WO2011091797A2

WO2011091797A2 - Hearing aid device and method

Info

Publication number: WO2011091797A2
Application number: PCT/DK2011/050019
Authority: WO
Inventors: Tonny Balle
Original assignee: Micro Balle Aps
Priority date: 2010-01-27
Filing date: 2011-01-21
Publication date: 2011-08-04
Also published as: WO2011091797A3

Abstract

The present invention concerns an improved hearing aid device (1) comprising a housing (3), such as a battery casing, an anchoring means (5) for a garment, a connection means (2) between the housing (3) and the anchoring means (5), at least one sound receiving means (6), such as a directional microphone, and an amplifying means (8), such as an amplifying circuit, the anchoring means (5) and/or the connection means (2) comprising at least one sound control means (7).

Description

Hearing aid device and method

The present invention relates to an improved hearing aid device and a related method.

Small microphone applications are useful in noisy environments where they may provide users with an enhanced sound receiving experience through an audio output means, such as earbuds. Directional microphones are in particular useful since the sound from a specific source may thereby be isolated and amplified from the ambient noise level of the environment. Such microphone devices, which include hearing aids, voice-controlled computers, and the like, can be partly concealed within the clothing of the user so that the device is not blocking or hindering the user's movements and in addition the appearance of the device may be more visually appealing by a decorative pin or other aesthetic ar- rangements. A number of solutions in relation to microphone devices are disclosed in the references beneath.

US 2,775,652 discloses a hearing aid device having a casing and a displaceable portion which may be used as a clip for mounting the device on clothing of a user. A microphone is mounted in the displaceable portion.

In US 2005/0190937 and US 2007/0176909 are described devices that have a pen form. Each device can have a microphone and a volume control.

In addition, the following references discuss devices that can be attached to clothing : WO 93/13590, WO 2004/093488, US 5,790,680, US 2,883,523, and US 2,616,985.

However, the devices disclosed in the above-mentioned references have disadvantages in relation to the accessibility of the sound control means for controlling the volume of the devices, a feature which is important for instance to elderly persons.

To overcome the mentioned difficulties, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved hearing aid device and a related method.

In a first aspect of the invention, the object is achieved by a hearing aid device comprising a housing, such as a battery casing, an anchoring means for a garment, a connection means between the housing and the anchoring means, at least one sound receiving means, such as a directional microphone, and an amplifying means, such as an amplifying circuit, characterized in that the anchoring means and/or the con- nection means comprise/comprises at least one sound control means.

Preferably, the housing comprises a first surface portion and a second surface portion having a first contact portion, and the anchoring means comprises a third surface portion and a fourth surface portion having a second contact portion so that the first contact portion and the second contact portion are adapted to abut a body, such as a garment, arranged between the housing and the anchoring means. The first and the fourth surface portions may face the body of the user while the second and third surface portions face the space in front of the user, such that the third surface portion preferably is a visible front portion while the first and the second surface portions are arranged behind a piece of cloth or the like. Further, the anchoring means and the connection means may be integrated and are preferably smaller than the housing. The anchoring means and the connection means may for instance constitute the clip of a pen.

In a preferred embodiment of the device, the housing is elongated and has two parts, a cap and lower part adapted to fit the cap. The anchoring means and the connection means may have a shape mentioned in any of the above references, such as a displaceable portion. The anchoring means and/or the connection means may for instance be a member for attachment and may comprise a clip, such as a clip for pen, which may extend from a cap of the pen. In a related embodiment, the housing has a pen shape. The housing, the connection means, and the anchoring means are preferably made of a plastic material although other materials, such as metals, can be used, for instance for durability or decorative purposes. Further, the device may comprise rechargeable batteries and the device may be adapted for inductive charging. A radio may be built into the device and the device can be integrated with a mobile phone or the like.

In another preferred embodiment, the at least one sound con- trol means comprises a volume control means. In a related embodiment, the at least one sound control means comprises a rotational means. The rotational means is preferably arranged in a protruding portion, such as a corner, of the anchoring means and/or connection means. The sound control means may protrude from the device, for instance in at least two directions, which is advantageous in that the sound control means thereby is more accessible to the user. It may for instance protrude both in a first direction facing the space in front of the user and in a direction perpendicular to the first direction, such as the upward direction relative to the user. In addition, the sound control means may comprise a wheel having a wheel rim, which may have notches for easier manipulation. Preferably 0 to 100 per cent of the wheel rim is visible and/or accessible for manipulation, however the accessible wheel rim may be in the range from 10-90 per cent, such as 20-80 per cent, or 30-70 per cent, such as 40-60 per cent, or 45-55 per cent. For instance at least 30 per cent of the wheel rim is accessible for manipulation. More preferably, at least 40 per cent of the wheel rim is accessible for manipulation, for instance at least 50 per cent. Preferably, the wheel comprises an on/off switch so that the device is turned off when the wheel is turned to one of its ex- treme positions. Further, the sound control means may also comprise a means for adjusting the bass and treble, such as another wheel in addition to a volume control wheel.

The device preferably has only one control means, such as a simple volume control, which is within sight of the user and is easily ac- cessible to the hands of the user. This is advantageous for instance in relation to elderly people or disabled people that favour simple controlling means. In a particular embodiment, suitable for people of old age, the output volume of the device is controlled by a single wheel that also may turn the device on and off by turning the wheel to an initial position where the on/off switch is indicated by passing a notch or the like.

In a preferred embodiment of the hearing aid device, the at least one sound receiving means, such as a microphone, is arranged with the anchoring means and/or the connection means. Preferably, the sound receiving means is arranged in a front portion, such as in the lower part of third surface portion described above. The sound receiving means is preferably a directional microphone, such as an omnidirectional microphone.

In another embodiment of the hearing aid device, the device comprises at least one sound emitting means, such as a speaker, and a connection means for connecting the sound receiving means with the sound emitting means, e.g. an ear piece with wiring or wireless connection. A standard hearing aid device, such as an in-the-ear, behind-the- ear or in-the-canal device can be disadvantageous in relation to tele- phone conversations. The device according to the invention may be used with a speaker, such as a standard earbud, in the ear that is normally used for telephone conversation. When receiving a phone call the user can easily remove the speaker from the ear in order to answer the phone call whereafter the speaker is reinserted in the ear. An advantage over a small standard hearing aid device that has built in batteries and microphone is hereby gained because a standard hearing aid device may be cumbersome to reinsert after it has been removed from the ear whereas a standard earbud or headphones are easily removed and remounted.

In a second aspect of the invention a method is provided, wherein a first hearing aid device of the kind described in the first aspect of the invention is used with at least a second hearing aid device so that the first hearing aid device supplements the at least second hearing aid device and vice versa. The first hearing aid device may for instance sup- plement the second hearing aid device when the user watches a play in a theatre. The second hearing device could be an in-the-ear, behind-the- ear or in-the-canal device that typically has microphone and batteries integrated and which for instance detects sound from all sides. The first device may thus be adjusted for a harmonic satisfactory setting with re- spect to the second device. Since the right and left ear are different in their receiving of sound, the first device can be used for the ear which it matches best.

In one embodiment of the above method, the first hearing aid device has a flat frequency response in at least one frequency region. By a flat frequency response is meant a frequency region, i.e. a frequency window, wherein the sensitivity of the sound receiving means varies only slightly, such as varying in a sensitivity window having an extent of 5 dB, or 10 dB, or even 20 dB. The frequency window is preferably a re- gion inside the region of 0-20,000 Hz, with an extent of 100 Hz or more, such as 1,000 Hz or 10,000 Hz or even 20,000 Hz. In one embodiment, the ratio of the sensitivity window [dB] to the frequency window [Hz] lies in the interval from 0.01/2000 to 100/2000, such as from 0.1/2000 to 10/2000 or from 0.5/2000 to 5/2000, such as from 0.75/2000 to 2/2000, preferably the ratio is 1/2000. The first hearing aid device may for instance have a microphone with a sensitivity between -35 dB and - 30 dB for frequencies in the range from 100-10,000 Hz. For frequencies above 10,000 Hz, the sensitivity, S, may decrease substantially logarithmically with the frequency, f , such that S = kl log f + k2. For fre- quencies beneath 100 Hz the sensitivity may increase, such as from -47 dB at 10 Hz to roughly -34 dB at 100 Hz, cf. Fig. 11.

Brief description of the drawings The invention is disclosed in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which :

Fig. 1 is a side view of the hearing aid device according to a preferred embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 2 is a front view of the hearing aid device,

Fig. 3 is a top view of the hearing aid device,

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the hearing aid device,

Fig. 5 is an exploded view of the hearing aid device,

Fig. 6 is a side view of the control circuit board of the device,

Fig. 7 is a front view of the control circuit board of the device, Fig . 8 is a cross section side view of the control circuit board mounted in the cap of the device,

Fig. 9 is a schematic view of the control circuit,

Fig. 10 is another side view of the control circuit board, and

Fig. 11 is a response curve for the microphone of the device. Detailed description of the drawings

With reference to Fig. 1-4, the hearing aid device 1 has a cap 2 which is connected to a battery casing 3 by screwing . The cap 2 has a mini-jack female output connector 4 mounted in the top portion of the cap 2 and a clip 5 mounted on the top part of the cap 2. A directional microphone 6, which faces the space in front of the user when the hearing aid device is worn, is mounted in the lower part of the clip 5 and a wheel 7 for volume control is mounted in the top part of the clip 5. The side of the wheel 7 is shown in Fig. 1, and the rim of the wheel 7 is shown in Fig. 2 and 3. With reference to Fig. 1, the wheel 7 protrudes from the hearing aid device in two directions x and y, and the wheel 7 is mounted in a protruding portion that is a corner of the clip 5. When the hearing aid device is worn, the direction x faces the space in front of the user and the direction y is an upward direction relative to the user. The wheel 7 is thereby more accessible to the user.

With reference to Fig. 5-8, the amplifying circuit board 8 of the device is shown with the wheel 7 for volume control and the mini-jack connector 4 mounted in the top part of the circuit board 8 and wiring 9 for connection to batteries 10 extending from the lower part of the circuit board 8. The casing 3 includes a conducting hollow cylindrical member 11 for the battery circuit and the cap 2 is composed of two matching reversed image parts that envelope and secure the circuit board 8 by fastening with screws. With reference to Fig. 8, a cross section of the cap 2 is shown wherein the wheel 7 protrudes from the hearing aid device in two directions x and y, and the wheel 7 is integrated with the circuit board mounted in the cap 2. The wheel protrudes through a matching portion of the clip 2, and the matching portion is arranged in the corner of the top part of the clip 5. The matching portion has an opening adapted to engage with the wheel 7. When the hearing aid device is worn, the direction x faces the space in front of the user and the direction y is an upward direction relative to the user.

With reference to Fig. 9-10, detailed views of the circuit and the associated circuit board 8 are shown. With reference to Fig. 11, a response curve of the microphone 6 is shown.

While specific and preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail above to illustrate the inventive prin- ciples, it is realised that variants to these embodiments may be provided without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the accompanying claims. For instance, the terms 'top part' and 'lower part' have been used only to illustrate the relative arrangement of elements of the invention, and it is realised that embodiments of the invention may be provided, wherein the invention is rotated in any angle, i.e. not limited to the terms 'top' and 'lower' used above.

Claims

P A T E N T C L A I M S

1. A hearing aid device comprising :

a housing, such as a battery casing,

an anchoring means for a garment,

a connection means between the housing and the anchoring means,

at least one sound receiving means, such as a directional microphone, and

an amplifying means, such as an amplifying circuit,

c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that

the anchoring means and/or the connection means comprise/comprises at least one sound control means.

2. The hearing aid device according to claim 1, wherein the an- choring means and/or the connection means comprise/comprises a clip, such as a clip for a pen.

3. The hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the housing has a pen shape.

4. The hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one sound control means comprises a volume control means.

5. The hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one sound control means comprises a rotational means.

6. The hearing aid device according to claim 5, wherein the rotational means is arranged in a protruding portion, such as a corner, of the anchoring means and/or connection means.

7. The hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the sound control means protrudes in at least two direc- tions.

8. The hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the sound control means comprises a wheel having a wheel rim.

9. The hearing aid device according to claim 8, wherein 0 to 100 per cent of the wheel rim is accessible for manipulation.

10. The hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one sound receiving means is arranged with the anchoring means and/or the connection means.

11. The hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims, comprising at least one sound emitting means, such as a speaker, and a connection means for connecting the sound receiving means with the sound emitting means.

12. A method, wherein a first hearing aid device according to any of the preceding claims is used with at least a second hearing aid device so that the first hearing aid device supplements the at least second hearing aid device and vice versa.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the first hearing aid device has a flat frequency response in at least one frequency region.