RF antenna and hearing device with RF antenna

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9961457-B2
Application number	US-201715589592-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 8, 2017
Priority date	Aug 9, 2013
Publication date	May 1, 2018
Grant date	May 1, 2018

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an RF antenna adapted to receive and/or transmit electromagnetic RF signals within a first frequency range enclosing a first frequency of resonance of the RF antenna, the RF antenna comprising: an electrically conductive antenna element having a feed for electrically connecting to an RF transmitter and/or an RF receiver; an electronic component adapted to receive and/or provide one or more electric signals from/to an electronic circuit within a second frequency range not overlapping the first frequency range; and one or more electric leads electrically connected to lead the one or more electric signals between the electronic component and the electronic circuit, each of the one or more electric leads being electrically connected to the electronic circuit through a respective inductor adapted to reflect and/or attenuate signals within the first frequency range and pass signals within the second frequency range.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A hearing aid comprising:
an RF antenna configured to receive and/or transmit electromagnetic RF signals within a first frequency range, the RF antenna comprising an electrically conductive antenna element electrically connected to a feed for providing a signal from an RF transmitter and/or to an RF receiver of the hearing aid;
an electronic component configured to communicate electric signals from/to an electronic circuit within a second frequency range not overlapping the first frequency range;
one or more electric leads electrically connected to lead the one or more electric signals between the electronic component and the electronic circuit, each of the one or more electric leads being electrically connected to the electronic circuit through a respective inductor configured to reflect and/or attenuate signals within the first frequency range and pass signals within the second frequency range; and
a monitor configured to monitor a load of the antenna, wherein variations in the antenna load indicate a finger touching a housing of the hearing aid thereby providing user control to allow the user to control a setting of the hearing aid.

2. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein the inductors have a self-resonance frequency within the first frequency range.

3. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein the electrically conductive antenna element is formed on or in a substrate.

4. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein the electrical component is mounted on or in the substrate.

5. The hearing aid according to claim 4 , wherein a printed circuit board constitutes the substrate, and wherein the antenna element and the one or more leads comprise respective patterns in one or more electrically conductive layers of the printed circuit board.

6. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein a surface of the antenna element completely surrounds the closest projection of all of the one or more leads and/or of the electronic component onto said surface of the antenna element.

7. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein the total surface area of the antenna element is at least 3 times the total surface area of the leads and the electronic component.

8. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein the leads and/or at least a portion of the electronic component is arranged within a distance of less than 2% of the first wavelength from the antenna element.

9. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein the antenna element comprises two or more electrically conductive layers electrically connected to each other, and wherein the one or more leads are arranged between the two or more electrically conductive layers.

10. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , wherein the electronic component comprises an input transducer arranged to receive one or more acoustic signals from a user's surroundings.

11. The hearing aid according to claim 1 , further comprising: an input circuit adapted to provide one or more input audio signals; a signal processing circuit adapted to process at least one of the one or more input audio signals; and an output device configured and arranged to provide an audible signal to a user in dependence on at least one processed input audio signal.

12. The hearing device according to claim 11 , and further comprising a housing configured to be worn at the ear of the user in an operating position wherein a first portion of the housing resides on the top of the ridge between the pinna and the head, the antenna element extending at least partly through the first housing portion.

13. The hearing device according to claim 12 , wherein the antenna element is arranged in a top portion of the housing when the housing is worn in the operating position.

14. The hearing device according to claim 11 , wherein the RF antenna is an RF antenna according to claim 10 , and wherein the input circuit comprises the input transducer and is configured to provide at least one of the one or more input audio signals in dependence on the received one or more acoustic signals.

15. The hearing device according to claim 14 , wherein the input transducer is configured to receive the one or more acoustic signals through respective channels fluidly connected to openings in the top portion of the housing.

16. An RF antenna configured to be mounted in a hearing aid housing to be worn at the ear of a user, the RF antenna configured to receive and/or transmit electromagnetic RF signals within a first frequency range, the RF antenna comprising:
an electrically conductive antenna element connected to an RF transmitter and/or an RF receiver of the hearing aid;
a microphone configured to provide one or more electric signals to an electronic circuit within a second frequency range not overlapping the first frequency range; and
one or more electric leads electrically connected to lead the one or more electric signals between an electronic component and the electronic circuit, each of the one or more electric leads being electrically connected to the electronic circuit through a respective inductor configured to reflect and/or attenuate signals within the first frequency range and pass signals within the second frequency range, and a substrate carrying the one or more electric leads between the microphone and the inductors, the RF antenna being configured to be connected to a monitor configured to monitor a load of the antenna, wherein variations in the antenna load indicate a finger touching the housing thereby providing user control to allow the user to control a setting of the hearing aid.

Assignees

• Oticon As

Inventors

• Troelsen Jens
• Sundberg Oliver
• Christensen Kåre Tais
• Poulsen Henning Knak

Classifications

• H04R25/60

  Mounting or interconnection of hearing aid parts, e.g. inside tips, housings or to ossicles (ear wax retarders, e.g. mounting thereof H04R25/654) · CPC title

• H04R2225/51

  Aspects of antennas or their circuitry in or for hearing aids · CPC title

• H04R25/554 Primary

  using a wireless connection, e.g. between microphone and amplifier or using Tcoils · CPC title

• H01Q1/273

  Adaptation for carrying or wearing by persons or animals · CPC title

• H01Q1/38 Primary

  formed by a conductive layer on an insulating support {(patch antennas H01Q9/0407; microstrip dipole antennas H01Q9/065; microstrip slot antennas H01Q13/106; transmission line microstrip antennas H01Q13/206; manufacturing reflecting surfaces using insulating material for supporting the reflecting surface  H01Q15/142)} · CPC title