Abstract: A method and apparatus for cleaning a hearing aid provides a housing having a motor drive and speed control. A rotary chamber is mounted to the housing and driven by the motor drive. A drive shaft can be provided connecting the motor drive and the rotary chamber. The rotary chamber has a wall with at least one receptacle for holding a hearing aid. The rotary chamber can have two openings, one for a hearing aid and a second opening for another hearing aid or a counterweight. The rotary chamber can be counterweighted to compensate for the weight of a single hearing aid or any other arrangements of multiple hearing aids. Each receptacle is configured to hold a hearing aid. The motor drive is powered sufficiently to rotate the hearing aid at the speed of between about 2800 and 3200 rpm in order to generate a G-force on the hearing aid of about 270 G's.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
June 29, 2006
Date of Patent:
December 14, 2010
Assignee:
General Hearing Instrument, Inc.
Inventors:
Gregory R. Siegle, Roger P. Juneau, Edward J. Desporte, Michael W. Major, Gene Adoue, Sherriel Lynn Johnson, James David Moser, Brian M. Tanner
Abstract: A hearing aid body is provided that contains electronic hearing aid components and that is attachable to the user's body outside the ear canal. A conduit connects the hearing aid body to the flexible plug. The conduit enables sound emitted by the hearing aid to travel via the conduit to the flexible plug so that the user's able to hear a sound that is amplified by the hearing aid and received by the plug via the conduit. The conduit can be a flexible hollow tube or an electronic conduit that transmit electrical signals between the hearing aid and the plug. A stent embedded in the plug is provided, the stent having a first smaller diameter at a temperature below body temperature and being expandable to a second greater diameter when subjected to the user's body temperature, such as the temperature in the ear canal of a user.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
January 26, 2007
Date of Patent:
August 17, 2010
Assignee:
General Hearing Instrument, Inc.
Inventors:
Roger P. Juneau, Edward J. Desporte, Michael Major, Gregory R. Siegle, Brian Tanner
Abstract: A method and apparatus for cleaning a hearing aid provides a housing having a motor drive and speed control. A rotary chamber is mounted to the housing and driven by the motor drive. A drive shaft can be provided connecting the motor drive and the rotary chamber. The rotary chamber has a wall with at least one receptacle for holding a hearing aid. The rotary chamber can have two openings, one for a hearing aid and a second opening for another hearing aid or a counterweight. The rotary chamber can be counterweighted to compensate for the weight of a single hearing aid or any other arrangements of multiple hearing aids. Each receptacle is configured to hold a hearing aid. The motor drive is powered sufficiently to rotate the hearing aid at the speed of between about 2800 and 3200 rpm in order to generate a G-force on the hearing aid of about 270 G's.
Type:
Application
Filed:
June 29, 2006
Publication date:
February 1, 2007
Applicant:
GENERAL HEARING INSTRUMENT, INC.
Inventors:
Gregory Siegle, Roger Juneau, Edward Desporte, Michael Major, Gene Adoue, Sherriel Johnson, James Moser, Brian Tanner
Abstract: An apparatus and method of manufacturing a soft-solid elastomer custom ear device into which electronics can be embedded provides a completely in-the-ear hearing aid with a soft body. This technology can replace hard acrylic ear molding. This hearing aid by virtue of its soft-solid design, meets the needs of the dynamic human ear canal which cannot be met with conventional hard acrylic molding. This hearing aid provides improved comfort and sound quality by better adapting to the dynamic changes in the ear canal which occur during everyday activities. This soft custom body also provides for ear-worn configurations of all subminiature electronic devices requiring discrete coupling to the human ear. These devices include digital telephones, cellular telephones, pagers, two-way communication systems, clocks, recorders, and many other subminiature technologies.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
May 26, 1998
Date of Patent:
February 8, 2000
Assignee:
General Hearing Instrument, Inc.
Inventors:
Roger P. Juneau, Lynn P. Creel, Edward J. Desporte, Michael Major, Gregory R. Siegle