Hearing protector and a method of making a hearing protector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10792190-B2
Application number	US-202016838486-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 2, 2020
Priority date	Apr 8, 2016
Publication date	Oct 6, 2020
Grant date	Oct 6, 2020

Abstract

A hearing protector having an ear cup forming a space for a wearer's ear. The ear cup has a shell with an ear facing inner side and a passageway extending through the shell between the ear facing inner side and an outer side of the shell. The ear cup further has a loudspeaker assembly which seals the passageway from the outer side. The loud speaker assembly further has a seal member and a loudspeaker module. A portion of the seal member is arranged between the shell and a fastener, and the fastener retains the loudspeaker assembly at the shell. The hearing protector facilitates manufacturing and maintenance and provides for maximize wearing comfort and technical reliability.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A hearing protector having an ear cup forming a space for a wearer's ear, the ear cup comprising:
a shell having an ear facing inner side and a passageway extending through the shell between the ear facing inner side and an outer side of the shell;
a loudspeaker assembly, which fits wholly within a shell cavity, and which seals the passageway from the outer side, the loud speaker assembly comprising:
a loudspeaker module comprising first electrical contacts, wherein the loudspeaker module is positioned within the shell such that sound emitted is emitted toward an ear of a wearer of the hearing protector; and
a seal member positioned between the loudspeaker assembly and the shell; and

a fastener that retains the loudspeaker assembly in the shell, wherein the fastener comprises electronic circuitry and second electrical contacts for contacting with the loudspeaker module, and wherein the first and second electrical contacts are in releasable contact with each other.

2. The hearing protector of claim 1 , and further comprising a room enclosed or defined by an ear facing inner side of the shell.

3. The hearing protector of claim 2 , wherein the room limits heat generated by the loudspeaker module such that heat does not accumulate in the air around the wearer's ear.

4. The hearing protector of claim 3 , wherein the room prevents moisture, from the wearer, from reaching the first electrical contacts.

5. The hearing protector of claim 1 , wherein the fastener and the shell are retained within each other, such that the seal member is clamped between the fastener and the shell.

6. The hearing protector of claim 5 , wherein the loudspeaker assembly is retained in the ear cup under tension and the first and second electrical contacts are held in contact with each other.

7. The hearing protector of claim 1 , wherein the seal member comprises the shell cavity, and wherein the loudspeaker module fills a part of the shell cavity, and wherein a remaining part of the shell cavity provides for controlling a sound frequency profile of the loudspeaker assembly.

8. The hearing protector of claim 7 , wherein the sound frequency profile is predetermined by the size of the remaining part of the shell cavity.

9. The hearing protector of claim 7 , wherein the fastener hermetically seals the remaining part of the shell cavity.

10. The hearing protector of claim 7 , wherein the fastener comprises a through-hole in fluid communication with the remaining part of the shell cavity.

11. The hearing protector of claim 1 , wherein the seal comprises a soft and resilient material.

12. The hearing protector of claim 11 , wherein the seal comprises silicone.

13. A method of assembling an ear cup for a hearing protector, the ear cup forming a space for a wearer's ear, the method comprising the steps of:
providing a shell for forming part of the ear cup, the shell having an ear facing inner side and a passageway extending through the shell between the ear facing inner side and an outer side of the shell;
providing a loudspeaker assembly comprising a seal member and a loudspeaker module, wherein the loudspeaker module comprises first electrical contacts;
assembling the loudspeaker assembly at the outer side of the shell such that the loudspeaker assembly seals the passageway; and
retaining the loudspeaker assembly at the shell by a fastener such that a circumferential portion of the seal member is arranged between the shell and the fastener, wherein the fastener retains the loudspeaker assembly in the shell, wherein the fastener comprises electronic circuitry and second electrical contacts for contacting with the loudspeaker module, and wherein the first and second electrical contacts are in releasable contact with each other.

Assignees

• 3M Innovative Properties Co

Inventors

• Håkansson Johan

Classifications

• A61F11/145

  electric, e.g. for active noise reduction · CPC title

• H04R2430/01

  Aspects of volume control, not necessarily automatic, in sound systems · CPC title

• H04R1/1041

  Mechanical or electronic switches, or control elements (switches in general H01H) · CPC title

• H04R1/1008

  Earpieces of the supra-aural or circum-aural type · CPC title

• H04R1/1083

  Reduction of ambient noise (active noise reduction per se G10K11/175; protective devices for the ear, e.g. providing acoustic protection A61F11/06) · CPC title