# US 11,910,166 B2 · Convertibility of a bone conduction device

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- Number: US 11,910,166 B2
- Document ID: US11910166B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/092,498
- Filed: 2023-01-03
- Published: 2023-05-11
- Granted: 2024-02-20
- Earliest claimed: 2011-05-24
- Assignees: Cochlear Limited
- Applicants: Cochlear Limited
- Inventors: David Nathan Morris; Marcus Andersson; Göran Björn; Kristian Gunnar Asnes; Carl Van Himbeeck
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11910166B2

## 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 11/00: Transducers of moving-armature or moving-core type (acoustic diaphragm of magnetisable material directly coacting with electromagnet H04R13/00)
- 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 of a bone conduction device, including a vibrator and a platform configured to transfer vibrations from the vibrator to skin of the recipient, wherein the vibrator and platform are configured to quick connect and quick disconnect to and from, respectively, one another.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An external component of a bone conduction device, comprising:
a vibrator; and
a platform configured to transfer vibrations from the vibrator to skin of the recipient, wherein the vibrator and platform are configured to quick release and quick connect from and to, respectively, one another.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The external component of claim 1, wherein:
the bone conduction device is a passive transcutaneous bone conduction device.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The external component of claim 2, wherein:
the vibrator and platform are configured to snap-couple to one another.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The external component of claim 1, wherein: the external component is a removable component of a percutaneous bone conduction device configured to quick release and quick connect from and to, respectively, a percutaneous abutment connected to a bone fixture implanted in a recipient of a percutaneous bone conduction device.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The external component of claim 1, wherein:
the external component includes a snap-coupling having a female component that is part of the vibrator and a male component that is part of the platform, the snap-coupling being configured to quick release and quick connect the vibrator from and to, respectively, the platform.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The external component of claim 1, wherein:
the platform has a substantially planar surface configured to interface with skin of the recipient.

### Claim 7

A device, comprising:
a skin interface including a platform and a coupling structure, wherein at least a portion of the coupling structure is attached to a body establishing the platform, said platform configured to transfer vibrations originating from a vibrator to skin of a recipient, wherein the coupling is configured to releasably couple the vibrator and the platform and transfer vibrations from the vibrator to the platform so that the platform can in turn transfer the vibrations to the skin of the recipient.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The device of claim 7, wherein:
the coupling structure is entirely embedded into the body establishing the platform.

### Claim 9 (depends on 7)

The device of claim 7, wherein:
the coupling structure is entirely outside the body establishing the platform.

### Claim 10 (depends on 7)

The device of claim 7, wherein:
the coupling is configured to enable a quick connect of the vibrator to the platform and to enable a quick release the vibrator from the platform.

### Claim 11 (depends on 7)

The device of claim 7, wherein:
the platform includes a through hole extending completely from a first side of the platform to a second side of the platform.

### Claim 12 (depends on 7)

The device of claim 7, wherein:
the platform includes a hole opening on a first side of the platform.

### Claim 13 (depends on 7)

The device of claim 7, wherein:
the coupling is a snap-coupling.

### Claim 14 (depends on 7)

An assembly, comprising:
the skin interface of claim 7; and
the vibrator, wherein the vibrator is releasable coupled to the skin interface, wherein
the assembly is configured to be held against the skin of the recipient in a manner other than that resulting from a magnetic field.

### Claim 15 (depends on 7)

An assembly, comprising:
the skin interface of claim 7; and
the vibrator, wherein the vibrator is releasable coupled to the skin interface, wherein
the releasable coupling is established by a male-female snap-coupling, wherein the female portion of the coupling has a minimum interior diameter of about 5 millimeters.

### Claim 16 (depends on 7)

An assembly, comprising:
the skin interface of claim 7; and
the vibrator, wherein the vibrator is releasable coupled to the skin interface, wherein
the releasable coupling is established by a male-female snap-coupling, wherein the female portion of the coupling has a minimum interior diameter of about 3 millimeters.

### Claim 17

An apparatus, comprising:
a skin interfacing device; and
a removable component of a bone conduction device releasably coupled to the skin interfacing device, wherein
the device is an external component of a passive transcutaneous bone conduction device.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The apparatus of claim 17, wherein:
the releasable coupling is a snap coupling.

### Claim 19 (depends on 17)

The apparatus of claim 17, wherein:
the removable component includes a first half of a male/female coupling;
the skin interface device includes a second half of a male/female coupling; and
the coupling is established by male to female interfacing of the first and second half.

### Claim 20 (depends on 17)

The apparatus of claim 17, wherein:
the skin interfacing device includes a first half of a male/female coupling, corresponding to part of the coupling;
the skin interface device includes a platform body that extends in a direction parallel to skin of the recipient with a thickness dimension thereof being normal to a skin interface surface of the platform body; and
the first half of the male/female coupling is connected to the platform body via a component that extends into the body.

### Claim 21 (depends on 17)

The apparatus of claim 17, wherein:
the skin interfacing device includes a first half of a male/female coupling corresponding to the coupling;
the skin interface device includes a platform body; and
the first half of the male/female coupling is welded to the platform body.

### Claim 22 (depends on 17)

The apparatus of claim 17, wherein:
the skin interfacing device includes a first half of a male/female coupling corresponding to the coupling;
the skin interface device includes a platform body; and
the first half of the male/female coupling is mechanically coupled to the platform body.

### Claim 23

A method, comprising:
obtaining a passive transcutaneous bone conduction vibrator; and
connecting the vibrator to a skin interface apparatus via a quick coupling action.

### Claim 24 (depends on 23)

The method of claim 23, wherein:
the quick coupling action includes placing a male component of one of the vibrator or the skin interface apparatus into a female component of the other of the vibrator or the skin interface apparatus.

### Claim 25 (depends on 23)

The method of claim 23, wherein:
the quick coupling action is a snap coupling action.

### Claim 26 (depends on 23)

The method of claim 23, wherein:
the quick coupling action is a snap coupling action that includes placing a male component of one of the vibrator or the skin interface apparatus into a female component of the other of the vibrator or the skin interface apparatus.

### Claim 27 (depends on 23)

The method of claim 23, further comprising:
disconnecting the skin interfacing apparatus to the vibrator via a quick uncoupling action.

### Claim 28 (depends on 27)

The method of claim 27, wherein:
the quick uncoupling action is a quick snap uncoupling coupling action that includes removing a male component of one of the vibrator or the skin interface apparatus from a female component of the other of the vibrator or the skin interface apparatus.

### Claim 29 (depends on 28)

The method of claim 28, further comprising:
connecting, via a quick coupling action, the vibrator to a new component that is not the skin interface apparatus that was previously coupled to the vibrator.

### Claim 30 (depends on 28)

The method of claim 28, further comprising:
connecting, via a quick coupling action, the vibrator to a new component that is not the skin interface apparatus that was previously coupled to the vibrator, wherein the new component is part of an assembly that includes no magnets.

### Claim 31 (depends on 28)

The method of claim 28, further comprising:
connecting, via a quick coupling action, the vibrator to a new component that is not the skin interface apparatus that was previously coupled to the vibrator, wherein the new component is part of an assembly that consists of non-magnetic material.

### Claim 32 (depends on 23)

The method of claim 23, further comprising:
after connecting the skin interface apparatus to the vibrator, placing the skin interface apparatus against skin of the recipient and holding the vibrator and the skin interface apparatus against the skin by means other than a magnetic field;
capturing sound using a sound capture device supported by a housing of the passive transcutaneous bone conduction vibrator in which a vibrating actuator is located;
causing the vibrating actuator to vibrate based on the captured sound;
transferring vibrations from the vibrating actuator into the skin interfacing apparatus and then into skin of the recipient to evoke a hearing percept based on the captured sound.