Ear Unit With Separate Anchor And Retractable Hearing Element
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ear attachment solutions are uncomfortable due to pressure on the ear canal and fail to effectively exclude ambient sounds, with previous designs either causing discomfort or allowing noise ingress.
Innovation Solution
A system with a separate anchor for stable attachment and a hearing element that projects sound into the sub-tragus region, allowing for air circulation and adjustable occlusion to manage ambient sound, by separating attachment and transducer functionalities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the hearing element enters the ear canal (in-ear solution), then ambient sound is effectively excluded and audio fidelity is improved, but discomfort occurs due to pressure on the pressure-sensitive ear canal
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the hearing element from the ear canal and repositions it to the sub-tragus region, eliminating the harmful pressure on the ear canal while maintaining effective ambient sound exclusion through the anchor's occlusion capability
Solution Approach 2:
The anchor serves as an intermediary structure that provides both stable attachment and ambient sound exclusion without requiring the hearing element to be inserted into the ear canal, thus mediating between sound isolation and comfort requirements
2Ease of operation
If the hearing element is held against the ear concha (on-ear solution), then user comfort is improved by avoiding ear canal pressure, but ambient sound enters the ear and long-term discomfort occurs due to pressure on the ear
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the attachment function from the sound emission function, with the anchor providing stable attachment and occlusion while the hearing element remains separate, allowing both comfort and ambient sound exclusion to be achieved simultaneously
Solution Approach 2:
The anchor acts as an intermediary that provides both mechanical attachment and acoustic occlusion, eliminating the need for pressure on the ear concha while still blocking ambient sound from entering the ear canal
3Volume of moving object
If the housing unit is positioned inside the concha held by tragus and anti tragus (ear bud solution), then the device is compact, but discomfort occurs due to pressure on the tragus and anti tragus and ambient sound exclusion is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the attachment mechanism from the tragus and anti-tragus region and repositions it to the sub-tragus region, eliminating the harmful pressure on these sensitive areas while maintaining device compactness through the integrated anchor design
Solution Approach 2:
The anchor serves as an intermediary attachment structure that provides stable retention without requiring pressure on the tragus and anti-tragus, thereby mediating between compact device design and user comfort
4Stability of the object's composition
If the hearing element is pressed against the inner wall of the concha (in-ear speaker solution), then stable positioning is achieved, but discomfort occurs at the edge of the hearing element
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the hearing element from contact with the ear canal wall and repositions it to the sub-tragus region where it can remain stable without pressing against sensitive areas, eliminating edge discomfort while maintaining positioning stability
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 2C
AI summary
An ear unit for comfortable wear of an in-ear ear unit is provided wherein the ear unit provides occlusion in a first inner position wherein the hearing element occludes the opening to the ear canal, and is configured to be retracted relative to the anchor into a second position where a passage opens between the hearing element and the concha. The ear unit achieves the technical effect by separating the earphone from the attachment functionality that is provided by a separate anchor, wherein the earphone is attached to said anchor.