Cartridge and method for manufacturing earphones

Abstract

The invention relates to a cartridge (9) comprising: a transparent bottle (3) which is at least partially filled with a curable liquid printing material (4), in particular a resin; a cap (5) for sealing the bottle (3); at least one solid structure (1) immersed in the liquid printing material (4). Furthermore, the invention relates to a method for producing at least one earphone (10), in particular an earphone for a hearing aid, comprising: providing the aforementioned cartridge (9); inserting the cartridge (9) into a printer configured for volumetric 3D printing; providing data for the earphone (10) to be printed to a printer; determining the location of the submerged solid structure using optics; printing at least one earphone (10) around the at least one solid structure (1) by volumetric 3D printing using a printer; at least one earphone (10) is extracted from the magazine (9).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a material box and a method for making earphones. Background Art

[0002] Custom earphones (such as for hearing aids) are usually manufactured in a multi-step process, including (but not limited to) modeling, 3D printing (especially volume 3D printing), post-curing, cleaning, serialization, assembly and painting steps. This time-consuming and complex process is currently only economical to carry out in dedicated professional production locations with trained personnel. This means that users have to wait about two weeks until they receive their customized earphones.

[0003] US2022 / 0227051A1 describes a method for making a three-dimensional object with a photoreactive starting material, comprising: irradiating the starting material with light of a first wavelength and light of a second wavelength different from the first wavelength.

[0004] Volumetric 3D printing requires experienced personnel to carefully handle materials, components, and production equipment. It is not easy to obtain consistent and satisfactory results, especially in non-laboratory environments. Therefore, a fast, time-saving, and simple process is needed to produce the headphones without compromising regulatory requirements and reliability goals. Summary of the invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a novel solution for making headphones.

[0006] The above objects are achieved by a cartridge and a method for making an earphone according to the appended claims.

[0007] Preferred embodiments of the invention are given in the dependent claims.

[0008] A material box is proposed, comprising:

[0009] - a transparent bottle which is at least partially filled with a curable liquid printing material, in particular a resin,

[0010] - a cap or cover to seal the bottle,

[0011] - at least one solid structure immersed in the liquid printing material (eg completely immersed in the liquid printing material or covered by the liquid printing material).

[0012] Above the liquid printing material, there may be an air pocket in the bottle. The air pocket can facilitate the removal of the cap or lid after the printing process. In addition, the air pocket can expand or contract to compensate for possible volume changes during the printing process.

[0013] In some embodiments, more than one solid structure may be arranged in the bottle container so that a corresponding earphone may be fabricated around each solid structure. For example, two solid structures may be arranged in the bottle container spaced apart from each other, such as one next to or above the other, so as to allow two separate earphones to be fabricated around each solid structure.

[0014] In an exemplary embodiment, at least one solid structure may be connected to a wire or cable attached to the bottle or cap and suspended from the wire or cable into the liquid printing material.

[0015] In another exemplary embodiment, at least one solid structure may be free floating in the liquid printing material without filaments or cables.

[0016] The cartridge is suitable for use in a volumetric 3D printing process for printing a three-dimensional structure around at least one solid structure, such as an earphone, in particular an earphone for a hearing aid.

[0017] In an exemplary embodiment, a wire or cable is guided through a sealed opening in a cap or bottle.

[0018] The solid structure may include electrical components, such as electronic circuits, switches, batteries or electro-acoustic transducers. It may alternatively or additionally include non-electrical components, such as vents, frames, hooks, sound filters, membranes, removal wires and / or connectors.

[0019] In an exemplary embodiment, at least one solid structure comprises a receiver and / or at least one handle and / or at least one removal wire and / or at least one printed circuit board and / or at least one sensor and / or at least one microphone and / or at least one hollow structure.

[0020] In an exemplary embodiment, the hollow structure is a vent and / or a back-vent volume or an adapter configured to receive at least one electronic component or assembly. The adapter may be made of silicone.

[0021] In some cases, the solid structure may include components that require appropriate measures to protect. If a component or an assembly of components comes into contact with liquid printing material, its electrical, mechanical or acoustic function may be affected. For example, after the liquid printing material has cured, the moving parts of the component may become fixed. If the geometry of the acoustic element changes after curing due to contamination by liquid printing material, its acoustic properties may deviate from its specification.

[0022] In an exemplary embodiment, the receiver, sensor, microphone or hollow structure includes at least one opening that is sealed by a removable protective element, such as a plug, to prevent contamination by liquid printing material.

[0023] In an exemplary embodiment, the cap is configured to be removed only by a post-processing unit or a printer.

[0024] The liquid printing material can have a high viscosity, for example greater than 1Pa s, in particular 1Pa s to 100Pa s. This allows the solid structure to be placed in the liquid printing material at a determined position when the bottle is manufactured, and the solid structure remains in the determined position at least until the bottle is used for the volume 3D printing process. In an exemplary embodiment, the specific density of the solid structure is configured to be within a specific range. In an exemplary embodiment, the specific density of the solid structure is within the order of magnitude of the specific density of the liquid printing material, or is similar to or equal to the specific density of the liquid printing material. In an exemplary embodiment, the specific density of the solid structure and / or the liquid printing material is within 0.5g / cm 3 Up to 5g / cm 3 If the solid structure is a hollow structure enclosing a volume of air, such as a receiver with a sound port sealed by a protective element or membrane, the specific density of the solid structure is lower than the specific density of the material (such as a metal) from which the solid structure is made.

[0025] If the viscosity of the liquid printing material is high enough, the difference between the specific density of the solid structure and the liquid printing material is not that important.

[0026] According to one aspect of the present invention, a kit consisting of a plurality of cartridges as described above is provided, wherein the cartridges have solid structures of different types and / or sizes.

[0027] In an exemplary embodiment, the kit also includes chemicals for flushing the product printed around the solid structure in the vial.

[0028] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for producing at least one earphone, in particular an earphone for a hearing aid, is proposed, the method comprising:

[0029] - providing a cartridge as described above,

[0030] - inserting the cartridge into a printer configured for volumetric 3D printing,

[0031] - provide the printer with data for the headset to be printed,

[0032] - determining the position of the immersed solid structure using optics (e.g. at least one camera),

[0033] - printing at least one earphone around at least one solid structure using a printer using volumetric 3D printing,

[0034] - Remove at least one earphone from the box.

[0035] In an exemplary embodiment, printing is performed by locally irradiating a liquid printing material with a light beam having a first wavelength and a light beam having a second wavelength.

[0036] In an exemplary embodiment, to print a portion of an earphone for which at least one solid structure obstructs the optical path of the light beam, the cartridge is rotated at least once by a predetermined angle and for each rotation a volume of the earphone adjacent to a previously printed volume of the earphone is printed.

[0037] In an exemplary embodiment, the cap is removed from the bottle after printing by a post-processing unit to which the cartridge has been moved. In this way, personnel are less likely to be exposed to uncured resin. In particular, the printed earphones are removed at the same time in this way.

[0038] In an exemplary embodiment, the printed earphones are washed and post-cured by a post-processing unit or printer.

[0039] In an exemplary embodiment, post-curing includes light curing, particularly UV curing and / or oven curing.

[0040] In an exemplary embodiment, at least one earphone is extracted from a magazine by a printer or a post-processing unit.

[0041] In an exemplary embodiment, the protective element is removed from a solid structure configured as a receiver, microphone, sensor or hollow structure, for example, by a post-processing unit. This ensures that the protective element is not removed before the component is fully post-processed. Otherwise, the interior of the receiver and / or microphone, etc. may be damaged. Removing the protective element may be a step performed after post-processing and not in the printer.

[0042] The solution according to the invention provides a fast, economical (gloveless) and simple (few steps involved, minimal training required) process that requires little space in the workshop without compromising regulatory requirements and reliability targets.

[0043] The present invention proposes to provide a sealed cartridge as a semi-finished product for use by a hearing care professional or user, who prints customized components in his office / clinic using a (relatively compact and easy to install) printer unit. The advantage of the system is that it provides a method that allows customized bodies around functional components (such as electronic components) to be printed in a simple, convenient and fast way in the store. In particular, the cartridge allows handling of potentially hazardous resins and resin-covered printed bodies in an independent and non-gloved manner. The printer and / or the post-processing unit can be configured to automatically handle the newly printed body in all further steps (rinsing, curing, etc.). Similarly, it is also possible for the user to remove the still sealed cartridge containing the newly printed body from the printer and insert it into another device, such as a post-processing unit, to extract and / or rinse and / or cure the printed body.

[0044] Further applicability of the present invention will be apparent from the detailed description given below. However, it should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, although indicating preferred embodiments of the present invention, are given by way of illustration only, as various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from this detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0045] The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinafter and from the accompanying drawings, which are for illustration only and therefore do not limit the present invention, and in which:

[0046] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of how to make headphones.

[0047] Figure 2 is a schematic top view of a bottle with at least partially polymerized earphones, and

[0048] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the method of making headphones.

[0049] Corresponding parts are provided with the same reference numerals in all the figures. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0050] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a method of making an earphone 10 (eg, for a hearing aid) according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[0051] The method uses volumetric 3D printing to print an earphone housing (or any other geometric shape for that matter) around at least one solid structure 1 immersed in a liquid printing material 4. The liquid printing material 4 (e.g., a resin) may contain a photoinitiator that is configured to locally cure when locally (e.g., in a voxel) is irradiated, in particular illuminated. In an exemplary embodiment, the liquid printing material 4 may contain a photoinitiator that is configured to transition to an intermediate state when locally (e.g., in a voxel) is irradiated with light of a first wavelength. In addition, the photoinitiator in the liquid printing material 4 may be configured to transition from the intermediate state to a solid state when locally irradiated with light of a second wavelength different from the first wavelength. These steps may be repeated for a large number of voxels to make a 3D object. In other embodiments, volumetric 3D printing does not necessarily require light of two different wavelengths.

[0052] Volumetric 3D printing of the earphone 10 housing can save assembly steps and, depending on the specific design, can even improve the reliability of the product because direct packaging replaces glued interfaces, which are typically weak links in terms of reliability.

[0053] exist Figure 1 In the embodiment of the present invention, the solid structure 1 to be encapsulated comprises a receiver 6 connected to a wire 2 (e.g., a cable). Alternatively or additionally, the solid structure 1 to be encapsulated may generally comprise at least one electronic component, such as an electronic circuit, a switch, a battery, a printed circuit board, a sensor, a microphone or an electroacoustic converter, such as the receiver 6 and / or non-electronic components, such as a handle, a removal wire, a connector, a frame, a hook, an acoustic filter, a membrane and / or a hollow structure (e.g., for a vent and / or a back-ventilation volume or an adapter, which is configured to receive at least one electronic component or component, which can be inserted into the adapter after the earphone 10 is manufactured, wherein the adapter can be made of silicone). The receiver 6 has a sound port 7. In order to prevent the receiver 6 from being contaminated through the sound port 7, a removable protective element 8, such as a plug, is arranged in or on the sound port 7 in a manner that seals the sound port 7. If the solid structure 1 is or includes a microphone, other type of sensor, or a hollow structure (such as a vent of an active ventilation receiver), a removable protective element 8 (such as a plug) may also be used to seal it and protect it from contamination.

[0054] For example, if the solid structure 1 is or includes a receiver 6, a microphone, a printed circuit board, a sensor, a microphone and / or an active vent, the wire 2 may be a cable for electrically connecting the solid structure 1. In particular, the wire 2 may still be fixedly connected to the solid structure 1 after the earphone 10 has been produced by volumetric 3D printing.

[0055] The method comprises using a prefabricated cartridge 9 in a large-scale manufacturing step. The prefabricated cartridge 9 comprises a translucent, particularly transparent container or bottle 3, which is partially filled with uncured liquid printing material 4, such as resin. At least one solid structure 1, such as a receiver 6, can be suspended from a wire 2 into the liquid printing material 4 in the bottle 3, completely immersed in the uncured liquid printing material 4. In other embodiments, the wire 2 may not be required, and the solid structure 1 can float freely in the liquid printing material 4. The bottle 3 is completely sealed with a cap 5 or a lid arranged on the top, which allows for glove-free handling. The wire 2 can be guided through a sealed opening in the cap 5. There is an airbag portion 11 above the liquid printing material 4. An interface 12 between the liquid printing material 4 and the airbag portion 11 is located above at least one solid structure 1, so that the solid structure 1 is completely immersed in the liquid printing material 4. Due to the surface tension between the liquid printing material 4 and the wall of the bottle 3 (which can be made of glass), the interface rises toward the wall of the bottle 3.

[0056] The bladder portion 11 can facilitate the removal of the cap 5 or cover after the printing process. In addition, the bladder portion 11 can expand or contract to compensate for possible volume changes during the printing process.

[0057] exist Figure 1 , reference numeral 10 denotes the shape of an earphone 10 produced around a solid structure 1 by volumetric 3D printing.

[0058] In a method of manufacturing the earphones 10, a prefabricated bottle 3 is mounted in a printer configured for volumetric 3D printing. The exact position of at least one solid structure 1 is determined by the optical device of the printer. The printing part position of the printer is then adjusted to the previously determined position of the immersed solid structure 1, and printing is started by locally irradiating the liquid printing material 4, for example, using a light beam L1 with a first wavelength (e.g., a laser) and a light beam L2 with a second wavelength (e.g., visible light). In particular, the light beam L1 with a first wavelength (e.g., a laser) and the light beam L2 with a second wavelength (e.g., visible light) may be at an angle of about 90 degrees to each other. Since the solid structure 1 constitutes an opaque obstacle to the optical path, polymerization can only occur on one side of the solid structure 1. Only the volume portion of the earphone 10 that can be accessed by the two light beams L1, L2 (e.g., light beams emitted by a laser, a digital light projector (DLP) or a combination thereof) will be irradiated and polymerized.

[0059] In order to polymerize the part of the earphone 10 that is hidden by the solid structure 1, the bottle holder 3 is rotated by a predetermined angle (for example 90° or a different, in particular smaller angle), and a volume portion adjacent to the previously polymerized volume portion is illuminated and polymerized, again only here can both light beams L1 and L2 reach the volume portion (i.e. the voxel within the said volume portion).

[0060] The bottle holder 3 may be rotated again, and irradiation and polymerization may be performed on the previously obscured portion of the earphone 10 until the entire earphone 10 is 3D printed.

[0061] Figure 2 is a schematic top view of the bottle container 3 with the earphone 10 at least partially polymerized, and an exemplary first segment S1 can be touched by the light beams L1 and L2 of two wavelengths to polymerize the first side of the earphone 10, the second segment S2 can be touched by the light beams L1 and L2 of two wavelengths to polymerize the second side of the earphone 10 adjacent to the first side after the bottle container 3 is rotated once at a predetermined angle, the third segment S3 can be touched by the light beams L1 and L2 of two wavelengths to polymerize the third side of the earphone adjacent to the second side after the bottle container 3 is rotated again at a predetermined angle; and the fourth segment S4 can be touched by the light beams L1 and L2 of two wavelengths to polymerize the fourth side of the earphone 10 adjacent to the first side and the third side after the bottle container 3 is rotated again at a predetermined angle.

[0062] After polymerization is complete, the bottle 3 can be moved to a post-processing unit, where the cap 5 together with the attached silk thread 2 and the polymerized earphone 10 can be automatically removed from the bottle 3, the remaining uncured liquid printing material 4 is automatically removed by rinsing, and post-curing (e.g., light curing, in particular UV curing and / or oven curing) can be performed, in particular automatically. Post-curing can include both oven curing and light curing, in either order. In addition, rinsing can be performed before or after post-curing. The fully cured earphone 10 thus formed is then safe to be touched and can be removed from the cap 5 of the bottle 3, and the earphone 10 is still attached to the bottle 3 by the silk thread 2. In other embodiments, the solid structure 1 can float freely in the liquid printing material 4 without the silk thread 2, so at this time, the fully cured earphone 10 will float freely in the remaining uncured liquid printing material 4 and can be removed from the bottle 3 independently of the cap 5.

[0063] If the solid structure 1 is or comprises a receiver 6 , a microphone or a hollow structure sealed with a protective element 8 in a bottle 3 , the protective element 8 can now be removed.

[0064] The above process is very fast (printing and post-processing each take a few minutes), and since the bottle container 3 is sealed, the person handling the bottle container 3 does not need to wear gloves.

[0065] Since the earphone 10 is formed by volumetric 3D printing, no subsequent assembly steps may be required, assuming the earphone 10 is unpainted and not serialized when used. This makes the solution suitable for in-store printing.

[0066] In other embodiments, the solid structure 1 may be a wireless earbud or a wired headset, wherein the earbud 10 is a custom housing printed directly on the earbud or headset. The earbud or headset may be pre-installed on the bottle 3 with a protective element 8 (e.g., a plug or a tight seal), and then the custom earbud 10 may be 3D printed directly on the earbud or headset.

[0067] In some embodiments, more than one solid structure 1 may be arranged in the bottle container 3 so that respective earphones 10 may be made around each solid structure 1. For example, two solid structures 1 may be arranged spaced apart from each other in the bottle container 3 so that two separate earphones 10 may be made around each solid structure 1.

[0068] In an exemplary embodiment, the cap 5 or cover can be configured to be removable only or particularly easy to be removed by a post-processing unit. For example, the cap 5 can be configured to be screwed on the bottle container 3, or attached by other locking mechanisms and / or mechanical friction, especially in a way to avoid accidental detachment of the cap 5 during transportation and handling.

[0069] In an exemplary embodiment, a kit of cartridges 9 may be provided, the cartridges 9 having different components, such as electronic components and / or different receivers 6, filaments 2, and / or the cartridges 9 having different sizes, so that a cartridge 9 of a minimized size can be provided, which is adapted to the size of the custom part required to be printed. The printer may be configured to request and / or suggest a specific type and / or size of cartridge 9 after input of the three-dimensional data to be printed. The printer may be generally configured to request and / or suggest a cartridge 9 in response to a user input of a desired product. The kit may also include other consumables, such as chemicals required to rinse the printed product.

[0070] In an exemplary embodiment, the printed earphones 10 may be removed from the bottle 3 by a printer, a user, or other device (such as a post-processing unit).

[0071] In an exemplary embodiment, washing the earphone 10 may be performed by the printer after extracting the three-dimensional body from the bottle 3 .

[0072] In an exemplary embodiment, curing the printed earphone 10 may be performed by the printer after the earphone 10 is taken out of the bottle container 3 or after the earphone 10 is rinsed.

[0073] In an exemplary embodiment, the finally printed, rinsed and cured earphone 10 may be ejected from the printer or post-processing unit.

[0074] In particular, rinsing and post-curing may take place without user interaction, ie without the user being exposed to the opened vial 3 .

[0075] The system for making earphones 10 may include a prefabricated magazine 9 and a printer, as well as a separate rinsing module and / or curing module, such as a rinsing module and / or curing module integrated in a post-processing unit. Alternatively, the system may include a printer 9 with an integrated rinsing module and / or curing module.

[0076] Furthermore, a conveying device may be provided for conveying the cartridge 9 and / or the earphone 10 from the printer to one of the modules and / or from one module to the next.

[0077] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a method of making an earphone 10 (eg, for a hearing aid) according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

[0078] The method employs volumetric 3D printing as described above.

[0079] The method comprises the use of a prefabricated cartridge 9 which can be prepared in a large-scale production step. The prefabricated cartridge 9 comprises a translucent, in particular transparent, container or bottle 3 which is at least partially filled with uncured liquid printing material 4, such as resin. At least one solid structure 1, such as a receiver 6, can float freely in the liquid printing material 4. Figure 3 In the embodiment shown, two solid structures 1 are free flowing in the liquid printing material 4 at different heights (e.g. one above the other). The bottle 3 is completely sealed with a cap 5 or cover arranged on the top, which allows glove-free operation. This facilitates printing two or more earphones 10, since two or more solid structures 1 do not block each other with respect to the beams L1 and L2.

[0080] The liquid printing material 4 can have a high viscosity, for example greater than 1Pa s, in particular 1Pa s to 100Pa s. This allows the solid structure to be placed in the liquid printing material at a determined position when the bottle is manufactured, and the solid structure remains in the determined position at least until the bottle is used for the volume 3D printing process. In an exemplary embodiment, the specific density of the solid structure 1 is configured to be within a specific range. If the specific density of the solid structure 1 is too high, in particular significantly higher than the specific density of the liquid printing material 4, the solid structure 1 will settle toward the bottom of the bottle 3. If the specific density of the solid structure 1 is too low, in particular significantly lower than the specific density of the liquid printing material 4, the solid structure 1 will rise in the liquid printing material 4. In an exemplary embodiment, the specific density of the solid structure 1 is within the order of magnitude of the specific density of the liquid printing material 4, or is similar to or equal to the specific density of the liquid printing material 4. In an exemplary embodiment, the specific density of the solid structure 1 and / or the liquid printing material 4 is 0.5g / cm 3 Up to 5g / cm 3If the solid structure 1 is a hollow structure enclosing a volume of air, such as a receiver 6 with a sound port 7 sealed by a protective element 8 or a membrane, the specific density of the solid structure 1 is lower than the specific density of the material (such as a metal) from which the solid structure is made.

[0081] If the viscosity of the liquid printing material 4 is high enough, the difference between the specific densities of the solid structure 1 and the liquid printing material 4 is not so important.

[0082] Reference numerals list

[0083] 1 Solid structure

[0084] 2 silk threads

[0085] 3 Bottles

[0086] 4Liquid printing materials

[0087] 5 caps

[0088] 6 Receiver

[0089] 7 Sound Ports

[0090] 8 Protection components

[0091] 9 material boxes

[0092] 10. Headphones

[0093] 11 Airbag

[0094] 12 Interface

[0095] L1 beam

[0096] L2 beam

Claims

1. A material box (9), comprising: a transparent bottle (3) at least partially filled with a curable liquid printing material (4), a cap (5) for sealing the bottle (3), At least one solid structure (1) is immersed in the liquid printing material (4).

2. A cartridge (9) according to claim 1, wherein the at least one solid structure (1) is connected to a thread (2) or a cable attached to a bottle (3) or a cap (5) and is suspended from the thread (2) or the cable into the liquid printing material (4), or wherein the at least one solid structure (1) floats freely in the liquid printing material (4).

3. Cartridge (9) according to claim 2, wherein the thread (2) or cable (2) is guided through a sealed opening in the cap (5) or bottle (3).

4. Cartridge (9) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said at least one solid structure (1) comprises electrical components and / or non-electrical components.

5. The cartridge according to claim 4, wherein the electrical component is one of an electronic circuit, a switch, a battery, an electro-acoustic converter, a printed circuit board, a sensor and a microphone.

6. The cartridge of claim 4, wherein the non-electrical component is one of a frame, a hook, a sound filter, a membrane, a connector, a handle, a removal wire, and a hollow structure.

7. The cartridge (9) according to claim 6, the hollow structure being a vent and / or a back-venting volume or an adapter configured to receive at least one electronic component or assembly.

8. Cartridge (9) according to claim 5, wherein the electroacoustic transducer, sensor or microphone comprises at least one opening which is sealed by a removable protective element (8).

9. The cartridge of claim 6, wherein the hollow structure comprises at least one opening, the opening being sealed by a removable protective element.

10. The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the liquid printing material is a resin.

11. A kit consisting of a plurality of cartridges (9) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the cartridges (9) have solid structures (1) of different types and / or sizes.

12. The kit according to claim 11, further comprising chemicals for flushing the product printed around the solid structure (1) in the vial (3).

13. A method for making at least one earphone (10), the method comprising: A cartridge (9) according to any one of claims 1 to 3 is provided, inserting the cartridge (9) into a printer configured for volumetric 3D printing, providing the printer with data for the earphone (10) to be printed, Use optics to determine the position of immersed solid structures, printing the at least one earphone (10) around the at least one solid structure (1) by volumetric 3D printing using the printer, The at least one earphone (10) is extracted from the magazine (9).

14. A method according to claim 13, wherein printing is performed by locally irradiating the liquid printing material (4) with a light beam (L1) having a first wavelength and a light beam (L2) having a second wavelength, wherein in order to print the following part of the earphone (10), at least one solid structure (1) blocks the optical path of the light beam (L1, L2) for the part, the material box (9) is rotated at least once at a predetermined angle, and for each rotation, a volume portion of the earphone (10) adjacent to a previously printed volume portion is printed.

15. Method according to claim 13, wherein the cap (5) is removed from the bottle container (3) by a printer or by a post-processing unit to which the cartridge (9) has been moved after printing.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the printed earphone (10) is washed and post-cured by the post-processing unit or by the printer.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein post-curing comprises light curing, in particular UV curing and / or oven curing.

18. The method according to claim 13, wherein the at least one earphone (10) is extracted from the magazine (9) by the printer or the post-processing unit.

19. The method according to claim 13, wherein the at least one solid structure (1) comprises at least one of an electroacoustic transducer, a sensor, a microphone and a hollow structure, and the at least one solid structure (1) has at least one opening, which is sealed by a removable protective element (8), wherein the method further comprises removing the protective element (8) from the solid structure (1).

20. The method according to claim 13, wherein the earphone (10) is an earphone (10) for a hearing aid.

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