Earpiece positioning and retaining

• US 9,036,852 B2
• Filed: 12/09/2014
• Issued: 05/19/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Original Assignee: Bose Corporation
• Inventors: Silvestri, Ryan C., Wallace, Eric M., Annunziato, Kevin P., Collier, Ian M., Monahan, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Ni, Suhan
• Application Number:
  US14/564,972
• Publication Number:
  US 20150098605A1
• Time in Patent Office: 161 Days
• Field of Search: 381/322, 381/328, 381/330, 381380-381, 181129-131, 379/430
• US Class Current: 381/380
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/02 Casings; Cabinets ; Supports therefor; Mountings therein H04R1/28 takes precedence ; attachments for microphones H04R1/08; mounting of transducers in earpieces H04R1/1075
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/10 Earpieces; Attachments therefor ; Earphones; Monophonic headphones H04R1/28 takes precedence; stereophonic headphones H04R5/033
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1016 Earpieces of the intra-aural type
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/105 Earpiece supports, e.g. ear hooks for stereophonic headphones H04R5/0335
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1058 Manufacture or assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1075 Mountings of transducers in earphones or headphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1091 Details not provided for in groups H04R1/1008 - H04R1/1083
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2460/17 Hearing device specific tools used for storing or handling hearing devices or parts thereof, e.g. placement in the ear, replacement of cerumen barriers, repair, cleaning hearing devices

Abstract

A positioning and retaining structure for an in-ear earpiece. An outer leg and an inner leg are attached to each other at an attachment end and attached to a body of the earpiece at the other end. The outer leg lies in a plane. The positioning and retaining structure have a stiffness that is greater when force is applied to the attachment end in a counterclockwise direction in the plane of the outer leg than when force is applied to the attachment end in a clockwise direction in the plane of the outer leg. The positioning and retaining structure position an earpiece associated with the earpiece in a user'"'"'s ear and retains the earpiece in its position.

Claims

1. An ear interface for an in-ear headphone, the ear interface comprising:

a body portion that fits beneath the tragus and anti-tragus and occupies substantially the entire concha of a user'"'"'s ear when worn by the user,

a compliant outlet extending into at least the entrance of the user'"'"'s ear canal when worn by the user, and

a compliant retaining member extending from the body portion and terminating at an extremity,

wherein the retaining member applies pressure to the antihelix of the user'"'"'s ear along substantially the entire length of an outer edge of the retaining member when the ear interface is fit into the user'"'"'s ear, and

the extremity of the retaining member seats at the end of the anti-helix under the base of the helix of the user'"'"'s ear.

2. The ear interface of claim 1 wherein the retaining member is generally curved within a plane when not worn, and has a greater stiffness in directions tending to straighten the retaining member than in directions tending to increase the curvature.

3. The ear interface of claim 1 wherein the retaining member has an oblong shape in cross-section, with the dimension parallel to the contact surface of the antihelix being greater than the dimension normal to the contact surface of the antihelix.

4. The ear interface of claim 1 wherein the retaining member comprises a first leg along the outer edge of the retaining member and a second leg extending from the body portion and supporting the first leg at a point distant from the body.

5. The ear interface of claim 1, wherein the body, the outlet, and the retaining member compose a single unitary structure.

6. The ear interface of claim 1, wherein the outer edge of the retaining member has differing radii of curvature along its length, including a first section beginning at the body portion having a first radius of curvature and a second section near the extremity having a second radius of curvature greater than the first radius of curvature, such that the outer edge is more-sharply curved near the body and less-sharply curved near the extremity.

7. An earphone comprising:

an acoustic driver that converts applied audio signals to acoustic energy;

a housing containing the acoustic driver, the housing including a front chamber acoustically coupled to the acoustic driver; and

an ear interface comprising;

a body portion that fits beneath the tragus and anti-tragus and occupies substantially the entire lower concha of a user'"'"'s ear when worn by the user,

a compliant outlet extending into at least the entrance of the user'"'"'s ear canal when worn by the user, and

a compliant retaining member extending from the body portion and terminating at an extremity,

wherein the retaining member applies pressure to the antihelix of the user'"'"'s ear along substantially the entire length of an outer edge of the retaining member when the ear interface is fit into the user'"'"'s ear, and

the extremity of the retaining member seats at the end of the anti-helix under the base of the helix of the user'"'"'s ear.

8. The earphone of claim 7 wherein:

the acoustic driver comprises a sound radiating surface that moves along a first axis; and

the housing includes a nozzle that extends the front chamber towards the ear canal of a user along a second axis that is not parallel to the first axis when the earphone is worn.

9. The earphone of claim 7 wherein the retaining member is generally curved within a plane when not worn, and has a greater stiffness in directions tending to straighten the retaining member than in directions tending to increase the curvature.

10. The earphone of claim 7 wherein the retaining member has an oblong shape in cross-section, with the dimension parallel to the contact surface of the antihelix being greater than the dimension normal to the contact surface of the antihelix.

11. The earphone of claim 7 wherein the retaining member comprises a first leg along the outer edge of the retaining member and a second leg extending from the body portion and supporting the first leg at a point distant from the body.

12. The earphone of claim 7, wherein the body, the outlet, and the retaining member compose the ear interface as a single unitary structure.

13. The earphone of claim 7, further comprising an electronics module including communication electronics and coupled to the housing of the acoustic driver,

wherein, when the earphone is seated in a user'"'"'s ear, the electronics module is held outward from the user'"'"'s head by the housing of the acoustic driver.

14. The earphone of claim 7, wherein the outer edge of the retaining member has differing radii of curvature along its length, including a first section beginning at the body portion having a first radius of curvature and a second section near the extremity having a second radius of curvature greater than the first radius of curvature, such that the outer edge is more-sharply curved near the body and less-sharply curved near the extremity.