Earbud and method of manufacture
US8413331B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 22, 2011 |
| Grant date | Apr 9, 2013 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 22, 2031 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10T29/49572
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An earbud (10) for carrying sound from a source (16) to a person's ear canal, includes a soft foam body (20) and a sleeve (26) of stiffer material lying within the body. The body is molded around the sleeve and is chemically bonded to the sleeve without an adhesive between them. The earbud is molded around the sleeve by placing the sleeve on a mandrel pin (42) within a mold cavity (32) placing foamable material in the mold and closing the mold. The mold has shoulders with one mold shoulder (52) that abuts one end (46) of the sleeve and another mold shoulder (60) that lies within 0.1 millimeter of the other sleeve end (62), to prevent foaming material from leaking into the space (64) between the mandrel pin and the sleeve passage.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.