JP2014007667A - Acoustic transmission device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cartilage-conduction acoustic transmission device that can be used for a long time.
SOLUTION: An acoustic transmission device 1 having a housing 3 having an electric circuit 2 configured to be hooked on a human auricle, and extending from the housing 3 to the vicinity of the tragus A. A transmission unit 5 having an electroacoustic transducer 4 that generates acoustic vibration in response to an electrical signal from the electrical circuit 3 in contact therewith, and a fixing member that is provided in the transmission unit 5 and fixes the transmission unit 5 to the tragus A 6 are provided.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an acoustic transmission device using an electroacoustic transducer.

  Conventionally, as a kind of acoustic transmission device, a bone conduction type receiving device has been proposed in which sound vibrates into the skull, stimulates the inner ear of the cochlea, etc., converts the vibration into an electrical signal by the cochlea and transmits it to the brain. (See Patent Document 1 below). Patent Document 1 discloses a technique in which a bone conduction speaker and a bone conduction microphone of a receiving device are clipped to an earlobe (an earlobe).

JP 2001-320790 A

  However, since the technique of Patent Document 1 is formed so that the bone conduction speaker is in contact with the earlobe (apical lobe), there is a possibility that a person may feel uncomfortable when using it by clipping the earlobe (lobe) for a long time. . For this reason, the technique may be less frequently used and has not been widely used in the world.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cartilage conduction type acoustic transmission device that can be used for a long time.

  In order to solve the above-described problem, an acoustic transmission device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a housing having an electric circuit configured to be hooked on an auricle of a human body, and extending from the housing. A transmission unit having an electroacoustic transducer that abuts in the vicinity of the tragus and generates an acoustic vibration in response to an electric signal from the electric circuit, and the transmission unit is fixed to the tragus provided in the transmission unit. And a fixing member.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a cartilage guide type acoustic transmission device that can be used for a long time.

It is the general-view figure which showed the state with which the acoustic transmission apparatus which concerns on this embodiment was mounted | worn with the left ear | edge. It is a general-view figure of the acoustic transmission apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a general-view figure of the acoustic transmission apparatus which concerns on a 1st modification. It is the general-view figure which showed the state which mounted | wore the left ear | edge with the acoustic transmission apparatus which concerns on a 2nd modification. It is a general-view figure of the acoustic transmission apparatus which concerns on a 2nd modification.

Embodiments of a hearing aid that is an example of an acoustic transmission device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, this invention shall not be limited to the following embodiment. FIGS. 1 to 5 show the one used by wearing it on the left ear. The dashed-dotted line of FIG. 2 has shown the position of the recessed part in which the electric circuit and battery in a housing | casing are accommodated.

<Configuration of acoustic transmission device>
The acoustic transmission device 1 according to the present embodiment is a hearing aid, which is used by a hearing impaired person, and is used by being worn on an ear. The acoustic transmission device 1 includes a housing 3 having an electric circuit 2 that is configured to be hooked on a human auricle, and extends from the housing 3 so as to contact the vicinity of the tragus A of the auricle. A transmission unit 5 having an electroacoustic transducer 4 (hereinafter also referred to as a piezoelectric element) that generates an acoustic vibration in response to an electrical signal from the circuit 2, and provided in the transmission unit 5. And a fixing member 6 to be fixed.

  The housing 3 is attached to the auricle and formed to match the auricle shape. The one that matches the shape and size of the user's ear is used. An electric circuit 2 using a battery as a power source and a microphone are built in the housing 3. The electric circuit 2 spreads sound with a microphone and causes the electroacoustic transducer 4 to generate acoustic vibrations corresponding to the sound.

  The portion of the housing 3 that comes into contact with the base of the ear is covered with resin. The resin is an epoxy resin, an acrylic resin, silicon, urethane rubber, or the like, and is made of a material that does not adversely affect the human body. By coating the surface of the housing 3 with a resin, it is possible to reduce friction with the ear when it is worn on the ear, and fit the ear so that it can be used for a long time.

  The housing 3 has a curved portion 3A in which a portion in contact with the base of the auricle is curved along the shape of the base of the auricle. The curved portion 3A has a shape in which a part of the surface of the housing 3 is recessed, and can be formed according to the shape and size of the user's ear. The surface of the curved portion 3A is provided with irregularities. By providing the unevenness, it is possible to reduce the portion that comes into contact with the user's ear, suppress the external auditory canal from being steamed, and reduce discomfort.

  The battery that supplies electricity to the electric circuit 2 uses an air battery that uses oxygen in the air as the positive electrode active material and metal as the negative electrode active material. Note that examples of the negative electrode active material include aluminum, magnesium, lithium, and zinc. Air batteries are generally used as hearing aid batteries because they are lightweight. However, the air battery is known to have a short life as a battery although it is lightweight.

  The concave portion P of the housing 3 is formed in a size that allows the battery to be inserted. The recess P can contain a battery, and a spring is provided on the bottom of the recess P. In addition, an electrode that is electrically connected to the battery is formed on the inner side of the lid that is a part of the housing 3 that closes the recess P. A spring is also used as an electrode electrically connected to the battery. When the battery is fitted into the recess P, the battery is electrically connected to the electrode of the lid and the spring.

  The housing 3 can be provided on the back side of the ear, and most of the housing 3 can be hidden from the front side of the ear from the outside. Even if a person is worried about another person's eyes, the hearing aid can be used without worrying too much about the other person's eyes.

  The transmission unit 5 includes a main body 5A that abuts on the vicinity of the tragus of the ear, a housing 3 that connects the main body 5A and the housing 3, and an extension 5B. The electroacoustic transducer 4 is built in the main body 5A. The extending portion 5B is provided with electric wiring that is electrically connected to the electric circuit 2 and the electroacoustic transducer 4 inside. The surface of the extending portion 5B is covered with an insulating material such as epoxy resin, acrylic resin, silicon, or urethane rubber.

The electroacoustic transducer 4 is composed of a piezoelectric body having a bimorph structure. The electroacoustic transducer 4 has a structure in which a plurality of polarized piezoelectric layers and a plurality of electrode layers are alternately stacked. The electroacoustic transducer 4 is subjected to bending vibration so that the one main surface and the other main surface are bent, thereby generating acoustic vibration. In addition, the electroacoustic transducer 4 is set in a rectangular parallelepiped shape having a length of 15 mm to 40 mm, a width of 2 mm to 30 mm, and a thickness of 0.3 mm to 5 mm, for example. The piezoelectric layer constituting the electroacoustic transducer 4 is made of, for example, a lead-free piezoelectric material such as lead zirconate, lead zirconate titanate, Bi layered compound, tungsten bronze structure compound, or the like. The electrode layer constituting the electroacoustic transducer 4 is made of, for example, an alloy containing silver or palladium, or an alloy containing a ceramic component or glass component in this alloy.

  The transmission unit 5 transmits acoustic vibration generated from the electroacoustic transducer 4. When the transmission unit 5 is applied to the ear, the transmission unit 5 can successfully transmit sound to the inner ear via the cartilage. Specifically, acoustic vibration is transmitted to cartilage and skin near the tragus. At this time, it can be used without closing the ear. The transmission part 5 has an elliptical shape and has a major axis of 3 mm to 20 mm and a thickness of 1.5 mm to 5 mm. The transmission unit 5 is coated with a resin such as an epoxy resin, an acrylic resin, silicon, or urethane rubber. Here, although the shape of the transmission unit 5 is an elliptical shape, it may be a circular shape, a polygonal shape, a rectangular shape, or the like. Furthermore, it is positioned by adjusting the position of the transmission part 5 according to the shape of the ear to the user.

  Since the transmission part 5 is used in contact with the tragus, the transmission part 5 is not housed in the concha cavity part and is not sandwiched between the tragus and the rosary. Therefore, it is possible to make it difficult for the user to feel a sense of blockage due to the ear being blocked, and to reduce the resistance to using the hearing aid.

  Further, on the surface of the transmission unit 5 and on the front side of the ear, accessories such as accessories and jewelry can be attached. The transmission part 5 can be used as an earring, and the fashionability of the acoustic transmission device can be improved. It should be noted that any accessories such as accessories and jewelry can be used according to the user's preference.

  The fixing member 6 is a member that is fixed to the tragus A of the ear. The fixing member 6 is hooked and fixed across the tragus A. The fixing member 6 may have a clip shape for fastening the tragus A. Note that the surface of the fixing member 6 is coated with a resin such as an epoxy resin, an acrylic resin, silicon, or urethane rubber.

  The acoustic transmission device according to the present embodiment is a cartilage-guided hearing aid, and a battery or an electric circuit 2 can be provided in a housing 3 that is hooked on an ear. If the earlobe (lobe) is simply clipped, the power source must be used by extending the wiring from an external power source or the like, and can only be used at a specific location. The acoustic transmission device according to the present embodiment can be used by the user freely acting unlike these fixed telephones.

  In the case of a cartilage-guided hearing aid, since a piezoelectric element is used as the electroacoustic transducer, the acoustic vibration generated by the piezoelectric element can be small unlike a bone conduction speaker. Therefore, even if an electroacoustic transducer is disposed in the vicinity of the tragus, the user's face does not vibrate too much and the skull can be made difficult to vibrate. As a result, even if the user uses it for a long time, there is little possibility that a headache will occur, and it can be used comfortably for a long time.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the above-mentioned form, A various change, improvement, etc. are possible in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention. For example, it can be used for earphones, speakers, and wireless communication in addition to hearing aids. Hereinafter, modifications of the present embodiment will be described. Note that, among the hearing aids according to the modified example of the present embodiment, the same parts as those of the hearing aid according to the present embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted as appropriate.

<First modification>
FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the hearing aid according to the first modified example, and the fixing member 6 </ b> X has an insertion portion that passes through a hole formed in the tragus. FIG. 3 shows a hearing aid worn on the left ear of a human, and shows only one side. In the above-described embodiment, the fixing member 6 is hooked on the tragus A, but is not limited thereto. The dashed-dotted line of FIG. 3 has shown the position of the recessed part in which the electrical circuit and battery in a housing | casing are accommodated.

  In the hearing aid according to the first modification, the fixing member 6X is formed in a pierced shape, and a hole through which the insertion portion is passed is formed in advance in the ear tragus, and the fixing member 6X is fixed through the hole. The fixing member 6X of the acoustic transmission device according to the present modification can be fixed through a hole opened in the tragus, and even if the user performs a strenuous exercise that moves the body greatly, the transmission of the acoustic transmission device The part 5 can be made difficult to be displaced.

<Second modification>
4 and 5 are schematic views of the hearing aid according to the second modified example, and have a structure in which the transmitting portion 5Y is in contact with the back side of the tragus A. FIG. 4 and 5 show a hearing aid worn on the human left ear, and only one side is shown. In the embodiment and the first modification described above, the transmission unit 5 is in the vicinity of the tragus A and is provided on the front side of the ear, but is not limited thereto. The dashed-dotted line of FIG. 4 has shown the main-body part 5AY of the transmission part located in the ear hole of the back side of the tragus A and hidden from the outside. Moreover, the dashed-dotted line of FIG. 5 has shown the position of the recessed part in which the electric circuit and battery in a housing | casing are accommodated.

  The hearing aid according to the second modification has a structure that can position the transmitting portion 5Y inside the auricle and at a position hidden by the tragus when viewed from the outside. The fixing member 6Y provided in the transmission part 5Y is a part of the extending part 5BY extending from the main body part 5A of the transmission part 5Y, and covers the vicinity of the fixing member 6Y with a material whose shape is difficult to deform, It can be pinched by the tragus A and can be fixed to the ear. By making the fixing member 6Y difficult to see from the outside, even a person who is worried about the eyes of others can be used without resistance.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Acoustic transmission apparatus 2 Electric circuit 3 Case 4 Electroacoustic transducer (piezoelectric element)
5 transmission part 5A body part 5B extension part 6 fixing member A tragus P recess

Claims (6)

A housing having an electrical circuit configured to be hooked on a human auricle;
A transmission unit having an electroacoustic transducer that generates acoustic vibrations in response to an electrical signal from the electrical circuit, extending from the housing and contacting the vicinity of the tragus;
An acoustic transmission device, comprising: a fixing member that is provided in the transmission unit and fixes the transmission unit to the tragus. The acoustic transmission device according to claim 1,
The housing is covered with a resin at a portion that contacts the base of the auricle. The acoustic transmission device according to claim 1 or 2,
The acoustic transmission device according to claim 1, wherein a portion of the housing that contacts the root of the auricle is curved along the shape of the root of the auricle. The acoustic transmission device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The acoustic transmission device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission unit is in contact with the ear canal side of the tragus. The acoustic transmission device according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The acoustic transmission device according to claim 1, wherein the fixing member has an insertion portion that passes through a hole formed in the tragus. The acoustic transmission device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
The acoustic transmission device according to claim 1, wherein the housing is provided with a recess that houses a battery that supplies electricity to the electric circuit.

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