Hearing device with receiver protection foam

Abstract

A hearing device is disclosed. A hearing device includes a housing including a receiver cavity. The hearing device includes a back ventilation receiver. A hearing device includes a receiver suspension. The receiver suspension is made of a foam material.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a hearing device, and in particular to a hearing device comprising a receiver suspension made of a foam material. Background Art

[0002] Back ventilation of the receiver enables the receiver to better provide low frequency audio signals, thereby improving the acoustic power output provided to the user of the hearing device. In order to achieve this improved provision of low frequency signals, additional ventilation space is required in the internal structure of the hearing device. However, since hearing devices are usually used in confined spaces and their size is limited, providing any ventilation space in the hearing device for back ventilation of the receiver can be a challenge. Summary of the invention

[0003] Hence, there is a need for hearing devices with improved design flexibility, for example to further reduce the size of the hearing device while maintaining and / or improving the quality of the audio output provided by the back-ventilated receiver of the hearing device.

[0004] A hearing device is disclosed. The hearing device comprises: a housing comprising a receiver cavity. The hearing device comprises a receiver, such as a back-vented receiver. The back-vented receiver comprises at least one back vent. The hearing device comprises a receiver suspension, wherein the receiver suspension is optionally made of or at least comprises a foam material.

[0005] An important advantage for hearing devices is that by using foam material for the receiver suspension, the size of the receiver cavity may be reduced while maintaining (such as improving) the quality, range and / or acoustic power of the output of the back-ventilated receiver.

[0006] The present disclosure allows for improved design flexibility, such as further reducing the size of the hearing device. In other words, the disclosed hearing device enables a reduction in the size of the hearing device, such as the size. Advantageously, the present disclosure allows for improved design flexibility, such as further reducing the size of the hearing device, such as reducing its size, while at least maintaining the quality of the audio signal transmitted by the back-vented receiver, such as the low frequency output. Additionally, a more robust hearing device is provided, such as a hearing device that is less sensitive to dropped calls.

[0007] The present disclosure may, for example, allow for improved flexibility in the design and / or structure of a hearing device, such as an internal infrastructure of a hearing device.

[0008] Furthermore, the present disclosure may enable at least maintaining (such as improving) the vibration isolation of a back-ventilated receiver of a hearing device while enabling improved design flexibility, such as further reducing the size of the hearing device.

[0009] Furthermore, the present disclosure may allow for improved shock protection and / or vibration isolation of back-ventilated receivers, for example, by using foam material for the receiver suspension. For example, the disclosed hearing device may enable shock protection and / or vibration isolation of the hearing device while allowing for a reduction in the size of the hearing aid. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] The above and other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art through the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0011] Figure 1 shows an example hearing device according to the present disclosure,

[0012] Figure 2 schematically illustrates an exemplary back-vented receiver and receiver suspension according to the present disclosure, and

[0013] Figure 3 A graph of the output of an example back-ventilation receiver.

[0014] Reference numerals list

[0015] 2 Hearing devices

[0016] 4. Housing

[0017] 6 Batteries

[0018] 10 Back ventilation receiver

[0019] 10A Back chamber

[0020] 10B Front chamber

[0021] 11 Diaphragm

[0022] 12 Receiver suspension

[0023] 13 Receiver cavity

[0024] 14 Back vents

[0025] 15 Sound Output

[0026] 16 Sealed jar

[0027] 17 Front

[0028] 18 Framework

[0029] 19 Housing

[0030] 20 means

[0031] 22 Curve

[0032] 24 Curve

[0033] 26 Curve

[0034] 28 Curve DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] Various exemplary embodiments and details will be described below with reference to the relevant drawings. It should be noted that the drawings may be drawn to scale or not to scale, and that elements of similar structure or function are represented by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings. It should also be noted that the drawings are only used to facilitate the description of the embodiments. They are not intended to be an exhaustive description of the invention or to limit the scope of the invention. In addition, the illustrated embodiments do not necessarily have all the aspects or advantages shown. An aspect or advantage described in conjunction with a particular embodiment is not necessarily limited to that embodiment and may be practiced in any other embodiment, even if not so stated or not so explicitly described. A hearing device is disclosed. The hearing device may be configured to be worn at the ear of a user and may be a hearable device or a hearing aid, wherein a processor is configured to compensate for the hearing loss of the user.

[0036] In some examples, the hearing device may be an earplug, a headset, a hearing aid, or the like.

[0037] The hearing device may be a behind-the-ear (BTE) type, in-the-ear (ITE) type, in-the-canal (ITC) type, receiver-in-the-canal (RIC) type, receiver-in-the-ear (RITE) type, or microphone-in-the-ear (MaRIE) type hearing aid. The hearing device may be a binaural hearing aid in a binaural hearing system. The binaural hearing system may include a first hearing aid and a second hearing aid, wherein the first hearing aid and / or the second hearing aid may be a hearing device as disclosed herein.

[0038] The hearing device may be configured to communicate wirelessly with one or more devices, such as with another hearing device, for example as part of a binaural hearing system, and / or with one or more accessory devices, such as a smart phone and / or a smart watch. The hearing device optionally comprises means for converting one or more wireless input signals, for example a first wireless input signal and / or a second wireless input signal, into (one or more) antenna output signals. The (one or more) wireless input signals may originate from (one or more) external sources, such as (one or more) spouse microphone devices, wireless TV audio transmitters and / or a distributed microphone array associated with a wireless transmitter. The (one or more) wireless input signals may originate from another hearing device, for example as part of a binaural hearing system, and / or from one or more accessory devices.

[0039] The hearing device optionally comprises a radio transceiver coupled to the antenna for converting the antenna output signal into a transceiver input signal. Wireless signals from different external sources may be multiplexed in the radio transceiver as the transceiver input signal, or provided as separate transceiver input signals at separate transceiver output terminals of the radio transceiver. The hearing device may comprise a plurality of antennas and / or the antenna may be configured to operate in one or more antenna modes. The transceiver input signal optionally comprises a first transceiver input signal representing a first wireless signal from a first external source.

[0040] The hearing device comprises a set of microphones. The set of microphones may comprise one or more microphones. The set of microphones comprises a first microphone for providing a first microphone input signal and / or a second microphone for providing a second microphone input signal. The set of microphones may comprise N microphones for providing N microphone signals, wherein N is an integer in the range of 1 to 10. In one or more exemplary hearing devices, the number of microphones N is two, three, four, five or more. The set of microphones may comprise a third microphone for providing a third microphone input signal.

[0041] The hearing device optionally comprises a processor for processing input signals, such as transceiver input signals and / or microphone input signals. The processor provides an electrical output signal to the processor based on the input signal, which is fed to the receiver to provide an acoustic sound signal.

[0042] Note that descriptions and features of hearing device functionality, such as the hearing device being configured to, also apply to methods and vice versa. For example, a description of a hearing device being configured to determine also applies to, for example, a method of operating a hearing device, wherein the method comprises determining, and vice versa.

[0043] The hearing device comprises: a housing comprising a receiver cavity. The hearing device comprises a receiver, such as a back-vented receiver, optionally arranged in the receiver cavity. The hearing device comprises a receiver suspension. The receiver suspension is made of or at least comprises a foam material and is optionally arranged around the receiver in the receiver cavity.

[0044] The housing of the hearing device may comprise a frame and a shell.

[0045] The receiver cavity may for example be a space, such as a volume, surrounding or housing at least a portion of the back venting receiver. The receiver cavity may for example be considered as a receiver chamber. In some examples, the receiver cavity is at least partially enclosed by a housing of the hearing device.

[0046] In one or more example hearing devices, the hearing device, such as a housing, comprises a sealed can. The sealed can may, for example, be considered as a shell of the receiver cavity. In other words, the sealed can may be considered as an outer housing of the receiver cavity.

[0047] The receiver cavity may be at least partially enclosed by a sealing can. The sealing can may, for example, be configured to seal the receiver cavity. In some examples, the receiver cavity may be considered a back-ventilated receiver cavity.

[0048] A back-vented receiver can be viewed as a receiver that includes a back vent. The back vent of a back-vented receiver is, for example, configured to allow a fluid, such as air, to vent from a back chamber or back cavity of the receiver. In some examples, ventilation of the back-vented receiver, for example, via the receiver cavity, can allow for improved performance of the back-vented receiver. For example, ventilation of the back-vented receiver can enable a low frequency output to be provided with improved accuracy and / or greater acoustic power output. For example, ventilation can enable improved compliance of the receiver diaphragm.

[0049] The receiver suspension may be configured to suspend or support a back-ventilated receiver, such as at least partially within a receiver cavity. The receiver suspension may, for example, be configured to support a back-ventilated receiver within a hearing device, such as within a frame and / or housing. In other words, the receiver suspension is, for example, configured to hold the back-ventilated receiver in an appropriate position, such as fixed in a given position. In some examples, the receiver suspension is configured to provide vibration protection and / or vibration isolation to the back-ventilated receiver. The receiver suspension may, for example, enable vibration protection by allowing the back-ventilated receiver to compress the receiver suspension (such as elastic deformation), for example, when a force (e.g., vibration) is applied to the hearing device.

[0050] In one or more exemplary hearing devices, a receiver suspension comprising a foam material covers at least a portion of a back vent of a back vented receiver.

[0051] At least one back vent is located on a side of the receiver that is different from the side of the receiver where the sound outlet is located. For example, the back of a back-vented receiver can be considered to be a side of the back-vented receiver that is opposite and / or adjacent to the side that provides a sound outlet (e.g., a sound signal). The side of the back-vented receiver that provides an acoustic sound output can be considered to be the front of the back-vented receiver. The back vent can be considered, for example, an air vent, an air outflow portion, and / or an air discharge port.

[0052] In one or more example hearing devices, the foam material is an open-cell foam. For example, the open-cell foam can be considered a porous foam. In some examples, the open-cell foam can be considered a permeable foam. The open-cell foam can, for example, be considered to be characterized by a plurality of interconnected voids and / or pores. One or more interconnected voids and / or pores of the open-cell foam are, for example, open, such as not closed. The open nature of the pores of the foam material can enable the foam material to be porous and thereby can allow fluids, such as air, to pass through the open-cell foam.

[0053] This may advantageously enable ventilation of the back-vented receiver via the receiver suspension, such as through a foam material of the receiver suspension.

[0054] In one or more example hearing devices, the open cell foam is a polyurethane based foam.

[0055] For example, the foam material can include a polyurethane-based composition. For example, the foam material can have a percentage composition greater than 50% polyurethane (v / v or w / w). For example, the foam material can have a percentage composition greater than 80% polyurethane. For example, the foam material can have a percentage composition greater than 90% polyurethane. For example, the foam material can have a percentage composition greater than 99% polyurethane. The foam material can be, for example, Roger polyurethane foam, such as Roger 79-09021P, 15TS1-06030 and / or 15-06030P foam.

[0056] Without considering the receiver suspension, the volume between the back-vented receiver and the seal can can be expressed as the receiver cavity volume, V C .

[0057] The receiver suspension occupies a receiver cavity volume V, for example C The volume of the receiver suspension can be expressed as the receiver suspension volume V S .

[0058] In order for a back-vented receiver to operate optimally, a given volume of the back-vented receiver may be required to be ventilated through the back vents. The back-vented volume required for optimal operation of the back-vented receiver may be expressed as V BV .

[0059] Due to the porous nature of a receiver suspension made of foam material, air, such as the back ventilation of a back-vented receiver, can pass through the receiver suspension. Therefore, the receiver suspension can be considered the air volume of the receiver cavity. In other words, a receiver suspension made of foam material, for example, can be considered part of the receiver cavity.

[0060] Therefore, the following equation can be applied to hearing devices,

[0061] V C = V BV (1)

[0062] In other words, the receiver cavity need not include both the receiver suspension and the back ventilation volume because the porous nature of the receiver suspension enables air (such as back ventilation air of a back-ventilated receiver) to pass through the receiver suspension. In other words, the receiver suspension can be configured so that it can be considered as the back ventilation volume V BV at least a portion of.

[0063] For example, when including 40mm 3 Receiver Suspension Volume for Back-Vented Receivers When using a receiver suspension made of a non-porous material such as rubber, the cavity volume required for optimal operation of a back-vented receiver can be shown in Equation 2:

[0064] V C = V BV + Volume of receiver suspension without holes (2)

[0065] When the receiver suspension comprises a foam material, for example due to the porous nature of the foam material, the volume of the receiver suspension made of the foam material may be considered as V BV , thus removing the volume of the non-porous receiver suspension. This can thus make V C Ability to reduce the volume of non-hole receiver suspension, such as 40mm 3 In other words, when the receiver suspension is made of foam material instead of a non-porous material such as rubber, V C Can be lowered.

[0066] In one or more example hearing devices, the Young's modulus of the foam material is in the range of 0.01 MPa to 1 MPa.

[0067] The foam material may, for example, be capable of or configured to be elastically deformable. In other words, when a force is applied to the foam material and then subsequently removed, the foam material may return to its original shape, such as the shape of the foam material before the force was initially applied.

[0068] In one or more exemplary hearing devices, the density of the foam material is about 100 kg / m 3 Up to 561kg / m 3 within the range.

[0069] In one or more example hearing devices, the receiver suspension is formed as a foam sheet.

[0070] The foam sheet may for example be considered as a plate comprising a foam material. In some examples, the foam sheet comprising a foam material is wrapped around at least a portion of the back venting receiver. In one or more example hearing devices, the thickness of the foam sheet is in the range of 0.3 mm to 2 mm.

[0071] In one or more example hearing devices, the housing comprises a frame. In one or more example hearing devices, the back-ventilated receiver is attached to the frame via a receiver suspension.

[0072] The frame may, for example, be considered to be configured for attachment and / or fixation of components of the hearing device. The hearing device comprises a back-vented receiver arranged within the housing, such as attached to the frame. In some examples, the back-vented receiver may be hard-mounted to the frame, for example via a receiver suspension. In some examples, the back-vented receiver may be soft-mounted to the frame. In some examples, the back-vented receiver may be considered to be fixed to the frame of the hearing device.

[0073] In some examples, components of the hearing device, such as one or more of the following: a back-ventilated receiver, microphone(s), a battery, a processor, a printed circuit board, etc. may be mounted on the frame.

[0074] In one or more example hearing devices, the housing or casing part is attached to a frame.In one or more example hearing devices, the frame carries a printed circuit board (PCB).

[0075] The housing / casing part of a hearing device may be regarded as a shell of the hearing device, for example.

[0076] A printed circuit board (PCB) may be considered, for example, as a board comprising one or more conductive paths. A PCB is used, for example, as a platform for mounting and / or connecting electronic components, such as microchips and / or circuits.

[0077] In one or more exemplary hearing devices, the foam material has a 25% compression deflection in the range of 5 kPa to 10 kPa. The compression deflection may be considered as a measure of the force per unit area that compresses the foam material to 25% of its original thickness.

[0078] In one or more exemplary hearing devices, the receiver suspension may cover 10% to 100% of the outer surface of the back-ventilated receiver, such as greater than 50% of the outer surface of the back-ventilated receiver. The outer surface of the back-ventilated receiver may, for example, be considered an exterior surface of the back-ventilated receiver. For example, the outer surface of the back-ventilated receiver may be considered an outer shell of the back-ventilated receiver. In other words, the receiver suspension encapsulates, for example, 10% to 100% of the back-ventilated receiver.

[0079] In one or more example hearing devices, the receiver suspension includes one or more openings. The one or more openings may, for example, be viewed as one or more gaps in the receiver suspension. The one or more openings in the receiver suspension may enable improved mechanical separation, such as by increasing vibration isolation / vibration attenuation of a back-ventilated receiver.

[0080] Figure 1 An example hearing device according to the present disclosure is shown, the hearing device 2 comprises a housing 4 comprising a receiver cavity 13. The hearing device 2 comprises a back-ventilated receiver 10. The hearing device 2 comprises a receiver suspension 12. The receiver suspension 12 is made of a foam material.

[0081] The back-ventilated receiver 10 comprises a diaphragm 11 and a back vent 14 for ventilation of a back chamber 10A of the back-ventilated receiver 10. In other words, air can be ventilated from the back-ventilated receiver 10 via the back vent 14. The receiver chamber 13 is divided by the diaphragm into a back chamber 10A and a front chamber 10B, and is optionally at least partially occupied by a receiver suspension 12 made of a foam material (such as an open-cell foam) at the back vent 14. The volume of the receiver chamber 13 is at least partially occupied by the receiver suspension 12. The foam material making up the receiver suspension 12 is, for example, porous, for example, the foam material can be an open-cell foam, such as a polyurethane-based foam. The foam material making up the receiver suspension 12 can, for example, be regarded as a foam sheet. The front chamber 10B is provided with a sound output 15.

[0082] The housing 4 of the hearing device 2 comprises a frame 18 and a shell 19. The shell 19 is attached to, such as fixed to, the frame 18. The back-ventilated receiver 10 may be attached to the frame 18 via a receiver suspension 12.

[0083] The hearing device 2 optionally comprises a sealed can 16 . The sealed can 16 at least partially encloses one or more of: a back-vented receiver, a receiver cavity and a receiver suspension. The hearing device 2 further comprises a battery 6 .

[0084] Figure 2 An example back vent receiver and receiver suspension according to the present disclosure is schematically illustrated. Figure 2 A back-vented receiver 10 and a receiver suspension 12 are shown. The receiver suspension 12 is made of a foam material, such as an open-cell polyurethane-based foam. The back vent of the back-vented receiver may, for example, be considered to be located below the receiver suspension 12, i.e. the receiver suspension may cover the back vent. Figure 2 A front portion 17 of the back-vent receiver 10 is shown. The front portion 17 of the back-vent receiver 10 includes an acoustic output 15 from which an audio output is provided.

[0085] Figure 3Graph of an exemplary back-vent receiver output. Figure 3 A representation 20 is shown indicating a back vented receiver having various receiver suspensions and / or receiver cavities (such as Figure 1-2 10). The x-axis of 20 indicates the output frequency of the back-ventilation receiver. The y-axis of 20 indicates the decibels of sound pressure level (dB SPL) of the back-ventilation receiver. The back-ventilation receiver used is an E50D receiver. The E50D receiver is measured with a BTE loaded with a 200mV input from a 22 ohm generator.

[0086] Curve 22 is a dashed line indicating the output of a back-vented receiver when the receiver cavity has a negligible (such as zero or near zero) volume. For example, curve 22 indicates the output of a back-vented receiver when the back vent is sealed, such as when there is no back ventilation volume. In other words, curve 22 indicates the output of a back-vented receiver when no ventilation can occur through the back vent of the back-vented receiver.

[0087] Curve 24 is a dashed line indicating the output of a back-vented receiver without a receiver cavity therein. For example, curve 24 indicates the output of a back-vented receiver when the back vent is open, such as when the back ventilation volume is unrestricted. For example, curve 24 indicates the output of a back-vented receiver when the volume of the receiver cavity is not restricted by a receiver cavity housing (such as a shell). In other words, curve 24 indicates the output of a back-vented receiver when no restrictions are placed on ventilation that may occur via the back vent of the back-vented receiver. For example, for curve 24, the back vent may be considered to be fully open, unrestricted, and / or unsealed.

[0088] Curve 26 indicates that when the volume of the receiver cavity is 50 mm 3 The solid line for the output of the back-ventilated receiver is 26. For curve 26, the receiver cavity is empty, such as containing only air.

[0089] As indicated by the curve 28 represented by the squares, when the volume of the receiver cavity is 50 mm 3 The output of the back vented receiver at . For curve 28, the receiver cavity is filled with a foam material comprising open cell foam. The foam used is polyurethane foam, Roger 79-09021P.

[0090] Graph 20 shows that the open cell foam in the receiver cavity does not change the coupler pressure. In other words, even though the receiver cavity as in curve 28 includes open cell foam, the performance of the back vented receiver is not affected compared to the empty receiver cavity in curve 26. This indicates that air can freely move in and out of the open cell foam and the foam does not reduce the back vent volume.

[0091] The use of the terms "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," "primary," "secondary," "tertiary," and the like do not imply any particular order, but are included to identify individual elements. Furthermore, the use of the terms "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," "primary," "secondary," "tertiary," and the like do not indicate any order or importance, but rather the terms "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," "primary," "secondary," "tertiary," and the like are used to distinguish one element from another. Please note that the words "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," "primary," "secondary," "tertiary," and the like are used here and elsewhere for labeling purposes only and are not intended to indicate any particular spatial or temporal ordering.

[0092] Furthermore, labeling the first element does not imply the presence of the second element, and vice versa.

[0093] It is understood that the figure includes some modules or operations illustrated with solid lines and some modules or operations illustrated with dotted lines. The modules or operations included in the solid lines are the modules or operations included in the most extensive example embodiments. The modules or operations included in the dotted lines are example embodiments, which may be included in the modules or operations of the solid line example embodiments, or are a part thereof, or are other modules or operations that can be adopted except the modules or operations of the solid line example embodiments. It should be understood that these operations do not need to be performed in the order presented. In addition, it should be understood that not all operations need to be performed. The exemplary operations can be performed in any order and in any combination.

[0094] It should be noted that the word "comprising" does not necessarily exclude the presence of other elements or steps than those listed.

[0095] It should be noted that the word "a" or "an" preceding an element does not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements.

[0096] It should also be noted that any reference signs do not limit the scope of the claims, that exemplary embodiments may be implemented at least partially by hardware and software, and that several "devices," "units," or "means" may be represented by the same item of hardware.

[0097] The various exemplary methods, devices, and systems described herein are described in the general context of method step processes, which in one aspect can be implemented by a computer program product, which is included in a computer-readable medium, including computer executable instructions, such as program code, and is executed by a computer in a network environment. Computer-readable media may include removable and non-removable storage devices, including but not limited to read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), compact disk (CD), digital versatile disk (DVD), etc. In general, program modules may include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform specific tasks or implement specific abstract data types. Computer executable instructions, related data structures, and program modules represent examples of program codes for performing the steps of the methods disclosed herein. The specific order of such executable instructions or associated data structures represents an example of corresponding actions for implementing the functions described in such steps or processes.

[0098] Although features have been shown and described, it should be understood that they are not intended to limit the claimed invention, and it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimed invention. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. The claimed invention is intended to encompass all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents.

Claims

1. A hearing device comprising: - a housing including a receiver cavity; - Back ventilated receiver cavity; as well as -Receiver suspension, Wherein the receiver suspension is made of foam material.

2. The hearing device according to claim 1, wherein the foam material is an open-cell foam.

3. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the open-cell foam is a polyurethane based foam.

4. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the Young's modulus of the foam material is in the range of 0.01 MPa to 1 MPa.

5. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the density of the foam material is 100 kg / m 3 Up to 561kg / m 3 within the range.

6. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the receiver suspension is formed as a foam sheet.

7. The hearing device according to claim 6, wherein the foam sheet has a thickness in the range of 0.3 mm to 2 mm.

8. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the housing comprises a frame, and wherein the back-ventilated receiver is attached to the frame via the receiver suspension.

9. The hearing device according to claim 8, wherein the housing is attached to the frame, and wherein the frame carries a printed circuit board.

10. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the foam material has a compression deflection of 25% in the range of 5 kPa to 10 kPa.

11. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the receiver suspension covers a portion of a back vent of the back-vented receiver.

12. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the receiver suspension covers 10% to 100% of the outer surface of the back-ventilated receiver.

13. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the receiver suspension comprises one or more openings.

14. The hearing device according to any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein the hearing device comprises a sealed can.

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