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US 2018/0124531 A1Published application
Hearing Aid Sleeve
AssigneeIntriCon Corporation
InventorWilliam E. Tourdot
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A compressible, flexible shape-retaining sleeve fits around a hearing aid shell. The sleeve includes fins having a fold line which extend outward to contact the user's ear canal, changing the hearing aid from being largely non-occlusive to being substantially occlusive. The hearing aid, including its shell, can be repeatedly inserted and removed from the sleeve through the battery door opening. The sleeve also has openings for a flexible filament positioning structure, consistently positioning the hearing aid for both occlusive and non-occlusive use. While the flexible filament positioning structure is attached to the hearing aid, it prevents disengagement of the sleeve from the hearing aid shell during insertion and removal of the hearing aid from the user's ear canal.
Claims20
A hearing aid comprising:
- a hearing aid shell with hearing aid electronics disposed therein, the hearing aid electronics including a battery and a receiver, the receiver projecting a hearing aid amplified audio output out of a sound output port on a distal side of the hearing aid shell, the hearing aid shell being sufficiently small to be substantially received in a user's ear canal without causing occlusion of the user's ear canal;
- a flexible filament extending out of the hearing aid shell, the flexible filament extending outside the profile of the hearing aid shell, such that the filament interacts with a user's ear anatomy to determine an unoccluded insertion depth of the hearing aid shell into the user's ear canal by preventing the hearing aid from being pushed too deep into the ear canal by the user, the flexible filament permitting the user to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal by pulling on the flexible filament, with the flexible filament contacting the hearing aid shell over a filament/shell contact area and with pull force being directly transferred from the flexible filament to the hearing aid shell across the filament/shell contact area;
- and
- a sleeve receiving the hearing aid shell and formed of a material which is softer than the hearing aid shell, the sleeve being removably receivable on the hearing aid shell with the sleeve contacting the hearing aid shell over a sleeve/shell contact area which is larger than the filament/shell contact area, the sleeve comprising:
- a sound outlet opening exposing the sound outlet port of the hearing aid shell;
- an exterior profile sized for at least partial occlusion of the hearing aid in the user's ear canal;
- and
- a first filament opening around either the flexible filament or a portion of the hearing aid shell receiving the flexible filament, the first filament opening being too small for the hearing aid shell to pass therethrough, such that the small size of the first filament opening prevents the sleeve from disengaging from the hearing aid when the user pulls on the flexible filament to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal, with force for removal from the user's ear canal being transferred from the hearing aid shell to the sleeve across the sleeve/shell contact area.
5 more elements
A hearing aid comprising:
- a hearing aid shell with hearing aid electronics disposed therein, the hearing aid electronics including a battery and a receiver, the receiver projecting a hearing aid amplified audio output out of a sound output port on a distal side of the hearing aid shell, the hearing aid shell being sufficiently small to be substantially received in a user's ear canal without causing occlusion of the user's ear canal;
- a flexible filament extending out of the hearing aid shell, the flexible filament extending outside the profile of the hearing aid shell, such that the filament interacts with a user's ear anatomy to determine an unoccluded insertion depth of the hearing aid shell into the user's ear canal by preventing the hearing aid from being pushed too deep into the ear canal by the user, the flexible filament permitting the user to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal by pulling on the flexible filament;
- and
- a sleeve receiving the hearing aid shell and formed of a material which is softer than the hearing aid shell, the sleeve being removably receivable on the hearing aid shell, the sleeve comprising:
- a sound outlet opening exposing the sound outlet port of the hearing aid shell;
- an exterior profile sized for at least partial occlusion of the hearing aid in the user's ear canal;
- and
- a first filament opening around either the flexible filament or a portion of the hearing aid shell receiving the flexible filament, the first filament opening being too small for the hearing aid shell to pass therethrough, such that the small size of the first filament opening prevents the sleeve from disengaging from the hearing aid when the user pulls on the flexible filament to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal;
- wherein the sleeve further comprises a battery opening which allows the user to replace the battery within the hearing aid shell without removing the sleeve from the hearing aid.
6 more elements
A hearing aid comprising:
- a hearing aid shell with hearing aid electronics disposed therein, the hearing aid electronics including a battery and a receiver, the receiver projecting a hearing aid amplified audio output out of a sound output port on a distal side of the hearing aid shell, the hearing aid shell being sufficiently small to be substantially received in a user's ear canal without causing occlusion of the user's ear canal;
- a flexible filament extending out of the hearing aid shell, the flexible filament extending outside the profile of the hearing aid shell, such that the filament interacts with a user's ear anatomy to determine an unoccluded insertion depth of the hearing aid shell into the user's ear canal by preventing the hearing aid from being pushed too deep into the ear canal by the user, the flexible filament permitting the user to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal by pulling on the flexible filament;
- and
- a sleeve receiving the hearing aid shell and formed of a material which is softer than the hearing aid shell, the sleeve being removably receivable on the hearing aid shell, the sleeve comprising:
- a sound outlet opening exposing the sound outlet port of the hearing aid shell;
- an exterior profile sized for at least partial occlusion of the hearing aid in the user's ear canal;
- and
- a first filament opening around either the flexible filament or a portion of the hearing aid shell receiving the flexible filament, the first filament opening being too small for the hearing aid shell to pass therethrough, such that the small size of the first filament opening prevents the sleeve from disengaging from the hearing aid when the user pulls on the flexible filament to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal;
- wherein the sleeve comprises a battery opening which allows the user to replace the battery within the hearing aid shell without removing the sleeve from the hearing aid, wherein the battery opening is sufficiently large to expose the microphone port of the hearing aid shell.
6 more elements
A sleeve for removably receiving a hearing aid, comprising:
- a body defining a chamber for encompassing a hearing aid, the body having an exterior profile sized for at least partial occlusion of the hearing aid in the user's ear canal;
- a sound outlet opening defined on a distal end of the body, the sound outlet opening being too small for a rigid hearing aid shell sized to mate into the chamber to pass therethrough without damaging the sleeve;
- a battery door opening defined on a proximal end of the body, the battery door opening being sufficiently large for a rigid hearing aid shell sized to mate into the chamber to pass therethrough without damaging the sleeve;
- at least one lip around the battery door opening, the lip defining a width of the battery door opening which is smaller than a corresponding maximum width dimension of the chamber, such that the lip can be used to help to position and secure a hearing aid shell corresponding in size and shape to the chamber within the chamber;
- and
- a first filament opening separate from the sound outlet opening and separate from the battery door opening, the first filament opening being too small for a rigid hearing aid shell sized to mate into the chamber to pass therethrough without damaging the sleeve, such that the small size of the first filament opening prevents the sleeve from disengaging from a hearing aid in the chamber when a user pulls on the flexible filament to remove the sleeve containing the hearing aid from the user's ear canal;
- wherein the sleeve is formed of a soft, flexible, shape-retaining material.
4 more elements
A method of outfitting a hearing aid for occlusion, comprising:
- providing a hearing aid shell with hearing aid electronics disposed therein, the hearing aid electronics including a battery and a receiver, the receiver projecting a hearing aid amplified audio output out of a sound output port on a distal side of the hearing aid shell, the hearing aid shell being sufficiently small to be substantially received in a user's ear canal without causing occlusion of the user's ear canal;
- removably inserting the hearing aid shell into a sleeve with the sleeve contacting the hearing aid shell over a sleeve/shell contact area, the sleeve being formed of a material which is softer than the hearing aid shell, the sleeve comprising:
- a sound outlet opening exposing the sound outlet port of the hearing aid shell;
- an exterior profile sized for at least partial occlusion of the hearing aid in the user's ear canal;
- and
- a first filament opening, the first filament opening being too small for the hearing aid shell to pass therethrough;
- and
- attaching a first filament to the hearing aid shell such that its attachment extends through the first filament opening, with the flexible filament contacting the hearing aid shell over a filament/shell contact area for direct transfer of pull force from the flexible filament to the hearing aid shell across the filament/shell contact area, the filament/shell contact area being smaller than the sleeve/shell contact area, such that the small size of the first filament opening prevents the sleeve from disengaging from the hearing aid when the user pulls on the flexible filament to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal.
5 more elements
A method of outfitting a hearing aid for occlusion, comprising:
- providing a hearing aid shell with hearing aid electronics disposed therein, the hearing aid electronics including a battery and a receiver, the receiver projecting a hearing aid amplified audio output out of a sound output port on a distal side of the hearing aid shell, the hearing aid shell being sufficiently small to be substantially received in a user's ear canal without causing occlusion of the user's ear canal;
- removably inserting the hearing aid shell into a sleeve, the sleeve being formed of a material which is softer than the hearing aid shell, the sleeve comprising:
- a sound outlet opening exposing the sound outlet port of the hearing aid shell;
- an exterior profile sized for at least partial occlusion of the hearing aid in the user's ear canal;
- and
- a first filament opening, the first filament opening being too small for the hearing aid shell to pass therethrough;
- and
- attaching a first filament to the hearing aid shell such that its attachment extends through the first filament opening, such that the small size of the first filament opening prevents the sleeve from disengaging from the hearing aid when the user pulls on the flexible filament to remove the hearing aid from the user's ear canal;
- wherein the sleeve further comprises a battery opening which allows the user to replace the battery within the hearing aid shell without removing the sleeve from the hearing aid.
6 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.