Untitled record

88 6 3 2 6 3 EN

Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Eyeglass adapter for a behind-the-ear hearing aid

The invention relates to a spectacle adapter for behind-the-ear hearing aids according to the preamble of claim 1.

Br.Ulenadapter make it easier for the hearing impaired to have a behind-the-ear hearing aid (BTE) at the same time

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zen the usual support hooks of the hearing aid and connect the hearing aid with a suitably cut eyeglass temple. An acoustic line runs through the adapter and thus connects the handset of the hearing aid with the ear. Such eyeglass adapters are normally either screwed to the hearing aid by means of threads or fastened with screws after removal of the support hook. An adhesive connection fastens the temple with the adapter. FR-PS 1 375 360 describes such an adapter, which is designed as a support hook replacement.

The design and manufacture of such adapters, however, are cumbersome because the acoustic properties of the hearing aid that have been optimized based on the support hook can be greatly altered. In particular, leaks must be avoided, which can lead to acoustic interference effects, such as feedback between microphone and handset.

In order to avoid these difficulties, adapters have been proposed which - instead of replacing the carrying hooks - are merely attached to the carrying hook. Such a solution is described in DE-OS 29 48 847. This adapter is provided with a channel that is matched to the shape of the support hook. The carrying hook is passed through the channel and clamped in it. A plastic coating or roughening of the channel improves the adhesion between the suspension hook and the

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^ 1 glasses adapter. The adapter can be made either in one piece or as two mirror-image parts which are glued or screwed together prior to use.

Tails of the adapter is made in one piece, the holes for the support hook and the temple must be made with considerable effort. The use of adapter halves, which are connected with screws or adhesive, however, looks unaesthetic and is therefore unsatisfactory. In addition, adhesives and screws increase the produc-

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Adapters are also disadvantageous. Although coatings and 'J

Roughening in an advantageous embodiment a detachable connection ^:ζ

allow such adhesives to leave traces on the ■]

Carrying hook. If the hearing impaired hearing aid without glasses: 'j

wants to wear, is the pasted or scratched carrying hook directly ί

at the ear. An exchange between different drills (eg Le-

'E- and sunglasses) is only possible with several adapters,% because a glue fixes the temples firmly to the adapter.

binds. In addition, frequent attachment and removal of the Γ.

Adapters from the carrying hook for the wear of the adhesive. In addition, experiments with such adapters have shown that coatings and roughening do not yet provide sufficient adhesive strength and are supported by securing screws

Need to become. {

Object of the present invention is to build an aesthetic eyewear adapter that allows a removable, but safe and durable connection between the hearing aid and eyeglass temple without removing the support hook from the hearing aid.

The object is achieved by the characterizing I features of claim 1. J

The inventively designed eyeglass adapter consists of 1 two adapter parts and holds the suspension hook of the hearing aid

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1 between the two adapter halves with a clamping effect without the aid of additional adhesive. Recesses for the support hook, the temple, etc., can be incorporated in the manufacture of the adapter. A subsequent drilling procedure

5 is therefore not required.

Since the adapter parts are designed such that they with a

ί | Clamping or locking connection are to be fastened to each other - eg I by means of plug connection (claim 3) - accounts for additional I 10 mounting measures, such as glue or screws. Haftmit-

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I spectacle adapter according to the invention is not needed. The clamping force I of the adapter parts is sufficient to move the suspension hooks: | to hold securely. Scratching or other damage to the * 15 carrying hook are therefore avoided. By a clamp closure according to dependent claim 2, the gluing of the glasses is also gels I avoided in the adapter. In this case, adhesive is dispensed with altogether, which allows both a saving of material and time. The clip lock also allows reuse of the eyewear adapter on different eyeglasses. Neither the adapter, nor the carrying hook or glasses book; gel are damaged when replacing the glasses.

In the dependent claim 4, a particularly safe and durable · .- 25 mounting the adapter parts is specified. When using a stable plastic, the individual teeth of the toothing can:;_; only be damaged with great force. In the assembled state, the gearing is released only with the aid of a suitable tool, eg a small screwdriver. I 30

The subclaims 5 to 7 describe a spectacle adaptex in a particularly advantageous embodiment. The spectacle adapter is produced in one piece in a single injection molding process, the two adapter parts being connected to one another via a bending zone. This facilitates in many respects the manufacture and use of the spectacle adapter. Since the eyeglass adapter

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ter consists of only one coherent piece, it is eg much easier to store. In addition, the injection molds used in the manufacture can be simplified. When attaching the adapter to a hearing aid eliminates Justior difficulties, since the orientation of the two adapter parts to each other by the bending zone is predetermined. In summary, the invention enables a particularly inexpensive and service-friendly design of a spectacle adapter.

Further advantages and details of the invention will become apparent from the following description of an embodiment with reference to the drawing and in conjunction with the other dependent claims.

Show it:

1 shows a hearing aid to be worn behind the ear and a temple that are connected to one another via a spectacle adapter designed according to the invention, in enlarged side view,

2 is a plan view of the underside of the spectacle adapter of FIG 1, in an enlarged perspective view,

3 shows the spectacle adapter of FIG 2 in the unfolded state.

The hearing device of FIG. 1 comprises a housing 1 and a carrying hook 2. The carrying hook 2 contains a spectacle adapter 3 which connects the hearing device to a spectacle frame 4 which is "cut-to-size". The spectacle adapter 3 holds the hearing aid and the temple piece by embracing the carrying hook 2 and an extension 5 of the temple piece 4. Corresponding recesses for the carrying hook 2 and for the extension 5 are provided in the spectacle adapter 3. Another recess 6 on the spectacle adapter 3 is located above the Traghakenausnehmung and leads to elf.-. Opening the radio (not visible) in the hearing aid housing 1.

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The spectacle adapter 3 is preferably made of a transparent or slightly colored plastic. The material Cellidor KL-1-3300-10CP15 / 002 Transparent, manufactured by Bayer, for example, is particularly well suited for such glasses adapter ge. The material is formed on known titmice by means of spray tool.

2 shows the spectacle adapter 3 plugged together from the bottom. It includes a first (7) and a second (8) adapter-assisted. The recess 9 for the suspension hook 2 and the recess 10 from the extension 5 of the temple piece 4 are also visible in this figure. These recesses 9 and 10 may, if desired, be provided with elevations or notches, which rest in corresponding deformations of the support hook 2 and the extension 5 Ver. This results in an additional, not required per se protection against displacements. The recess 6 for the sound introduction is also indicated.

The adapter halves 7 and 8 are fastened to each other in this embodiment by means of a toothing. The individual teeth 11 are formed so that they rest firmly against the adjacent teeth. The clamping force is sufficiently large that the connection can be solved only with the help of a suitable tool, such as a small screwdriver. The fatigue strength of the compound can be further increased by ί the dimensions of the recesses 9 and 10 with the connecting teeth 11 are tuned so that the support hook 2 and the extension 5 are already clamped between the adapter halves 7 and 8, before the teeth 11 completely into one another to grab. The remaining clear width 12 in the toothing 11 ensures To leranz to allow a constant fixed clamping action between the spectacle adapter 3 and the elements 2 and 5.

FIG. 2 shows a connection formed between the adapter parts 7 and 8 as a toothing. However, the invention encompasses further clamping or latching connection variants. The Ver-

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For example, toothing could be replaced by a compound comprising a plurality of pins and matching holes. As a further solution variant, for example, a web which fits into a suitable groove would be suitable. Many other variations and combinations of the compounds already described are well known and are therefore equivalent. Spectacle adapter according to the invention, which allow a connection without screws or adhesive, which is based on hooking, resting, snapping or tucking, are therefore further exemplary embodiments.

3 shows a spectacle adapter designed according to the invention in a particularly advantageous design. The adapter parts 7 and 8 are connected to each other via a bending zone 13 and are produced in one piece by means of injection molding. Driving the Spitzerver is much easier for such a form than for known spectacle adapter. The complete adapter with all necessary recesses is manufactured in a single spraying process. If desired, thin recesses 14 for conduits may also be placed in the same process. Such recesses are required eg for CROS and BICROS devices for strands.

It is preferably designed as a longitudinal groove and acts as a hinge between the adapter halves 7 and 8. Of course, the bending zone 13 can also be designed differently, eg as an actual hinge.

The attachment of the hearing aid and the eyeglass temple to the JJ adapter is particularly easy. First, the upper half of the support hook 2, for example, in the recess 9 of the adapter half 8 is positioned. The extension 5 of the eyeglass temple 4 is placed in the corresponding recess 10 of the adapter half 8. Optionally, strands are inserted in the recess 14. (Previously, strands had to be threaded through drilled channels in a complicated way). Then only the adap-

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vV 1 terhSlfte 7 folded around the bending zone 13 on the Adapterhalf te 8 and pressed until the support hook 2 and the extension sit firmly in the spectacle adapter. Jamming difficulties do not occur because the assignment of the halves 7 and 8 to each other 5 is predetermined by the bending zone 13.

9 claims for protection 3 figures

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