e.g. a microphone
  • the second sound inlet 2 is preferably arranged at the upper section of the housing 10 in order to ensure a good pick up of sound.
  • the positioning in the upper section is particularly important when the housing is rather small which is more and more the case for BTE hearing device because it is a general desire to hide hearing devices as much as possible.
  • a small BTE hearing device with a sound inlet in its housing may lead to a reduced sound pick-up because of the shadowing by the ear itself.
  • Fig. 4 shows an embodiment in which the electrical/acoustical transducer - indicated at 13 - is comprised within the housing 10. Accordingly, the connecting element 6 is implemented as sound tube for transmitting the sound of the electrical/acoustical transducer 13 to the ear piece 5.
  • CRT- Canal Receiver Technology
  • a single unit (single microphone) is provided.
  • a single acoustical/electrical transducer can be used having two sound openings and a membrane dividing a common volume into two sub-volumes, one sub-volume being in communication with the first sound opening, the other sub-volume being in communication with the second sound opening.
  • the two sound inlets 2 and 8 form the basis for a beam former generally known in the art. According to the present invention, it has been shown that the two sound inlets 2 and 8 must have a horizontal distance D which is in the range of 8 to 15mm, preferably in the range of 11 to 13mm, or which is equal to 12mm. Thereby, the horizontal distance D is defined by a distance between positions of the first and the second sound inlet 2, 8 projected onto a horizontal plane while the hearing device is worn by the hearing device user and while the hearing device user is upright, i.e. the head of the hearing device user is upright and the hearing device user is looking straight ahead.

Landscapes

  • Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
  • General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
  • Neurosurgery (AREA)
  • Otolaryngology (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Acoustics & Sound (AREA)
  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Headphones And Earphones (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne un appareil auditif (1) comprenant un boîtier(10) venant se positionner derrière l'oreille de l'utilisateur de l'appareil, le boîtier (10) comprenant au moins un transducteur acoustique/électrique (9), un écouteur (5) venant se placer dans le canal auditif de l'utilisateur de l'appareil, ainsi qu'un élément de raccord (6) pour raccorder le boîtier (10) et l'écouteur (5). L'appareil auditif de l'invention est caractérisé en ce que l'élément de raccord (6) comprend une section proximale (3) et une section distale (4), une extrémité de la section proximale (3) étant raccordée au boîtier (10) et une extrémité de la section distale (4) étant raccordée à l'écouteur (5), en ce qu'un élément tubulaire (7) s'étend le long de la section proximale (3), cet élément tubulaire (7) comprenant une première entrée de son (8), et en ce que l'élément tubulaire (7) est connecté fonctionnellement au dit transducteur ou à l'un des dits transducteurs acoustiques/électriques (9) pour capter le son à travers la première entrée de son (8).
PCT/EP2010/057175 2010-05-25 2010-05-25 Appareil auditif WO2010089422A2 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/EP2010/057175 WO2010089422A2 (fr) 2010-05-25 2010-05-25 Appareil auditif

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/EP2010/057175 WO2010089422A2 (fr) 2010-05-25 2010-05-25 Appareil auditif

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2010089422A2 true WO2010089422A2 (fr) 2010-08-12
WO2010089422A3 WO2010089422A3 (fr) 2010-12-16

Family

ID=42542448

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/EP2010/057175 WO2010089422A2 (fr) 2010-05-25 2010-05-25 Appareil auditif

Country Status (1)

Country Link
WO (1) WO2010089422A2 (fr)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8891796B2 (en) 2011-12-21 2014-11-18 Sonion Nederland B.V. Apparatus and a method for providing sound
EP2680611A3 (fr) * 2012-06-27 2015-01-07 Siemens Medical Instruments Pte. Ltd. Connecteur d'instrument auditif hybride

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO1998044762A1 (fr) * 1997-04-03 1998-10-08 Resound Corporation Oreillette radio ouverte
US20040057592A1 (en) * 2002-06-27 2004-03-25 Torsten Niederdrank Acoustic module for a hearing aid device
US20050157895A1 (en) * 2004-01-16 2005-07-21 Lichtblau George J. Hearing aid having acoustical feedback protection
WO2009016671A1 (fr) * 2007-07-30 2009-02-05 Sonoelettronica Di Angeloni Andrea Appareil auditif

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO1998044762A1 (fr) * 1997-04-03 1998-10-08 Resound Corporation Oreillette radio ouverte
US20040057592A1 (en) * 2002-06-27 2004-03-25 Torsten Niederdrank Acoustic module for a hearing aid device
US20050157895A1 (en) * 2004-01-16 2005-07-21 Lichtblau George J. Hearing aid having acoustical feedback protection
WO2009016671A1 (fr) * 2007-07-30 2009-02-05 Sonoelettronica Di Angeloni Andrea Appareil auditif

Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8891796B2 (en) 2011-12-21 2014-11-18 Sonion Nederland B.V. Apparatus and a method for providing sound
EP2608576A3 (fr) * 2011-12-21 2015-04-22 Sonion Nederland B.V. Appareil et procédé pour la fourniture de son
EP2680611A3 (fr) * 2012-06-27 2015-01-07 Siemens Medical Instruments Pte. Ltd. Connecteur d'instrument auditif hybride
US9654886B2 (en) 2012-06-27 2017-05-16 Sivantos Pte. Ltd. Hybrid hearing instrument connector

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