Hearing aid transducer support
First Claim
1. A support system for coupling at least two transducer to at least two auditory elements within a middle ear, the support system comprising:
- a support member;
a mechanical-to-electrical first transducer mounted to a first mounting portion of the support member and proportioned for coupling to a first auditory element in the middle ear; and
an electrical-to-mechanical second transducer mounted to a second mounting portion of the support member, which is fixably attached to the first mounting portion of the support member, and the second transducer proportioned for coupling to a second auditory element in the middle ear, said support member including at least one pair of mutually alignable slotted opening portions for maintaining said first and second transducers at a spacing to conform to anatomical requirements of a patient.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A support for input and output transducers of a hearing aid is implanted in the middle ear. The support, which is attached to the mastoid bone, can be a single component or comprise two adjustable components. In one embodiment, an arm extends from the proximal end of the support towards an access hole created behind the outer ear, where the arm is attached for further stability. In another embodiment, the arm extends outside the access hole, where it is mounted subcutaneously to the mastoid bone with a mechanical fastener. The support provides positional adjustability, stability, and is invisible externally.
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Citations
34 Claims
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1. A support system for coupling at least two transducer to at least two auditory elements within a middle ear, the support system comprising:
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a support member; a mechanical-to-electrical first transducer mounted to a first mounting portion of the support member and proportioned for coupling to a first auditory element in the middle ear; and an electrical-to-mechanical second transducer mounted to a second mounting portion of the support member, which is fixably attached to the first mounting portion of the support member, and the second transducer proportioned for coupling to a second auditory element in the middle ear, said support member including at least one pair of mutually alignable slotted opening portions for maintaining said first and second transducers at a spacing to conform to anatomical requirements of a patient. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 30)
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18. An implantable hearing aid system, the system comprising:
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an electronics unit; a support member, a first transducer mounted to a first mounting portion of the support member, the first transducer proportioned for coupling to a first auditory element in the middle ear, and the first transducer electrically-coupled to the electronics unit; and a second transducer mounted to a second mounting portion of the support member, which is fixably attached to the first mounting portion of the support member, the second transducer proportioned for coupling to a second auditory element in the middle ear, the second transducer electrically-coupled to the electronics unit, said support member including at least one universal connector adjacent to at least one of the mounting portions for adjusting the position of the respective transducer with respect to the support. - View Dependent Claims (31)
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19. A support system for mounting at least two transducers to at least two auditory elements within a middle ear, the support system comprising:
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a support member including first and second components; a mechanical fastener adjustably coupling the first and second components; a first transducer mounted to a first mounting portion of the support member and proportioned for coupling to a first auditory element in the middle ear; a second transducer mounted to a second mounting portion of the support member and the second transducer proportioned for coupling to a second auditory element in the middle ear; and wherein each of the first and second components comprises at least one slotted opening, and a first slotted opening in the first component is mutually-aligned with at least a portion of a second slotted opening in the second component, and the mechanical fastener extends through the mutually-aligned slotted openings in the first and second components and the mechanical fastener is proportioned for affixation to a mastoid portion of a temporal bone, such that the first and second components are adjustably coupled to each other. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21)
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22. A support system for mounting at least two transducers to at least two auditory elements within a middle ear, the support system comprising:
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a support member including first and second components; a mechanical fastener adjustably coupling the first and second components; a first transducer mounted to a first mounting portion of the support member and proportioned for coupling to a first auditory element in the middle ear; a second transducer mounted to a second mounting portion of the support member and the second transducer proportioned for coupling to a second auditory element in the middle ear; and wherein the first and second components are adjustably coupled to each other by a pair of slotted openings in each of the first and second components, and a first mechanical fastener extends through a slotted opening in the first component and through the second component, and a second mechanical fastener extends through a slotted opening in the second component and through the first component. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24)
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25. A support system for coupling a transducer to an auditory element within a middle ear, the support system comprising:
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a support member, a mechanical-to-electrical first transducer, proportioned for coupling to a first auditory element in the middle ear; an electrical-to-mechanical second transducer, proportioned for coupling to a second auditory element in the middle ear; and a universal connector, coupling one of said first transducer or said second transducer to the support member, for adjusting the position of the first transducer or the second transducer with respect to the support member. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 32)
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33. A support system for coupling at least two transducers to a support member positioned between two auditory elements within a middle ear, the support system comprising:
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a support member; a mechanical-to-electrical first transducer mounted to a first mounting portion of the support member and proportioned for receiving mechanical vibrations from a first auditory element in the middle ear and converting the mechanical vibration to electrical signals; an electrical-to-mechanical second transducer mounted to a second mounting portion of the support member, which is fixably attached to the first mounting portion of the support member, and the second transducer proportioned for coupling to a second auditory element in the middle ear; and said support member including at least one universal connector adjacent to at least one of the mounting portions for adjusting the position of the respective transducer with respect to the support member. - View Dependent Claims (34)
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Specification