FLEXIBLE HEARING AID CIRCUIT WITH MOTHERBOARD AND PERIPHERAL ATTACHMENTS

• US 20160057546A1
• Filed: 08/19/2014
• Published: 02/25/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Starkey Laboratories Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Starkey Laboratories Incorporated
• Inventors: Johansson, Susie, Lyon, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 10,827,283 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2225/0216 BTE hearing aids having a receiver in the ear mould
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2225/025 In the ear hearing aids [ITE] hearing aids
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/00 Deaf-aid sets , i.e. electro-acoustic or electro-mechanical hearing aids; Electric tinnitus maskers providing an auditory perception electrical stimulation of auditory nerves to promote the auditory function A61N1/36038; optical stimulation of auditory nerves to promote the auditory function A61N5/0622
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/609 of circuitry of electronic switches or control elements H04R25/603
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/141 One or more single auxiliary printed circuits mounted on a main printed circuit, e.g. modules, adapters H05K1/142 and H05K1/147 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/147 at least one of the printed circuits being bent or folded, e.g. by using a flexible printed circuit H05K1/148 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 3/363 by soldering

Abstract

A hearing aid circuit includes a plurality of sub-circuits implemented as a plurality of flexible circuit boards. In various embodiments, the plurality of flexible circuit boards includes a motherboard that can be used with multiple hearing aid models and different peripheral boards that can provide different hearing aid models with their unique styles and/or functional features. In various embodiments, the hearing aid circuit is assembled in an automated process that connects the motherboard to one or more peripheral circuit boards using surface mount technology (SMT).

Claims

1. A method for making a hearing aid, comprising:

constructing a hearing aid circuit as a plurality of circuit boards, the hearing aid circuit including a plurality of sub-circuits, the circuit boards each including a sub-circuit of the plurality of sub-circuits; and

connecting each circuit board of the plurality of circuit boards to at least another circuit board of the plurality of circuit boards using surface mount technology (SMT).

2. The method of claim 1, comprising constructing at least one circuit board of the plurality of circuit boards as a flexible circuit board.

3. The method of claim 2, comprising constructing each circuit board of the plurality of circuit boards as a flexible circuit board.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising:

constructing a mother circuit of the plurality of sub-circuits as a motherboard of the plurality of circuit boards;

constructing one or more peripheral circuits of the plurality of sub-circuits as one or more peripheral boards of the plurality of circuit boards; and

connecting the motherboard to each board of the one or more peripheral boards using the SMT.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein constructing the one or more peripheral circuits comprises arranging the one or more peripheral boards on a circuit panel to form a framework, and connecting the motherboard to the each board of the one or more peripheral boards using the SMT comprises placing the motherboard on the framework.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein constructing the mother circuit as the motherboard comprises constructing the mother circuit as a flexible circuit board.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein constructing the one or more peripheral circuits as the one or more peripheral circuit boards comprises constructing the one or more peripheral circuits each as another flexible circuit board.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein constructing the mother circuit comprises constructing a mother circuit including a substantial portion of a processing circuit of the hearing aid circuit.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein constructing the mother circuit comprises constructing a mother circuit including the substantial portion of the processing circuit and a substantial portion of a communication circuit of the hearing aid circuit, the communication circuit configured to allow the hearing aid to wirelessly communicate with another device.

10. A method for making electronic circuits for a plurality of different hearing aid models, comprising:

providing motherboards each including a mother circuit constructed as a circuit board, the motherboards being common to the plurality of different hearing aid models;

providing peripheral board sets each including one or more peripheral circuits constructed as one or more circuit boards, the peripheral board sets each being unique to a hearing aid model of the plurality of different hearing aid models; and

connecting each motherboard of the motherboards with each peripheral board set of the peripheral board sets using surface mount technology (SMT).

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising constructing the peripheral board sets each as one or more flexible circuit boards.

12. The method of claim 10, further comprising constructing the motherboards each as a flexible circuit board.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising constructing the motherboards each as a multi-layer flexible circuit board including at least three layers.

14. The method of claim 13, comprising constructing the peripheral board sets each as one or more flexible circuit boards each including one or two layers.

15. A hearing aid, comprising:

a hearing aid circuit including a plurality of sub-circuits each constructed as a circuit board of a plurality of circuit boards, each circuit board of the plurality of circuit boards attached to at least another circuit board of the plurality of circuit boards using surface mount technology (SMT); and

a hearing aid case housing the plurality of sub-circuits.

16. The hearing aid of claim 15, wherein the hearing aid circuit comprises a microphone, a receiver, and a processing circuit coupled to the microphone and the receiver, and the plurality of sub-circuits comprises a mother circuit constructed as a motherboard of the plurality of circuit boards and one or more peripheral circuits each constructed as a peripheral board of the plurality of circuit boards, the mother circuit including a substantial portion of the processing circuit.

17. The hearing aid of claim 16, wherein the hearing aid circuit further comprises a communication circuit configured to perform wireless communication of the hearing aid, and the mother circuit further comprises a substantial portion of the communication circuit.

18. The hearing aid of claim 16, wherein the motherboard has an approximately rectangular shape.

19. The hearing aid of claim 16, wherein the one or more peripheral board each comprise a flexible circuit board.

20. The hearing aid of claim 19, wherein the motherboard comprises a flexible circuit board.

21. The hearing aid of claim 20, wherein the motherboard comprises a multi-layer flexible circuit board including at least three layers.

22. The hearing aid of claim 21, wherein the one or more peripheral board are each a single-layer flexible circuit board or a two-layer flexible circuit board.

23. The hearing aid of claim 15, wherein the hearing aid case is configured to be a case for a behind-the-ear (BTE) type hearing aid.

24. The hearing aid of claim 15, wherein the hearing aid case is configured to be a case for an in-the-ear (ITE) type hearing aid.