Earpiece
First Claim
1. A hearing protection device comprising an earpiece, the earpiece comprising an earbud configured for insertion into the ear canal of a user, and a housing that houses at least one microphone arranged to sample the ambient environment, the housing comprising opposing first and second faces,wherein the first face faces and extends along a bottom surface of the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal and the second face faces away from the bottom surface of the concha and out of the concha, and the housing having spaced apart opposing third and fourth faces extending between the first and second faces, wherein the housing is configured with the third face being adjacent to the tragus of a user'"'"'s ear and the fourth face being adjacent to the rear surface of the concha of the user'"'"'s ear when the earbud is in the ear canal, wherein the housing has a longitudinal axis extending through the third and fourth faces and a transverse axis normal to the longitudinal axis and extending through the first and second faces, and a port in the fourth face of the housing and through which sound may be received by the microphone, the earbud being connected to the first face to extend outwards from the first face in an axial direction of the earbud and arranged such that when the earbud is inserted into the ear canal the microphone samples the ambient environment between the housing and a face of the concha spaced apart from the ear canal, and the fourth face has one or more protrusions adjacent the port that extend outwards in an axial direction of the port toward a rear surface of the concha spaced apart from the ear canal, wherein the protrusions are configured to maintain a gap between the port and the rear surface of the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal, and wherein the port is positioned such that there is no unimpeded straight line path into the port from outside the concha.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An earpiece comprising an earbud, which is arranged such that it may be inserted into the ear canal of a user, and a housing, which houses at least one microphone that is arranged to sample the ambient environment, the housing comprising a port through which sound may be received by the microphone, the earpiece being arranged such that when the earbud is inserted into the ear canal of a user the microphone samples the ambient environment between the earpiece and the concha.
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Citations
17 Claims
- 1. A hearing protection device comprising an earpiece, the earpiece comprising an earbud configured for insertion into the ear canal of a user, and a housing that houses at least one microphone arranged to sample the ambient environment, the housing comprising opposing first and second faces,wherein the first face faces and extends along a bottom surface of the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal and the second face faces away from the bottom surface of the concha and out of the concha, and the housing having spaced apart opposing third and fourth faces extending between the first and second faces, wherein the housing is configured with the third face being adjacent to the tragus of a user'"'"'s ear and the fourth face being adjacent to the rear surface of the concha of the user'"'"'s ear when the earbud is in the ear canal, wherein the housing has a longitudinal axis extending through the third and fourth faces and a transverse axis normal to the longitudinal axis and extending through the first and second faces, and a port in the fourth face of the housing and through which sound may be received by the microphone, the earbud being connected to the first face to extend outwards from the first face in an axial direction of the earbud and arranged such that when the earbud is inserted into the ear canal the microphone samples the ambient environment between the housing and a face of the concha spaced apart from the ear canal, and the fourth face has one or more protrusions adjacent the port that extend outwards in an axial direction of the port toward a rear surface of the concha spaced apart from the ear canal, wherein the protrusions are configured to maintain a gap between the port and the rear surface of the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal, and wherein the port is positioned such that there is no unimpeded straight line path into the port from outside the concha.
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5. An earpiece comprising an earbud insertable into the ear canal of a user, and a housing configured to be substantially external of the ear canal when the earbud is in the ear canal, the housing containing at least one microphone arranged to sample the ambient environment, the housing comprising a port through which sound may be received by the microphone, and the housing comprising opposing first and second faces, wherein the first face faces and extends along a bottom of the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal and the second face faces away from the bottom surface of the concha and out of the concha, and the housing having spaced apart, opposing third and fourth faces extending between the first and second faces, wherein the housing is configured with the third face being adjacent to the tragus of a user'"'"'s ear and the fourth face being adjacent to the rear surface of the concha of the user'"'"'ear when the earbud is in the ear canal, wherein the housing has a longitudinal axis extending through the third and fourth faces and a transverse axis normal to the longitudinal axis and extending through the first and second faces, the earpiece being arranged such that when the earbud is inserted into the ear canal of a user the microphone samples the ambient environment between the earpiece and the concha, wherein the fourth surface of the housing in which the port is provided has one or more protrusions adjacent the port and projecting toward the rear surface of the concha spaced apart from the ear canal, wherein the protrusions are configured to maintain a gap between the port and the rear surface of the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal, wherein the port is positioned closely adjacent to the rear surface of the concha such that there is no unimpeded straight line path into the port from outside the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal.
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17. A hearing protection device comprising an earpiece comprising an earbud, which is arranged such that it may be inserted into the ear canal of a user, and a housing, which houses at least one microphone that is arranged to sample the ambient environment, the housing comprising opposing first and second end faces and opposing first and second side faces extending between the first and second end faces, the housing is configured with the first end face spaced laterally apart from the ear canal and being immediately adjacent to the rear face of the concha, and the second end faces the tragus of the ear, the first side face configured to extend laterally away from the ear canal adjacent to the bottom surface of the concha and connect to the first end face adjacent to the bottom and rear surfaces of the concha, the earbud projecting axially away from the first side face and configured to extend into the ear canal, the housing having a port in the first end wall through which sound may be received by the microphone, wherein the first end face of the housing having one or more protrusions adjacent the port that extend outwards in an axial direction of the port and configured to space the port away from the rear surface of the concha, the one or more protrusions being spaced laterally away from the ear canal and being configured to engage the rear surface of the concha to block the rear surface of the concha from covering the port, the housing being arranged such that when the earbud is in the ear canal of the user, the microphone samples the ambient environment between the earpiece and the concha, wherein the port is positioned closely adjacent to the rear surface of the concha such that there is no unimpeded straight line path into the port from outside the concha when the earbud is in the ear canal.
Specification