Med-el Elektromedizinische Geraete Gmbh

Med-el. Elektromedizinische Gerate Ges.m.b.h.

Heinz Kurz Gmbh Medizintechnik

Thomas Zahnert

Karl-Bernd Hüttenbrink

Gert Hofmann

Matthias Bornitz

Alexander Hellmuth

Hannes Seidler

Karl-Bernd Huettenbrink

Matthias Blau

An implantable microphone for use in hearing systems includes a housing having a sidewall, a first membrane coupled to a top portion of the housing and configured to move in response to movement from an auditory ossicle, and a second membrane coupled to the sidewall such that an interior volume of the housing is divided into a first volume and a second volume. The first volume has an opening that permits fluid to flow out from the first volume. The implantable microphone also includes a vibration sensor coupled to the second membrane and configured to measure the movement of the second membrane and to convert the measurement into an electrical signal. The vibration sensor may include a piezoelectric sensor and/or a MEMS sensor.

Implantable microphone for hearing systems

An implantable microphone for use in hearing systems includes a housing having a back wall. The back wall has a recess (e.g., blind hole) configured to be coupled to an auditory ossicle. The implantable microphone also includes a membrane coupled to a top portion of the housing and a vibration sensor adjacent to the membrane. The membrane is configured to move in response to movement from the auditory ossicle, and the vibration sensor is configured to measure the movement of the membrane and to convert the measurement into an electrical signal.

An implantable microphone for use in hearing systems includes a housing having a sidewall, a first membrane coupled to a top portion of the housing and configured to move in response to movement from an auditory ossicle, and a second membrane coupled to the sidewall such that an interior volume of the housing is divided into a first volume and a second volume. The second membrane has an opening that permits fluid to flow from the first volume to the second volume. The implantable microphone also includes a vibration sensor adjacent to the second membrane and configured to measure the movement of the second membrane and to convert the measurement into an electrical signal. The vibration sensor may include a piezoelectric sensor and/or a MEMS sensor.

The invention relates to an implantable electromechanical converter for receiving oscillations from an ear ossicle and for converting them into an electrical voltage, for use as a microphone for a cochlea implant or an implantable hearing aid, consisting of one or more piezoelectric converter elements () housed in a hermetically sealed hollow body () made of a biocompatible material. The converter is characterized in that the hollow body has a thin shell () which is connected with its interior side to the piezoelectric converter elements and which can be coupled with its exterior side to an ear ossicle, and which is held by a stable edge (), whereby the stable edge can be coupled to a counter-support in the middle ear space.

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Dresden, Germany

Thomas Zahnert