hearing aid

Abstract

To provide a hearing aid which ensures safety by enabling a user of the hearing aid to normally detect the direction of a sound source, furthermore makes almost no improvement to an amplifier, which has been a conventional problem, unnecessary, eliminates the sound pressure difference between the inner and outer surfaces of a transmission pipe and an ear pad, and makes sounds easy to hear by eliminating interference sounds, reverberation, muffled sounds, etc. between inner and outer sounds, particularly in the low frequency range, and causes no problem even if the volume from a receiver is increased, with almost no effect on the adjusted sound from the hearing aid receiver. [Solution] The hearing aid 100 has a cutout portion 200 formed at the entrance 11 of the outer ear 3 that introduces sound from outside when the tip of the ear pad 104 is inserted into the entrance 11 of the outer ear 3 of a person.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] This invention relates to a hearing aid equipped with ear pads that function by using the auricle sympathetically (especially to ensure safety by accurately detecting the direction and distance of a sound source), that can hear relatively low frequency sounds well while reducing noise, interference sounds, reverberation, muffled sounds, and howling, and that have a freely changeable insertion diameter at the tip to correspond to changes in the diameter of the entrance hole of the outer ear. [Background technology]

[0002] As shown in the cross-sectional view of FIG. 1, the ear structure is composed of the auricle 2 having a sympathetic nerve 1, the outer ear 3, the middle ear 4, and the inner ear 5. The outer ear 1 is a cavity from a hole 11 in the center of the so-called "ear" part of the auricle 2, which has a sympathetic nerve 1 that protrudes from the side of the face and detects the direction of a sound source, to the eardrum 12, and behind the eardrum 12 are the middle ear 4 and inner ear 5.

[0003] The mechanism by which the ear hears sounds from the outside is as follows: sound picked up by the pinna 2 passes through the outer ear 3, vibrates the eardrum 12 behind it, and is transmitted to the inner ear 5 via the ossicles 13 of the middle ear 2 connected to the eardrum 12. The middle ear 4 is hollow, and the vibrations of the eardrum 12 shake the lymphatic fluid stuck in the cochlea 14 via the ossicles 13, and the hair cells growing in the cochlea 14 sense the vibrations and convert them into electrical signals, which are transmitted to the nerves 15, and from the nerves 15 to the brain as sound. Therefore, hearing loss requiring a hearing aid occurs when the above-mentioned sound transmission process does not proceed smoothly due to some kind of obstruction.

[0004] The hearing aid has a function of analyzing sound and appropriately correcting it so that speech can be transmitted smoothly to the hearing-impaired person. As shown in Figure 2 (1), a hearing aid 100 generally picks up external sound using a sound-collecting microphone 101, converts it into an electrical signal, and passes the sound on to a built-in amplifier. The amplifier then smooths and amplifies the sound transmitted from the microphone 101 for each of several frequency bands using a built-in ultra-small computer, converting it into an electrical signal.

[0005] The electrical signal normally corrected by the amplifier is converted back into sound by the receiver, and the sound is transmitted to the outer ear 1 via the sound transmission pipe 103 and ear pad 104 after the volume is adjusted by the volume control dial 102 . As shown in FIG. 1(2), the ear pad 104 is attached by removably inserting the socket portion 103-1 at the tip of the sound transmission pipe 103 into the rear portion 104-2, and the fold portion 104-1 at the tip is inserted into the hole 11 at the entrance of the outer ear 1, transmitting sound to the eardrum 12 at the back of the outer ear 1 and reaching the user's ear as sound.

[0006] As shown in Fig. 3, most hearing aids 100 are designed to be worn by hanging the main body, the sound transmission pipe 104, and the ear pads 105 over the ears, so each component is small and highly functional. The latest hearing aids also have a built-in ultra-small computer that can be connected to an external computer, allowing for detailed sound frequency adjustments to suit each person's level of hearing loss and lifestyle. This allows the hearing aid to be adjusted to sounds that suit the user's hearing.

[0007] Therefore, when choosing a hearing aid, it is important to know your level of hearing loss, because the appropriate hearing aid functions vary depending on the level of hearing loss. The following Table 1 lists the hearing loss levels.

[0008] [Table 1]

[0009] Hearing aids are extremely convenient, having been developed according to the degree of hearing loss of the user, as shown in Table 1. However, they have some problems, such as abnormal noise, interference sounds, reverberation, muffled sound, and howling. As a solution to this problem, Patent Documents 1 and 2 and the like provide complex anti-feedback circuits in the amplifier's electronic circuits, which prevents and improves the problem to some extent. However, it is known that the muffled sound caused by the ear pads that connect the sound transmission pipe of the hearing aid to the canal of the outer ear as mentioned above remains unsolved. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0010] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7423093 "Mobile hearing aid with foldable earset and anti-feedback circuit" [Patent Document 2] JP2018-125832A "Method of preventing feedback by phase change" Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0011] . It is generally believed that the transmission pipe and ear pads block external voices and noises, making it possible to comfortably hear the regulated sound pressure from the receiver 103 directly through the transmission pipe and ear pads. However, while the transmission pipe and the ear pad receive the conditioned sound pressure from the receiver 103 on their inner surfaces, they also receive external noise pressure on their outer surfaces. As a result, a pressure difference in the sound between the inner and outer surfaces of the transmission pipe and the ear pads is constantly occurring. This pressure difference in the sound causes some interference, echo, and muffled sounds inside the transmission pipe and the ear pads, making it difficult to hear. It is especially difficult to hear low frequencies. Also, the higher the volume from the receiver is turned up, the greater this interference becomes, so you are forced to turn the volume down extremely.

[0012] More importantly, and this is a new fact discovered by the inventor, it is extremely difficult for a hearing-impaired person wearing a hearing aid to accurately detect the direction from which a sound source is coming. That is, because the hearing aid body is placed behind the ear, the direction from which the microphone picks up the sound is behind the person, so the Simba cannot accurately grasp the original function of the ear, that is, the direction and distance of the sound source from outside. As a result, it is not possible to tell the direction from which people, cars, bicycles, etc. are approaching, which can lead to various troubles.

[0013] This invention ensures safety by enabling the user of the hearing aid to correctly detect the direction of the sound source, and furthermore, it makes the above-mentioned problem, i.e., the improvement of the amplifier, almost unnecessary, and by simply improving the shape of the ear pad, it eliminates the sound pressure difference between the inner and outer surfaces of the transmission pipe and the ear pad, and eliminates the occurrence of interference sounds, reverberation, and muffled sounds between the inner and outer sounds, making it easier to hear, especially the low frequency range. In addition, it provides a hearing aid that has no problem even if the volume from the receiver is turned up, and has almost no effect on the adjusted sound from the hearing aid receiver. [Means for solving the problem]

[0014] In order to solve the above problems, the technical feature that characterizes the hearing aid of the present invention is "a hearing aid characterized in that, at the tip of the ear pad of the hearing aid, a cutout portion (200 or 201, 202) is formed that introduces external sound at the entrance (11) of the outer ear (3) when the hearing aid is inserted into the entrance (11) of the outer ear (3) of a human being." Specifically, in a hearing aid, the sound picked up by a microphone is converted into an electrical signal by an amplifier and amplified, the electrical signal from the amplifier is converted back into sound by a receiver, and the sound from the receiver is transmitted into the human outer ear via a sound transmission pipe and a trumpet-shaped ear pad. This hearing aid has a cutout (200 or 201, 202) formed at the tip of the ear pad from the inner diameter to the outer diameter of the tip, which introduces sound from the outside at the entrance (11) of the outer ear (3) when the hearing aid is inserted into a human outer ear. Effect of the Invention

[0015] The hearing aid of the present invention simply forms a cutout portion (200 or 201, 202) in the ear pad to allow external sounds to enter through the cutout portion (200 or 201, 202) as described above, thereby allowing external sounds from Simba to be introduced through this cutout portion (200 or 201, 202) while maintaining the original function of Simba and enabling the hearing aid user to normally sense the direction and distance of the sound source, thereby ensuring safety. Furthermore, the problem described above, i.e., the need to add complex circuits to amplifiers and the like, is almost eliminated, and by simply improving the shape of the ear pad, the difference in sound pressure between the transmission pipe and the inner and outer surfaces of the ear pad is eliminated, and interference between the inner and outer sounds, reverberation, muffled sounds, etc. are eliminated, making it easier to hear. In particular, the low frequency range is made easier to hear. In addition, there is no problem even if the volume from the receiver is turned up, and there is almost no effect on the adjusted sound from the hearing aid receiver. Furthermore, although the diameter of the entrance to the outer ear varies from person to person, if the outer diameter of the ear pad is formed slightly larger, it can be inserted into the entrance of the outer ear by shrinking due to elastic deformation of the cutout portion (200 or 201, 202), and there is no need for many ear pads of different diameters. These and other excellent effects are exhibited. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a schematic structure of a human ear; [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a hearing aid (1) and a longitudinal cross-sectional view (2) taken along the line AA of (1). [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is an illustration of a human ear wearing a hearing aid. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an example of an ear pad 104 in a hearing aid according to the present invention, in which a single cutout portion 200 for taking in external sound is formed. [Diagram 5] This is another example of a hearing aid, an example of an ear pad 104 formed with a pair of cutout portions (201, 202), (1) is a front explanatory view seen from the arrow CC of (2), and (2) is a side cross-sectional explanatory view seen from the arrow BB of (1). DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0017] The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the embodiments of the present invention. EXAMPLES

[0018] In Figure 4 (1), the hearing aid in this example is the same as 100 shown in Figure 1, in that it converts sound picked up by a sound-collecting microphone 101 into an electrical signal using a built-in amplifier, amplifies it, converts the electrical signal from the amplifier back into sound via a receiver, adjusts the sound from the receiver using a sound adjustment dial 102, and transmits it into the human outer ear 1 via a sound transmission pipe 103 and a trumpet-shaped ear pad 104.

[0019] The ear pads 104 are generally elastically deformable members made of resin such as epoxy resin, acrylic resin, silicone, or urethane rubber. The trumpet-shaped ear pad 104 is formed by turning back the fold 104-1 at the tip from the tip of the communication hole 104-3, and has a notch 200 for taking in external sound. This notch 200 communicates between the outside of the outer ear 1 and the inside of the outer ear 1, and introduces external sound through the ear sympathetic nerve to detect the direction and distance of the sound source. The shape of the cutout portion 200 for taking in external sound can be such that a single cutout (example in FIG. 4) or multiple cutouts (example in FIG. 5) can be arranged at appropriate intervals in the circumferential direction of the pad 104, as shown in (1) and (2) in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5. The cutout shape can be any shape, such as a V-shaped cut or a U-shaped cut, and the shape or number can be selected taking into consideration the range of elastic deformation when inserted into the entrance 11 of the outer ear 3 as follows.

[0020] The ear pad 105 having cutouts 200 or 201, 202 made of this elastically deformable material has its inner and outer diameters set to match the diameter of the outer ear entrance hole 11 of the user's ear, but because it is an elastically deformable material, the width of the cutouts 200 or 201, 202 can be expanded or contracted. Therefore, even if the outer diameter of the ear pad 105 is made slightly larger than the outer diameter of the outer ear entrance, the cutouts 200 or 201, 202 will contract and deform during insertion, reducing the diameter of the tip of the ear pad 105. This makes it easy to insert into the outer ear entrance 11, maintains fit, and prevents the ear pad from accidentally falling out without impairing its sound transmission function. [Industrial Applicability]

[0021] Because the present invention exhibits the excellent effects described above, it is possible to reliably provide better, more accurate and safer sound to people with hearing loss, making a great contribution not only to ordinary households but also to the hearing aid medical field and the hearing aid manufacturing industry. [Explanation of symbols]

[0022] 100:Hearing aids 101: Sound pickup microphone 102: Volume control dial 103: Voice transmission pipe 104: Ear pads 104-1: Pleats 104-2:Communication hole 200: Cutout for external sound intake (one cutout) 201, 202: Cutouts for external sound intake (two cutouts)

Claims

[Claim 1] This hearing aid is characterized in that a notch (200 or 201, 202) is formed at the tip of the ear pad in the hearing aid, which introduces external sound at the entrance (11) of the outer ear (3) of a human being when the hearing aid is inserted into the entrance (11) of the outer ear (3).

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