# US 11,910,165 B2 · Removable attachment of a passive transcutaneous bone conduction device with limited skin deformation > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,910,165 B2 - Document ID: US11910165B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/397,345 - Filed: 2021-08-09 - Published: 2022-01-27 - Granted: 2024-02-20 - Earliest claimed: 2012-08-28 - Assignees: Cochlear Limited - Applicants: Marcus Andersson; Kristian Asnes; Erik Martin Holgersson - Inventors: Marcus Andersson; Kristian Asnes; Erik Martin Holgersson - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11910165B2 ## CPC - H04R 25/606: {acting directly on the eardrum, the ossicles or the skull, e.g. mastoid, tooth, maxillary or mandibular bone, or mechanically stimulating the cochlea, e.g. at the oval window} - H04R 1/24: Structural combinations of separate transducers or of two parts of the same transducer and responsive respectively to two or more frequency ranges - H04R 1/46: Special adaptations for use as contact microphones, e.g. on musical instrument, on stethoscope (throat mountings H04R1/14) - H04R 3/14: Cross-over networks - H04R 9/025: {Magnetic circuit} - H04R 9/066: {using the principle of inertia} - H04R 25/556: {External connectors, e.g. plugs or modules (H04R25/607 takes precedence)} - H04R 25/558: {Remote control, e.g. of amplification, frequency} - H04R 25/607: {of earhooks} - H04R 2225/0213: Constructional details of earhooks, e.g. shape, material - H04R 2225/67: Implantable hearing aids or parts thereof not covered by H04R25/606 - H04R 2460/13: Hearing devices using bone conduction transducers - H04R: LOUDSPEAKERS, MICROPHONES, GRAMOPHONE PICK-UPS OR LIKE ACOUSTIC ELECTROMECHANICAL TRANSDUCERS; ELECTRIC HEARING AIDS; PUBLIC ADDRESS SYSTEMS (producing sounds with frequency not determined by supply frequency G10K) ## Abstract An external component including a vibratory portion configured to vibrate in response to a sound signal to evoke a hearing percept via bone conduction and including a coupling portion configured to removably attach the external component to an outer surface of skin of a recipient of the hearing prosthesis while imparting deformation to the skin of the recipient at a location of the attachment, in a one-gravity environment, of an amount that is about equal to or equal to that which results from the external component having mass. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method of evoking a hearing percept, comprising: removably attaching an external component including a vibrator portion of a passive transcutaneous bone conduction device, a sound processor, and a microphone, to skin of a recipient; and generating vibrations with the vibrator portion such that the generated vibrations are transferred into skin of the recipient and into underlying bone of the recipient so as to evoke a hearing percept, wherein the vibrator portion, the sound processor and the microphone are located proximate the area of skin of the recipient into which the generated vibrations are transferred, the evocation of the hearing percept occurs while the external component is removably attached to the skin of the recipient, the removable attachment of the external component is maintained while generating the vibrations without substantial static pressure on the skin contacting a first location of the external component through which vibrations are transferred to the skin, and the external component is a behind-the-ear (BTE) device, the BTE device including a battery so that the battery is located behind an auricle of the recipient when the BTE device is attached to the recipient, the microphone is configured to capture sound from an ambient environment of the recipient, the vibrator portion is located between opposite sidewalls of a housing of the BTE device, which housing is contoured to the auricle, and a first adhesive for adhering to skin is located on a first side of the housing, and a second adhesive for adhering to skin is located on the second side of the housing. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein: the action of generating vibrations is executed using a balanced transducer. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein: the action of generating vibrations is executed by controllably channeling a dynamic magnetic flux across a plurality of axial air gaps of a transducer and channeling static magnetic flux across a radial air gap of the transducer. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The method of claim 3, wherein: the action of generating vibrations is executed by channeling the static magnetic flux across at least one of the axial air gaps of the plurality of axial air gaps. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein: the external component is a behind-the-ear (BTE) device. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The method of claim 5, wherein: the action generating the vibrations to evoke a hearing percept is executed with the BTE device on one side of a head of the recipient of the BTE device; and the method further comprises: moving the BTE device to an opposite side of the head of the recipient and generating vibrations with the vibrator portion such that the generated vibrations are transferred into skin of the recipient on the opposite side of the head and into underlying bone of the recipient on the opposite side of the head so as to evoke a second hearing percept. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein: the external component is an external component of a first bone conduction device, and the evocation of the hearing percept is based on a captured sound captured by the first bone conduction device and is executed within a first frequency range; the evocation of the hearing percept occurs while the external component is removably attached to the skin of the recipient; the method further includes evoking a hearing percept with a second bone conduction device based on a captured sound captured by the second bone conduction device within a second frequency range, the second frequency range being a range including frequencies higher than the first frequency range, and the captured sound captured by the first bone conduction device is the captured sound captured by the second bone conduction device. ### Claim 8 (depends on 3) The method of claim 3, wherein: the action of generating vibrations is executed by channeling the static magnetic flux across a plurality of radial air gaps of the transducer, one of which is the radial air gap of the transducer. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1, wherein: the action of generating vibrations is executed using a transducer with a bobbin that is part of a dynamic magnetic field generator; and the bobbin remains stationary relative to a housing of the external component, the housing containing the sound processor and the transducer. ### Claim 10 A method of evoking a hearing percept, comprising: removably attaching an external component including a vibrator portion of a passive transcutaneous bone conduction device, a sound processor, and a microphone, to skin of a recipient; and generating vibrations with the vibrator portion such that the generated vibrations are transferred into skin of the recipient and into underlying bone of the recipient so as to evoke a hearing percept, wherein the vibrator portion, the sound processor and the microphone are located proximate the area of skin of the recipient into which the generated vibrations are transferred; the external component is a behind-the-ear (BTE) device, the action generating the vibrations to evoke a hearing percept is executed with the BTE device on one side of a head of the recipient of the BTE device, the method further comprises: moving the BTE device to an opposite side of the head of the recipient and generating vibrations with the vibrator portion such that the generated vibrations are transferred into skin of the recipient on the opposite side of the head and into underlying bone of the recipient on the opposite side of the head so as to evoke a second hearing percept, and a portion of the BTE device facing forward, relative to a face of a recipient, when used on the one side of the head also faces forward when used on the opposite side of the head. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein: a dynamic pressure resulting from the transfer of the vibrations into the skin of the recipient at skin contacting a first location of the external component through which vibrations are transferred is about equal to or greater than the static pressure at the skin contacting the first location. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein: the action of removably attaching the external component to skin of the recipient includes adhesively attaching the external component to skin of the recipient. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein: the action of generating vibrations is executed by controllably channeling a dynamic magnetic flux across a plurality of axial air gaps of a transducer and channeling static magnetic flux across a radial air gap of the transducer, wherein no net magnetic force is produced at the radial air gap. ### Claim 14 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, wherein: the transducer has a seismic mass that moves relative to the housing. ### Claim 15 A method of evoking a hearing percept, comprising: removably attaching an external component including a vibrator portion of a passive transcutaneous bone conduction device, a sound processor, and a microphone, to skin of a recipient; and generating vibrations with the vibrator portion such that the generated vibrations are transferred into skin of the recipient and into underlying bone of the recipient so as to evoke a hearing percept, wherein the vibrator portion, the sound processor and the microphone are located proximate the area of skin of the recipient into which the generated vibrations are transferred, and the action of generating vibrations is executed using a transducer with at least two static magnetic flux circuits where a first of the at least two static magnetic flux circuits is located on a first side of a plane normal to a longitudinal axis of the transducer and a second of the at least two static magnetic flux circuits is located on a second side of the plane opposite the first side. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, wherein: the evocation of the hearing percept occurs while the external component is removably attached to the skin of the recipient; and the removable attachment of the external component is maintained while generating the vibrations without substantial static pressure on the skin contacting a first location of the external component through which vibrations are transferred to the skin. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16, wherein: a dynamic pressure resulting from the transfer of the vibrations to the skin of the recipient at skin contacting a first location of the external component through which vibrations are transferred is about equal to or greater than the static pressure at the skin contacting the first location. ### Claim 18 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16, wherein: the action of removably attaching the external component to skin of the recipient includes adhesively attaching the external component to skin of the recipient. ### Claim 19 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, wherein: the action of removably attaching the external component to skin of the recipient includes attaching the external component at skin contacting a first location of the external component through which vibrations are transferred to the skin, the first location being directly above a mastoid bone of the recipient; and the removable attachment of the external component is maintained while generating the vibrations without substantial static pressure on the skin contacting a first location of the external component through which vibrations are transferred to the skin, and the hearing percept is evoked while the vibrator portion is removably attached to the skin of the recipient. ### Claim 20 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, wherein: the external component is a behind-the-ear (BTE) device. ### Claim 21 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, wherein: the external component is an external component of a first bone conduction device of a first type configured to evoke a hearing percept within a first frequency range; the evocation of the hearing percept occurs while the external component is removably attached to the skin of the recipient; the removable attachment of the external component is maintained while generating the vibrations without substantial static pressure on the skin contacting a first location of the external component through which vibrations are transferred to the skin; the method comprises evoking a hearing percept with the external component within the first frequency range; and the method further includes evoking a hearing percept with a second bone conduction device of a second type different from that of the first type within a second frequency range, the second frequency range being a range including frequencies higher than the first frequency range. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The method of claim 21, wherein: the method further comprises placing the first bone conduction device into a mode such that the first bone conduction device delivers vibrations in frequency ranges that do not encompass the entire first frequency range of that device. ### Claim 23 (depends on 16) The method of claim 16, wherein: the external component is an external component of a first bone conduction device configured to evoke a hearing percept within a first frequency range; and the method further comprises placing the first bone conduction device into a mode such that the first bone conduction device delivers vibrations in frequency ranges that do not encompass the entire first frequency range of that device. ### Claim 24 (depends on 15) The method of claim 15, wherein: the action of generating vibrations is executed by controllably channeling magnetic fluxes across a plurality of air gaps, wherein a net distance of the combined distance across all of the axial air gaps of the plurality of air gaps remains constant during the action of generating vibrations.