Contaminant-proof microphone assembly
AssigneeCochlear Limited
InventorsNathan Isaacson, Adam Mujaj
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Presented herein are contaminant-proof microphone assemblies for use with devices/apparatuses, such as auditory prostheses, that include one or more microphones disposed within a housing. A contaminant-proof microphone assembly in accordance with certain embodiments presented herein includes a microphone, a microphone plug, and a contaminant-proof membrane. The microphone plug has a first end coupled to the microphone and a second end that is configured to be positioned adjacent the contaminant-proof membrane. As such, the microphone plug is disposed between a sound inlet of the microphone and the contaminant-proof membrane. The microphone plug may be configured to mate with the housing or a gasket attached to the housing.
Claims25
An apparatus, comprising:
- a housing comprising at least one acoustic port;
- a gasket attached to the housing and including an interior cavity;
- a contaminant-proof membrane disposed between the interior cavity of the gasket and the at least one acoustic port;
- a microphone comprising a sound inlet and an acoustic membrane, wherein a surface area of the acoustic membrane is smaller than a surface area of the contaminant-proof membrane;
- and
- a microphone plug comprising a first end coupled to the microphone, a second end located within the interior cavity of the gasket, and a through hole configured to acoustically couple the contaminant-proof membrane to the sound inlet.
An apparatus, comprising:
- a housing comprising at least one acoustic port;
- a gasket attached to the housing and including an interior cavity;
- a contaminant-proof membrane having a first surface area, wherein the contaminant-proof membrane is disposed between the interior cavity of the gasket and the at least one acoustic port;
- a microphone comprising an acoustic membrane having a second surface area that is less than the first surface area;
- and
- an elongate plug coupled to the microphone and configured to be inserted into the gasket, wherein the elongate plug includes at least one elongate through-hole configured to acoustically couple the contaminant-proof membrane to the acoustic membrane.
A method, comprising:
- attaching a gasket to an internal surface of a housing, wherein the gasket defines an interior cavity and has a contaminant-proof membrane connected thereto;
- coupling a first end of a microphone plug to a microphone such that an acoustic seal between the microphone plug and the microphone is created, wherein the microphone comprises a sound inlet and an acoustic membrane, and wherein a surface area of the acoustic membrane is smaller than a surface area of the contaminant-proof membrane;
- and
- inserting a second end of the microphone plug into the gasket such that the microphone plug is mostly disposed between the contaminant-proof membrane and the sound inlet of the microphone and the microphone plug acoustically couples the contaminant-proof membrane to the sound inlet.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.