WO2013123992A1

WO2013123992A1 - Left-right side-indifferent hearing aid connector

Info

Publication number: WO2013123992A1
Application number: PCT/EP2012/053088
Authority: WO
Inventors: Nikolaj Hommelhoff Jensen; Jorgen Mejner Olsen
Original assignee: Widex A/S
Priority date: 2012-02-23
Filing date: 2012-02-23
Publication date: 2013-08-29

Abstract

In a connector system for electrically connecting a hearing aid BTE device (1) with an earpiece (3, 4, 30), the wire (5) coming from the BTE device (1) is detacha bly connectable with the earpiece (3, 4, 30). The same connectors (2, 6, 40, 41) at both the wire (5) and the earpiece (3, 4, 30) can be used irrespective of which side of the users head, the hearing aid is to be used.

Description

LEFT-RIGHT SIDE-INDIFFERENT HEARING AID CONNECTOR

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the field of hearing aids. The invention, more specifically, relates to hearing aids having an input transducer, a signal processing unit, a power supply unit, and an output transducer. The invention particularly relates to the field of hearing aids with receiver in the ear canal, also known as RITE (Receiver In The Ear) or RIC hearing aids (Receiver In Canal), other details residing in a housing placed behind the ear (Behind-The-Ear device) .

BACKGROUN D

Within the context of the present d isclosure, a hearing aid should be understood as a small, battery-powered, microelectronic device designed to be worn behind or in the human ear by a hearing-impaired user. A hearing aid comprises one or more microphones, a battery, a microelectronic circuit comprising a signal processor, and an acoustic output transducer (also referred to as a receiver) . The signal processor is preferably a d ig ital signal processor. The hearing aid is enclosed in a casing suitable for fitting behind or in a human ear. The hearing aid serves to alleviate a hearing loss by amplifying sound at frequencies in those parts of the audible frequency range where the user suffers a hearing deficit. US-A1-2009/0180653 shows a system comprising a Behind-The-Ear (BTE) device including signal processing means and an earpiece unit including a microphone, interconnected with a plastic tube containing a wire connecting the BTE device with the earpiece. The plastic tube is preshaped to fit either the right or the left ear of a human being . EP-Al-1816893 shows a BTE device with the receiver located at the BTE device and a plug adapted to fit the ear canal of the individual user. The BTE device and the ear plug are interconnected via a sound tube locked to both the BTE device and the plug, in order to keep the system connected once adjusted for the specific user. The sound tube is shaped to fit either the right or the left ear of a human being .

EP-A2-2071866 shows a connector for connecting the speaker of a RIC device with a connector cable, for interconnecting the BTE device and the RIC device, using a spring element. The cable connecting the BTE device with the ear piece is shaped to fit either the right or the left ear of a human being .

A common type of hearing aid today is the Receiver-In-The-Ear (RITE) or Receiver-In-Canal (RIC) type of hearing aid, which has a Behind-The- Ear device, and an earpiece device comprising a receiver. The BTE device and the earpiece device are interconnected via electrical conducting wires. The BTE device is a standard BTE device comprising the battery, the input transducers, and the signal processing unit. The earpiece comprises at least the receiver unit, and may be a custom made earpiece or a standard, instant fit earpiece.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

RIC type hearing aids comprise in principle three parts, the BTE part, the earpiece part and the wire connecting the two parts. The BTE part is a standard BTE, while the earpiece can be either custom made for the individual ear or it can be a standard or instant fit earpiece. The wire is a standard component for the left or right ear with a variety of different lengths to best fit the size of the individual ear. The present invention shows a wire connecting system comprising a wire includ ing a male connector and a connector module located at the ear piece, which can be used for both the right and the left ear, whereby the number of spare parts is reduced, and production costs are minimized .

It is a feature of the present invention to provide a simple and easy way to connect these three parts, with a minimum of different parts to be used in order to minimize production cost, storage capacity and to allow easier composition and fitting of the hearing aid .

According to the invention, in a first aspect, this is achieved by the hearing aid as defined in claim 1.

According to the invention, a hearing aid system comprises a BTE device and an earpiece, wherein the earpiece has a female through- connector for connecting with a wire to the BTE device. A female through-connector is a sleeve-like device allowing connection with a male connector introduced from either side of the connector.

Having a through connector in a RIC type hearing aid system with the through-connector located at the earpiece and the male connector at the wire from the BTE device to the ear piece allows a slim design, where a minimal number of different parts are necessary. The through connector allows the male connector to be inserted into the female connector, from either side of the connector. This allows the use of the same female connector at both the rig ht and left ear, without changing the polarity, by flipping the female connector 180 degrees around a horizontal axis, when used at the right ear compared to when used on the left ear. Furthermore the use of a connector system as proposed herein, allows the wire to be shaped in one plane, where wires for known systems have to be bent, in order to be directed in the same direction as the ear canal. Hereby the number of wires and connectors are decreased to half the number compared to traditional side-specific connector systems.

Furthermore, if the connector pads are placed appropriately, the polarity is independent of the male connector being inserted from either the first or the second side of the female through connector.

Further features and advantages will appear from the dependent claims.

The invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the drawings, where;

Fig . 1 illustrates a female through connector at the earpiece, open for connecting a male connector from either side i.e. from a left or a right BTE device.

Fig . 2 illustrates a left and a right hearing aid connected with respective BTE devices, wires, and earpieces.

Fig . 3 illustrates a BTE device connected to an standard instant fit earpiece.

Fig . 4 illustrates a cross sectional view of an earpiece including a female connector, and a wire with a male connector.

Fig . 5A illustrates a male connector and wire to the BTE device. The male connector having 3 connector pads a, b, c.

Fig . 5B illustrates a connector module with a female throug h-connector. Fig 5C illustrates an in-the-ear device with a connector module having a female through connector with 3 connector pads.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Fig . 1 shows a female through connector module 2, to be integrated in the left or right earpiece (not shown). The BTE device is connected to the earpiece by the male connector 6 attached to the electrical wire 5. The male connector 6 has at least two connector pads 7 for electrical connection from the signal processing circuit and battery in the BTE device to the receiver in the earpiece. The female connector 9, is a through connector adapted for making connection from either side, the pins at the male connector adapted for connecting the appropriate connector pads at the female connector when connecting from either side, without changing the phase of the electrical signal.

Fig . 2 shows a complete set of left and right RIC hearing aids with a pair of BTE devices 1, a pair of electrical wires 5, an earpiece for the right ear 3, an earpiece for the left ear 4, and for each earpiece an earpiece connector module 2 with a respective male connector plugged into the female connector in a respective female through connector module 2. The wire 5 is fitted with a male connector and is preshaped to generally fit both rig ht and left side use. Like the male connector, the female connector module is of the same type for both the right and the left ear, whereby the connector module can be mounted into the custom

earpiece.

Fig . 3 shows a hearing aid comprising a BTE device 1 and an standard instant fit earpiece with a connecting wire 5. The earpiece comprises a receiver module 30, containing the receiver. The wire is connected to the receiver through the connector module 2 and the female through connector 9. The receiver module transmits the sound to the user through the sound tube 31, for directing the sound into the user's ear. The sound tube 31 has a dome 32 for keeping the sound tube at the position within the ear canal and to prevent sound from dissipate out through the open ear canal, hereby enhancing the sound pressure in the ear canal.

Fig . 4 is a different embodiment of the connector plug, shown together with a BTE device 1 and an ITE device 3. The male connector 41 has three electrical connection points a, b, c, located at the side of the rectangular male connector. The three connectors are located at both of the flat sides of the rectangular connector, each connecting point a, b, c comprising contact pads located at both sides d irectly opposite each other. At the female connector 40, the contact pads are only located at one side, so that a, b, and c will connect with the corresponding connector pads at the female connector 40, irrespective of whether the male connector 41 is inserted from one or the other side of the female through connector 40. Fig . 5A shows a male connector 6 with a wire 5 according to the embodiment shown in figure 4, having 3 connector pads a, b, c at each side of the elongate male connector 6, to allow connection with corresponding female connector pads at either side of the male connector 6. The male connector 6 further has a protrusion 11 at the side of the elongate connector 6. The protrusion 11 is adapted to interact with an indentation 12 in the female connector (see fig . 5B) to lock the two connectors together.

Fig . 5B shows a top down view of the connector module 2, including the female connector, according to the embodiment of fig. 4 and

corresponding to the male connector 6 of fig . 5A. The female connector has an indentation 12 adapted to interact with a corresponding

protrusion 11 of the male connector 6. Fig . 5C shows top-down of an ITE device with a connector module 2, according to the embodiment of fig . 4. The female connector has three connector pads a', b', and c' protruding from one side of the elongate female connector for connecting with the male connector pads a, b, c. A RITE or RIC type hearing aid consists of three units, an earpiece unit 3 or 4, a wire 5 and a BTE device 1. The BTE device is a standard component for use at both the right and the left ear of a user, the BTE unit device comprising a battery, one or more microphones, A/D converters, a D/A converter, a digital signal processing unit and a connector for connecting the D/A converter with the receiver.

Alternatively, the earpiece comprises both a D/A and an A/D converter, and the signal processing unit is connected with the converters through a databus cable.

The wire 5 contains at least two electrical conducting wires within an insulating plastic tubing . The wire may have a screen to avoid picking up interfering electromagnetic signals. The wire has a connector plug 6 at one end for connection to the earpiece. The wire may have a plug (not shown) at the other end for connection with the BTE device. The connector 6 is a male type connector according to figure 1, on which the connecting pads 7 and 8 are located at the exterior of the connector to connect with corresponding connector pads 9 at the interior of the female connector 2. As the female connector at the earpiece is a through connector, the wire does not have to be preformed for the right and left ear respectively, allowing usage of the same preformed wire for both ears.

The earpiece unit, which is placed in the ear of the user, may be a custom earpiece, or a standard instant fit earpiece. The custom earpiece is made to the specific ear of the user, by taking an imprint of the ear canal of the user. The standard instant fit ear piece is an ear piece made in different sizes to best fit the size of the ear canal, and with different vent sizes depending on the hearing loss of the user. In either solution, the earpiece contains at least the receiver of the hearing aid . In addition it may contain other parts like a canal microphone, an outer microphone, A/D and D/A converters. The standard instant fit earpiece may have a female connector as an integrated part of the earpiece or the female connector may be part of a connector module mounted into the standard instant fit ear piece. A custom made earpiece will have a connector module 2 as shown in figure 1. The connector module has a female connector with electrical connection pads 9 at the interior of the hole. The receiver is connected to the female connector via electrical connection means.

According to the invention, the wire from the BTE device to the earpiece device may transfer either analog or d ig ital signals. In a specific embodiment, the electrical connection between the BTE device and the earpiece is digital. Digital signals are more resistant towards

electromagnetic interference and are therefore very attractive in such low power systems. When using digital communication between the BTE device and the earpiece, the earpiece has to hold at least a D/A converter for converting the signal to the receiver into analogue. The D/A converter is preferably held within the receiver module along with the receiver. The earpiece may further comprise microphones and other sensors. In such case, the earpiece may further comprise an A/D converter.

The electrical connection is made between the two connectors by sliding the male connector downwards into the female connector until the engaging means holds the two connectors tightly together. The connector pads are made so as to create good conductivity between the two connectors without putting too much stress on the materials of either connector. The connector pads at either the male or female connector may be spring-loaded, so as to create good contact pressure between the male and female connector while allowing the two connectors to be detachable. Furthermore, the connector pads of the one connector might be concave and the opposite connector pads convex. Such a system will ensure good contact pressure and good holding means for holding the two connectors together. In order to ensure the correct connection from either side of the female connector, the connection pads should be located along a symmetry axis. In an embodiment, the male connector is substantially located at the same place within the female connector when connected, irrespective of the side, from which the male connector is inserted into the female connector. In an embodiment the electrical connection is made via pins at the male connector, connecting with holes at the female connector. This is less preferred as it approximately doubles the size of the female connector, as the male connector in this case will be positioned at two different locations, depend ing on the side from which it is inserted .

A system as described and shown herein will have an inherent

safeguard against creating a false connection between the electrical pads at the male and female connector, as the wire has to be twisted 180 degrees by physical force in order to make the connectors fit together. However the system may be further protected against this, by having a recess at one part and similar protrusion at the other, for mutual engagement.

In an embodiment of the invention, the wire is permanently connected to the BTE device allowing detachment between the wire and the earpiece only.

Claims

1. A hearing aid connector system for electrically connecting a behind-the-ear device with an in the ear device, comprising

- a wire for electrically transmitting signals from the behind the ear device to the in the ear device;

- a male plug connector;

- a female through connector adapted for receiving a male connector from either one of two opposing sides;

- the male connector having connector pads, for

connecting with at least two connector pads at the female connector;

wherein the male connector is adapted for connecting with the female through connector when inserted from either side without changing the phase of the

electrical connections.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein at least one connector pad is spring loaded.

3. The system according to claims 1 or 2, wherein at least one connector pad has a concave shape.

4. The system according to claims 1 or 2, wherein at least one connector pad has a convex shape.

5. The system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the male plug connector has a protrusion for engaging with a recess of the female through-connector, to prevent wrong connection of the connector pads.

6. The system according to any of the claims 1 to 4, wherein the male plug connector has a recess for engaging with a protrusion at the female through-connector, to prevent wrong connection of the connector pads.

7. The system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the connector system is adapted for connecting a databus.

8. An electrical wire for connecting a Behind-The-Ear device with an In-The-Ear device, comprising a male plug connector adapted for insertion into a female through connector, wherein the wire is preshaped in one plane to fit the contours of the both the right and left ear from the helix to the concha.

9. A male connector for electrically connecting an electrical wire from a behind-the-ear part with an in-the-ear part of a hearing aid, the wire comprises at least two electrical wires, and the male connector comprises at least two electrical contact pads, the male connector is suitable for use at both the right and left ear of a user.

10. A male connector according to claim 9, where the wire and the connector extends in one plane.

11. A male connector according to claim 9 or 10, having connector pads located along a symmetry axis, to allow electrical connection from either side of the symmetry axis without changing the phase of the signal.

12. A connector module with a female through-connector, adapted for positioning at an in the ear part of a hearing aid, for either the right or the left side of the users head, allowing connection with a male connector from either one of two opposing sides, the female through connector having a number of contact pads located at the inside of the through- connector for establishing electrical connection with a male connector, and an indentation adapted to fit a protrusion of the male connector.

13. A connector module with a female through-connector according to claim 12, having connector pads along one side of the elongate female through-connector.