LOUDSPEAKER MODULE FOR A HEARING DEVICE, AND HEARING DEVICE

Abstract

A loudspeaker module for a hearing device has a loudspeaker, which has a loudspeaker diaphragm and a drive for the loudspeaker diaphragm, and a housing, in which the loudspeaker is arranged. Furthermore, the loudspeaker module contains an antenna unit, which has an antenna coil having a coil axis, a tubular coil core, which forms a sound channel, and an antenna base plate, in which a sound passage opening that opens into the sound channel is formed. The antenna coil, the coil core and the antenna base plate in this case prescribe an antenna characteristic of the antenna unit. The side wall of the housing on the diaphragm side is in this case formed by the antenna base plate.

Claims

1. A loudspeaker module for a hearing device, comprising: a loudspeaker having a loudspeaker diaphragm and a drive for said loudspeaker diaphragm; a housing in which said loudspeaker is disposed and having a side wall; and an antenna unit having an antenna coil with a coil axis, a tubular coil core forming a sound channel, and an antenna base plate with a sound passage opening formed therein that opens into said sound channel, said antenna coil, said tubular coil core and said antenna base plate prescribe an antenna characteristic of said antenna unit, wherein said side wall of said housing on a diaphragm side is formed by said antenna base plate.

2. The loudspeaker module according to claim 1, wherein said loudspeaker diaphragm is mounted in said housing such that said loudspeaker diaphragm isolates said sound channel from an housing interior of said housing.

3. The loudspeaker module according to claim 1, wherein said loudspeaker diaphragm is disposed in said tubular coil core.

4. The loudspeaker module according to claim 1, wherein: said drive for said loudspeaker diaphragm contains a drive coil having a coil axis; and the coil axis of said antenna coil is oriented perpendicular to the coil axis of said drive coil.

5. The loudspeaker module according to claim 1, wherein said tubular coil core and said antenna base plate are produced from at least one of a ferromagnetic material or a ferrimagnetic material.

6. The loudspeaker module according to claim 4, wherein said tubular coil core is disposed such that said coil axis of said antenna coil intersects said drive coil.

7. The loudspeaker module according to claim 4, wherein said tubular coil core is disposed such that said coil axis of said antenna coil runs substantially centrally to said drive coil.

8. The loudspeaker module according to claim 1, wherein said antenna unit has at least one antenna side plate that extends at an angle to said antenna base plate on a side of said antenna base plate that is remote from said antenna coil.

9. The loudspeaker module according to claim 8, wherein said housing has a further side wall formed by said antenna side plate.

10. A hearing device, comprising: a loudspeaker module, containing: a loudspeaker having a loudspeaker diaphragm and a drive for said loudspeaker diaphragm; a housing in which said loudspeaker is disposed and having a side wall; and an antenna unit having an antenna coil with a coil axis, a tubular coil core forming a sound channel, and an antenna base plate with a sound passage opening formed therein that opens into said sound channel, said antenna coil, said tubular coil core and said antenna base plate prescribe an antenna characteristic of said antenna unit, wherein said side wall of said housing on a diaphragm side is formed by said antenna base plate.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

[0027] FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic, sectional view of a loudspeaker module for a hearing device according to the invention;

[0028] FIGS. 2 to 5 are sectional views each showing a further exemplary embodiment of the loudspeaker module in a view according to FIG. 1; and

[0029] FIG. 6 is a transparent side view of the hearing device having the loudspeaker module according to one of the exemplary embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0030] Parts and magnitudes that correspond to one another are provided with the same reference symbols throughout all the figures.

[0031] Referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first, particularly to FIG. 1 thereof, there is shown a loudspeaker module 1 for a hearing device 2 (depicted by way of example in FIG. 6). The loudspeaker module 1 contains a loudspeaker 3 that is arranged in a housing 4. Furthermore, the loudspeaker module 1 has an antenna unit 5 that is in the form of part of the housing 4. The loudspeaker module 1 therefore forms an integrated assembly for the hearing device 2 that is used for outputting audible signals and for sending and/or receiving electromagnetic (data) signals.

[0032] The loudspeaker 3 in the depicted exemplary embodiment is in the form of what is known as a “balanced-armature” loudspeaker. The loudspeaker 3 in this case has a loudspeaker diaphragm 7 that, during operation of the loudspeaker 3, is set in oscillation and thereby produces the audible signals. To produce the oscillation in the loudspeaker diaphragm 7, the loudspeaker 3 has a (diaphragm) drive 8. The diaphragm drive 8 has a substantially U-shaped armature 10 that is coupled to the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 by a drive rod 12. The diaphragm drive 8 additionally has two permanent magnets 14 that are arranged at a distance from one another and have a limb of the armature 10 running between them. Furthermore, the diaphragm drive 8 has a drive coil 16 by which, during operation of the loudspeaker 3, a magnetic field for alternatingly magnetizing the armature 10 is produced. The drive coil 16 is in this case produced in a manner elongated along a coil axis 18, i.e. with a longitudinal extent that is greater in comparison with the thickness thereof.

[0033] The antenna unit 5 has an antenna coil 20 that is arranged, specifically wound, along a (correspondingly associated) rectilinear coil axis 22. The antenna coil 20 is in this case wound on a hollow cylindrical, tubular (antenna) coil core 24 that is produced from ferromagnetic material, specifically ferrite. The coil axis 22 of the antenna coil 20 is in this case oriented perpendicular to the coil axis 18 of the drive coil 16. The antenna unit 5 furthermore contains an antenna base plate 26, likewise formed from ferromagnetic material, specifically ferrite, on which the coil body 24—and hence also the coil axis 22—stands perpendicularly. In the variant embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the coil core 24 and the antenna base plate 26 are manufactured in one piece, which results in simplified installation.

[0034] The antenna base plate 26 in this case forms a side wall, arranged on the diaphragm side of the loudspeaker 3, of the housing 4—in the depicted exemplary embodiment specifically a (top) cover plate of the housing 4. A sound passage opening 30 required for output of the audible signals produced by the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 is in this case formed directly in the antenna base plate 26. The sound passage opening 30 in this case opens into the cylinder interior of the coil core 24. This cylinder interior is subsequently referred to as a sound channel 32. The free end of the sound channel 32 remote from the antenna base plate 26 therefore forms a sound exit opening for the (entire) loudspeaker module 1.

[0035] An acoustically advantageous form is achieved in this case by virtue of the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 being arranged in the housing 4 directly at the lower end of the sound channel 32, and thereby isolating or sealing the sound channel 32 from the housing interior 34. In the present case, the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 is installed on the housing 4 via a, in particular metal, edge region 33. In an alternative configuration, the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 is mounted directly on the antenna base plate 26 via the edge region 33. The actual, freely oscillating diaphragm is situated directly below the sound channel 32. The housing interior 34, sealed from the sound channel 32 by the loudspeaker diaphragm 7, of the housing 4 therefore forms what is known as the back volume of the loudspeaker 3. The front volume, which is on the sound output side in relation to the loudspeaker diaphragm 7, is in this case formed essentially by the sound channel 32.

[0036] FIG. 2 depicts a further exemplary embodiment of the loudspeaker module 1. This exemplary embodiment differs from the exemplary embodiment depicted in FIG. 1 in that the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 is arranged and mounted inside the tubular coil body 24, specifically radially with respect to the coil axis 22. The drive rod 12 is in this case extended correspondingly. The arrangement of the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 in the coil body 24 results in an enlarged back volume and a reduced front volume in comparison with the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 1—for otherwise constant dimensions of the loudspeaker module 1. This advantageously decreases the acoustic resistance counteracting the loudspeaker diaphragm 7, so that (even with the loudspeaker diaphragm 7 having a possibly reduced surface area) the sound characteristic of the loudspeaker 3 can be improved. As such, the loudspeaker module 1 configured in this manner can advantageously better transmit both low and high sounds—i.e. low and high frequencies.

[0037] Since the antenna base plate 26 is produced from ferromagnetic material, it serves firstly to improve the antenna characteristic of the antenna unit 5. Secondly, the antenna base plate 26 also shields the antenna coil 20 at least in part from the magnetic field emanating from the drive coil 16 during operation of the loudspeaker 3.

[0038] An exemplary embodiment of the loudspeaker module 1 that is improved in respect of the shielding effect of the antenna base plate 26 is depicted in FIG. 3. In this case, the coil core 24 and hence the antenna coil 20 are positioned on the antenna base plate 26 such that the coil axis 22 of the antenna coil 20 intersects the drive coil 16 of the loudspeaker 3. Specifically, in the exemplary embodiment depicted in FIG. 3, the coil axis 22 of the antenna coil 20 is oriented centrally to the drive coil 16 and, in addition, intersects the coil axis 18 of the drive coil 16 (in the middle of the drive coil 16). This results in a particularly favorable profile for the magnetic field of the drive coil 16 (depicted by schematically indicated magnetic field lines 40). The upper magnetic field lines 40 in FIG. 3 (i.e. the magnetic field lines 40 closer to the antenna coil 20) are in this case deflected by the antenna base plate 26 such that they are shorted approximately transversely (at right angles) with respect to the coil axis 22 of the antenna coil 20. This results in particularly low interfering influences by the magnetic field of the drive coil 16 on the antenna characteristic of the antenna unit 5. In addition, the coil core 24 is positioned at a short distance from the antenna base plate 26, for example by a foil. The magnetic field of the drive coil 16 is thereby additionally shielded from the antenna coil 20 with increased attenuation.

[0039] An improvement in the shielding effect of the antenna base plate 26 is obtained, however, even when the coil axis 22 of the antenna coil 20—as depicted in FIGS. 4 and 5—is not arranged centrally to the antenna coil 16, but rather is positioned such that it intersects the drive coil 16 (in a region between the middle thereof and one of the two ends). It is therefore advantageously possible to form a compromise between a decrease in the interfering influences on the antenna coil 20 by the drive coil 16 and the design restrictions (in most cases dependent on installation space) that are frequently obtained for hearing devices.

[0040] As is likewise depicted in FIG. 4, the antenna unit 5 additionally contains antenna side plates 42 that are arranged at an angle to the antenna base plate 26 on that side thereof that is remote from the antenna coil 20, and are specifically placed on the outside of the housing 4. These antenna side plates 42 advantageously route the antenna magnetic field produced by the antenna unit 20 around the loudspeaker 3 during operation of the antenna unit 5. Furthermore, the antenna side plates 42 also contribute to shielding the magnetic field of the drive coil 15 from the antenna coil 20.

[0041] As is furthermore evident from FIG. 4, the antenna side plates 42 and also the coil body 24 are each spaced at a short distance from the antenna base plate 26. The relevant distance is realized by an adhesive layer or by an interposed foil, for example.

[0042] In an exemplary embodiment that is not depicted in more detail, the antenna side plates 42 and the coil body 24 are, by contrast, in direct contact with the antenna base plate 26.

[0043] In a further exemplary embodiment, depicted in FIG. 5, the antenna side plates 42 are not placed on the housing 4, but rather form the respective side walls of the housing 4 itself that are perpendicular to the antenna base plate 26. This further reduces the volume taken up by the loudspeaker module 1 in comparison with the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 4. In particular, the antenna side plates 42 and the antenna base plate 26 are manufactured as an integral unit in this case.

[0044] The hearing device 2 depicted in FIG. 6 is what is known as an in-the-ear hearing device (ITE hearing device for short). In this case, the hearing device 2 contains a hearing device housing 50 that is matched to the shape of the auditory canal of the hearing device wearer and that, at its end remote from the eardrum of the hearing device wearer in the intended wearing position, is sealed by a front plate (referred to as “face plate” 52). At its end facing the eardrum in the intended wearing position, the hearing device housing 50 has a sound output 54. On the inside of the housing, the loudspeaker module 1 with the coil body 24, forming the sound channel 32, of the antenna unit 5 is arranged in this sound output 54 in this case. Likewise depicted is an electronic unit 56 that is coupled by circuitry to the loudspeaker module 1 and carries the elements for signal processing.

[0045] The subject matter of the invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments described above. Rather, further embodiments of the invention can be derived from the description above by a person skilled in the art. In particular, the individual features of the invention and of the variant configurations thereof that are described on the basis of the different exemplary embodiments can also be combined with one another in another way.

[0046] The following is a summary list of reference numerals and the corresponding structure used in the above description of the invention: [0047] 1 Loudspeaker module [0048] 2 Hearing device [0049] 3 Loudspeaker [0050] 4 Housing [0051] 5 Antenna unit [0052] 7 Loudspeaker diaphragm [0053] 8 Diaphragm drive [0054] 10 Armature [0055] 12 Drive rod

[0056] 14 Permanent magnet [0057] 16 Drive coil [0058] 18 Coil axis [0059] 20 Antenna coil [0060] 22 Coil axis [0061] 24 Coil core [0062] 26 Antenna baseplate [0063] 30 Sound passage opening [0064] 32 Sound channel [0065] 33 Edge region [0066] 34 Housing interior [0067] 40 Magnetic field line [0068] 42 Antenna side plate [0069] 50 Hearing device housing [0070] 52 Face plate [0071] 54 Sound output [0072] 56 Electronic unit