Hearing aid having two interconnected parts

Abstract

A hearing aid, in particular a BTE hearing aid, includes a base part and an ear hook which can be attached to the base part. In an assembled state, the base part and the ear hook are connected by a nozzle and a receptacle. A sound channel runs through the nozzle. The nozzle has a circumferential outer wall and the receptacle has a circumferential inner wall. In the assembled state, a circumferential sealing ring having a thickness is disposed between the outer wall and the inner wall. The sealing ring lies in particular in an annular groove and the inner wall preferably has two reduction sections which compress the sealing ring.

Claims

1. A hearing aid, comprising: a base part and a second part to be fastened to said base part; a nozzle and a receptacle extending along a center axis in a longitudinal direction; said nozzle being insertable into said receptacle along the longitudinal direction for interconnecting said base part and said second part in an assembled state; a sound channel extending through said nozzle; said nozzle having a peripheral outer wall and said receptacle having a peripheral inner wall; a circumferential sealing ring disposed between said outer wall and said inner wall, said circumferential sealing ring having a thickness and being compressed by said outer wall and said inner wall in the assembled state; one of said outer wall or said inner wall having an annular groove with a groove bottom formed therein; another of said outer wall or said inner wall being disposed at a radial distance from said groove bottom; said annular groove receiving said sealing ring; said other of said outer wall or said inner wall having first and second wall sections and a first reduction section reducing the radial distance in the longitudinal direction, said sealing ring being compressed by said first reduction section upon said nozzle being inserted into said receptacle; said other of said outer wall or said inner wall having a compression section, said compressed sealing ring bearing against said compression section in the assembled state; said compression section being a wall section directly abutting and compressing said sealing ring in a radial direction in the assembled state; said first reduction section partially or completely sliding over said sealing ring and compressing said sealing ring upon inserting said nozzle into said receptacle; said second wall section following said first reduction section in the longitudinal direction and forming at least a part of said compression section; and said first reduction section being guided completely over said sealing ring in the longitudinal direction, causing said first reduction section to remain longitudinally downstream of said sealing ring and not be part of said compression section in the assembled state, or said first reduction section remaining in a section of said sealing ring and being part of the compression section in the assembled state.

2. The hearing aid according to claim 1, which further comprises a second reduction section formed downstream of said first reduction section in the longitudinal direction, said second reduction section reducing the radial distance in addition to the reduction by said first reduction section.

3. The hearing aid according to claim 2, wherein said first and second reduction sections are each conical in shape.

4. The hearing aid according to claim 2, wherein said other of said outer wall or said inner wall has an intermediate section extending between said two reduction sections as said second wall section, said intermediate section being part of said compression section.

5. The hearing aid according to claim 4, wherein said second wall section is oriented parallel to the center axis.

6. The hearing aid according to claim 2, which further comprises a third wall section adjoining said second reduction section in the longitudinal direction, said third wall section being part of said compression section.

7. The hearing aid according to claim 6, wherein said third wall section is oriented parallel to the center axis.

8. The hearing aid according to claim 2, wherein said compression section includes said second reduction section.

9. The hearing aid according to claim 1, wherein said first wall section of said other of said outer wall or said inner wall is disposed in the longitudinal direction in front of said first reduction section at a distance greater than the thickness of said sealing ring, preventing compression from occurring in a region of said first wall section.

10. The hearing aid according to claim 1, wherein said first reduction section forms a stop abutting against a wall section of an opposite wall in the assembled state.

11. The hearing aid according to claim 1, wherein said outer wall and said inner wall each include a threaded section disposed downstream of said annular groove in the longitudinal direction.

12. The hearing aid according to claim 1, wherein said annular groove is formed on said nozzle and said first reduction section is formed on said receptacle.

13. The hearing aid according to claim 1, wherein the hearing aid is a BTE hearing aid, and said second part is an ear hook.

14. The hearing aid according to claim 1, wherein said second wall section is oriented parallel to the center axis.

15. The hearing aid according to claim 1, wherein said first reduction section is not an end face or an insertion slope, and another wall section adjoins said first reduction section in a direction toward a front end of said receptacle.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic, partial sectional view of a BTE hearing aid, with a base part and an ear hook connected thereto;

(2) FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view in the connection area between the base part and the ear hook in an initial situation, before insertion of a nozzle of the base part into a receptacle of the ear hook;

(3) FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the nozzle and the receptacle in the area of a sealing ring according to a first embodiment with only one reduction section;

(4) FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view similar to FIG. 3 of a preferred construction with two reduction sections, the second reduction section being positioned in the area of the sealing ring; and

(5) FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of an alternative construction of the preferred variant with the two reduction sections.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(6) Referring now to the figures of the drawings in detail and first, particularly, to FIG. 1 thereof, there is seen a common BTE hearing aid 2, which has a base part 4 and an ear hook 6 attached thereto. The base part 4 has a housing in which a signal processing unit 3, a microphone 5 and a receiver 8 are disposed. Furthermore, a control element 7, for example a button or a switch, is typically disposed in the housing. The receiver 8 has a sound output nozzle to which, in the example, a sound tube 10 is attached, which in turn is connected to a connection piece 12. This connection piece 12 has a nozzle 14 at the end, which is inserted into a corresponding receptacle 16 in the ear hook 6. The nozzle 14 as well as the receptacle 16 are not visible in FIG. 1. In FIG. 1 a cover or the housing of the base part 4 is omitted so that the interior of the base part 4 is visible.

(7) In operation, an acoustic signal is generally converted by the microphone 5 into an electrical signal, which is conditioned in the signal processing unit 3. The conditioned signal is passed to the earpiece 8, which again converts the conditioned signal into an acoustic sound signal and emits it through the afore-mentioned sound outlet port, so that sound is transmitted to an ear canal of the wearer through a sound channel typically formed in the ear hook 6 through a sound tube. The BTE hearing aid 2 is—as the name suggests—worn by the wearer behind the ear. Through the use of the ear hook 6, the hearing aid is attached to the pinna of the wearer's ear.

(8) The nozzle 14 and the receptacle 16 are substantially cylindrical and extend along a common center axis 18 in a longitudinal direction 20. The direction of the longitudinal direction 20 is defined in this case from a rear end to a front, free end of the nozzle 14. At the same time, the longitudinal direction 20 also defines a direction of insertion for the nozzle 14 into the receptacle 16. In the front section, the nozzle 14 has a threaded section 22 which can be screwed into a corresponding threaded section 22 of the receptacle 16. For this purpose, the individual threaded sections 22 each have a helical circumferential thread.

(9) The nozzle 14 generally has an outer wall 24 and the receptacle 16 has an inner wall 26. An annular groove 28 is formed in the outer wall 24, in which a sealing ring 30 in the form of an O-ring is located. As usual, the sealing ring is formed of an elastic material and is compressible. In the embodiment example, the annular groove 28 and thus the sealing ring 30 are disposed in front of the threaded section 22, as viewed in the longitudinal direction. The annular groove 28 is open to one side in the radial direction and has a groove bottom 29 opposite the opening.

(10) The nozzle 14 has a sound channel 32 on the inside. An end of a sound tube, for example, is inserted in an inner cavity of the nozzle 14, as shown in FIG. 2. This sound tube defines the sound channel 32, which is continued on the side of the ear hook 6 in a further sound channel 34. For this purpose, another sound tube is connected to the receptacle 16, for example.

(11) Through the use of the sealing ring 30, a soundproof connection between the receptacle 16 and the nozzle 14 is ensured. In general, the sealing ring 30 is compressed during assembly in the radial direction, i.e. perpendicular to the longitudinal direction 20, so that it is pressed in between the inner wall 26 and the outer wall 24.

(12) For the sealing effect, the highest possible compression would be desirable in order to ensure a completely circumferential seal. At the same time, however, there is a risk with high compression that the sealing ring 30 will be forced out of the annular groove 28 against the longitudinal direction 20 when the nozzle 14 is inserted into the receptacle 16.

(13) In order to both achieve a good sealing effect and also prevent the sealing ring 30 from being pressed out, special measures are provided which are explained below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 5.

(14) The inner wall 26 has a first reduction section 36, which is in particular conical in shape. This first reduction section 36 is thus oriented obliquely to the longitudinal direction 20 and has an angle of inclination a (cone angle) to the latter, which lies, for example, in the range between 20° and 70° and, in particular, in the range between 30° and 60°. In the longitudinal direction 20, the first reduction section 36 extends, for example, over a length corresponding to between 10% and 40% of a thickness d of the sealing ring 30.

(15) In a direction opposite to the longitudinal direction 20, a first wall section 38 adjoins the first reduction section 36—in the example forming a step-shaped jump. In the longitudinal direction 20, the first reduction section 36 is followed by a second wall section 40, which runs parallel to the center axis 18.

(16) The respective wall section or the respective wall sections that abut the sealing ring 30 in the assembled final state define a compression section 42.

(17) In the example of FIG. 3, the compression section 42 is formed by the second wall section 40. Compression of the sealing ring 30 also generally results in deformation thereof, so that generally the annular groove 28 and thus the intermediate section between the nozzle 14 and the receptacle 16 is reliably filled and sealed.

(18) In principle, a larger, in particular thicker sealing ring 30 would lead to an improved sealing effect. However, the nozzle 14 and the receptacle 16 are comparatively small parts and the available space is limited, so that the size of the sealing ring 30 is limited. High compression is also limited by the fact that when the nozzle 14 is inserted into the receptacle 16, the reduction in diameter exerts a force in opposite direction to the longitudinal direction 22, which acts on the sealing ring 30 and can push it out of the annular groove 28.

(19) In order to increase the sealing effect and to prevent the sealing ring 30 from being pressed out as far as possible, the improved embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 is provided.

(20) Of particular importance, is that a second reduction section 44 is provided which results in further compression of the sealing ring 30. The reduction sections 36, 44 generally change a radial distance a between a respective wall section and the groove bottom 29.

(21) In the example of FIG. 4, a third wall section 48 follows the second reduction section 44 in the longitudinal direction 20 and runs parallel to the center axis 18. Furthermore, it is of particular importance that in the joined final state the second reduction section 44, the leading second wall section 40 and the trailing third wall section 48 form the compression section 42. As a result, a plurality of separate sealing surfaces are formed by these different wall sections. This significantly increases the sealing effect. In particular, the second reduction section 44 enables a higher compression, since the two compression stages reduce the risk of the sealing ring 30 being pressed out. Compared to the embodiment of FIG. 3, for example, a 10% to 25% higher compression can be achieved without a higher risk of the sealing ring 30 being pushed out. Alternatively or additionally, this improved embodiment allows the use of smaller sealing rings 30 especially sealing rings 30 with a smaller thickness d.

(22) In the example of FIG. 4, the second reduction section 44 is also conical. Its cone angle α is preferably in the range between 20° and 70° and in particular in the range between 30° and 60°. It preferably has the same cone angle α as the first reduction section 36.

(23) In principle, there are different construction options for the profiling and contouring of the reduction sections 36, 44, especially for the second reduction section 44. For example, a stepped construction is also provided as an alternative, as shown in FIG. 5. In this case, the second reduction section 44 is oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal direction 20.

(24) For example, the reduction of the radial distance a by the first reduction section 36 is in the range between 5% and 20% of the thickness d of the sealing ring 30. For example, the reduction of a radial distance a by the second reduction section 44 is also in the range between 5% and 20% of the thickness d. For example, the radial distance a is reduced identically or alternatively differently by the two reduction sections 36, 44.

(25) The particular advantage of the variants described with regard to FIGS. 4 and 5 is that the profiled construction of the wall in the compression section 42 provides several sealing sections that form a redundancy. In addition, this enables increased compression, which improves the sealing effect. These variants are particularly advantageous for installation situations in which only small sealing rings 30 can be used. In the case of larger sealing rings, the special profiling reduces the risk of the sealing ring 30 being pressed out. In addition to the profiled construction of the compression section 42, it is particularly decisive for this that—when the parts are joined—the second reduction section 44 acts on the sealing ring 30 at a later time than the first reduction section 36.

(26) During assembly, the nozzle 14 is inserted into the receptacle 16 in the longitudinal direction 20. In the variant shown in FIG. 2, this is done by screwing it in. For this purpose, the ear hook 6 with its receptacle 16 is typically screwed onto the nozzle 14. The joined end position is generally limited by a stop, through the use of which a defined relative position is assumed between the nozzle 14 and the receptacle 16, so that the individual wall sections are positioned at the desired positions relative to the sealing ring 30. Preferably, the stop is formed by the first reduction section 36, which in the assembled state comes to rest against a corresponding counter stop on the opposite wall.

(27) The invention is explained herein in connection with embodiments of the connection between the base part 4 and the ear hook 6. In principle, the construction described herein between the receptacle 16 and the nozzle 14 with the sealing ring 30 and the special profiling of the wall can also be transferred to other constructions, especially for hearing aids, in which a soundproof connection between two components is required.

(28) The following is a summary list of reference numerals and the corresponding structure used in the above description of the invention.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

(29) 2 BTE hearing aid 3 signal processing unit 4 base part 5 microphone 6 ear hook 7 control element 8 Receiver 10 sound tube 12 connection piece 14 Nozzle 16 Receptacle 18 center axis 20 longitudinal direction 22 threaded section 24 outer wall 26 inner wall 28 annular groove 29 groove bottom 30 sealing ring 32 sound channel 34 further sound channel 36 first reduction section 38 first wall section 40 second wall section 42 compression section 44 second reduction section 48 third wall section a radial distance a cone angle d thickness