Earplug and hearing devices formed in-situ
AssigneeCenter for Innovative Technology
InventorsJohn G. Casali, Daniel W. Mauney
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A custom-molded earplug (18) for swimming protection, hearing protection, and the like, is fabricated in situ by depositing a foaming material (14 or 24) within a person's ear (10 or 42) and allowing the foaming material to form foam (16 or 44). Acoustic and electronic equipment such as a Helmholtz resonator or other tuned device capable of modifying sound waves, a communications transmitter, a communications receiver, a communications transceiver, a hearing aid, an ear microphone, a personal earphone, and a hearing test transducer or probe tube can be fabricated in the ear in a similar fashion. Temperature sensing elements may also be incorporated within or positioned by the foaming material to provide an in the ear thermometer.
Claims8
An in the ear, custom-fit, electronic device, comprising:
- a body member positionable within an ear canal of a person;
- an electronic device;
- and
- a foaming material in a non-foamed state carried by said body member, said foaming material in said non-foamed state being activatable to fill said ear canal with a foam material, said body member and said electronic device being positioned within said foam material after activation of said foaming material in said non-foamed state.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.