ACOUSTIC DEVICE

• US 20190052946A1
• Filed: 08/09/2017
• Published: 02/14/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: GN Hearing A/S (GN Store Nord A/S)
• Original Assignee: GN Hearing A/S (GN Store Nord A/S)
• Inventors: DITTBERNER, Andrew, KRULL, Vidya
• Granted Patent: US 10,212,503 B1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 11/14 external, e.g. earcaps or earmuffs
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1008 Earpieces of the supra-aural or circum-aural type
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1091 Details not provided for in groups H04R1/1008 - H04R1/1083
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/027 Spatial or constructional arrangements of microphones, e.g. in dummy heads
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 5/033 Headphones for stereophonic communication details thereof, e.g. relating to batteries, cables or control elements H04R1/10

Abstract

A acoustic device includes a supra-aural ear cup, a pinna replica at least partially enclosed by the supra-aural ear cup, wherein an inner surface of the pinna replica faces the exterior so that exterior sounds are received by the pinna replica and a microphone unit for collecting said exterior sounds, said microphone unit being configured to emit a first electric signal comprising information on the collected exterior sounds.

Claims

1. An acoustic device comprising:

a supra-aural ear cup;

a pinna replica at least partially enclosed by the supra-aural ear cup, wherein an inner surface of the pinna replica faces an exterior so that exterior sounds can be received by the pinna replica; and

a microphone unit configured for receiving the exterior sounds, the microphone unit being configured to emit a first electric signal comprising information on the received exterior sounds.

2. The acoustic device according to claim 1, wherein the microphone unit is arranged at or near a concha part of the pinna replica.

3. The acoustic device according to claim 1, wherein at least the inner surface of the pinna replica is covered by an acoustically transparent material.

4. The acoustic device according to claim 1, wherein the pinna replica is manufactured using 3D-scanning and/or 3D-printing.

5. A headset comprising the acoustic device in accordance with any of claims 1-4.

6. The headset according to claim 5, further comprising a processing unit for processing the first electric signal, and a speaker unit configured to generate sound based on the first electric signal.

7. The headset according to claim 6, further comprising a coupler that is hermetically sealed with respect to an ear canal of a user when the headset is being used by the user.

8. The headset according to claim 5, wherein the headset is a hearing protection headset.

9. The headset according to claim 8, wherein the hearing protection headset comprises an environmental listening function.

10. The headset according to claim 5, wherein the processing unit is further configured to process the first electric signal in order to compensate for a location of the pinna replica.

11. The headset according to claim 5, wherein the processing unit is further configured to process the first electric signal in order to compensate for a location of a speaker unit in the headset.