U.S. patent application number 16/996158 was filed with the patent office on 2020-12-03 for hearing protection devices and attenuation button for same.
This patent application is currently assigned to Fader Plugs, LLC. The applicant listed for this patent is Fader Plugs, LLC. Invention is credited to Blaise Delfino, Gregory Delfino, Paul Dowd, Kevin Skeuse.
Application Number | 20200375801 16/996158 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005021715 |
Filed Date | 2020-12-03 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200375801 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Delfino; Blaise ; et
al. |
December 3, 2020 |
Hearing Protection Devices And Attenuation Button For Same
Abstract
A manually, selectively attenuating earplug button is disclosed,
for insertion into a cavity of an earplug of a hearing protection
device. The earplug button comprises a nested configuration of a
first housing member (including a first opening to receive sound
from an ambient environment) and a second housing member,
surrounding the first housing member and including a second opening
to output at least a portion of the sound passing through an audio
channel located between said first and second openings. The first
and second housing members include sidewall apertures for
permitting a wearer to manually adjust the amount of sound admitted
to the wear's ear from said ambient environment by rotating the
first housing member (and thus its sidewall aperture) with respect
to the second housing member.
Inventors: |
Delfino; Blaise; (Bethlehem,
PA) ; Delfino; Gregory; (Bethlehem, PA) ;
Skeuse; Kevin; (Stockton, NJ) ; Dowd; Paul;
(Scarsdale, NY) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Fader Plugs, LLC |
Bethlehem |
PA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Fader Plugs, LLC
Bethlehem
PA
|
Family ID: |
1000005021715 |
Appl. No.: |
16/996158 |
Filed: |
August 18, 2020 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
15719862 |
Sep 29, 2017 |
10779992 |
|
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16996158 |
|
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62407215 |
Oct 12, 2016 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61F 11/08 20130101;
A61F 2011/085 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A61F 11/08 20060101
A61F011/08 |
Claims
1. A manually-adjustable earplug button comprising a first
cylindrical housing member including a first opening formed along a
longitudinal central axis and at least one first aperture formed
through a sidewall thereof, the first opening defining an input
audio port, providing an inner chamber of an audio channel in
combination with the at least one first aperture; and a second
cylindrical housing member disposed to surround the first
cylindrical housing member so as to form a nested configuration
while providing a gap to allow for the first cylindrical housing
member to freely rotate within the second cylindrical housing
member, the second cylindrical housing member including at least
one second aperture formed through a sidewall thereof, wherein an
overlap between the least one first and second apertures forms an
outer chamber of the audio channel terminating at a second opening,
the audio channel manually adjustable by rotation of the first
cylindrical housing member to adjust an amount of overlap between
the at least one first aperture and the at least one second
aperture.
2. The earplug button as defined in claim 1 wherein the earplug
button further comprises a turning knob disposed on a top surface
of the first cylindrical housing member, said turning knob having a
textured surface to promote manual rotation of the first
cylindrical housing member within the second cylindrical housing
member.
3. The earplug button as defined in claim 1 wherein the second
cylindrical housing member includes a plurality of gripping members
formed on an outer surface thereof, the plurality of gripping
members engaging with a surrounding earplug to maintain stationary
position of the second cylindrical housing member during manual
rotation of the first cylindrical housing member.
4. The earplug button as defined in claim 1 wherein the first
cylindrical housing member and the second cylindrical housing
member are formed of materials selected from the group consisting
of: nylon, polystyrene, polypropylene, polyethylene, and
thermoplastic.
5. The earplug button as defined in claim 1 wherein the at least
one first aperture has a tapered top edge to provide overlap
control with the at least one second aperture, creating multiple
levels of attenuation adjustment.
6. The earplug button as defined in claim 1 wherein the second
cylindrical housing members includes a bottom horizontal surface
for supporting a lower termination of the first cylindrical housing
member.
7. The earplug button as defined in claim 1 wherein the at least
one first aperture comprises a pair of first apertures formed in
opposition to one another and the least one second aperture
comprises a pair of second apertures formed in opposition to one
another.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is continuation of U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 15/719,862, filed Sep. 29, 2017 and received a Notice of
Allowance on May 29, 2020, which claims priority from U.S.
Provisional Application No. 62/407,215, filed Oct. 12, 2016, the
contents of both applications herein incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This invention relates generally to earplugs and more
specifically to attenuating earplug button constructions useful in
hearing protection.
BACKGROUND
[0003] It is well documented that repeated or prolonged exposure to
sounds of sufficiently high sound pressure will cause temporary or
permanent hearing loss, including in some instances, deafness.
Injurious noises such as those caused by gun fire or jet engines,
and the like, are often composed of a mixture of sound wave
frequencies of varying intensities. These frequencies are in both
the high and low frequency bands and have an intensity sufficient
to cause hearing problems. Individuals who are frequently exposed
to such sounds, such as military personnel and airline baggage
handlers, run the risk of incurring serious injuries to their
hearing. Hearing protection in such environments is needed to
prevent a loss in hearing acuity and the gradual increase in the
threshold of hearing resulting from extended exposures to loud
noises.
[0004] Sound attenuation devices are known which specifically
address this problem. These devices include conventional foam
earplugs, earmuffs, and the like. While these devices protect
against the effects of overexposure to sound having dangerous
frequencies and intensities, they sometimes create a new danger in
that they shut out all environmental sounds, including those of
speech and warning.
[0005] In an effort to overcome this problem of nearly 100%
attenuation, some hearing protection earplugs have been provided
with a selective attenuation capability, wherein the earplug can
offer the wearer the ability to choose between two different
performance settings for the earplug depending upon the environment
of the wearer. In the first mode, for example, sound attenuation is
low for a specific range of intensities above those in the
specified range.
[0006] Selective attenuation is especially effective for the
loudest noises. A sample application of an earplug in the selective
attenuation mode is the intelligible speech transmission in a noisy
environment caused by pulsed noises, such as gunshots, for example.
In the maximum attenuation mode, these earplugs stop all sounds
throughout the intensity range, regardless of their intensity.
[0007] And still others have been disclosed as having adjustable
attenuation, such as, for example: U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,113,207;
3,800,791; 6,082,485; 7,512,243; 8,514,870; 8,345,906; 8,931,489;
6,148,821; 4,540,063; 5,113,967; 9,131,308 and 8,820,470; and US
Patent Application Publication Nos. 2014/0190494 and 2008/0276945;
and WIPO Pat. Appl. No. WO201407319A1; which are all incorporated
herein by reference.
[0008] Perhaps no one appreciates the sense of hearing as much as
musicians. Almost all musical instruments are capable of producing
damaging sound levels, and musicians are at increased risk of
developing music-induced hearing disorders. Moderate-attenuation,
high fidelity hearing protectors, on the other hand, reduce the
risk of music-induced hearing disorders while allowing the musician
to hear clearly.
[0009] Applied to earplugs, the term "high-fidelity" means that
earplugs reduce sound levels while maintaining, as closely as
possible, the quality of the original sound. The average open ear
canal has an acoustic resonant peak of approximately 17 dB at 2700
Hz. Placing an earplug in the ear removes this natural resonance,
resulting in unbalanced attenuation that makes music and voices
sound muffled and unclear. A high-fidelity earplug is designed to
match the open ear response by adding back the resonant peak.
Attenuation should be as even as possible across the frequency
spectrum to reserve the timbre and quality of sound, so that sound
heard while wearing high-fidelity earplugs is essentially the same
as the original, only quieter.
[0010] Custom musician's earplugs consist of a diaphragm
(attenuator "filter" or "button"), which functions as an acoustic
compliance, and a custom earmold or earplug, in which the volume of
the air in the sound bore acts as an acoustic mass. The combination
of the two produces a resonance at approximately 2700 Hz, resulting
in smooth, flat attenuation across the frequency range. Attenuator
buttons are interchangeable, which allows musicians to choose the
filter strength most appropriate for a given situation. Buttons for
various instruments and situations, for example, drums versos solo
vocals, can be selected, for example, a choice of 9, 15, or 25 dB
filters. Since many musicians perform in a variety of groups and
venues, they may need two, or even all three, sets of
interchangeable buttons.
[0011] Electronic musician's earplugs are also available which can
automatically adapt to changes in sound levels, providing
protection when needed and natural hearing when sound levels are
low. For example, a musician plying in a symphony may need
protection from sustained high-level sound and loud transients
(e.g., cymbal), but also need to hear the conductor's instructions
across the stage during rehearsal.
[0012] While these publicly availably and patented earplugs have
been sometimes commercially successful, they typically are not
customizable like the fixed attenuation of some available products
that offer limited choices in the number of frequencies or
intensities they can manage.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] The present invention provides in a first embodiment, a
manually, selectively attenuating earplug button, for insertion
into a cavity of an earplug or earmold of a hearing protection
device, comprising: a longitudinal central axis; a first opening to
receive sound from an ambient environment; a second opening to
output at least a portion of said sound to an ear of a listener
(preferably through a sound bore of an earplug); an audio channel
located between said first and second openings, said audio channel
having a sound attenuation valve for permitting a wearer to
manually adjust the amount of sound admitted to the wearer's ear
from said ambient environment.
[0014] In a second embodiment of this invention a manually,
selectively attenuated earplug button for insertion into an earplug
of a hearing protection device, is provided. The button includes a
longitudinal central axis, a first opening to receive sound from an
ambient environment, such as concert music and the like, a second
opening to output at least a portion of the sound to an ear of a
listener and an audio channel located between the first and second
openings. The audio channel has an inner chamber and an outer
chamber disposed generally along the longitudinal central axis. The
button also includes first and second housing members coaxially
connected together and disposed along said central axis so that
said first housing member can coaxially rotate at least partially
within said second housing member, while said second housing member
is inserted in a relatively fixed position within an earplug. The
first housing member includes the inner chamber of the audio
channel and the second housing member includes the outer chamber of
the audio channel. The first housing member includes a first
sidewall aperture which is in audio communication with the inner
chamber and the first opening. The second housing member has a
second sidewall aperture which is in audio communication with the
outer chamber and the second opening. The button further includes a
sound attenuation turning knob which is provided at an outer end of
the first housing member. The turning knob can be manually
rotatable to rotate the first housing member axially relative to
said second housing member between a first highly attenuated sound
position in which said first and second sidewall apertures are not
in alignment and at least a plurality of further audio
communication positions in which the first and second sidewall
apertures are at least partially aligned to different degrees to
provide sound at a plurality of different sound attenuation levels
to the ear of the listener.
[0015] In a further embodiment of the present invention, the button
could further include selectively interlocking tooth means for
providing a plurality of fixed settings for subsequent manual
adjustment when the turning knob is manually rotated to rotate the
first housing member coaxially at least partially within the second
housing member.
[0016] In still a further embodiment of the present invention, an
earplug of a hearing protection device is provided comprising a
soft resilient material having a hardness on the Shore A Durometer
hardness scale. The earplug has a molded cavity therein for
receiving an earplug button having sound attenuation control
capability.
[0017] The present invention provides for easy removal and
replacement of earplug buttons on-the-fly, so that expensive or
custom-made earplugs or earmolds can be washed and reused over and
over again, or alternatively, disposable foam earplugs could be
discarded while reusing the earplug button. The ear plugs are
desirably molded to have an internal cavity sized to fit a
significant portion of the earplug buttons of the present
invention. One or more filters could also be added to the earplug
buttons of this invention to add an additional layer of attenuation
or hearing refinement.
[0018] The embodiments of the present invention provide for low
cost and disposable earplug buttons having selective sound
attenuation control, as well as earplugs having molded cavities for
receiving such buttons. The preferred buttons can provide
fine-tuned adjustments to hearing protection devices and earplugs
by enabling relatively full attenuation, where sound is
substantially prevented from entering the ear canal, to multiple
attenuation settings so that the wearer can adjust the earplugs or
hearing protection device to his or her own comfort level. The
preferred constructions are low cost offer 3-20 or more settings
and can be fitted into both convention foam, rubber and silicon
earplugs, or into custom-made molded silicone or soft PVC earplugs.
They have a small form factor which can be manufactured into one
size-fits all flexibility regardless of the size of the wearer's
ear. They are also simply designed from a mechanical perspective,
easy to manufacture and easy to change.
[0019] Whereas prior art adjustably attenuated earplugs were
equipped with an entire ear plug, provided limited settings or
merely provided replaceable filters for selective attenuation, the
present earplug buttons can be replaced at any time, and thereafter
manually adjusted during use by the wearer to many different
settings, or swapped out manually to another earplug button, having
different or the same attenuation settings, when ever more or less
attenuation is needed. These earplug buttons are ideal for
musicians who would like to communicate with one another in-between
sets, for example, but still provide the flexibility of different
attenuation levels on-the-fly.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] The accompanying drawings illustrate preferred embodiments
of the invention as well as other information pertinent to the
disclosure, in which:
[0021] FIG. 1: is an isometric view of an earplug button of this
invention;
[0022] FIG. 2: is an exploded view of the earplug button of FIG.
1;
[0023] FIG. 3: contains top and bottom isometric views of the
second housing member of the earplug button, with FIG. 3(a) being a
top isometric view and FIG. 3(b) being a bottom isometric view;
[0024] FIG. 4: is an isometric view of the first housing member of
the earplug button;
[0025] FIG. 5: is side view of the earplug button, illustrating a
fully attenuated, or closed setting of the earplug button;
[0026] FIG. 6: is a side view of the earplug button, illustrating a
fully open setting;
[0027] FIG. 7: is a bottom perspective view of an alternative
embodiment of the first housing member, including a tooth
member;
[0028] FIG. 8: is a bottom view of the alternative embodiment of
the earplug button, showing the tooth member of the first housing
member in an interlocking arrangement with a set of teeth formed in
the second housing member;
[0029] FIG. 9: is a left side perspective and exploded view of the
earplug button of FIG. 1, in combination with a hollowed-out soft
resilient earplug; and
[0030] FIG. 10: is a left side perspective view of a human ear (in
phantom), illustrating the positioning of the button and earplug
combination of FIG. 9.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0031] The present disclosure provides a selectively attenuating
earplug button that can be used with prefabricated foam, rubber,
silicone or custom-made molded soft resilient earplugs. The
preferred earplug button may be adjusted between multiple operating
modes to alter the performance of the earplug. The selective
attenuating earplug button provides, in a first embodiment, at
least a first setting that allows sound having a specified
frequency or intensity to pass to the ear canal of a wearer with
little or no attenuation, and a second setting providing a maximum
level of attenuation across a certain frequency and/or intensity
range, and one or more intermediate (or even an infinite number of)
settings that permit varying degrees of attenuation of sounds in a
different frequencies or intensity ranges. The selective capability
of the earplug button of this embodiment allows a wearer to dial-in
the degree of desired sound attenuation depending on the current
environment surround the wearer. A selective attenuation setting
may be selected when a wearer desires to hear speech or warning
signals in a noisy environment, for example, while still being
protected from dangerous noises. Such a setting may be particularly
desirable when the noisy environment includes loud concert music,
aircraft or motor racing noises, and the like. A maximum
attenuation setting may be selected to minimize most sounds
throughout the frequency range from entering an ear canal,
regardless of the intensity.
[0032] With reference to the figures and in particular, to FIGS.
1-8 thereof, there is shown a preferred manually, selectively
attenuating earplug button 100, for insertion into an earplug or
earmold, for example earplug 45 in FIGS. 9 and 10. The earplug
button 100 includes a longitudinal central axis 11, shown in FIG.
1. As more clearly shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the button 100 includes
a first opening 13 to receive sound from an ambient environment and
a second opening 22 to output at least a portion of the sound to an
ear of a listener. These sounds could be loud music, machinery
noise, or the sound of a jet or race car engine, for example. The
preferred earplug buttons 100 are ideal for musicians, since they
allow multiple settings, such as 3 to 20 settings (such as for
example, 9, 15, or 25 dB of attenuation), for various attenuation
levels of sounds of high to medium sound pressure. In the event a
performer is standing on stage between a drummer and a back-up
singer, she can adjust the earplug nearest the drummer to a higher
setting and the earplug nearest the back-up singer to a relatively
lower setting to balance the sound she is receiving to a safe level
without using two different earplugs or filters.
[0033] The earplug button 100 includes an audio channel located
between the first opening 13 and the second opening or openings 22.
The audio channel includes an inner chamber, shown for example as
inner chamber 23 and an outer chamber, or chambers 25, disposed
generally along the longitudinal central axis 11.
[0034] The earplug button 100 further includes a first housing
member 19 and a second housing member 12 which are preferably
coaxially connected together, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and
disposed along the longitudinal central axis 11, so that the first
housing member 19 can coaxially rotate at least partially within
the second housing member 12, while the second housing member 12 is
inserted in a relatively fixed position within an earplug 45, as
substantially shown in FIG. 9.
[0035] The first housing member 19, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4,
includes the inner chamber 23 of the audio channel the second
housing member 12, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, includes the outer
chamber, or chambers 25 of the audio channel. The first housing
member 19 includes a first sidewall aperture(s) 14 shown in FIGS.
2, 4, and 7, which is in audio communication with the inner
chambers 23 and the first opening 13. The second housing member 12
shown generally in FIGS. 2 and 3, includes a second sidewall
aperture, or apertures 33, which is in audio communication with the
outer chamber, or chambers 25 and the second opening, or openings
22.
[0036] Finally, the preferred earplug button 100 includes a sound
attenuation turning knob 15 shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 4-7 and 9, which
is provided at an outer end of the first housing member 19. The
turning knob 15 is manually rotatable to rotate the first housing
member 19 axially relative to the second housing member 12 between
a first highly attenuated sound position in which the first and
second sidewall apertures 14 and 33 respectively, are not in
alignment and at least a plurality of further audio communication
positions in which the first and second sidewall apertures 14 and
33 are at least partially aligned to different degrees to provide
sound at a plurality of different sound attenuation levels to the
ear of the listener.
[0037] Also in FIG. 5, there is shown an operation of the earplug
button 100, whereby the first sidewall aperture 14 (shown as a pair
in FIG. 7) is not in communication with the outer chamber 25 and
second opening 22 of the second housing member 12. In this
position, the earplug button 100 provides nearly full attenuation,
with sound being blocked as it comes into first opening 13 and
inner chamber 23 by the inner wall surface of the second housing
member 12. As the turning knob 15 is rotated to provide axial
motion to the first housing member 19 it causes a rotation within
the second housing member 12, the first sidewall apertures 14 begin
to align with the pair of second sidewall apertures 33, shown in
FIG. 6. At first the overlap is small and only a little of the
ambient sound is passed through to the outer chambers 25 and second
openings 22, and consequently to the ear of the wearer. But as the
turning knob 15 continues to rotate, more and more of the first
sidewall apertures 14 are exposed or overlap with the second
sidewall apertures 33 until substantially all of the first sidewall
aperture 14 is enveloped, by the second sidewall aperture 33 (or
made coextensive with it), providing very little attenuation, for
allowing wearers to hear soft conversations in a relatively quiet
environment, for example.
[0038] In order to provide relative axial rotation between the
first housing member 19 and the second housing member 12, it is
desirable to prevent the rotation of the second housing member 12
after it is inserted into the earplug 45. This can be accomplished
by sidewall indents 20, shown in FIG. 9. The indents 20 can be
molded into the second housing member 12 during injection molding.
The inner wall of the sidewall indents desirably also provides a
matching surface to the outside wall of the first housing member 19
so that the first housing member 19 can rotate smoothly along the
inner wall of the sidewall indents 20 of the second housing member
12. Thus, the sidewall indents 20 provide dual functions in this
preferred embodiment. Additionally, it can be seen in FIG. 6 that
the first sidewall apertures 14 may have a reduced cross-section
traversing the upper end of the first sidewall aperture 14 shown in
FIG. 6. Another sidewall aperture 14 is preferably disposed on the
opposite side of the first housing member 19, as shown in FIG. 7.
The width of the openings formed by apertures 14 is shown as being
smaller in FIG. 2 because of the sloped or tapered edge 31 shown in
FIG. 6. The tapering of the first sidewall aperture 14, or
apertures, allows for a logarithmic or non-linear attenuation of
the sound entering the ear canal. It also allows slightly greater
attenuation between settings than if the top edge of the first
sidewall aperture 14 was horizontal or flat.
[0039] In a further embodiment of the present invention as shown in
FIGS. 7 and 8, the earplug button 100 may further include
selectively interlocking tooth means, for example, including first
housing teeth or tooth 18 and second housing teeth 28 for providing
a manual adjustment between a plurality of attenuation settings
when said turning knob 15 is manually rotated to rotate the first
housing member 19 coaxially at least partially within the second
housing member 12. These teeth are generally located near the
second opening 22 of the earplug button 100 in the embodiment shown
in FIG. 8. As shown in FIG. 8, there are several female grooves in
the second housing teeth 28 and one male tooth in the first housing
teeth or tooth 18, so there are several different settings shown in
the earplug button 100. It is expected that 3-20, and possibly more
settings, can be provided by increasing the number of teeth, while
providing accurate and predictable settings. Of course this means
that the wearer must adjust the setting to full attenuation in the
event of a threat from ear-damaging noise, but this is simply done
by rotating the turning knob 15 by using one's fingers to locate
the knob indicators 41 shown in FIG. 1, which are raised from the
surface of the turning knob 15, and rotating the turning knob 15
either clockwise or counter-clockwise, depending upon which setting
the device is in.
[0040] In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention,
the first housing teeth or tooth 18 and second housing teeth 28 of
FIG. 3 are made of resilient materials, such as plastic, so that
upon an axial rotation of the first housing member 19 within the
second housing member 12, the first housing teeth 18 can pass over
consecutive teeth in the second housing teeth 28 and provide an
audible clock s the earplug button 100 goes from one attenuation
setting to another. This clicking sound along with the readily
accessible turning knob 15 and knob indicators 41 will provide a
high degree of accuracy for wearers of the earplug button 100. In
more preferred embodiments of the present invention, the second
housing teeth 28 can be made in slightly graduated sizes, so that
the movement of the first housing teeth or tooth 18 over the second
housing teeth 28 will produce a louder (for larger teeth) or softer
(for smaller teeth) sound as the attenuation setting is increased
or decreased.
[0041] The earplug button 100 of the present invention preferably
includes only two components, the first housing member 19 and
second housing member 12, although three or more could also be
used. They are preferably injection molded thermal plastic
components, but they could easily be made out of metal or ceramic
components and made with conventional manufacturing processes. The
earplug buttons 100 are designed in a preferred embodiment, to be
inserted into an earplug 45 which can be of a conventional design,
quite often molded to the shape of the ear of the wearer. Such
molding techniques are known in the relevant art and any suitable
conventional molding technique may be used to produce the earplug
button 100 of the present invention. The earplug button 100 may be
manufactured by using the procedures and details disclosed in U.S.
Pat. No. 4,867,149, and preferably the earplug button 100 is
composed of the same polymeric material, such as nylon,
polystyrene, polypropylene, polyethylene, or suitable low cost
thermoplastic material.
[0042] In some embodiments, the attenuating earplug buttons 100 may
be incorporated into hearing protection kits, such as those
including resilient foam or silicone or rubber earplugs. In such
applications, the earplug button 100 is inserted into resilient
earplugs 45 as shown in FIG. 9. The earplug 45 or ear mold has been
hollowed out, e.g. via molding or machining, etc., to provide a
channel or sound bore along its length and a recess for the button
100. Molding allows for custom made earplugs 45 that can be molded
to match the inner and/or outer ear canal of the user. This design
also permits the earplug button 100 to be replaced, when defective,
or when different attenuation properties are needed a different
tuned earplug button 100 can be inserted, without discarding the
custom molded earplugs.
[0043] As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, this invention also provides an
earplug 45 of a hearing protection device, comprising a soft
resilient material having a hardness on the Shore A or Shore 00
Durometer hardness scales. There are many known resilient polymeric
materials which may be utilized effectively in the fabrication of
the preferred earplugs 45 of the present invention. In one
preferred embodiment, the resilient earplugs 45 can comprise a soft
resilient polymeric foam adapted in size and shape to be inserted
into the human ear canal and acoustically sealed along its
perimeter. In other embodiments the resilient earplug 45 is
composed of a polyurethane foam, natural rubber, neoprene rubber,
SBR rubber, silicone rubber, EPDM rubber, polybutadiene rubber,
polyurethane, elastomers, ethylene vinyl acetate elastomers,
elastomers, based on acrylic acid precursors and vinyl halide
polymers, or combinations thereof. All are generally suitable
materials for construction which can generally be procured from
commercial sources. Thermoplastic compositions such as the family
of thermoplastic injection moldable elastomers can be used. These
thermoplastic compositions are available in a considerable range of
Shore A and Shore 00 Durometer hardness values.
[0044] These compounds can be thermally formed into intricate
shapes by any conventional thermoplastic molding technique, or
poured into a mold made from a cast of a patient's ear. Earplugs
produced can generally be sterilized or cleansed without
degradation thereof.
[0045] In a preferred embodiment, earplug buttons 100 work better
if installed in a more rigid, but still comfortable, earplug, e.g.,
having a Shore A hardness, such as a molded, custom-made silicone
earplug, or a tiered silicone cone shaped earplug. Alternatively,
if the earplug buttons 100 are installed in normal colored-foam
compressible foam earplugs, the wearer won't be able to compress
the earplugs fully to insert them deeply into their ears, so he or
she may have to try inserting the earplugs into his or her ears
multiple times to get the right fit, and feel when they're seated
properly. The preferred earplug 45 has a molded cavity therein
sized for receiving an earplug button 100 having sound attenuation
control capability. The cavity or recess can vary from about
0.125'' to about 1' in diameter and or depth, and can be molded
around the earplug insert 100. Preferred buttons 100 can be glued,
molded into, or unglued and inserted into the cavity of the earplug
45. If merely inserted, they are completely transferable to
different foam or silicone plugs if desired. To minimize fall out,
the buttons 100 can be made to frictionally fit within the earplug
45. To insert the button 100, the wearer can stretch the back of
the earplug 45 and re-insert it.
[0046] If the earplug 45 is molded over the button 100, the hard
plastic of the button 100 can be made to have a melt or adhesive
bond with the earplug 45, or no bond at all. Over-molding
manufacturing processes can be used so that the interface between
these components can include one or more interlocking inner and
outer wall extended and impressed surfaces which, for example, can
be formed by the impressions of sidewall indents 20, or a recessed
rim around the earplug button 100 and matching extensions or a ring
on the inside wall of the earplug 45 (not shown). Other shapes
other that those shown could be used, and the earplug cavity could
have impressions itself molded to receive extended surfaces of the
earplug button 100, instead. The idea of selectively mechanically
locking the earplug 45 and earplug button 100 together can be
accomplished in many different ways, including using friction
alone, threads, and/or a mechanical lock and/or adhesive, so long
as the resulting effect is to restrain the earplug button 100 so
that it can be manually adjusted by the wearer without
substantially moving it within the earplug 45.
[0047] In some embodiments, the attenuating earplug buttons 100 may
include multiple attenuator buttons 100 each having the same
maximum attenuation which may be used as replacements or backups.
In other embodiments, the plurality of buttons 100 may include an
assortment of different attenuator valves (such as, the valve of
the preferred button 100, a conical pin valve with a conical mating
seat; a compressible sound attenuation media which attenuates more
sound as it is compressed and becomes denser, and/or button
filters). The valves and optional filters can have different
maximum attenuations such as 9, 15, or 25 dB of attenuation, or
multiple settings, such as 9, 15, or 25 dB settings within a single
button 100 (which can made to further vary over portions of typical
hearing frequencies), or set attenuation increments of 2 dB, per
click or set rotation of the turning knob 15, so that a wearer can
select the amount of protection needed based on expected exposure
to noises or loud environmental sounds, on-the-fly, without having
to take out the earplugs 45.
[0048] It is often desirable to provide a pair of earplugs tethered
together by means of a length of cord, rope or tether. A
combination of two sets of earplug buttons 100 and earplugs 45 can
be joined together similarly. Such a tethered earplug construction
can serve to prevent accidental dropping or loss. This can be
useful, for instance, where the earplugs 45 are to be utilized in
an industrial food processing environment or in an environment
where a dropped earplug 45 or button 100 would likely be
contaminated so as to be rendered unusable or lost altogether.
[0049] The buttons 100 are compatible with the left and right ears,
and turn in "opposite" directions (clockwise and counterclockwise)
for opening and closing the audio channel. Alternatively, the
buttons 100 can be made so that they both operate in a clockwise or
counterclockwise direction, designating one button for the right
ear and one button for the left ear.
[0050] From the foregoing, it can be realized that this invention
provides improved earplug buttons 100 which provide the wearer with
interchangeability between, disposable foam, molded or hollowed out
conventional or custom earplugs for hearing protection devices. The
earplug buttons can have a more inexpensive construction than
former devices, and a greater number of attenuation settings.
Although various embodiments have been illustrated, this is for the
purpose of describing but not limiting the invention. Various
modifications which will become apparent to one skilled in the art,
are within the scope of this invention described in the attached
claims.
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